Is it okay to take a break from training?

Welcome back to the AE Golf Performance newsletter! It’s been awhile since my last post but it’s time to get back on schedule.

This week I want to discuss a recent study that may resonate with a lot of people. In an ideal world, we want to be consistent with our fitness and training. You’ve been consistent with your training program and have made some nice progress. What happens if life gets in the way and you have to step back from gym work for a bit?

Did you just waste all that time in the gym?

The short answer is no, but let’s dive into a recent study on the topic.

A Review of Halonen et al. (2024)

Study Title: "Does Taking a Break Matter-Adaptations in Muscle Strength and Size Between Continuous and Periodic Resistance Training"

Background of the Study

Consistency is an important aspect of training. Many of the physical and functional changes we want to achieve via gym-based training take time, effort, and patience. But life also gets in the way, and expecting 100% perfect adherence is usually not realistic. Many people fear that they’ll lose all their gains if they have to take time off, and that the time and effort spent training will be wasted. Luckily this is not the case.

There is a well-established training principle called detraining, where extended periods of reduced or no training can lead to reductions in training gains (e.g., muscle strength, power, size, etc.). BUT, the human body also has a remarkable ability to regain those lost gains when you return back to your consistent training schedule.

In other words, it is much easier to regain detrained gains than it was to build them up in the first place! The investment up front provides a solid safety net and foundation for when life gets in the way and training takes a back seat.

This study by Halonen et al. (2024) demonstrated this concept nicely.

Study Purpose: Compare training outcomes between groups that either trained for 20-weeks continuously (continuous resistance training) or for 20 weeks, but with a 10-week detraining period in the middle (periodic resistance training).

Methods

• A group of relatively untrained male and female participants were randomly assigned to the continuous resistance training group (CRT) or periodic resistance training group (PRT).

• Both groups performed identical resistance training programs, consisting of 2 whole-body sessions per week. The program was designed to stimulate whole-body strength and hypertrophy (muscle size). The only difference was that the CRT group performed training for 20-weeks straight, while the PRT group had a 10-week break in the middle.

• Measures of muscle strength (Leg Press and Biceps Curl 1RM), muscle size (cross-sectional area of vastus lateralis and biceps), and jump height were measured every 5-weeks to track changes over time.

What They Found

• Both groups ended up at a statistically similar point by the end of the study. But they had different trajectories to get there.

• The CRT group had steady/progressive gains throughout.

• The PRT group had initial gains in all measures during the first 10-weeks of training, which decreased during the 10-week break from training. But these gains rapidly shot back up when they returned back to training!

• In fact, the PRT group regained muscle size, strength, and jump height much faster after the training break than it took them to build it up in the first place.

Discussion/Takeaways

This study is a great example of how the body can form “muscle memory” about the gains you’ve built up over time, which makes it easier to get the gains back quickly if you have to take a break from training. So the time and effort to train consistently is not wasted if life gets in the way. Instead it creates a strong foundation upon which you can rebuild.

How does this occur? It’s a complex process, and more research is needed to fully understand the mechanisms. But there seems to be a few ways that the body forms this “muscle memory” as you train.

• Increased myonuclei: Unlike other cells in the body, muscle fibers have multiple nuclei that help control their development and function. Consistent training can increase the number of these myonuclei over time, which may help you regain lost gains later on when you return back to training.

• Epigenetic Modifications: Training can cause changes in epigenetics, or how genes are expressed. It is believed that consistent training can alter the epigenetic response, making it easier to regain strength, power, and size after a period of detraining.

• Neural Adaptations: There are coordination and skill-based adaptations that occurs within the neuromuscular system when you train specific movement patterns over time. These adaptations stick around for awhile after you stop training.

What does this mean from a practical standpoint?

• Consistent training is the ideal situation over the long-term. And you need to spend some time consistently training to build up this “muscle memory” in the first place. So do not take this post as an excuse to train less consistently.

• BUT, your time and effort is not wasted if you have to temporarily step back from training. Whether life gets in the way, or you are returning to training after a hiatus, the work you put in upfront will benefit you as you start training again.

• Training is a long-term endeavor. It is not the end of the world if you have to take an occasional break. You may lose some gains in the short-term, but can rapidly regain them (often within a few weeks) when you get back at it.

• This also has implications for planning training within a calendar year. We can program more concentrated blocks of training for a golfer during the off-season, maintain during busy competitive stretches, and take advantage of “muscle memory” to rapidly regain any losses and build better than ever for the following year.

So go get after it in training, and build solid habits that can be done continuously. But you also do not need to panic if your schedule is disrupted for a little while for two main reasons:

1. Once you’ve built a solid foundation, it takes less total training volume to maintain it. So you can usually modify your training (e.g., drop it back to 1-2 days/week or cut out a bit of volume from each session) and prevent a loss of your gains.

2. If you do have to completely stop training for some reason, that solid training foundation will make it much easier to regain all the hard-earned gains when you get back at it!

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