Getting Back into Exercise After a Break: A Guide for the Over-55s
By James Hilton, founder of Jim’s Gym
A break from exercise costs less than you might expect. Your muscles hold on to a good share of the work you put in, and they pick it up again faster the second time.
So if you’re getting back into exercise after a break and you’re over 55, start a little below where you left off, build up over a few weeks, and expect your strength to return sooner than it took to earn.
I’ve read four studies on what happens when people stop training and then start again. For each one I’ll tell you what it found, who took part and where they differ from you. After that there’s a plan for your first fortnight back.
What your muscles keep while you’re away
In 2015, Carla Coetsee and Elmarie Terblanche published a South African trial in the European Review of Aging and Physical Activity [1]. They took 41 inactive men and women aged 55 to 75, with an average age of 62. Twenty-two did resistance training three times a week for 16 weeks. The other 19 carried on as normal. Then the training group stopped for 16 weeks.
On the leg press, the weight the trained group could lift ten times went from an average of 70.5 kg to 157.1 kg. After 16 weeks without training it was 123.7 kg. Some had gone. Most of it was still there, and the upper body followed the same pattern.
One thing did slip back. Their time on a stand-up-and-walk test returned to where it started. So the strength stayed, and the nimbleness wanted practice.
The fair warnings: it was a small trial, the volunteers were screened and healthy, they trained on gym machines and free weights, and 19 of the 22 came back for the final test. A class in your living room is a different setting.
How quickly strength comes back
Sara Blocquiaux and colleagues published a study in Experimental Gerontology in 2020 [2]. Thirty older men did 12 weeks of resistance training, with 10 more as a comparison group. They then stopped for a similar length of time and trained again for another 12 weeks.
Training raised their knee strength and power by 10 to 36 per cent. The break took 5 to 15 per cent back off. Then the part I like: it took less than eight weeks of retraining to get their maximum lift back to where it had been.
Twelve weeks to build it and under eight to recover it.
The limits. Everyone in it was a man, the published summary doesn’t give their ages, and strength was measured on one knee exercise. It’s a small study, so treat it as a pointer.
A break doesn’t put you behind for good
In 2024, Eeli Halonen and colleagues at the University of Jyväskylä in Finland reported a trial in the Scandinavian Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports [3]. They recruited 55 healthy adults who were new to strength training, and 42 completed it. One group trained for 20 weeks without stopping. The other trained for 10 weeks, took 10 weeks off, then trained for 10 more.
The group with the break lost some strength and muscle size while they were off. In their first five weeks back they gained strength and size faster than the other group had at the same stage, and by the end the two groups had made similar progress.
They differ from you in two ways. Their average age was 32, and every session was supervised, twice a week. This trial can’t tell you whether a 65-year-old recovers at the same rate. What I take from it is the direction, which matches the two studies of older adults above.
Strength outlasts muscle size
Scott Bickel, James Cross and Marcas Bamman ran a trial published in Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise in 2011 [4]. Seventy adults took part, some aged 20 to 35 and some aged 60 to 75. Everyone did resistance training three days a week for 16 weeks. For the next 32 weeks they either stopped completely or carried on with a much smaller amount, a third or a ninth of what they’d been doing.
For those who stopped, the strength they’d gained was largely still there 32 weeks on, with only a slight drop at the last measurement.
Muscle size was a different matter. The smaller amounts of training kept it in the younger group and didn’t in the older one. The authors concluded that people aged 60 to 75 need more weekly training than younger adults to hold on to muscle size, while their strength was well preserved.
The published summary doesn’t say how many of the 70 were in each group. For you, it says two things. The strength may be closer than it looks. And once you’re back, turning up regularly is what holds the muscle.
Your first fortnight back
This part is my advice as a trainer. It doesn’t come from the studies.
Do less than you remember doing. Finish your first session feeling you had more in you. That’s the right amount, and it means you can still get down the stairs two days later.
Pick one class and do it. Then put the next one in the diary before you’ve taken your trainers off.
Aim for two sessions a week with some strength in them. Twice a week is what the Finnish trial used.
Fill the gaps with something that gets you breathing harder. We aren’t expecting long arduous sessions, but getting 30 minutes a day in 10-minute blocks is a great start.
A bit of stiffness the next day is usual when muscles meet work again. Sharp pain is different, so stop and get that looked at.
If your break followed an illness, an injury or an operation, speak to your GP or physio before you start, and tell them what you’re planning to do.
Where to start at Jim’s Gym
The live timetable has 15+ classes a week on Zoom: Fitness and Strength with me, Zumba Gold with Row, Yoga with Virginia, Pilates with Aimie, Tai Chi with Andy, Dancercise with Anna, and Balance. Many have seated and standing options, so you choose the level on the day.
Every live class is recorded and there are 1,000+ on-demand videos. Most classes work in a living room with little or no equipment.
Mandy wrote this about coming back: “Really enjoying being back in James’s exercise classes. Not only are his exercises excellent and geared to all levels, his classes are hugely entertaining. James makes them fun with his laughter.”
Your next step
Start with the free Fitness MOT. It’s five exercises at home, with no scoring and no pass mark. After a break it shows you where you are today. Retake it every four to six weeks and you can watch what comes back.
Then join Jim’s Gym for £12.99 a month. That’s 15+ live classes a week on Zoom, 1,000+ on-demand videos and the Healthy Habits Club, with a 30-day money-back guarantee, no contracts and no joining fees. Or join for the year and get 2 months on me.
It’s never too late.
Our affordable monthly membership is great for those just starting out or who may need to take a break for a big adventure! The yearly option gives you two months' FREE membership and a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Quick questions, straight answers
How do I start exercising again after a long break?
Start exercising again after a long break by doing less than you used to and building up over several weeks. Choose one class or activity, finish the first sessions with energy to spare and aim for two strength sessions a week. If the break followed illness, injury or surgery, speak to your GP or physio first.
How long does it take to get your strength back after a break?
Strength usually returns faster than it was first built. In a 2020 study of 30 older men, 12 weeks of resistance training was followed by a break of similar length, and it took less than eight weeks of retraining to recover their maximum strength. The study was small and included only men.
Do you lose all your strength if you stop exercising?
Stopping exercise does not wipe out all your strength. In a 2015 trial of adults aged 55 to 75, average leg press strength rose from 70.5 kg to 157.1 kg after 16 weeks of training and was still 123.7 kg after 16 weeks without training. Their time on a walking test did return to its starting level.
Is it harder to get fit again after 60?
Getting fit again after 60 is achievable, and strength holds up well. A 2011 trial of 70 adults found strength gains were largely retained through 32 weeks without training. The same trial found adults aged 60 to 75 needed more weekly training than younger adults to keep muscle size, so regular sessions matter.
What is the best exercise to restart with over 55?
The best exercise to restart with over 55 is one you enjoy enough to repeat, with some strength work twice a week. Jim’s Gym is an online membership for adults over 55 with 15+ live classes a week on Zoom, including Pilates, Yoga, Tai Chi and Balance. Many classes have seated and standing options.
References
[1] Coetsee C, Terblanche E. The time course of changes induced by resistance training and detraining on muscular and physical function in older adults. European Review of Aging and Physical Activity. 2015;12:7. https://doi.org/10.1186/s11556-015-0153-8
[2] Blocquiaux S, Gorski T, Van Roie E, Ramaekers M, Van Thienen R, Nielens H, Delecluse C, De Bock K, Thomis M. The effect of resistance training, detraining and retraining on muscle strength and power, myofibre size, satellite cells and myonuclei in older men. Experimental Gerontology. 2020;133:110860. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.exger.2020.110860
[3] Halonen EJ, Gabriel I, Kelahaara MM, Ahtiainen JP, Hulmi JJ. Does taking a break matter: Adaptations in muscle strength and size between continuous and periodic resistance training. Scandinavian Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports. 2024;34(10):e14739. https://doi.org/10.1111/sms.14739
[4] Bickel CS, Cross JM, Bamman MM. Exercise dosing to retain resistance training adaptations in young and older adults. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise. 2011;43(7):1177-1187. https://doi.org/10.1249/MSS.0b013e318207c15d
James Hilton is the founder of Jim’s Gym, an online fitness community for adults over 55, based near Stroud, Gloucestershire. He set it up for people who want to keep doing the things they love, with classes, community and a fair bit of laughing along the way.