Going on vacation but worried about your GAINZ? Don’t be!

Ahh, April. Spring is in the air, flowers are beginning to bloom and with any luck, the snow is gone until at least a cool late August evening. Once summer hits, our priorities begin to change. Holidays start to pop up, and you definitely want to hit the sun and show off that nice bod you’ve been keeping under wraps all winter. But with that comes the worry: “what about all those sweet gainz Jon and Thomas helped me make this winter? I know I’m a 10/10 on the swole scale now but what if I take some time off? Are my gainz as good as gone?” Fear not, because a new study yields the answers to these important questions…

The Study:

Researchers at Baylor University were curious how an acute (short) period of detraining (not exercising) would affect the strength and size improvements made during a resistance training program. For their study, 20 subjects trained 4 times per week for 4 weeks. This was immediately followed by 2 weeks of detraining. The researchers measured the subject’s leg press strength and the cross sectional area and lean mass composition of the rectus femoris (the big muscle in your thigh) before and after the 4 week training program and again after the 2 week detraining period. Interestingly, the improvements made in leg press strength over the 4 week training program were not impacted by the 2 week detraining period.

The Take Home Message:

Fear not, for your gainz are safe during your summer holidays. While you won’t improve your strength or size on a holiday, you certainly will not lose what you have gained over the winter months. It is difficult to say how a longer period of detraining will impact the improvements you have made but who really wants to be away from JKC for more than 2 weeks!

Reference:

Hwang, P.S., Andre, T.L., McKinley-Barnard, S.K., Marroquin, F.E.M., Gann, J.J., Song, J.J., Willoughby, D.S. (2017). Resistance training induced elevations in muscular strength in trained men are maintained after 2 weeks of detraining and not differently affected by whey protein supplementation. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 31(4), 869-881.

Prepared for the JKC blog by Coach Thomas

Emily Noble

Personal Strength Training by Jon-Erik Kawamoto

I recently visited Newfoundland for one month, and was looking for a good place to train while I was there. Jon and the team at JK conditioning really took the time to assess what I already knew, and set achievable goals for the time that I had with them. The gym was such a great place to push yourself. It had everything you needed, but more importantly it had a well organized, very knowledgeable, and really motivating group of trainers to push you at each workout. Not to mention a really nice group of other members who also motivated me to go that little bit further. I would highly recommend the gym to anyone who has a goal and wants to find a place to help them achieve it.

Cas Dyke

Personal Strength Training by Thomas King

I started training at JKC in 2016 because I had built up a number of muscle imbalances from old injuries and activities like rock climbing which had led to some really bad posture and mobility issues. On top of that some friends had convinced me to sign up for a half-ironman. Working with Jon and Thomas was a way to pull my body back into alignment and make sure it wouldn’t fall apart during my race. The staff at JKC pride themselves on continuously advancing their knowledge, which leads to new and inventive way to address problems, old and new. I got my Dad to start training here and recommended JKC to all looking to improve their strength and fitness.

Teri Stuckless

After my children were born, I was completely out of shape. I had been active before my first pregnancy in 2008. I saw a post on social media about a charity event that was hosted at the gym. It prompted me to check out the JKC website. I was immediately impressed by the professional content and decided to give it a try. The professionally crafted and uniquely tailored work outs, as well as the sense of accountability and commitment that they foster. I have not missed a workout since joining – contrary to other experiences I have had when purchasing gym memberships. The flexibility of booking and rescheduling workouts, made easy by an online app, also contributed to my success in meeting my fitness goals.

I enjoy every session, working out with Jon, Thomas and Craig, as well as the “JKC Community”. Anytime someone achieves a personal best, I enjoy the celebration and support everyone gives each other. For me, I fondly remember achieving personal bests on bench press, chin ups and the sled push, in particular.

Keir McIsaac

I recently turned 40, and I have been training at JKC since the summer of 2020. My partner Michael had already been training at JKC, so it came highly recommended. We had set up a home gym at the start of the pandemic, but needed to mix it up after the first lockdown. JKC differs from other gyms because of the personalized workouts. Jon, Thomas and Craig are great at challenging me to do more than I would on my own.

Dave Sullivan

I’ve always struggled with both my weight and anxiety throughout my life. As a writer you live a pretty sedentary lifestyle filled with both realistic and unrealistic deadlines, so I needed something to get me off my butt and to get me moving. JK has been a godsend during this past year and a half in particular. The pandemic has been tough, but workouts with both Thomas and Jon have really helped reduce the stress and strain of a global pandemic, and added an anchor of normalcy back into my life — which has been worth its weight in gold.

JKC has created an incredibly inclusive environment that’s filled with all kinds of supportive folks from all kinds of different backgrounds. For folks like myself, being surrounded by people with such athletic ability can be intimidating in most gyms. It can actually be a deterrent, and it sometimes has been for me. But, at JKC it’s far from that — it’s inspirational. Everyone supports one another. Which is something that’s not easily found in this day and age, inside of a gym or out. Not to sound like a total cheeseball here, but it really feels like a family.

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