What was your longest break from training and how did it affect you?

Currently at like 1-2 a week down from 6 days a week it's really shitty

I got visually thinner around the upper part of my torso. Couldn't lift furniture as easily as before. Felt slightly less confident around men.

Isn't 6x a week overtraining?

you did not mention how long you did not train for though

Id say it depends on the volume of your training

6 low volume workouts a week is not overtraining

3ish months during 2nd year due to severe case of mono. Lost some muscle but kept diet in check and protein high just like I was still lifting. Once I got back in the gym I was back to progressing after a month or so.

since July because I tore my shoulder and still on recovery
feels bad bruhs

ACL tear, 8 months off, fair bit of rehab

after rehab and "starting" again it took me ~1.5 months to get back to my previous levels

Yeah dude I seriously just sat and sipped coffee all day and I don't see a point.

31 years.

I was completely untrained, skinny fat and unremarkable.

2.5 years, my bench only dropped 20lbs over the course of that time, squat has actually gone up since then, and diddly has gone up

These last four days and I want to die.

I'm taking an involuntary break now. I cut my finger a few weeks ago and ended up nicking the tendon. I had to go for surgery and was advised that I should avoid heavy lifting for at least 6 weeks. Hopefully I can go back at the end of March.

7 months of no real lifting. basically killed me seeing as i was repping 1/2/3/4. went back for a short while and got up to some decent numbers but lost interest again. then basically another 2 months off. Now it feels like i'm restarting. feels bad because my lifts could be so much higher

I've been sick for 9 days. I'm starting to lift again and it's fucking embarrassing how much strength I've lost.
Feel like a DYEL again. But, time to pull out my thumb and fucking get on with it. I will not slide back into being a worthless piece of shit damnit!

7 months, my incline didn't drop but everything else has suffered, I can't even do something like dips at the moment if I do another exercise before it because i'm not used to lifting

Took a year off cause I was living overseas and went from 82kg to 65kg. It's like I never lifted in the first place, lost pretty much all my strength. However progress is much faster now, been back at it since late November and back at 76kg.

5 months

gf left me, I hated my job, hated the insane person I lived with, so I decided to leave the country

ended up working on an organic farm on the other side of the world

only ate a vegetarian diet

did no lifting whatsoever

lost 12kgs and all of my gains

I got home in November last year and started lifting again. When I stopped lifting in July I was at 140kg deadlift, 110kg squat, 75kg bench, 50kg OHP after 6 months lifting

It's now March and I'm only at 72kg, 5'9", 120kg deadlift, 75kg squat, 75kg bench, 47.5kg OHP

I've only really gotten back into squatting and deadlifting last week.

Stomach virus knocked me out for two weeks over Christmas, I lost nine pounds. Went back to lifting with a deload day, went fine, was lifting the same numbers as always two days later.

About 1.5 years due to depression and would start again for 5 months and stop for around 4. Rinse and repeat. I just starting back up after not working out once last semester. Already got most of my gains back.

9 months off from leg lifting (knee issues and lower back) but kept cycling
3 months off everything except cycling just because I was busy as fuck.

My squat took 3 months to get back to where it was.
5 months in and my DL still isnt back to where it was, but also I havent been pushing it as that was how I hurt my knee.
after 3 months my bench and OHP is more or less back.

last time one month-ish
got flu then xmas then new year and w/e
went back and i was stronger and all my lifts improved

I took November through February off and I nearly went insane.

literally years. i broke my left arm straight through in 2 different spots and wrist, and tore the muscles. it got really fucked up. was in a huge cast that went from my fingertips to my armpit. my left arm is still weak compared to right, and it will never feel right.

2 weeks cause really sick and I feel like killing myself

5 years. I went down from 110kg Bench 1RM to 60kg.

Army BCT/AIT, went into it ~215lbs and probably around 3 rep 1/2/3/4...

Purposely tried to cut as much weight as possible. Only ate salad, cottage cheese, and the "high" protein shit from MREs. Was around 170lbs when I was all done. Obviously I didn't stop exercising, but lost major gym gains.

Could run faster and longer though.

Started lifting again after, but recouped more fat than I wanted

fpbp

A year, i was very ill. Took about a year and a half to get back to where i was before. But that was catching up 8 years of progress so i guess muscle memory is a thing.

Story?

3 years and I lost all of my gains. Started working out again 6 months ago and have made good progress but I'm not sure if it's any faster than it was first time. People say you regain muscle faster if you've had it in the past but it doesn't really feel that way for me.

Depends on your age too.

One week. This last week.

Had to pause anything but light liss cardio for 11 months cause injury.

Strength was gone and I got a bit of chub, but my back and chest blew up in size like a Looney Toons ACME Just Add Water packet the exact moment I started heavy-ish compounds again. Felt good.

trainer no more than 20 times since august and I've also gained 40lbs

>took a week off
>suddenly got flu, cold
>lift again and colds are gone

>4 days
>got stronger

Yeah

6 days here, cause sick.

Remarkably I haven't gained weight like I thought I would.

2weeks with shit nutrition and 5h avg sleep.
literally nothing

I played hs football and could rep 315 on bench and squat 475 for reps, all before I was 18. I burnt out, starting smoking and drinking and didn't lift for 6-7 years in college/after.

I blew up to 300 and got a gym membership in late Jan. I could barely do 135 on bench or ohp 80 lbs. I'm now at 225 lb bench and trying 135 ohp tomorrow. I seperated my a.c. joint this past week. What do?

Did absolute brosplits on and off for 4 years and then nothing for 3.5 years
Never cared about diet at all

Just started again in December and started eating a lot more and much cleaner meals and bulked up around 15 lbs and my strength is already passed my peak in my brosplit years

I took about two years off, lost all my gains, had to start back at 0
Serves me right for being a bitch I guess

About 6 months. Stopped going during exams in July, had vacations in August and then only got myself to the gym in February. Lost about 2kg and im already back to where i was. Weighted 67 when i stopped and its toward the end of March and im 68kg. Im a skinny skeleton, hard gainer and hard loser, i didnt count calories at all during my down time, the gains were loyal.

I followed a 5x5 routine religiously for a year and got disenfranchised with the results. I took 6 months away from training and my strength was gone and I had lost 10kg. Didn't matter because I was went past my old weights 5 months in at a lower bodyweight by following Sheiko.

22 years

I was a dyel

I will have a 3 week break because of my hair transplant

Quit for 6 months nothing happened life was the same. Lifting for a purpose is a meme but it's fun to do anyway.

Such is life, m8s.
I remember before I took care of myself I thought being fit and healthy would feel so great. It would surely fix so many problems. While it did fix my self image and being healthy in general is nice, it wasnt some miracle fix.

I've been lifting 4+ years. At this point gains are at a crawl. I also realized that all you actually need in life is to be lean so that your face looks good.

There is no point in going to the gym 5x a week and running 5x a week, meticulously counting macros, etc. For anyone with a demanding career, that becomes far more trouble than it's worth, and saps time out of other hobbies or relationship building time.

Imo the best routine is a full body (or upper/lower/upper) 3x a week, 30 minute jog on days not lifting, and one rest day. You'll be more muscular than the average person, and the cardio will help stay lean. 30 minutes 3 times a week is also the sweet spot for dem dere health benefits.
You dont have to eat perfectly. Portion control and smart choices will be plenty enough for diet.

Cook your own food, avoid sugar, eat mostly lean meats and veggies, etc. But all this shit like dodging dinners with family or friends, refusing to have a beer with your dad once in a while, avoiding chill times with friends to avoid alcohol in the situations, refusing a shot with your best bud, nah. That shit's autistic. And if youre really that committed, a beer once every blue moon literally wont even matter.

I legitimately dont like drinking. Even before I lifted, I never did it. I still go out and hang and stuff. I just say I dont drink. If they ask why, I say because I just dont care for it. Simple and the truth. People dont think more of it.

Point being, dont let fitness consume you to where you push away others. I see it all the time. Who is going to mire your gains if you have no friends?

3 years "off". I got demotivated and then moved country, got a stressful job and just wanted to sleep after work. I went from plus pic related to about 60% of it. +5kg mass, and it ain't muscle...

I recently got a new job and there is a gym one floor above me. Things are looking up.

been five years for me. haven't tried to do anything exercise related yet. really don't care too either. i don't feel out of shape even though i gained 20lbs. i still have some muscle definition but not like i used too. doesn't bother me as i've given up on life for the most part. i only lurk on Veeky Forums for:

>pics of fit girls
>lulz
>reading shitposts

I havent gone since thursday this week because my mom moved and i was helping her, i feel so fucking weak Tomorrow morning i will rape my quads

>OHPing with a separated shoulder
I think you got a few too many concussions back in high school friendo

About 2 years through senior year high school and freshman year of college

I lost all strength and gains. Before those two years I was a hardcore curlbro in high school and my bench was like double what I could squat.

For some reason my chest has always been strong and big ever since. Maybe I just had good chest genetics and never realized.

These days I only bench once every two weeks because I mostly train olympic lifts and if I bench any more often than that my body starts to look disproportionate.

Two weeks because of being sick.
Came back stronger and squats felt smooth as fuck, like my body finally got to loosen up after two years of stress. Started taking it easier in my deload weeks since.

Is it a good idea to take a week or two off, been lifting for 2 or so years and I've only done one week off after the first year.

Spent a couple years being a burnout pothead. Lost all my noob gainz and went back to skelly mode. Now I use those cringe worthy years as motivation to keep improving myself

Fucking took five straight days off a few weeks back because I had the flu. I could feel all my gains quickly going. My noodle arms turned into linguine.

When I started lifting again, all my lifts shot up significantly.

About a month a half. During which time I lost a lot of weight due to health related issues.
Started at 80kg went to 96kg and dropped to 86kg and now I am at 94kg. I almost bounced back. So... yay me. I will do whatever it takes to build my body.

about 6 months due to pre-surgery/surgery for a hernia, then intermittent for nearly a year after that. I had to relearn to squat from bodyweight, and afterwards I ended up tweaking something nearly monthly. It was usually my hamstrings, with a few shoulder and knee issues tossed in.

At some point during that, I re-nailed my squat form, then I was involved in a near accident driving to work. Slammed on my brakes to avoid hitting 2 pedestrians at the hospital intersection. Some asshole ran the light opposite. 2 others dead, a few serious injuries. I pulled something in my back, and though I've never been 100% since it's the rare day that I feel that flareup. had re-re-start squatting , and sumo only now for me unless it's in my sub-50% range

3 months now cause i'm doing a program to learn spanish while traveling through spanish speaking countries in south america and am broke as all fucking hell. I keep doing cardio tho.

Lost 8kg so far and look so visibly weak it's pathetic. Going to Lima next week and enroling in a gym, who the fuck needs 3 meals a day

>Imo the best routine is a full body (or upper/lower/upper) 3x a week, 30 minute jog on days not lifting, and one rest day.

I work around 50hrs/week on average, and this pretty similar to what I have settled on.

I do upper/lower/cardio x2 + 1 rest day. Personally I need 2 days in between my runs or I will inevitably develop injuries. My workouts are an hour or less, and preferably stuff that I can do at home so I am not wasting time driving to the gym/etc. It's actually quite sustainable this way and I am way ahead of average in terms of strength and fitness.

>disenfranchised
Think you mean disillusioned

6 months and counting, no bench pressing but everything else is fine.
It's demoralizing desu, that was my favorite lift.
Now I am deadlift and squat, fag.
Oh well! I should probably cut OHP as well so my shoulder can heal.

8-10 months due to tennis elbow followed by ulnar nerve entrapment.
Fuck lads its been hard. I put on 6 kg of fat due to turning into a lazy sack.
Easijg back into gym but my left elbow is playing up so i might stop again.
On the positive side, all other aspects of my life have improved greatly. Used to be a poor NEET now i work, study and have a gf.

Currently haven't worked out in over 2 months, it started off as taking a break because of wrist pain and possible tendinitis, even after it healed, I haven't gone back due to lack of money to renew. I've lost a lot of definition and size, and some strength. I've lost a lot of motivation and confidence, and my sleep schedule is fucked.

I took about two to two and a half years off. I got very ill and lost a ton of weight (couldn't stop vomiting/pooping, could barely eat)

Naturally, it fucked up my gains pretty bad.

I'm mostly better now, basically breaking out of dyel mode. Started lifting again in October, and I've been bulking. Now I'm 175 at 5'10" up from like 130.

10 months and counting.
I stopped because I had a lot of exams. Then there was summer vacation and Ramadan. Then I took night classes and I'm still attending them.
I lost 10kg of muscles.

What hurted me more than anything was classmates seeing me again and asking what happened.
But I'll start fresh in a few months since I'll finally graduate.

i went 3 one time

4 fucking years

Joined the military and got really demotivated after long days at work and the shitty atmosphere. Lost all my gains and put on 30 fucking pounds. Recently started working out again since I'm glad my time is almost up. Feels bad man starting all over again.

>had 5/4/3/2 after 4-5 years natty lifting
>began business had to quit lifting for a while
>"no matter, I wanted to take a break anyway"
>diagnosed with hernia 2 months after I quit lifting
>doctor says no lifting before surgery and doesnt recommend lifting to all hernia patients even after surgery
>3 years later still no surgery because "there is no reason to live if you cant do deadlift"

I'm thinking about just saying "fuck it", getting the surgery done and start lifting again

unless your hernia is some oddity where they aren't using a mesh to repair it, the repair is stronger than the surrounding muscle.

The downside is that if you do manage to tear that area again, it will likely require them to remove the original mesh, and that's supposed to be a world of hurt

My general story above is not the usual hernia recovery. I was back at work in a day for non-lifting, and fully recovered to daily non-athletic activity well before my 1 month weight restrictions.

If you've been lifting since the hernia, be prepared for a recovery like mine as a possibility. Mine tore wider than the initial, except I didn't know I had one then. Large mesh, no laproscopic surgery, serious incision

Took a little over a year off after freshman year of college. Got depressed and had to work my ass off to keep paying my bills. Before I stopped lifting I was getting compliments fairly often. Self esteem was much higher.

Now I'm just getting back into it. I wish I had at least done 2-3 days a week as maintenance. I'm basically starting from 0 now. Became skinnyfat and now I need to kick it into high gear since I'm enlisting in the Marine Corps. Basically not lifting was a waste of time.

6 weeks when studying for the MCAT. Lost like 10 lbs and 30 lbs off most off my bench

I've heard that laparascopic is better suited for lifting but I dont really know the details. To undergo the process of getting a hernia in the same place again would be a pain in the ass seeing as I'm flying to another country for the surgery, although I do acknowledge that I'll probably get another one on the opposite side in the future.
Multiple sources including Action Bronson(lol) said they began lifting with babby weights about 2 months after the surgery and were back to moving grown-up weights in about a year.
Also, thoughts on hernia-prevention/protection trusses?

6 months due to breast reduction. I hated it.

>breast reduction
*feels urge to play taps on my harmonica while thinking about the loss of another pair of big perfect tits*

Someone on Veeky Forums with a balanced relation to fitness?
An adult, with a job and a social life?
Someone who understands any social gains to expect from your looks come from leanness? That size only impresses other roidmonkeys, while normal people find it meh at best, pathetic at worst?
That clean diet diet doesn't mean OCD? That portion control allows you to eat "not-so-clean stuff" in social situatuions, rather than be an autist about it?

1) Hallefuckinglujah
2) I'm going to have to ask you to leave, user.This board is supposed to be immature and mutually destructive, you're undermining the whole purpose of Veeky Forums.

3 months, lost almost everything

3 years 80lbs later

Getting back into it though.

Going on 9 years now. I find that I'm happier now with all my free time.

My body lost a lot of its tone but I kept some of the mass. Haven't gained much weight at all

They were asymmetrical. Like half a kilo+ asymmetrical. Far from perfect.

I was put in cryostasis for 230 years
My gains did not deteriorate

>more than 1lb tit difference
post censored before/after immediately, asking for a friend

these are the kind of fucktards who post with you, Veeky Forums.

5 Years OP (Started software development, my own company, bought my own home. I stopped training at my peak too)

Before:
5'11 78KG (Pretty lean)
Squat: 3x5 150kg
Bench 1x5 100kg
Deadlift 1RM 205kg

When I returned this Jan
5'11 80kg (Not lean)
Squat: 3x5 70kg
Deadlift: 1x5 80kg
Bench Press: 3x5 40kg

As of yesterday:
5'11 85kg (Not lean)
Squat: 140kg 3x5
Deadlift: 140kg 1x5
Bench Press: 3x5 67.5kg

Feels ok man

I had a 8 year break
From i was 26 until i was 33
I lost all my gains, but i got it back in just two years when i started lifting again, which is kinda amazing cause when i traing when a was younger i used roids, bur i was kinda lazy with diet and traing, now im doing it natty, but im on point with my diet and work out more than before, the result is better over time doing it natty

2 months
>back injury
Couldnt eat because of the meds, couldnt move because of the pain. Felt like all my 1st year nubgains were gone.

Now i'm back at it again and growing even faster.

sip boys unite

lifting for 7 years, never had an issue. Lifting become a thing I do and I feel more autistic today than I was back then

3 months and i lost 15kg, obviously all muscle

1 year after L5/S1 disc hernation
gained about 20lbs of pure fat