From PhillyVoice · · 1m 50s
Cells remember exercise gains
Your cells store workout memories that last even after stopping exercise.
In brief
Your cells store workout memories that last even after stopping exercise. Muscle and liver cells retain exercise memories that improve endurance, blood sugar control and slow weight regain after inactivity. Originally reported by PhillyVoice.
Cells store exercise memories
Scientists found muscle and liver cells keep records of every workout session.
“Your cells keep a record of every workout you've ever done”
Use it or lose it? Maybe not
For most of the past century, exercise benefits were thought to fade when people stopped working out.
“You use it or lose it”
Training history matters
Muscle and liver cells store memories from past training to improve endurance and blood sugar control.
“Muscle and liver cells store memories from every training session”
Muscle memory works
Retrained mice grew bigger muscles with stronger energy production matching demand.
“Mice who retrained grew bigger muscles”
Liver cells help too
Liver cells release enzymes to feed muscle more efficiently after retraining.
“Liver cells also store exercise memory and uses it to feed muscle more efficiently”
Exercise passes to offspring
Maternal and paternal exercise can protect offspring from poor blood sugar and weight gain for a year.
“Three to four weeks of maternal and paternal endurance exercise can have lasting effects”
Every cell remembers
Skin stem cells and fat cells also keep exercise records that persist after weight loss.
“Skin stem cells can keep a record of inflammation”
Exercise memory is real
Cells store exercise memories regardless of how much or how little someone trains.
“Every cell in the body remembers exercise”
What this means for you
Your past workouts may help you regain fitness faster after a break from exercise.
“People who have trained before can get fit again faster”
Not a reason to skip gym
Past training doesn't replace current exercise but helps maintain gains.
“None of these findings are evidence for skipping the gym”
The record stays
Your cells hold a record of every workout that plays out when you return to exercise.
“Somewhere, deep in your cells, there is a record waiting to be replayed”
What happens next
Better understanding of exercise memory could improve guidelines for those who can't exercise consistently.
“Better understanding of how cells learn and remember exercise could help improve exercise guidelines”
Why it matters
Exercise memory helps people regain fitness faster after breaks from training.
“People who have trained before can get fit again faster”
The science behind it
Researchers used an ON-OFF-ON training protocol in mice to study exercise memory.
“Our team used an ON-OFF-ON exercise training protocol in mice”
The bottom line
Muscle and liver cells retain exercise memories that improve endurance, blood sugar control and slow weight regain after inactivity.
