Taking a break from your workout regimen doesn’t just lead to weight gain but also poses various surprising health risks. Here are four ways your health is impacted when you stop exercising.

A well-structured training program can rapidly enhance your fitness, but deviating from it can lead to the opposite outcome. Referred to as “detraining” by experts, its effects can be more significant than what meets the eye. Thankfully, this condition is entirely reversible once you return to your exercise routine. Here’s what occurs when you cease working out.
1. When you stop working out, your blood pressure may increase
Immediate Effect: Your blood pressure tends to be higher on the days you skip exercise compared to the days you engage in physical activity. Research published in the journal PLoS suggests that within just 2 weeks of a sedentary lifestyle, your blood vessels adjust to slower blood flow, causing your blood pressure readings to rise. However, you can reverse this trend by resuming your exercise routine. On the day you exercise, your blood pressure drops slightly, and within a week, your blood vessels start functioning more efficiently again.
2. When you halt your exercise routine, your blood sugar levels may spike
Typically, after a meal, your blood sugar rises and then declines as your muscles and tissues absorb the sugar for energy. However, research published in the journal Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise indicates that after 5 days of inactivity, your post-meal blood sugar levels remain elevated. Prolonged sedentary behavior can cause a continuous increase in glucose levels, heightening the risk of heart disease and diabetes, according to James Thyfault, Ph.D., coauthor of the study from the University of Missouri. Conversely, engaging in regular exercise for just one week can lead to a significant decrease in post-meal blood sugar levels, even in individuals with type 2 diabetes.
3. You experience faster fatigue
Within just 2 weeks of skipping the gym, your VO2 max, a crucial measure of fitness indicating how efficiently your muscles use oxygen, may decrease by up to 20%, according to exercise physiologist Stacy Sims, PhD, M.Sc. This decline can leave you feeling breathless even after minimal exertion, such as climbing a few stairs. The reason behind this decline is the loss of mitochondria, the cellular powerhouses responsible for converting oxygen into energy, within your muscle cells. In fact, a recent British study found that 2 weeks of immobilization resulted in a decrease in muscle mitochondrial content equivalent to the increase seen after 6 weeks of endurance training. However, you can rebuild these mitochondria through regular exercise.
4. Your cognitive function declines
Just two weeks of inactivity can lead to feelings of tiredness and irritability among regular exercisers, as revealed by a recent study published in the journal Brain, Behavior, and Immunity. While direct human evidence is limited, rat studies presented at a recent Society for Neuroscience conference suggest that rodents that cease movement for just one week produce fewer new brain cells and perform worse on maze tests compared to those who maintain a consistent exercise routine. On the other hand, exercise has been shown to combat depression by providing an almost immediate mood lift, even for individuals struggling with the disorder, according to recent research published in the Journal of Abnormal Psychology. The encouraging news is that it’s never too late to reintroduce exercise into your routine and regain fitness. So, if you’ve recently embraced a sedentary lifestyle, it’s time to shed it and start exercising again.