S03E04 - Walk with Me - Recovering from A Break with Crossfitter Yaohui Liu
In this episode, Marko walks with the first season co-host and CrossFitter Yaohui Liu to tackle a common source of athlete anxiety: the long-term training break. Whether it’s due to the holidays, travel, or just life getting in the way, we often fear that a few weeks off will ruin months of hard work.
The reality? A strategic break might be exactly what your body and mind need to reach the next level.
Key Discussion Points
- The Holiday Reality Check: Yaohui shares his experience navigating a multi-week break involving intercontinental travel, family gatherings, and "festive" eating.
- The "First Day Back" Trap: Why the first workout after a break often feels "horrible" (dizziness, nausea, and pain) and how to avoid the mistake of going "all out" too soon.
- Muscle Memory & Mental Health: Actual muscle loss typically doesn't start for 2–4 weeks, and why a mental "reset button" is vital for avoiding burnout.
- Smart Scaling: Practical advice on how to adjust your training when you return—focusing not just on reducing weight, but also adjusting the range of motion and intensity based on how your body feels that specific day.
Key Takeaways for Returning to the Gym
- Don't Do Nothing: Even during a break, aim for active rest like short walks daily.
- Listen to the Body, Not the Ego: Ignore the "guilt" of the break. Don't let your mind pre-decide your weights; adapt to your physical condition on the spot.
- The One-Week Rule: Expect it to take about a full week of consistent routine before you start "feeling like yourself" again.
Please send us feedback by email to feedback@scaledto.fit
Go to podchaser.com/scaledtofit and give us a rating.
#scaledtofit #fitness #grownupfitness #scaling
Additional resources are available in the links below.
- The Surprising Benefits of Taking a Break from Running - The San Francisco Marathon
- Benefits of Taking a Week Off From Working Out
- Why You Should Have a Deload Week
- A Scientist Finds Surprising Advantages from a Long Training Break
- The Importance of Recovery Weeks and Rest Days | USA Triathlon
- 5 Benefits Of Taking A Training Break – Built for Athletes™
Transcript
Will a longer break in the training schedule ruin all the progress?
Speaker:Is taking some time off just being lazy or is it something else?
Speaker:How long a pause is long enough but not too long? Let's find out.
Speaker:I took my microphone out for a walk with my first season co-host and crossfitter Yaohui Liu to discuss the impact of a longer training break on the mind and body.
Speaker:Yaohui took a several week pause during the holiday season and now we address some main points to consider when resuming training.
Speaker:And for coming back from a training break, especially appropriate is what I like to say, don't do nothing, do something and scale it back.
Speaker:First I want you to know what his normal weekly routine is like.
Speaker:I'm quite active in exercises if my schedule allows.
Speaker:Usually I book four sessions of crossfit WOD, so-called workout of the day. And on top of that occasionally I also go to do some swimming and I like to take sauna afterwards to relax a little bit.
Speaker:So more or less that's kind of my weekly excises.
Speaker:You had a little bit longer break just over the holidays and New Year's celebrations. Did you plan for that break or was it just like a, it just happened?
Speaker:Yeah, well it's kind of like a halfway. I wasn't sure until very late until this year. I know that my company invited me to the headquarters for Chinese New Year party and then I took the opportunity to take additional more days off to spend time with family.
Speaker:So I wasn't completely planning for it, but it just happened.
Speaker:Did you totally stop training or did you do something, something there, something small to keep things going?
Speaker:Well, not so intense like what I do during my normal schedule. Mostly just walking, but I think because of the festive time a lot of eating, drinking is kind of have a negative impact for your overall condition. But you know, once a year, so I think it's okay.
Speaker:So you had more food and alcohol. What about sleep and your stress level? What would you say?
Speaker:Well, I mean, of course when you travel across the continent and at the beginning and there are a couple of days, you need to adapt to the local time zone. And sometimes it could also mean a lot of stress as well to, you know, meetings and then at the same time to decide which friends to see or not.
Speaker:Yeah, you said that you walked. How much did you walk? Would you say a very short day?
Speaker:Oh, maybe 7000 steps a day or so. I didn't really plan an extended walk. It just happens when you're going shopping or it's I would say I wouldn't categorize them as active exercise, but it's just, you know, normal, let's say daily routine to go through your lives.
Speaker:What about how did it feel not to be able to go to the box and leave some weight for such a long period?
Speaker:As part of the life, I mean, I have started being a little bit active traveling since the over two years time now. These are all intercontinental travels. You can't really avoid it. Sometimes I see this is also an opportunity to give my body a little break from weight training.
Speaker:But at the same time, I think it's an opportunity to also keep the, let's say muscle to relax and recover and at the same time to improve the cardio conditions if possible.
Speaker:Okay, and then you then you came back. So what would you say? What was the first things you felt in workouts after the break?
Speaker:I mean, the first workout was horrible and I thought that I could handle the workout like quite normally if I was in a normal condition. But I think the first session was really tough and I felt really pain.
Speaker:I mean, business and also feeling almost like throwing up. So I guess I tried a little bit too heavy and too much.
Speaker:Then over a few next training sessions, which part of the training was most affected by this break? Was it like a surprise?
Speaker:Yeah, I think the I mean, as I getting into the routine, so things are getting back to normal. Of course, I just have to listen to my body a little bit more.
Speaker:And I think the benefit is really, you know, after a little break or so, so to say, rest of your muscles, you can quickly recover to the load that normally you can carry.
Speaker:But I think the somehow the cardio condition takes a little bit longer time to get to the level if you're keeping consistent training rhythms.
Speaker:So you didn't notice that much of a loss in strength, but the impact was more on the cardio.
Speaker:I would say so, yeah.
Speaker:The good to no corner. The idea of stopping the exercise might make you uncomfortable, you know, leaving the trainers on the floor, not stepping into the gym and doing nothing for a few weeks.
Speaker:Even though it sounds counterintuitive, it could be the best thing you ever do for your performance.
Speaker:So what's actually happening in your body when you take a training break, also known as a D load or a recovery period?
Speaker:The thing is, your body doesn't actually get fitter while you are training.
Speaker:It gets fitter while you are recovering from training.
Speaker:The long walks or runs, the heavy lifts, the countless reps or the hard workout is creating tiny amounts of stress and damage in your muscles, tendons and joints.
Speaker:And your body needs downtime to recover, heal and come back stronger.
Speaker:If you never give it that window, the fatigue just keeps stacking up and that's one way to end up injured, burnt out or stuck on a plateau.
Speaker:After a proper rest period, your body doesn't just recover back to where it was.
Speaker:Once you return to training, it actually goes a bit overboard, supercompensates, above your previous baseline.
Speaker:It's like pulling back a slingshot. The break is the pull back, the return to training is the launch.
Speaker:There's a great real-world example of this, which I talked about in the previous season of the podcast.
Speaker:A well-trained triathlete took a three-month break and then retrained.
Speaker:In the end, he not only regained lost fitness, but surpassed his original VO2 max power output and muscle efficiency.
Speaker:And then what about losing fitness and muscles?
Speaker:For most people, actual muscle loss doesn't even kick in until after two to four weeks of complete inactivity.
Speaker:And even then, muscles have a form of memory, retained adaptations in muscle proteins.
Speaker:You regain the fitness much faster the second time around than it took you to build it in the first time.
Speaker:So, even if you do lose a little ground, you'll be back up to speed quicker than you think.
Speaker:And of course, let's not forget the mental side of the exercise and recovery. It's huge.
Speaker:Training is mentally demanding. The discipline, the scheduling, the constant push to do more, it's not a walk in the park.
Speaker:And if you've ever noticed your motivation tanking, your sessions feeling like a chore, or yourself just going through the joyless motions, that's your mind waving a white flag.
Speaker:A few weeks off is basically a full reset button. The time away can lead to a fresh perspective, increased appreciation for movement, and a genuine excitement to train.
Speaker:That renewed enthusiasm isn't just nice to have. It actually translates into better, more focused training sessions.
Speaker:And better sleep, too. When you ease off the training load, sleep quality tends to improve, and quality sleep is the most powerful recovery tool we have.
Speaker:Better sleep means better mood, better muscle recovery, and better performance down the line.
Speaker:So, here's a takeaway I want you to leave with today. A training break is not a setback, it is a strategy.
Speaker:The best athletes in the world build rest into their programming deliberately, because they understand that recovery isn't the opposite of progress, it is progress.
Speaker:So, if you've been grinding for months without a real break, maybe your body is already trying to tell you something. Listen to it.
Speaker:A few weeks off now could set you up for your best season yet. Sometimes training smart means not training at all. The good to no corner.
Speaker:Were there any positive changes? Did you notice any positive changes after the break? What comes to the training?
Speaker:I think from as a long-term crossfitter, I somehow yearned to come back to the box after a break.
Speaker:I feel my body needs it, and somehow it's kind of a habit, so you get into the rhythm.
Speaker:And also, thanks to the little break, I felt like when I'm getting back to the load of the weight, it kind of feels more fresh.
Speaker:It feels like you can distance your fatigue a little bit, then doing the weight lifting becomes more enjoyable than before.
Speaker:Did you find any other viewpoints or perspectives to training after the break, then? Then that maybe distancing yourself from the…
Speaker:I think to be honest, I think every now and then taking a little bit of break is not a bad thing, even though you feel like, "Oh, I'm not doing the work and my body may be deteriorating."
Speaker:To be precise, I think all our bodies, especially over time, need some variety of rhythms in terms of how you train or how you exercise.
Speaker:Especially the break or how holiday seasons give yourself really a break, that mentally, physically would all get your body into the rhythm of another round of push.
Speaker:It's like interval training, but just over a little bit long arc.
Speaker:Yeah, so you said that when you came back, you didn't really scale down at first, but you went full steam ahead.
Speaker:But then you had to scale, so what did you scale back first?
Speaker:I think I was still able to do some of the weight that usually, like in my PR or scale according to the percentage, usually the program recommends you.
Speaker:But I think it's also that the program in CrossFit made by the coaches, they are not assuming you're taking a break or you are a little bit more senior athlete.
Speaker:So the proportion of the weight and the intensity of interval trainings are not often scaled properly individually.
Speaker:So I think there I just sometimes took my own advice or listened to my own body.
Speaker:Even though I, let's give you an example, I could do the clean and jerk in quite heavy load and according to the program.
Speaker:But when it comes to similar movements in the med-com part, then I drop it to less percentage than what the coach recommended.
Speaker:Because I know that without able to catch your breath, soon your movement will not keep the good form and more prone to injuries.
Speaker:And eventually it would not target to do the training of your muscle precisely rather than just, you know, going through the motion without a purpose.
Speaker:How long did it take for you to feel like yourself, back to yourself again?
Speaker:I think after a week, then you are more or less feel yourself.
Speaker:But I think it's also individual in order to really getting a little bit all around athletes type.
Speaker:It takes longer time and maybe you will never be able to be back to the days that you used to be able to do.
Speaker:But that's okay. The thing is.
Speaker:Yeah, I guess that depends how far back you look at.
Speaker:Yeah.
Speaker:Essentially.
Speaker:Yeah, you just have to listen to yourself, listen to your body.
Speaker:When let's talk a bit more about the scaling.
Speaker:So, you know, everybody has good days and bad days and sometimes the weight is light and some other day it's not so light.
Speaker:How does it differ for you scaling between those good and bad days?
Speaker:I think it's sometimes the program or depending on how you register yourself for CrossFit is better to do it just as a surprise.
Speaker:So let your body to be not like get to know what you need to do that way.
Speaker:I think you can surprise yourself and your muscle as well to build and so on.
Speaker:Like give you another example.
Speaker:Yes, I did some deficit Romanian deadlift yesterday.
Speaker:I was really stretching my back side of my thigh quite well or a little bit too much.
Speaker:And I really felt the pain.
Speaker:And like today again, then we have the option to do power clean and clean a squat clean.
Speaker:Then I feel like doing squat clean today would not be an option for me because then, you know, the pain and also the mobility.
Speaker:And then afterwards I would not feel good.
Speaker:So I chose power clean instead of clean.
Speaker:That's also way of scaling back.
Speaker:It's not like just, you know, weight or repetition.
Speaker:It's also range of motion.
Speaker:All these things should be taken into consideration.
Speaker:Considering your experience now, if you knew that there's another longer break coming up again.
Speaker:So what would you do differently?
Speaker:I will plan my sessions so that I keep the training rhythm to be consistent until the break happens.
Speaker:And also not just immediately do nothing at the beginning of the break.
Speaker:Trying to do more walking or even, let's say, seeking for some professional help for some physiotherapy or massage deep into the mothos.
Speaker:Or, you know, getting yourself in a rest mode gradually and at the same time actively.
Speaker:So like an active cool down and active warm up.
Speaker:Can you isolate one mistake that people make when they return after a longer break?
Speaker:I think that I can't talk about other people.
Speaker:But for me personally, I think that I felt like I have rested a lot and have lost so much of time to train.
Speaker:And now I have to go all out.
Speaker:But actually that's not a wise thing to think about.
Speaker:Usually you need to also let your body to get back into the rhythm instead of force it.
Speaker:So I think even experienced, so to speak, I also make these mistakes.
Speaker:I thought I could do more, but then, you know, I think my advice is just to be really adaptive.
Speaker:And listen to your own body on the spot.
Speaker:Do not let your mind to pre-decide what kind of load you have to do.
Speaker:There's no such thing.
Speaker:Let's say something you have to do.
Speaker:It's just to fit on to the program of that day and how your body's real condition is.
Speaker:Again, I'm repeatedly saying this, you have to listen to yourself.
Speaker:OK, and then one last thing.
Speaker:What would you say to those grown-ups, listeners who feel that they have ruined their progress over the holiday break?
Speaker:That's the guilty part.
Speaker:You know, when you take a nice holiday, eat a little bit too much, drink a little too much, not excess or moving enough,
Speaker:then you feel some kind of a guilty and you want to overcompensate it by immediately jumping to active mode again.
Speaker:I think that's not necessarily a healthy way of thinking.
Speaker:And I mean, life is to be enjoyed, it's not like training is the whole purpose.
Speaker:It's for, I would say, senior athletes or people like me at my age.
Speaker:I would say training is just preparing for longevity, for a more independent lifestyle.
Speaker:It's aiming long term, aiming far, so don't really count on one battle, loss or win,
Speaker:but considering the overall gain to your health, physically and mentally.
Speaker:So if you haven't already, why don't you just take a whole week's break from training?
Speaker:Don't camp on the bottom of the sofa, but do some short light walks outside.
Speaker:And after the week, see how your sleep and exercise roll on.
Speaker:And remember, what I like to say, don't do nothing, do something and scale it back.
Speaker:Welcome to Scale to Fit, fit in your 50s.
Speaker:And I am Marko Lingren. Thank you so much for tuning in today.
Speaker:If this episode resonated with you, please share it with someone who might need to hear it.
Speaker:All sounds are made by me, except the jingle that was made by Gemini.
Speaker:Send us your feedback via email to feedback@scale2.fit or liberating@podchaser.com.
Speaker:Check show notes at scale2.fit, all the links are there.
