Research
Mixed
Physical inactivity, including immobilization and sedentary lifestyle, leads to a reversal of training adaptations, resulting in reduced muscle mass, decreased oxidative capacity, and increased fatigability.
If you experience a period of inactivity due to injury or a sedentary lifestyle, be aware that your muscle adaptations may decrease. To mitigate this, try to maintain some level of physical activity, even if it's reduced, to preserve muscle mass and oxidative capacity.
GoodSupportsHIGH confidence
Decreases of the habitual activity level due to injury or sedentary lifestyle result in partial or even compete reversal of the adaptations due to previous training, manifested by reductions in fiber cross-sectional area, decreased oxidative capacity, and capillarization.
Why this rating
The paper cites multiple studies showing consistent effects of inactivity on muscle properties.
Source
Effects of Physical Activity and Inactivity on Muscle Fatigue
Gregory C. Bogdanis · Frontiers in Physiology · 2012
DOI 10.3389/fphys.2012.00142
narrative_reviewCited 341×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
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