Is tendon and ligament strength forever?

[Tomas Johansson]

When developing strength, muscles will become strong before tendons and ligaments and thats is one reason why the steady state program is good, it lets the slower adapting tissues catch up with the faster ones, right?

My question is, are these tissues also slower in becoming weak?

I have been climbing on and off for about 15 years and had the finger problems almost everyone have in the beginning. Then my hands got healthier and I have not had much problems with them in the last few years. Now I've been off climbing for almost a year and notice I have lost some finger strength but have I also lost tendon strength?

This goes for all the tissues we train, will they all go bad equally fast? My experience is that it doesn't take so long to get back the original level of strength but maybe extra care should be taken in situations like.

[braindx]

Yes, they are slower in becoming weaker.

Neurological gains are fastest (couple days), then significant muscle gain (weeks), then connective tissue (usually a month or two approximately).

People who were previously athletic and then take a break (>year)... all of the systems decrease their strength. If they get back into it our bodies have some mechanism of remembering "aka muscle memory" or whatever you want to call it where we can quickly gain back neurological strength and muscle mass, but tendons/etc. lag behind. So it's easier to tear them as your strength comes back. Be careful.

[Hivoyer]

And last but not least it's cartilage improement,which takes years of good training and prevents osteoarthritis in later age

[Coach Sommer]

No, it will not last forever. My own gymnastics developed tendon and ligament strength lasted for approximately 10 years after I stopped training. The decrease was consistently gradual over this period of time.

Yours in Fitness,

Coach Sommer