eli5 why do we “forget” long practiced skills after a period of time of not using said skills? and how can we regain those skills

Question

i noticed that after the holidays my math plummeted and teachers told me its because of the break i took… why does this happen and how can i regain those skills acquired prior to the break

In: 356

Answer 1

Tbh I’m more interested in why we _don’t_ forget certain skills and _do_ forget others. What’s the dividing line between long term retention and your brain just tossing something away?