Download BUILDING MUSCLE SIZE AND STRENGTH

The muscles of the human body are over 70% water. About
22% of muscle tissue is protein mostly consisting of millions
of strands of Actin, a thin protein and Myosin, a thick protein.
Muscles contract when the actin and myosin protein strands
slide over each other causing the length of the cell to shorten.
ATP is an acronym for adenosine triphosphate. The role of ATP
in muscle contraction is to shorten actin and myosin filament
crossbridges and hence facilitate muscle contraction. This is a
primary energy requirement that is necessary for locomotion.
We can see this happening in our muscles. Straighten your arm and
roughly measure the length of the biceps muscle, then curl the hand
towards the shoulder and measure again. The bicep muscle will be
shorter in length. You can see this happen in all muscles; the calf muscle
when we tip toe or the thigh muscle when we straighten the leg.
In a muscle's fully contracted position there are
more cross-bridges formed . This is where a
muscle is in its strongest position.
How muscles grow
Muscles grow as a result of demands placed on cells by the
intensity of contractions. When under intense stress the actin
and myosin protein filaments within muscle cells shatter and
breakdown.
During rest (between workouts) these filaments are repaired back
to their pre-workout state, however the stress also created a need
for cells to lay down additional protein so they become better
prepared for similar stress levels.
The extra protein filaments make the cells stronger as there
are more protein strands working to pull a load. The
additional protein also causes the cell to hold more water,
thus they thicken and enlarge!
Hypertrophy- excessive development of an organ or part;
specifically : increase in bulk (as by thickening of muscle
fibers) without multiplication of parts
Other Key Terms
• Flexion- describes bending movement that decrease the angle
between two parts
• Extension- is the opposite of flexion, describing a
straightening movement that increases the angle between
body parts.
More Terms
• Adduction- refers to a motion that pulls a structure or part
toward the midline of the body, or towards the midline of a
limb.
• Abduction- refers to a motion that pulls a structure or part
away from the midline of the body (or, in the case of fingers
and toes, spreading the digits apart, away from the centerline
of the hand or foot).
More Terms
• Anterior-Front of the body
• Posterior-back of the body
Concentric Contraction
Concentric contraction occurs when a muscle shortens in
length and develops tension e.g. the upward movement of a
dumbbell in a biceps curl or as you spring back from a jump
landing, extending your knees and jumping back up in the air,
the quadriceps are shortening as they create force to push
you off.
Eccentric Contraction
Eccentric contraction involves the development of tension
while the muscle is being lengthened e.g. the downward
movement of a dumbbell in a biceps curl or when you land on
two feet from a jump and bend your knees the quadriceps are
lengthening.
Plyometric Exercises
Research suggests that if you want to train your fast twitch fibers it
would seem that eccentric contraction movements are more useful
than concentric ones.
One should Involve high-force eccentric movements, this will be
particularly useful for this purpose. A good example is the depth jump,
which involves jumping off a box, bending at the knee and hip to control
the landing softly, then jumping back up.
Fast Twitch vs Slow Twitch
• Fast Twitch Muscle Fibers- Fast Twitch
Because fast twitch fibers use anaerobic metabolism to create
fuel, they are much better at generating short bursts of strength or
speed than slow muscles. However, they fatigue more quickly.
Fast twitch fibers generally produce the same amount of force per
contraction as slow muscles, but they get their name because they
are able to fire more rapidly. Having more fast twitch fibers can be
an asset to a sprinter since she needs to quickly generate a lot of
force.
• Slow Twitch Muscle Fibers- Slow Twitch The slow muscles are
more efficient at using oxygen to generate more fuel (known as
ATP) for continuous, extended muscle contractions over a long
time. They fire more slowly than fast twitch fibers and can go for a
long time before they fatigue. Therefore, slow twitch fibers are
great at helping athletes run marathons and bicycle for hours.
Delayed Onset of Muscle Soreness (DOMS)
Muscle soreness that occurs some 24 to 48 hours after intense exercise
usually involves eccentric contractions. If the soreness persists it can be
an indication of potential over training or large muscular tissue damage.
An appropriate warm up and cool down may help to avoid or reduce
DOMS.
Muscle Training falls into
three categories:
• Isotonic Training
• Isometric Training
• Isokinetic Training
Isotonic
In isotonic contractions, the muscle
contracts and shortens, giving
movement. Nearly all the training you
do is isotonic.
Advantages Of Isotonic Training
Strengthens a muscle throughout the range of movement
You can choose isotonic exercises to match the actions in
your sport
Disadvantages
Can make muscles sore, because of stress while they shorten
The muscle gains most strength at the weakest point of the
action, rather than evenly throughout
Isometric Training
In isometric contractions, the muscle contracts but does not
shorten, giving no movement. Isometric exercises are usually
done by mimicking a pushing or pulling motion, such as
pushing a wall or holding a dumbbell in place with a slightly
bent arm.
Advantages of Isometric training
Isometric exercises develop static strength - the strength
you need to push or pull a heavy object or hold it up.
They do not need expensive equipment.
You can do them anywhere.
Disadvantages
Isometric exercises don't effectively build strength but
can help maintain muscle strength — most often in a
rehabilitative setting.
Isometric exercises need to be combined with Isotonic
work outs to effectively build strength.
Isokinetic Training
An isokinetic muscle contraction is one in which the muscle
contracts and shortens at constant rate of speed. This type of
muscle contraction usually requires special, expensive
training equipment that increases the load as it senses that
the muscle contraction is speeding up.
Advantages of Isokinetic Training
The muscle gains strength evenly all through the range
of movement
It is the fastest way to increase muscle strength
Disadvantage
The equipment is very expensive so most gyms cannot
afford it
Progressive Overload
Progressive Overload is the main exercise principle you need
to be aware of in order to get the results that you're after
with strength training.
The three most important points are:
1. Complete your exercise with perfect technique.
2. Push to total failure when doing a set.
3. Overload the weight on the bar progressively.
Progressive Overload
Basically this means that when the body is stressed by high
intensity training beyond its normal demands, the body will
adapt to these new demands of improved strength.
Progressive overload is the gradual increase of stress
placed upon the body during exercise training. It was
developed by Thomas Delorme, M.D. while he rehabilitated
soldiers after World War II.
This technique is recognized as a fundamental
principle for success in various forms of strength
training programs including fitness training, weight
lifting, high intensity training, and physical therapy
programs.
Progressive overload requires a gradual increase in volume
intensity, frequency or time in order to achieve the targeted
goal of the user. In this context, volume and intensity are
defined as follows:
Volume is the total number of repetitions multiplied by the
resistance used as performed in specific periods of time.
8 reps of 100 lbs = 800 lbs
Intensity is the percent value of maximal functional capacity,
or expressed as percent repetition maximum.
8 reps at 75% of your max
MUSCLE CONFUSION
• Muscle confusion is a training principle that creates variety in your
training. Muscle confusion prevents plateaus and keeps your muscles
growing. Muscles become accustomed to a training program very
quickly. We need to develop different exercises and perform a variety
of sets and repetitions.
• By cycling or changing your training program every couple of weeks,
your muscles cannot become used to the exercises. This forces your
muscles to grow quicker than with any other training method.
• Weight Training Plateau-a period in which you will not see the
amount of strength gains increase as much or as often as previously
seen
Vary the exercises
If you are doing a barbell incline chest press, you could use a
hammer strength incline machine one week and then the
following week you could do a dumbbell incline press. While
you're still working the upper chest muscles, you're hitting
them from a different angle and this will stimulate new
muscle growth.
MUSCLE CONFUSION USING:
Med balls
Bands
Sand bells
When Using the Muscle Confusion
Principle:
1. Vary your Exercises- change your exercises every couple of
weeks by using a variety of equipment - free weights,
cables, resistance bands, med balls, sand bells, hammer
strength in your workout.
2. Change the order
3. Vary the number of reps and sets that you do
4. Increase Training Intensity
5. Remove Some Exercises and Add Others
6. Get Adequate Rest
Important Components of Gaining
Muscle Size/Strength
• Proper rest-not only sleep, but also a
minimum of 24 hours before lifting the same
muscle group
• Proper nutrition –at least 2000 cals/day (the
good calories)
• Hard training- INTENSITY –no more than 1
minute between sets