MUSCLE. Report. Volume 6 Issue 12. The latest Scientific Discoveries in the Fields of Resistance Exercise, Nutrition and Supplementation.

Transcription

1 MUSCLE Report Volume 6 Issue 12 The latest Scientific Discoveries in the Fields of Resistance Exercise, Nutrition and Supplementation.

2 Big weights do not equal big muscles The association between the amount of weight you train with and the amount of muscle growth produced is one of the principal tenants of resistance exercise. While there is no question your muscles need to be subjected to progressively greater resistance in order to keep growing this is often taken to an extreme, resulting in athletes using weights they can lift for only a few repetitions. These athletes may believe the near-maximum weights they are using will trigger optimum muscle growth but in reality it will produce a lot of frustration and disappointment. To test out the link between exercise intensity (%1RM) and the subsequent adaptation response 19 males with weight training experience undertook an 8 week training program. 3 full body workouts were performed each week and consisted of 3 sets of bench presses, military press, lat-pulldowns, seated row, squat, leg press and leg extension. 10 of the participants trained with an intensity that limited them to 2-4 repetitions per set while the remaining 9 trained with a lower intensity that allowed for 8-12 repetitions per set. After 8 weeks of training quadriceps thickness had increased significantly more in the moderate intensity training groups compared to those training with high intensity (10.4% vs 4.1%). Biceps and triceps thickness increased similarly between groups but there was a small effect favouring the moderate intensity training. Bench press 1RM strength increased more in the heavy resistance group (14.4% vs 10.5%) as too did 1RM squat strength (30.0% vs 16.8%). These results support the concept of specificity of adaptations where how you train determines how your body responds. In this case moderate intensity with moderate repetitions produced superior hypertrophy adaptations while high intensity with low repetitions produced superior strength adaptations. A significant limitation of this study is that the two groups were not volume matched (weight x repetitions). As a result, weekly volume performed by the moderate intensity group was more than double that of the heavy group. This limitation is largely irrelevant however because it accurately reflects real world conditions. In your own training you are not going to replace 4 sets of 10 reps with 65% 1RM in the squat with 20 sets of 2 reps at 90% 1RM just to maintain the same number of repetitions. The greater intensity makes up for the reduced volume. This study isn t about proving whether heavy or moderate weights are superior. At the end of the day it all depends on your goals. High intensity and moderate intensity training produce their own adaptations however they are not unique. Moderate and high intensity training will both make you bigger and stronger and so both have a role to play in your training, regardless of your goals. If you desire maximum muscle mass, then spending more time with moderate weights will help you get there while for those training for strength should spend a larger portion of their training at the higher end of the intensity spectrum.

3 Squats are still king Weightlifting used to be an obscure sport reserved for athletes dedicated to getting stronger in only two lifts. Now days it is just as common to see individuals in the gym performing cleans and snatches as it is bench presses and squats. There is no question that huge amounts of muscle power are required to snatch or clean a weight from the floor and get yourself under it before standing up. Cleans and snatches are not exercises where you concentrate on contracting your muscles through their full range of motion in a deliberate and controlled manner. They are exercises that require maximum explosive force and rapid acceleration of both weight and body. Cleans and snatches should therefore be high on the list of exercise you perform when your goal is to develop muscle power. Or should they? To test out the effectiveness of the Olympic lifts compared to squats for developing lower body power 39 athletes participated in an 8 week training program. One group performed heavy squats another performed squats using a machine with a computer controlled motor to generate resistance and the third trained with cleans and snatches. Training volume (weight x repetitions) was equalized between groups. Lower body power was assessed pre- and postexercise intervention using a countermovement jump, squat jump, drop jump, loaded countermovement jumps and a 30m sprint test. At the conclusion of the study both squat interventions were found to have increased lower body power and thickness in the quadriceps. This did not occur with the weightlifting exercises. The authors of the study concluded: Olympic weightlifting was generally ineffective and inferior to the other two interventions. This study demonstrates that when it comes to developing lower body power squats are still king. Not only do you develop strength and power from this key exercise but the improvements are transferrable to other activities. If strength and power are your goal then squats, not the Olympic lifts, should be the focus of your training.

4 An anabolic hormone that may not be so anabolic after all Insulin is often considered an anabolic hormone due to its capacity to shuttle amino acids and glucose into the muscles. Due to this fact, supplements, particularly those targeting the postworkout period, often contain high-glycaemic carbohydrates to trigger an insulin spike. In theory the elevated insulin level should lead to more amino acids entering the muscles and greater muscle protein synthesis. This theory certainly sounds plausible but it may not be as effective as it seems. A recent study published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism had 48 males aged consume 20g of casein protein. Half received an insulin infusion via the femoral artery for the first two hours following protein ingestion while the other half did not. Volunteers also received an infusion of leucine and phenylalanine for the 5 hour study period after the supplement was consumed. Muscle biopsies were taken from the vastus lateralis at 2 and 5 hours. The insulin infusion was found to increase amino acid uptake into the leg but this did not result in a greater rate of muscle protein synthesis compared to the group that did not receive the insulin infusion. This result suggests that insulin does not have an anabolic effect by increasing muscle protein synthesis following a high protein meal. A major limitation of this study is that it did not occur in the context of resistance exercise. Animal studies suggest that for insulin to increase muscle protein synthesis, prior muscle contractions and sufficient amino acid availability are necessary prerequisites. These same studies suggest that only a very small amount of insulin is required during the post-exercise period to induce anabolism 1. Studies on human volunteers have shown insulin can reduce post-exercise muscle protein breakdown however in the absence of amino acids it is not able to increase protein synthesis 2. Despite being promoted as an anabolic agent the evidence suggests insulin alone does not have any significant muscle-building effects. In conjunction with exercise and sufficient amino acid availability it contributes to muscle protein synthesis but in the absence of either one its effects are muted. This means any supplement designed to induce insulin secretion via a high glycaemic carbohydrate may be of benefit during the immediate post-workout period only. The synergistic effect from exercise, amino acids and insulin may optimise muscle protein synthesis during this period. Outside the post-workout period the same supplement will be of no greater benefit than a simple protein supplement. 1. Kimball, SR, Farrell, PA, Jefferson, LS Exercise effects on muscle insulin signalling and action invited review: Role of insulin in translational control of protein synthesis in skeletal muscle by amino acids or exercise. Journal of Applied Physiology. 93: Borsheim, E, Cree, MG, Tipton, KD, Elliott, TA, Aarsland, A, Wolfe, RR Effect of carbohydrate intake on net muscle protein synthesis during recovery from resistance exercise. Journal of Applied Physiology. 96:

5 Active or passive rest: where do you sit? You know you have had a great workout when every set of every exercise is performed with maximum effort. To generate this level of physiological intensity over a protracted period requires good nutrition, good recovery from your last workout, and perhaps most important of all, optimising recovery between sets. Once you have entered the gym there is nothing you can do about the first two variables. The only thing that is in your power is the strategy you use to recover between sets. There are two basic strategies you can adopt between sets; do nothing or do something. A number of studies have reported that active rest where the body performs very light activity can increase performance on the squat 1 and bench press 2 compared to passive rest that involves sitting. This would seem to suggest that performing some sort of non-strenuous activity between sets of an exercise would enhance your workout. A new study contradicts this conclusion by suggesting lying down on the floor may be the best way to recover. The study involved 5 male and 10 female CrossFit athletes who performed a high intensity workout on three separate occasions. The workout commenced with 3 rounds of 10 x thrusters at 80% 3RM immediately followed by 2 minutes of maximum intensity rowing. 2 minutes rest was taken between each round. After the final set 5 minutes rest was taken. The next part of the workout consisted of 8 repetitions of the deadlift with 80% 3RM immediately followed by 2 minutes of maximum intensity cycling. This was also repeated 3 times. During one workout the rest periods involved slow walking on a treadmill, during another it involved sitting on a exercise bench, bent forward slightly with elbows resting on the legs and during the final workout the volunteers rested by lying flat on the floor. It was discovered that a higher rate of work was performed during both passive rest strategies compared to the active rest. This was accompanied by lower heart rates and reduced oxygen consumption. The fact no differences were identified between the seated or lying recovery positions suggests passive rest and not the position of the body enhances recovery compared to active rest. The apparent contradiction between the findings of this study and the two mentioned earlier may be attributed to the type of exercise performed. The present study involved short bouts of high intensity aerobic exercise while the earlier ones were strength directed. This indicates the type of work you are performing may determine the type of rest you need. 1. Corder, KP, Potteiger, JA, Nau, KL, Figoni, SE, Hershberger, SL, Effects of active and passive recovery conditions on blood lactate, rating of perceived exertion, and performance during resistance exercise. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. 14(2): Marin, PJ, Torres-Luque, G, Hernández-García, R, García-López, D and Garatachea, N Effects of Different Vibration Exercises on Bench Press. International Journal of Sports Medicine. 32(10)

6 Combined training Not everyone who hits the gym is interested in maximum muscle mass and strength. For some people weight training is only part of their exercise program. This isn t to say they are not serious about what they do, they are just more interested in maximising their overall fitness as opposed to focussing on one particular area. When resistance and aerobic exercise is conducted during the one workout the question arises as to whether order of exercise matters. Research has shown that performing resistance exercise after aerobic exercise leads to a more favourable testosterone response compared to the reverse order 1. These are only acute responses and do not necessarily predict long-term adaptations. To answer the question of whether exercise order influences chronic training adaptations 42 males were recruited to perform 24 weeks of combined aerobic and resistance exercise workouts. One group performed strength followed by aerobic exercise in the morning between 6.30am and 10am, another group performed that same workout in the afternoon between 4.30pm and 8.00pm, a third group performed aerobic followed by strength exercise in the morning and the final group performed that same workout in the afternoon. Leg press 1RM strength, aerobic endurance, hormone concentrations and cross-sectional area of the vastus lateralis were measured at regular points during the training period. At the conclusion of the training period all groups had increased their 1RM leg press strength to a similar degree. Strength gains were unaffected by training order or time of day. Cross sectional area of the vastus lateralis increased equivalenty in all groups during weeks 1-12 but only the evening training group continued to make gains during weeks The order of exercise made no difference. Endurance performance improved when the order was endurance training followed by strength training. Time of day was not an influencing factor. Testosterone and cortisol levels were unaffected by training order or time of day. These results suggest that exercise order may have a greater influence on aerobic adaptations compared to strength adaptations. For training periods longer than 12 weeks, muscle mass may be enhanced by training in the afternoon. Overall, the results of this study demonstrate that aerobic and strength training can be combined and will still produce good results. Ultimately it will come down to personal preference as to the order you choose. 1. Cadore, EL, Izquierdo, M, Santos, MG, Martins, JB, Rodrigues Lhullier, FL, Pinto, RS, Silva, RF, Kruel, LF Hormonal Responses to Concurrent Strength and Endurance Training with Different Exercise Orders. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. 26(12):

7 Big weights do not equal big muscles References Schoenfeld, BJ, Contreras, B, Vigotsky, AD, Peterson, M. Differential effects of heavy versus moderate loads on measures of strength and hypertrophy in resistance-trained men. Journal of Sports Science and Medicine : Squats are still king Helland, C, Hole, E, Iversen, E, Olsson, MC, Seynnes, O, Solberg, PA, Goran, P. Training strategies to improve muscle power: Is Olympic-style weightlifting relevant? Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise. Published online November An anabolic hormone that may not be so anabolic after all Groen, BB, Horstman, AM, Hamer, HM, de Haan, M, van Kranenburg, J, Bierau, J, Poeze, M, Wodzig, WK, Rasmussen, BB, van Loon, LJ. Increasing insulin availability does not augment postprandial muscle protein synthesis rates in healthy young and older men. Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism (11): Active or passive rest: where do you sit? Ouellette, KA, Brusseau, TA, Davidson, LE, Ford, CN, Hatfield, DL, Shaw, JM, Eisman, PA. Comparison of the effects of seated, supine and walking interest rest strategies on work rate. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research (12): Combined training Kuusmaa, M, Schumann, M, Sedliak, M, Kraemer, WJ, Newton, RU, Malinen, J, Nyman, K, Hakkinen, A, Hakkinen, K. Effects of morning vs. evening combined strength and endurance training on physical performance, muscle hypertrophy and serum hormone concentrations. Applied Physiology, Nutrition & Metabolism (12):