MUSCLE. Report. Volume 7 Issue 5. The latest Scientific Discoveries in the Fields of Resistance Exercise, Nutrition and Supplementation.

Size: px

Start display at page:

Download "MUSCLE. Report. Volume 7 Issue 5. The latest Scientific Discoveries in the Fields of Resistance Exercise, Nutrition and Supplementation."

Veronica Daniels
6 years ago
Views:

1 MUSCLE Report Volume 7 Issue 5 The latest Scientific Discoveries in the Fields of Resistance Exercise, Nutrition and Supplementation.

2 IEMG Muscle Report Volume 7 Issue 5 Are you training your muscles or your ego? The bench press is one of the most highly regarded measures of upper body strength. For this reason, it is one of the most common exercises that athletes want to develop strength in. As well as garnering you respect in the gym, the bench press is also one of the key exercises for developing the the muscles of the upper body, particularly the Pectoralis muscles. Many weight training athletes want the best of both worlds; a big bench press and a big chest. This mindset can lead to an unhealthy focus on training with near-maximum weights which may do more for the ego than the muscles. To test the effects of increasing weight on upper body muscles during the bench press researchers had 20 males with weight training experience perform a series of singlerepetition bench presses with resistance increasing from 70% to 100% of each individuals 1RM. Electrical activity (IEMG) in the Pec major, anterior deltoid, Triceps brachii and Latissimus dorsi were measured during each repetition. Below are the results. Muscle activity during the concentric phase of the bench press Pec major Anterior delt Triceps Lat dorsi 70% 80% 90% 100% What is important in the above graph is not the numbers but the trend. As the weight increased from 70% to 100% 1RM muscle activity in the Pec major barely changed. On the other hand, electrical activity in the other muscles increased with each increase in resistance. This means the stress of the heavier loads was not taken up by the pecs but by the supporting muscles. As the researchers noted, at 100% 1RM the Pec major shifted from being the prime mover to the supportive mover while the anterior deltoid, Triceps brachii and Latissimus dorsi went from a supporting role to being the prime movers. So what does this mean? Well, that depends on your training goal. If strength is what you are training for then heavier weights are the way to go because they more effectively train the muscles that help balance and control the bar as it travels up and down. If hypertrophy is your main focus, constantly loading the bar up with lots of weight (>70%1RM) is not going to place the pecs under any more stress and is not going to give you the massive chest you are training for.

3 Fast or slow proteins? It makes no difference! Whey protein has long been considered the gold standard for protein supplements but there has been a growing amount of interest in casein of late. This protein has some unique qualities due to its tendency to clot in the acidic environment of the stomach. This means it takes a lot longer to digest casein, allowing its amino acids to be released into the circulation at a much slower rate. Unlike its more rapidly digested counterpart whey, casein doesn t give you the big spike in amino acids but its slower digestion means the amino acids are supplied over a much longer period. The two proteins combined complement each other, providing a rapid supply of amino acids (courtesy of the whey) and a longer duration (courtesy of the casein). This should result in an enhanced anabolic response and greater strength and hypertrophy gains. To test out the effect of different combinations of fast- and slow-digesting proteins on longterm strength and hypertrophy adaptations 31 males were put through 9 weeks of training. One group were supplemented with 20g of whey immediately post-workout, another was given a mix of whey and casein and another was given a mix of casein and whey. At the end of the training program it was found all groups gained muscle mass and strength but there was no difference in the magnitude of the gains between any of the groups. The results of this study suggest the composition of your post-workout protein shake makes little difference to long-term strength and hypertrophy adaptations. This finding is consistent with that of a study we discussed in the October 2016 issue of the Muscle Report which also found no significant difference in strength or hypertrophy gains after 12 weeks of training supplemented with either whey protein, a protein blend or maltodextrin. The results also support the conclusion of a recent review of the evidence between protein supplements and weight training adaptations. The review concluded that protein intake per day, not protein source or timing, is the biggest determining factor for weight training adaptations. The evidence is pretty clear. Protein supplements may help to support strength and hypertrophy adaptations but they will not compensate for a poor training program and they will certainly not make your muscles grow. As we constantly say, your training is what you should focus on because this is what will determine your success of failure in the gym. Stop worrying about what supplements you should be taking and concentrate on your workouts.

4 % CHANGE Muscle Report Volume 7 Issue 5 A supplement with short-term benefit but no long-term gain Keeping with the theme of supplements this next study examined the effects of leucine supplementation on the adaptation response to 8 weeks of training. 20 novice males were put through 8-weeks of leg press and leg extension training. The program consisted of two workouts per week, 3 sets of 8-12 repetitions per exercise with 1- minutes rest between sets and exercises. Half the participants were given 3g of leucine immediately post-workout while the other half were given an equivalent placebo. At the end of the training period both groups increased quadriceps strength and muscle mass to an equivalent degree. Analysis of dietary records revealed no significant difference in energy or macronutrient intake between the two groups. Protein intake was between 1.5 and 1.7g/kg/day for all participants for the duration of the training period. Quadriceps changes after 8 weeks training with leucine or placebo Leg press strength Leg extesion strength V. lateralis CSA R. Femoris CSA Leucine Placebo Post-workout leucine supplementation has previously been shown to enhance muscle protein synthesis. In theory, higher rates of muscle protein synthesis post-workout should result in greater strength and hypertrophy adaptations. As this study shows, this is not the case however. This is an example how positive short-term effects do not necessarily translate to long-term benefits. The equivalent gains in strength and hypertrophy are likely the result of the equivalent daily protein intake between the two groups. The addition of supplementary leucine had no measurable effect on the outcome.

5 Warming up the right way A good pre-workout warm-up routine will prepare your body to operate at maximum intensity during your workout. It will raise your body temperature, increase blood flow to the muscles, increase the range of motion your muscles and joints can move through, accustom the muscles to working against a resistance, increase the rate of neural impulses (enhancing muscle contractility) and mentally prepare you for your workout. This will put your body in the optimum condition for your workout. A bad warm-up routine on the other hand will not achieve these things and will compromise workout performance. Regular readers of the Muscle Report will know that static stretching has no place in a preworkout warm-up routine. This leaves a general warm up such as stationary cycling followed by a specific warm up such as using a light weight on your chosen exercise and gradually increasing the intensity. Is there anything else you can do though? The answer is quite possibly yes; plyometrics. 10 male track and field athletes were timed over a 3 x 40 meter sprints on two occasions. On both occasions the warm-up consisted of light jogging, dynamic stretching, dynamic exercises and sprint drills. One of the two sessions also included a plyometric drill as part of the warmup. This involved 2 sets of 8 plate jumps with 11.2 kg (this equated to % of each athletes body mass). The plate jumps were a continuous sequence of 8 repetitions and performed with maximum power. 3-minutes rest was given between sets of plate jumps and 5-minutes rest after the last set before the 3 sprints. It was found the addition of the plyometric drills decreased sprint times by 1.15% over the first 20 meters and 1.24% over the entire 40 meters. This result may not seem like much but it demonstrates how plyometric exercises can condition the muscles to generate more power during subsequent exercise. The correlation between sprinting and resistance exercise is not a strong one because sprinting involves the muscles contracting against body weight resistance while weight training involves the muscles contracting against a much greater external resistance. A 2003 study did however find including plyometric jumps in a pre-workout warm-up increased squat 1RM by 3.5%. Including a small amount of plyometric exercise into your pre-workout warm-up may improve your performance. The improvement is only small but considering it comes at no great cost to you why not give it a try?

6 It s all in your head Psychology is not a discipline that produces results we often discuss here. Most of the research we review comes from the fields of sports science and nutrition but every now and then something will cross our paths that is worthy of mention here. 712 competitive athletes were questioned about their current supplement use and their intention to use supplements in the next three months. Based on the answers they were then grouped into either not intending, undecided or intending. The athletes were then tested with 5 x 20m sprints. After recording the run times participants were randomly assigned to one of three experimental treatments: group 1: a placebo that was described as a potent supplement that improved performance; group 2: a placebo that was described as a supplement that would decrease performance; and group 3: no treatment and no instructions (control group). The same sprint protocol was then repeated. Overall, there was no difference in pre- or post-supplement performance between the positive belief group and the control group. There was a small decrease in performance between negative belief group and control group (a nocebo effect). The interesting thing is that when the researchers went back and grouped the athletes by their intention to use supplements it was found those who intended to use supplements in the next three months actually saw a small improvement in sprint time while those not intending to use supplements saw a small decrease in performance. The significance of this result is that demonstrates how attitudes towards sports supplements can influence performance via a placebo effect. Even though the supplements contained no active ingredient those who viewed supplements as important for sporting success improved their performance while those who did not view supplements as important saw a decrease in performance. Is it any wonder supplement companies work so hard to convince you of the effectiveness of their products?

7 Are you training your muscles or your ego? References Krol, H, Golas, A. Effect of barbell weight on the structure of the flat bench press. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research (5): Fast or slow proteins? It makes no difference! Fabre, M, Hausswirth, C, Tiollier, E, Molle, O, Louis, J, Durguerian, A, Neuveux, N, Bigard, X. Effects of post-exercise protein intake on muscle mass and strength during resistance training: is there an optimal ratio between fast and slow proteins? International Journal of Sports Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism. Published online 19 April A supplement with short-term benefit but no long-term gain Aguiar, AF, Grala, AP, da Silva, RA, Soares-Caldiera, LF, Pacagnelli, FL, Ribeiro, AS, da Silva, DK, de Andrade, WB, Balvedi, MC. Free leucine supplementation during an 8-week resistance training program does not increase muscle mass and strength in untrained young adult subjects. Amino Acids. Published online 25 April Warming up the right way Creekmur, C, Haworth, J, Cox, R, Walsh, M. Effects of plyometrics performed during warm-up on 20m and 40m sprint performance. The Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness (5): It s all in your head Hurst, P, Foad, A, Coleman, D, Beedie, C. Athletes intending to use sports supplements are more likely to respond to a placebo. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise. Published online 18 April 2017.

CSEP-Certified Certified Personal Trainer (CSEP-CPT) CPT) Musculoskeletal Prescription

CSEP-Certified Certified Personal Trainer (CSEP-CPT) CPT) Musculoskeletal Prescription 1 Exercise Prescription for Improving Muscular Strength & Endurance Key Concepts: 4.17 4.18 2 Key Training Principles