muscle damage
After a strength-training workout, muscles need time to recover. You might wonder whether there are gender differences in muscle recovery – do women or men recover from a strength training workout better? Here’s what science says so far.
Overtraining is a serious manifestation of over-exercising without giving the body enough time to recover. But what causes it? Here are five theories as to what causes overtraining syndrome and why it’s important to train in moderation.
Are you familiar with negative reps? If not, you should be. Emphasizing the negative or eccentric portion of a rep can help you break out of a plateau. It’s a way to work your muscles differently and achieve new gains. Find out more about the science of negative reps and why you should include them in your strength-training routine.
Muscle damage – how important is it to prompting your muscles to grow? Do you really need to blast your muscles to see significant hypertrophy? Find out what science says about this issue.
Muscles will grow in size if you force them to work harder than they’re accustomed to. In fact, there are three main ways in which muscles grow. Find out what they are and how you can use them to fine-tune your muscle hypertrophy workout.
As you may know, there are two phases of a muscle contraction – the concentric and eccentric portion. Some types of training, like super-slow training, emphasize the eccentric portion of the rep since this creates more muscle damage and greater potential for growth. Could eccentric-focused training also boost your metabolism?
To build muscle size, you have to create conditions that support muscle growth. When it comes down to it, three main factors work together to help you build muscle tissue. Find out what they are and how to use them to your advantage.
Muscles grow in response to the stress you put on them. Research suggests there are three factors that stimulate muscle growth. Striking a balance between these factors can help you better achieve your objectives. Find out what these factors are and how to manipulate them.
What’s the deal with nutrient timing? How important is timing your nutrient intake for muscle recovery and growth? Find out why post-exercise nutrition is essential and how to maximize it.
Ever wonder what’s going on behind the scenes when you resistance train? There are a number of hormones at work that have an impact on muscle growth. Find out more about these key players and how they make it harder or easier to build lean body mass.
Are you trying to build strength or is your goal to increase muscle size? Your approach for each should be different. This article discusses how training for size (bodybuilder style) differs from training for strength (powerlifter style) and how to maximize muscle growth.
Are you still sipping a sports drink to get your carbs and electrolytes during a long workout? You may be able to ditch the sports drink for fruit, more specifically, a banana. A new study shows that bananas have more going for them when it comes to replacing lost electrolytes and replenishing glycogen stores than
