Weights. Plates. Flexes.
(et cetera)
Personal record attempts yield grunts and groans, and limit-pushing seems always en vogue. But to those for whom aesthetic impressiveness is the goal, my solution is straightforward:
Try progressive overload.
Each outcome requires differing lifting approaches to achieve.
But whether your own personal goal is aesthetic or otherwise, it is important to understand that the body's musculature consists of more than what is eyed on the exterior. Various “micro-muscles” exist within, differing in response to duress; each are responsible for different activities, from energetic explosiveness to rest.
Colloquially referred to as slow- and fast-twitch “muscles”,
Type I and Type II muscle fibers comprise each muscle
and correspond to different functions.
Type I fibers are endurance-focused.
They are slow to fatigue and carry highest prevalence within stabilizer muscles such as the rotator cuff and spine, wherein movement requires little energy.
Type II fibers are strength- and power-focused.
They are fast to fatigue, are found more frequently within performance-oriented muscles like the biceps and quads, and bear responsibility for fueling quick, forceful movements.
All too often, trainers throw terms like these out to folks looking for fast fitness tip fixes.
But unless accompanied by proper progressive overload, they provide suboptimal results to the average gym-going Joe.
Straight sets are the most common example of this mistake, wherein trainers typically prescribe high rep-set sequences involving a moderate, mostly-doable starting and ending weight.
In this instance, one fiber type is more heavily focused upon.
Can you guess which?
It’s the slow-twitch.
Five-by-five powerlifting follows a similar fallacy: by solely setting weights high and repetitions low, fast-twitch fibers are recruited most.
Since both fiber types must be activated for optimal muscle growth, lifting routines like those listed above limit one’s ability to achieve maximum muscular capacity, while increasing the likelihood of injury when the weights get heavy.
But by gradually adding weight while simultaneously decreasing repetitions, pyramid-set progressive overload optimizes fibral hypertrophy by directing “good damage” toward each fiber type, which promotes an optimal muscle repair-regrowth process, yields consistent strength gains, and minimizes injury risk—
all of which contribute to the results you yearn for.
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