Is it harder for women to build muscle? Men and women have many things in common, but when it comes to building muscle, there are subtle but important things that separate us. Many things have a say in how much muscle you can gain, and how fast. Anabolic hormones and enzymes in our muscles are … Read more
How should you train to build muscle as fast and efficiently as possible? Few things are more frustrating than when you put in hours at the gym, without getting any noticeable results. And conversely, few things feel better than when you’re clearly seeing that you have gained muscle mass and strength. In this guide, we … Read more
Yesterday, we published a post about a study that found that bench pressing is not enough for maximal triceps growth. In today’s post, I’d like to take a look at the other side of your upper arm, and look into a few interesting studies on how compound exercises such as rows or lat pull-downs affect … Read more
Who doesn’t want big arms? Large and well-developed arm muscles aren’t only helpful in lifting heavy ass weight – it is also an eye-catching trophy of your hard work in the gym. If you are trying to make your arms bigger, you’d be wise to pay close attention to your triceps. The triceps muscle constitutes … Read more
Creating tension in the muscle is one of the main factors that build muscle. In the gym, you can do this in two ways. The first is to lift heavier and heavier weights, what we call progressive overload. The second is TUT, or time under tension. This means that you maintain the tension in the … Read more
Two weeks ago, we posted a news article about a new study showing that postexercise cooling can harm your gains. Today, let’s take a look at another study, this one examining the other side of the temperature scale, heat. Heat applied to the muscles, more precisely, and the fact that this procedure seems to be … Read more
How much muscle mass and strength can an untrained female expect to gain upon entering the world of strength training? Quite a substantial amount, as it turns out. Most strength-training research is still performed using male subjects. That being said, by now there is enough data to examine to get an idea of the effects … Read more
Systemic concentrations of anabolic hormones like testosterone do not predict the muscle growth strength training produces. However, local factors inside your muscles, like androgen receptor content, do. The results from a recent study show that overtraining leads to lower muscle androgen receptor content. This suggests that you don’t want to cross the fine line between … Read more
A cluster set is a set that includes intermittent rest between repetitions or groups – “clusters” of repetitions. By taking a 10–30 second rest in between repetitions, you can delay fatigue and keep intensity high during a training session. By utilizing cluster sets, you can increase your training volume and the amount of intense work … Read more
If you train for athletic performance, you should focus on full range of motion. That’s the take-away from a recent study comparing the effects of 15 weeks of training with either partial of full ROM on muscle architecture and mechanical properties. Untrained males trained their legs using an isokinetic dynamometer. It’s a contraption that works … Read more