Train Less and Gain Muscle Faster

Samuel Buckner, PhD, is an assistant professor of exercise science at the University of South Florida. Dr. Buckner is the director of the University of South Florida Muscle Laboratory. His research group primarily focuses on skeletal muscle adaptations to resistance exercise. Specifically, the USF Muscle Laboratory is interested in the influence that exercise-induced increases in muscle size have on exercise-induced increases in muscle strength. In addition, the lab studies low-load alternatives to traditional resistance exercise (with and without the application of blood flow restriction), and the applications these methods may have on various populations. Dr. Buckner has published over 100 papers in peer-reviewed journals.

Dr. Gabrielle Lyon is board-certified in family medicine and completed a combined research and clinical fellowship in geriatrics and nutritional sciences at Washington University in St. Louis. She completed her undergraduate training in nutritional sciences at the University of Illinois. Dr Lyon is a subject-matter expert and educator applying protein types and levels for health, performance, ageing, and disease prevention. She has continued to receive mentorship from Dr. Donald Layman, PhD, over two decades to help bring protein metabolism and nutrition from the bench to the bedside.

Unless you’re a career bodybuilder, it is difficult to train every muscle perfectly and optimize muscle size. Resistance training studies show that trained individuals still experience growth. Getting growth out of trained individuals is more difficult than untrained individuals.

Buckner’s lab studies skeletal muscle growth, including how much resistance-trained individuals can grow over time and the time course of growth. They are currently conducting a study on the effects of higher and lower volumes of resistance training and the impact of supervision versus not having supervision on muscle growth. Buckner is also interested in the time course of growth how quickly do you see an increase in muscle size and also how quickly does that growth plateau? Buckner’s lab also employs Blood Flow Restriction to create a more metabolic environment within the muscle and facilitate adaptation while lifting lighter weights. B-mode ultrasound is the primary tool utilized in Buckner’s lab to measure the majority of the adaptations they are trying to capture.

Muscle growth is an increase in the size of the muscle fibres. To induce skeletal muscle growth, a sufficient volume of training is needed. Lifting lighter weights to failure produces similar skeletal muscle growth as lifting heavy weights. Lifting heavy weights is necessary to acquire the adaptations that come along with lifting heavy, especially for more complex movements. Muscle growth is similar regardless of training style.

Traditional training styles are associated with strength adaptations. Changes in strength may affect muscular endurance. Getting stronger is important for endurance adaptations. Strength is an important biomarker for overall health, longevity, and ageing. Research indicates that strength is associated with several health-related biomarkers and mortality.

Being naturally strong is beneficial for various health outcomes, and engaging in physical activity during development can have long-lasting effects on strength biomarkers. Both natural and developed strength are important, but having a higher baseline strength during development may have long-term benefits for ageing and disease prevention.

When it comes to young kids, engaging in physical activity and participating in sporting and recreational activities is important. As kids grow older, they can start engaging in resistance-type activities like gymnastics, which use body weight as a stimulus.

Engaging in gymnastics during developmental years may increase baseline muscle characteristics. Anecdotal evidence suggests that starting gymnastics young can lead to greater strength and muscle development. For example, Samuel’s older brother started gymnastics at three years old and became bigger and stronger than him. Samuel’s brother achieved impressive feats of strength like bench pressing 225 pounds in seventh grade. Even after retiring from gymnastics, Samuel’s brother’s capabilities remain greater than his.

In response to Dr Lyon asking if there are limits to how much muscle a person can grow naturally, Samuel references a paper he and his colleagues wrote in 2016 “Muscle Growth: To infinity and beyond?” which concludes that the majority of growth happens fairly quickly. Most muscle growth for an untrained person happens within the first year of training. Most people who have been training for five years are in a maintenance phase.

Taking time off from training does not necessarily result in muscle loss, but too much time off can lead to muscle tissue reduction. Maintaining muscle is easier than building muscle. Studies suggest that maintaining muscle adaptations requires less volume than building muscle. Entering a maintenance phase requires less volume and frequency compared to building muscle. Building muscle with lower volume and frequency will result in slower growth. Maintaining strength is easier than maintaining muscle size. Training each muscle group once a week can be effective for muscle growth.

Focusing on strength and hypertrophy is recommended for beginners. Three to four sets near failure for each muscle group is suggested. Lifting heavy weights can contribute to muscle growth and strength.

Both type 1 and type 2 muscle fibers can grow with proper training. Type 2 muscle fibers are larger and more powerful and are typically the ones we think of growing when we lift weights. Type 1 is more fatigue-resistant and more engaged in aerobic type activity. Samuel recommends that if you want to get strong you should lift heavy weights and do 3–4 sets to failure twice a week. If you are consistent with that and capable of growing your muscles will grow.

Maintaining strength and function as we age is emphasised. Samuel says that he loves to train and that what he does training-wise probably exceeds what he needs to do for health benefits. Samuel expresses a desire to change his training approach as he prioritizes health over size and strength.

As people age, the window of what they can do physically seems to close. Engaging in a healthy, active lifestyle can lead to successful and healthy ageing. Resistance training and being more active can slow the decline of sarcopenia. Samuel and Dr Lyon both believe that sedentariness and a general lack of activity are scary things as we age. Moderately hypertrophied versions of oneself may lead to the most ideal ageing scenario. There is an adaptation cost, and theories of ageing would support finding a balance for optimal ageing.

Blood Flow Restriction (BFR) is explained as a technique to limit blood flow to muscles. BFR is said to facilitate metabolic accumulation in muscles. It can also reduce the amount of work needed to reach muscle failure. The way BFR works is a special kind of tourniquet (elastic band) goes around your thigh or arm to reduce the blood flow out of that area. It tricks your body into thinking you’re working harder than you are. Samuel says that the only muscle he has used BFR on is his triceps as he has had trouble in the past trying to fatigue his triceps when training.

To finish the discussion Dr Lyon asks Samuel what is his current pet peeve in the muscle and exercise space. Samuel talks about how when a new paper gets published that introduces a new fancy iteration of training. It’s one study and then a few people of influence will tweet it or share it on Instagram which leads to it catching fire and everybody is talking about it. However, when Samuel sits down to read the study with his lab group, 9 times out of 10 they will disagree with it. One such recent study stated that longer rest periods led to more volume of training and therefore greater adaptation. Samuel says that in his mind shorter rest periods are more beneficial for hypertrophy because you want to take advantage of the metabolic byproduct. A great example of that is BFR as a volume reducer because it capitalizes on the metabolic environment within the muscle and makes it so that you spend less time in the gym.

Resistance training, also known as strength training, is a form of exercise that involves using external resistance to induce muscle contractions and promote muscle strength, endurance, and hypertrophy. Muscle hypertrophy refers to the increase in the size of muscle fibers resulting in muscle growth. There are two types of hypertrophy: sarcoplasmic hypertrophy which focuses on increased glycogen storage and myofibrillar hypertrophy which focuses on increased myofibril size. The primary focus of bodybuilding-related activities is muscle building through hypertrophy.

The main themes in this information include muscle growth and adaptation, the relationship between strength and hypertrophy, the importance of resistance training for health and ageing, and the limitations and natural boundaries of muscle growth. While there is ongoing research on understanding how muscles grow through resistance training, it is generally accepted that consistent anaerobic strength training will produce long-term muscular hypertrophy along with its effects on muscular strength and endurance. However, there are natural boundaries to how much muscles can grow based on individual differences such as genetics or age-related loss of muscle mass known as sarcopenia. Future advancements may involve identifying novel strategies for optimizing muscle growth while considering these individual differences.

In summary, resistance training plays an important role in promoting muscular adaptation by increasing the volume of work performed during a session or over a specific period by progressively increasing resistance or repetitions over successive bouts of exercise to maintain high effort levels. Understanding the mechanisms behind muscular adaptation can lead to evidence-based recommendations for maintaining optimal health throughout life by preventing age-related loss of function due to sarcopenia or chronic disease management through physical activity interventions such as blood flow restriction techniques that enhance metabolic responses during exercise.