Myth Buster: No Pain = No Muscle Gain?
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Great myth this week! Although SOME “Delayed onset muscle soreness” may be associated with hypertrophy and training with heavier loads, it is NOT absolutely necessary for growth.
*To review: Growing muscle results from many stimuli, some include: increasing load placed on the muscle (especially during eccentric contractions), REPEATED BOUTS OF TRAINING and CUSTOMIZED NUTRITION TAILORED TO HYPERTROPHY.
*As you increase the amount of LOAD and train more frequently at new angles, our muscles may feel sore. However, even if you do not feel delayed soreness, the muscle tissue is still repairing and growing, especially if training is repeated, relatively heavy and couples with proper nutrition)
Sources:
J Biochem Cell Biol. 2010 Sep;42(9):1371-5. Epub 2010 Jun 9.
Human exercise-mediated skeletal muscle hypertrophy is an intrinsic process.
West DW, Burd NA, Staples AW, Phillips SM.
Exercise Metabolism Research Group, Department of Kinesiology, McMaster University, Canada.
J Nutr. 1992 Mar;122(3 Suppl):796-801.
Exercise, nutrition and aging.
Human Physiology Laboratory, U.S. Department of Agriculture Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging, Tufts University, Boston, MA 02111.
Curr Opin Clin Nutr Metab Care. 2010 Nov;13(6):630-4.
Resistance exercise and appropriate nutrition to counteract muscle wasting and promote muscle hypertrophy.
Department of Medicine, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
J Strength Cond Res. 2010 Apr;24(4):1150-9.
Single vs. multiple sets of resistance exercise for muscle hypertrophy: a meta-analysis.
Journal of Pure Power, Colorado Springs, CO, USA.
