MUCLE GROWTH

It’s obvious we all going to grow as long as we eat (nutritional food). But in case of muscle growth does it only require food? If not, then what else do we feed our muscle with apart from the food we eat?

                Muscles grow due to muscle fiber hypertrophy but it is thought that hyperplasia also plays a role in muscle growth. Muscle hyperplasia is essentially the increased number of fibers in the muscle due to splitting of the cells (this is the normal body growth and does not need any additional effort) whereas hypertrophy is the increase in size of the muscle due to the enlargement in the size of the fibers. Hypertrophy in muscle growth is classified into two types which are transient and chronic. Transient hypertrophy is the increase in apparent size of the muscle due to fluid accumulation in the intercellular spaces of the muscle fibers while chronic hypertrophy is the increase in the actual size of the muscle due to hyperplasia and the thickening of the individual muscle fibers. As mentioned above hyperplasia (cell division) requires food while the thickening of the individual muscle fibers will cost you a lot of session at the gym (tearing up the muscle through rigorous exercises).

                Generally the increase in size of muscle fiber depends on protein synthesis. Once the muscle fiber sustains microtears, the process of muscle growth is induced. Due to variety of hormones protein synthesis is increased. A steroid hormone called testosterone enters into the muscle cells by diffusing across the cell membrane, and works together with a hormone receptor within the cell which then prompts gene transcription and protein formation. Human growth hormones (hGH) are released from the anterior pituitary (a gland in the head), and triggers the production of insulin-like growth factors (IGF). IGF causes the muscle cell to increase its uptake of amino acids and glucose to form protein while hGH causes nuclear division in the muscle cell without triggering mitosis and hence there are more nuclei to more rapidly synthesize protein. Protein synthesis can also be initiated due to the release of insulin within the body. The release of insulin can be stimulated by certain amino acids. Thus, protein synthesis is increased largely due to these three hormones, and with a larger amount and a faster rate of synthesis, proteins can rebuild the muscle fibers thicker.

PHYSIOLOGICAL HINDRANCES TO FAT LOSS

Some dysfunctions can cause disturbances to fat storage below are some of the dysfunctions and their relationship to fat storage. The causes of these disturbances rarely occur individually; one or more of it is found to be present at the same time. The causes or cures are not mentioned, since everybody is biochemically unique and will respond differently to the same treatments. But it’s safe to say, that everyone would benefit from a clean and individualized diet filled with natural foods, lots of purified water, appropriate exercise, deep breathing, and other health promoting activities.

BLOOD SUGAR IMBALANCE:  fat is one of the body’s sources of energy along with carbohydrate and protein. The hormones insulin and glucagon play a vital role in glucose storage (blood sugar) as fat and its release so that it could be converted into energy. Increase in insulin release or an insensitivity of the cells to be receptive to insulin, will upset the balance and keep fat tightly tucked away.

SLUGGISH THYROID: the body heat production and cellular metabolism is regulated by the thyroid gland so if it is sluggish, almost every cell in the body will be operating at a diminished capacity, thereby reducing your body’s calorie burning capacity letting you gain weight at increased fat storage.

ADRENAL INSUFFICIENCY: The adrenal glands help us adapt to stress, and are directly affected by chronic stress. Cortisol, one of the hormones released by the adrenals stimulates the breakdown of protein from our tissues, thus reducing our calorie burning capacity,

Stimulates the fat-storage enzymes, keeping that fat right where we don’t want it and creates hunger signals in our brain, which stimulate us to overeat.

 YEAST INFECTIONS AND/OR PARASITES: If the terrain of our gastrointestinal tract is lacking its normal immune defense, then our body becomes susceptible to overgrowth of yeast and/or parasitic invasion.

This can be a major (and often unknown) reason for increased appetite, intense food (particularly for sugar and carbs) and alcohol cravings, weight gain and a general lack of well-being.

FOOD ALLERGIES: Wheat and other gluten grains, yeast, sugar, dairy, soy, eggs, citrus, chocolate and corn are examples of common food allergens. Eating a food that you are allergic to can slow down metabolism, cause bloating or other digestive disturbances and raise insulin levels, all contributors to fat storage.

TOXIC OVERLOAD: If the eliminative organs; the liver, lymph, kidneys or colon are congested, the toxins that are not being sent out in the waste material are left to wreck havoc on cellular metabolism and to cause a build-up of fat.

DEPLETED BRAIN CHEMISTRY: Not only a source of mood swings, anxiety and depression as well as more serious mental illness, depleted neurochemicals are a physiological link to emotional eating and food cravings.

HORMONE IMBALANCE: Small deviations in normal hormone function can result in system-wide changes in energy production, stress responses and weight gain or retention.

ENZYME, VITAMIN AND MINERAL DEFICIENCIES: Enzymes are needed for every metabolic function of the body, including digestion. When food is not being broken down properly with the help of enzymes, this food invariably gets stored as fat. Vitamins and minerals that are related to weight control play a crucial role in energy production and protection of the cells from damaging toxins.

FATTY ACID DEFICIENCY: As you may have heard by now, there are good fats and bad fats. The essential fatty acids are the good fats that we must get from our diet and are crucial to metabolism. Good fats will help you to feel less fatigued, less hungry and to have fewer sweet cravings.

Bodybuilding in Explicit.

EXERCISES.

Bodybuilding in recent years has gain wide spread. It is classified as an exercise that helps in building muscle body mass. An exercise in the first place could be said to be a strenuous effort which results in the contraction of a particular or group of muscle. Generally exercises are meant to promote healthy living. Exercise is classified into two types which are: aerobic and anaerobic exercises.

Aerobic exercise uses oxygen to keep large muscle groups moving continuously at an intensity that can be maintained for at least 20 minutes. Aerobic exercise uses several major muscle groups throughout the body, resulting in greater demands on the cardiovascular and respiratory systems to supply oxygen to the working muscles. Aerobic exercise includes walking, jogging, and swimming, and is the form recommended for reducing the risk of heart disease and increasing endurance.

Unlike the aerobic Anaerobic exercise involves heavy work by a limited number of muscles, for example during weight lifting. These types of activities are maintained only for short intervals, and the supply of oxygen is insufficient for aerobic metabolism, resulting in a substantial oxygen debt and anaerobic metabolism within those muscles. Another example is sprinting, in which the exercise is high in intensity but short in duration, resulting in substantial oxygen debt. Weight lifting and other types of anaerobic exercise increase strength and muscle mass, but are of limited benefit to cardiovascular health.

Individuals hardly have any knowledge of weight training and without this, bodybuilding are rendered useless and also can cause harm to other parts of the body.

THE BODY & MUSCLE GROUPS

We got three types of muscle in our body and they are cardiac, smooth and skeletal. Actually, muscles are tissues which in the body system convert chemical energy into mechanical energy by contracting (the process of squeezing together large proteins “actin & myosin” to shorten muscle fibers). Cardiac muscles are the muscles that cause the ventricle to contract during the pumping of blood while the smooth muscle engage in the transport of matter such as blood to the other part of the body through the process of peristalsis (contracting & expansion). Both of these muscles are involuntary i.e. they are not controlled intentionally. The main muscle that has something to do with bodybuilding is the skeletal muscle; they are attached to the skeleton.

Skeletal muscle contractions are initiated by the release of calcium within the cell which is most likely due to electrical impulse from the central nervous system. To carry out the muscle contraction, adenosine triphosphate (ATP) is required as a source of energy. There are four sources from which ATP can be synthesized, (but the synthesis depends on the type of exercise you are doing either aerobic or anaerobic): dephosphorylation of creatine phosphate, glycogen, blood glucose & fatty acids, and fermentation. There are two types of contractions; isometric and isotonic. When the muscle cannot shorten and the muscle exerts tension is known as isometric contractions while isotonic contraction is when the muscle shorten but the tension remain unchanged. The muscle fiber is turn by both contractions resulting in increased synthesis of the actin and myosin filaments. Thickening of muscle fiber which results to larger muscle mass is caused by the increased formation of the actin and myosin, meaning that both type of contraction will effectively lead to muscle mass growth during weight training.

When a nerve impulse is sent to the muscles by the brain to start working, calcium pumps release calcium ions from the lateral sacks. Tropinin-tropomyosin complex are pulled from the actin filament by the calcium ions and muscle contraction follows after this building process. Calcium pumps pump the calcium ions released in the contraction process back into the lateral sacks during muscle relaxation thus the Tropinin-tropomyosin complex is free to move back into the actin filament since the calcium ions are no more, therefore preventing the myosin and actin molecules from binding together.

Muscular cells contain so much of myofibrils (sacrostyles), which are fundamentally organelles that are boundless of filament and can further be broken down in to sarcomeres the basic unit of contraction. Sarcomeres comprises of thick and thin filaments. The thick filaments are made up of myosin molecules(each molecule is composed of two protein strands twisted together) while the thin filament also known as actin filament is composed primarily of actin proteins but also contains tropomyosin and troponin proteins. The actin and myosin filaments slide past each other as contraction occurs and a force is provided to these filaments by this change in orientation. The myosin head then binds to an ATP molecule, breaking its bond with the actin filament and this causes the muscle cell to return to its relaxed state.

Some muscle are arranged in such a way that they act together to achieve work, they are often arranged in pairs such that as one contacts, the other extends and this process is called flexion and extension, respectively. For instance, during the flexion of the concentration curl, as the bicep contracts, the triceps extends. During the extension of the concentration curl, as the bicep extends, the triceps contracts.

There is an origin and an insertion for each skeletal muscle and the origin is the tendon connecting the muscle to the stationary bone, while the insertion is the tendon connecting the muscle to the mobile bone. The muscle exerts a force on the mobile bone through the insertion tendon during contraction.

PHENOTYPES.

Phenotype simply means the noticeable physical or biochemical characteristics of an organism, as determined by both the genetic structure and environmental influences. There are basically three classifications when talking about phenotype and they are: ectomorph, mesomorph and endomorph.

Ectomorph means naturally skinny, narrow bone structure, has a hard time gaining weight.

Mesomorph means naturally built, broad shoulders, can gain or lose weight relatively equally.

Endomorph means naturally heavy, wide bone structure, gains weight easily.

Between the three phenotypes you can see a clear physical distinction. But the biochemical and metabolic differences between this three is not always clear and is often ignored.

An ectomorph has a fast metabolism and needs more calories to maintain a given weight than an endomorph. This increase need for calories could be due to number of factors which include resting metabolic rate (RMR), hormone levels (i.e. thyroid), insulin sensitivity, fat oxidation capacity etc.

The number one reason causing hard gainers not to easily gain weight is what and how they eat. In most cases, increasing your calorie intake will lead to weight gain. No one should ever say “am a hard gainer and that’s that” because in reality you just need to eat more. It is possible for everyone to gain muscle no matter what their genetic predisposition may be, it just might be harder for some than others.

Diet Strategies for Ectomorphs

You are going to have to eat a lot to grow! There is no way around that. The primary factor that determines whether you gain or lose weight is your caloric intake (how many calories you eat). If you eat more calories than you burn (hypercaloric diet) you will gain weight and if you burn more calories than you eat (hypocaloric diet) you will lose weight. When you eat exactly the same amount of calories as you burn, it is called a maintenance caloric diet. Ectomorphs trying to gain muscle need to eat a hypercaloric diet like anyone else who wants to gain weight.

A simple calculation to determine your maintenance caloric intake is to take your body weight and multiply it by 15; this gives you your total calories to be consumed each day. For example, a 200 pound person would consume 3,000 calories a day. Now this is a very basic way to determine your maintenance caloric intake. A good starting point for ectomorphs is to set your calories to 500 calories over maintenance. Remember that you want to gain lean mass, not fat. It would be easy to gain weight by just eating junk food all day, but you would most likely gain a chunk of fat with the muscle you do gain. Instead I recommend eating good, clean, nutrient dense foods. If you do not gain weight at 500 calories over maintenance then increase your calories more.

                               Tips for Daily Eating

1. Eat lean protein with every meal—Good proteins include chicken, lean beef and turkey, tuna and other fish, eggs (also has fat) and egg whites, and protein supplements.

2. Eat unprocessed carbs—the bulk of your carb consumption should be in the form of quality, unprocessed, low glycemic carbs such as oatmeal, sweet potatoes, rice, whole gain pastas, breads, and cereals.

3. Eat fruits and vegetables EVERYDAY—Fruits and vegetables contain vitamins, minerals, and many nutrients vital for good overall health, wellness, and growth.

4. Eat good fats with every meal (except post-workout)—Dietary fat is very important for proper body functioning and hormone production. Most people have an unbalanced view of dietary fat and therefore limit it. Good sources of fat include almonds and almond butter, peanuts and peanut butter, avocado, flax seed and olive oil, and eggs.

5. Don’t eat until you feel like you are going to vomit—When trying to gain weight, some hard gainers eat to the point of vomiting. This is not healthy or necessary. Instead of eating HUGE meals, I recommend eating 6-7 decently-sized meals that make you feel full but not STUFFED and BLOATED.

6. Cook meals in advance—have food already cooked and ready to go when it is time to eat makes getting enough calories much easier and less of a burden.

7. A macronutrient ratio for bulking is 50:30:20 carbs:protein:fats—One should always get 1-1.5 grams of protein per pound of bodyweight, this is your primary objective. Above that, carbs and good fats will make up the bulk of your calories. If you are consuming 3,000 calories, this would equate to:

a. Carbs = 375 grams

b. Protein = 225 grams

c. Fat = 67 grams

8. Eat the bulk of your carbs around your workout—Weight lifting increases the body’s need for glucose, therefore it makes sense to eat carbs around your workout.

9. If you aren’t gaining weight you need to increase your calories—while some people might be able to gain muscle on 3,000 calories, you may need to eat 4,000 or even 5,000 calories a day in order to grow. It is important to monitor your weight and body fat% so you can tell whether or not you need to increase your caloric intake.

10. A cheat meal here and there won’t kill you—if you eat 6 meals a day then that means you are eating 42 meals a week. Having one or two “off” meals will not kill you and can mean psychologically refreshing. If you want to enjoy a meal out with your friends and family that is fine and encouraged.

Now that you know how you should eat every day, all you need is the stimulus for growth, the workout!