The 3 Main Mechanisms For Muscle Growth

Allow me to be brief and succint for you.

Currently in the literature, we know there's 3 primary mechanisms for muscle hypertrophy (the fancy name for muscle growth).

And they are:

1. Mechanical Tension

2. Metabolic Stress

3. Muscle Damage (1).

So let's look at each of these in the context of your training, to see if you're ticking all the boxes!

Bodybuilding Tips: Grow Muscle With Science

Beginning with Mechanical Tension, this refers to your ability to really utilise your muscles to lift the given weight.

Whilst this might sound silly, I still can't believe how many people in the gym perform bench press, preacher curls and especially squats, without the adequate consideration of actually working the muscle.

I watched on in horror yesterday with a friend and Personal Trainer, as one man performed a barbell squat by getting to the bottom of the movement, then hunching forward (no joke, almost presenting his back horizontally) and using his back to lift the weight up.

I mentioned to my pal that he'll soon be slipping more disks than a DJ.

As you probably already do, go for the compound movements here (squat, deadlift, etc) and be sure to add more weight to the bar as the weeks go by (progressive overload). Isolation stuff (concentration curls) is also important, but perform the compound exercises first.

For example, squats at the start of your leg workout and leg extensions to finish off.

The second mechanism, Metabolic Stress, refers to the feeling you get after a big set on the leg press to failure.

That burning sensation and subsequent pump is metabolic stress!

Whilst 4-6 reps is testing for your muscles, a higher rep range to failure 12-15 brings about a much higher burn as you know. 6 reps on the leg press is not like 12-15 reps to failure! (Of course, you should train using both rep ranges for optimal muscle size as you've read about here before.) 

Also, in the context of shoulder training, whilst dumbbell presses are terrific, they don't seem to provide the same metabolic stress as lateral raises. Now this is not to say one exercise is better than the other - they both serve different purposes and should BOTH be performed during your shoulder workout. 

Concentration curls are also a great one for bringing about that burn - EMG studies also show they isloate the bicep better than any other exercise. 

Shorter rest periods are also good for delivering a burn - only a recent study I reported on right here found a 60 second rest in between sets to be advantageous.

Now for the third and final mechanism - Muscle Damage. 

The old bro science notion of "mix things up for more gains" is actually correct! I just so happened to write about this for you, a recent study (along with the other documented literature) backs this up! 

So change your exercises around for sure. A good tip would be to try doing your workout BACKWARDS, or mix the first 2 exercises up at least.

Changing rep ranges is great too - you've read all about how a variety of rep ranges brings about more muscle gains here on Fit'n'Flexed.

The other tip is to chose exercises that really stretch and test your muscles. I like incline curls like the ones pictured below - I find they add real intensity! 

Also on the menu here are cable flies (and normal dumbbell flies) and overhead extensions performed for triceps (see below).

So think about these three things for your next workout. Nail them all and enjoy your further gains!

"Stay Fit, Stay Flexed!" 

References

(1) Schoenfeld BJ. The mechanisms of muscle hypertrophy and their application to resistance training. J Strength Cond Res 24: 2857–2872, 2010.