muscle memory article

[goku_kakarot77]

got this off another board , maybe old but just came accross it very interesting

By Bryan Haycock, MS

Anyone who has lifted weights, on and off, for several years is familiar with the concept of "muscle memory". Muscle memory in this context refers to the observation that when a person begins lifting weights after a prolonged lay off, it is much easier to return to their previous levels of size and strength than it was to get there the first time around. Even when significant atrophy (muscle shrinking) has taken place during the layoff, previously hypertrophied muscle returns to its previous size more quickly than usual.

A recent study looking at fiber type conversions during muscle hypertrophy may have uncovered a possible mechanism for this phenomenon. For those of you not crazy about scientific lingo bear with me. Towards the end you will see what I’m getting at with this study. In this study the distribution of myosin heavy chain (MHC) isoforms, fiber type composition, and fiber size of the vastus lateralis muscle were analyzed in a group of adult sedentary men before and after 3 months of resistance training and then again, after 3 months of detraining. Following the period of resistance training, MHC IIX content decreased from just over 9% to 2.0%, with a corresponding increase in MHC IIA (42% to 49%). Following detraining the amount of MHC IIX reached values that were higher than before and during resistance training, over 17%! As expected, significant hypertrophy was observed for the type II fibers after resistance training, and even remained larger than baseline after 3 months of detraining.

Myosin heavy chain isoforms, or MHCs, refer to the types of contractile protein you see in a given muscle fiber. MHCs determine how the muscle fiber functions. MHCs are what make a fiber "fast twitch", "slow twitch", or something in-between. Certain MHCs are known to undergo a change in response to resistance exercise. In this case, fibers that contain MHC IIX are fibers that aren’t really sure what kind of fiber they are until they are called to action. Once recruited, they become MHC IIAs. So, fibers containg MHC IIX proteins serve as a reservoir of sorts for muscle hypertrophy because the can transform themselves into fibers containing MHC IIX which grow easily in response to training.

Like any great study, these researchers found what they expected as well as a little extra that they didn’t. I think this study caught my attention because it showed a long-term alteration in skeletal muscle following resistance training. It has been this long-term change that has been the focus of my own training philosophy, which incorporates what I call "strategic deconditioning". This study showed that resistance training decreases the amount of MHC IIX while reciprocally increasing MHC IIA content. This was expected and has previously observed with changes in fiber type after resistance training. What they didn’t expect was that detraining following heavy-load resistance training seems to cause what they refer to as an "overshoot" or doubling in the percentage of MHC IIX isoforms, significantly higher than that measured at baseline. What does this mean? It could mean that there are more fibers available for hypertrophy (growth) after a lay off from training than there are before you start training. This could very well explain the "muscle memory" effect many of us have experienced ourselves. It may also have implications for natural bodybuilders looking to overcome long-standing plateaus.

There are a few questions that this study did not answer. For instance, they waited until 3 months after they stopped training before they took final measurements. It would have been nice if they had taken measurements regularly so that the optimal period of detraining could be identified corresponding to peak MHC IIX levels. Because it takes 3-4 weeks for these contractile muscle proteins to turn over, it would take longer than one month and probably less time than 6 months (previous research). Still the optimal time remains to be elucidated.

Also, how would these guys respond to the same training regimen after the detraining period? Would their quads grow to their previous trained size, or even further? How long would it take? These questions, if answered, may add a new twist to typical training regimens. It may very well be that extended breaks from training may actually allow greater growth over a 12-month period than if training is uninterrupted. For serious athletes and bodybuilders, this would be important information and could significantly extend their competitive careers.

 

[st8grad]

There is also something observed called fat memory. A lean athlete that bulks up and puts on fat can diet down to previous levels easier than someone coming from higher levels of fat to start with. Also, an athlete that has dieted down to lean body fat levels will put fat on easier when bulking than an athlete that has always been lean or stayed lean for a very long period of time.

The two then go hand in hand when bulking. A lean athlete when consuming more calories than burning will gain more muscle and less fat while a fatter athlete will gain more fat and less muscle.

I'd love to find the research for you, but I don't have the time. I'm sure there will be some that won't believe it without a study. Even still, from anecdotal evidence it seems true.

It may have a lot to do with how sensitive to insulin a leaner person is than a fatter person. The insulin works for the lean lifter and against the chubby lifter.

Take heed all of you 14% bf and above guys. The lean lifters that eat like 400g of carbs per day can do so and benefit more from it. So the blind recommendation to eat X number of grams per pound of bodyweight needs to be taken in context of your BF%.

Be aware too that when a lean lifter calculates his calorie intake for the day, he is closer to calculating it for lean body mass than a heavier lifter.

A 200 pound lifter at 8% getting 5000 cals per day is going to fare much better than a 200 pound lifter at 16% or above eating the same cals.

Something to think about.

 

[goku_kakarot77]

There is also something observed called fat memory. A lean athlete that bulks up and puts on fat can diet down to previous levels easier than someone coming from higher levels of fat to start with. Also, an athlete that has dieted down to lean body fat levels will put fat on easier when bulking than an athlete that has always been lean or stayed lean for a very long period of time.

The two then go hand in hand when bulking. A lean athlete when consuming more calories than burning will gain more muscle and less fat while a fatter athlete will gain more fat and less muscle.

I'd love to find the research for you, but I don't have the time. I'm sure there will be some that won't believe it without a study. Even still, from anecdotal evidence it seems true.

It may have a lot to do with how sensitive to insulin a leaner person is than a fatter person. The insulin works for the lean lifter and against the chubby lifter.

Take heed all of you 14% bf and above guys. The lean lifters that eat like 400g of carbs per day can do so and benefit more from it. So the blind recommendation to eat X number of grams per pound of bodyweight needs to be taken in context of your BF%.

Be aware too that when a lean lifter calculates his calorie intake for the day, he is closer to calculating it for lean body mass than a heavier lifter.

A 200 pound lifter at 8% getting 5000 cals per day is going to fare much better than a 200 pound lifter at 16% or above eating the same cals.

Something to think about.

ive also heard this too , very interesting

 

[RearNaked]

Great read

 

[pizza_man]

hey thanks yall.... I like the posts with information and ideas... (OK I LIKE THE SILLY ONES TOO)

 

[ALIN]

always good read

 

[Mavafanculo]

great article

if you want to read a great example of this look up "the colorado experiment" with casey viator and arthur jones.

a previously huge viator suppossedly re-gained like 50 lbs of muscle in a month or 2

 

[goku_kakarot77]

come on guys give me some karma love lol

peace

 

[dabuffguy]

There is also something observed called fat memory. A lean athlete that bulks up and puts on fat can diet down to previous levels easier than someone coming from higher levels of fat to start with. Also, an athlete that has dieted down to lean body fat levels will put fat on easier when bulking than an athlete that has always been lean or stayed lean for a very long period of time.

The two then go hand in hand when bulking. A lean athlete when consuming more calories than burning will gain more muscle and less fat while a fatter athlete will gain more fat and less muscle.

I'd love to find the research for you, but I don't have the time. I'm sure there will be some that won't believe it without a study. Even still, from anecdotal evidence it seems true.

It may have a lot to do with how sensitive to insulin a leaner person is than a fatter person. The insulin works for the lean lifter and against the chubby lifter.

Take heed all of you 14% bf and above guys. The lean lifters that eat like 400g of carbs per day can do so and benefit more from it. So the blind recommendation to eat X number of grams per pound of bodyweight needs to be taken in context of your BF%.

Be aware too that when a lean lifter calculates his calorie intake for the day, he is closer to calculating it for lean body mass than a heavier lifter.

A 200 pound lifter at 8% getting 5000 cals per day is going to fare much better than a 200 pound lifter at 16% or above eating the same cals.

Something to think about.

Glad I'm an ecto with endo capabilities. Hehe, sucks to be fat i guess.

 

[rnch]

wonder how long the memory lasts?

 

[dabuffguy]

wonder how long the memory lasts?

To a certain extent, forever.

The older you get, the more it fades, much of it having to do with fading testosterone levels.

3 separate times before i became fully committed I could lean up and gain 20 lbs in 8 weeks totally natty. That's when I was 18-20.

I came home from chile a year and a half ago and i weighed 160 lbs, at 6'2". a total lurp. Within 8 weeks, I was up to 190 natty and as strong and lean as i had ever been. Now, I am even more lean, and 215lbs. I'm finally starting to look good, lol. 15 lbs more to reach my goal. My quads are seriously lacking though. I have a very bad lower back that prevents me from squats among other important excercises. F'ckin back. I can only do leg presses every 2 weeks without having too much pain, and it gets me nowhere really. my quads are like 23 inches. very pathetic.

 

[goku_kakarot77]

god bless muscle memory