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Skeletal muscle is one of the most
adaptable types of tissue in the human body, and gaining muscle is a
complex biological process that occurs at the cell's molecular level.
It involves the interplay between many cellular organelles (parts of a
cell) and the growth factors (hormone and hormone-like compounds) that
stimulate them. Studied for centuries, only recently have scientists
come to fully understand this complex process of muscle growth
technically referred to as hypertrophy.
 Building body muscle essentially occurs as a result of physical trauma
- 'micro-tearing' - to the muscle fibers during weight or resistance
training. This disruption to the muscle cell's organelles activates
the so-called 'satellite' cells located on the outside of the muscle's
fibers. Once activated, the satellite cells migrate to the injury site
and begin to fuse both together and to the muscle fibers, leading to
increases in muscle fiber mass across the damaged area.
 Growth hormones also play a large role in stimulating muscle growth.
Resistance exercises stimulate the brain's anterior pituitary gland to
release growth hormone triggering fat metabolism for energy use during
the muscle growing process. The levels of growth hormone released are
dependent upon the intensity of the resistance or weight training
workout. Growth hormones also stimulate the uptake and usage of amino
acids into the protein in skeletal muscle.
Testosterone also directly affects muscle growth by increasing the
presence of neurotransmitters at the damaged fiber site, helping
activate tissue growth. Testosterone is also thought to have some kind
of regulatory effect on satellite cell activity.
Muscle growth occurs when the muscle synthesizes protein at a rate
greater than the rate of muscle protein breakdown. Although resistance
exercises can really stimulate muscle cell growth, the growth is
generally relatively slow. Sometimes it takes several weeks or months
for the growth to become apparent.
Studies have consistently shown that men and women respond to
resistance training in a very similar fashion. However, gender
differences in hormone levels, body composition, and overall size can
produce different degrees of muscle growth than one might expect to
attain. Aging also plays a part in growth, as the natural tendency is
for muscle tissue to diminish as you get older. The good news is that
this loss of muscle mass - called sarcopenia - can be reversed with
regular resistance training. Regular training also strengthens the
connective tissues surrounding skeletal muscle, helping greatly reduce
the chances of injury and speeding up any needed rehabilitation
process.
It seems somewhat ironic that in order for building body muscle to
occur, the muscle tissue itself becomes damaged and the body's natural
healing processes produces an overall positive effect. When you
combine this basic understanding of hypertrophy with a well thought
out exercise and diet plan, you, too, can optimize the amount of
muscle mass your body can realistically develop.
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little as 7 minutes a day!
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