HYPERTROPHY & EXERCISE SELECTION

The topic of hypertrophy (training for muscle growth) is a very popular topic with an insane amount of research and focus. ETF does not prioritize the aesthetics, but rather the functionality that comes with hypertrophy training. Simply put, a larger muscle can become a stronger muscle and ultimately lead to better performance. So we wanted to quickly provide an explanation of the objectives for hypertrophy work so that you better understand what to look for and optimize your training time.

Most folks understand that training for muscular hypertrophy means training for size. Training specifically to promote a hypertrophic response will increase the cross-sectional area of a muscle fiber, resulting in a larger muscle. The three commonly accepted criteria for creating a hypertrophic response in training are 1. Mechanical Tension 2. Muscle Damage & 3. Metabolic Stress. These three factors combined create a cascade of signals and imposed demands to trigger muscle growth. Here are examples of each of these factors:

1. Mechanical Tension: Handling a heavy resistance implement through a full range of motion

2. Muscle Damage: Exercising the muscle enough to sustain adequate (though not too much) damage. In turn, this triggers a response to repair these muscle fibers and become bigger to cope with those demands in the future.

3. Metabolic Stress: Often associated with the notorious 'pump' or a burning sensation, metabolic stress occurs with higher volumes of work and creates a pool of fluids and a cell swelling effect. This effect then creates a great build-up of metabolites that trigger further signaling for hormonal responses and growth.

Now that we understand what stimulus we need, we have to be sure that the stimulus applies to the region we want. Say you were wanting to develop your pecs. You can go under the barbell and bench press until you're blue in the face. But, if it is your shoulders and triceps primarily working the movement, they are what will be targeted, not your chest. 'Mind-muscle connection' is an asset for hypertrophy training. It is simply being able to activate and engage the target muscle group through body awareness. So, even though your shoulders and triceps can usually be fatigued first in the bench press, a solid mind-muscle connection can redirect the emphasis of work and tension on the pecs during the exercise.

The last consideration is in exercise selection. Even with solid mind-muscle connection, some exercises don't place the majority of tension and resistance on the desired muscle groups as effectively others. And there is no hard-set rule for the best exercises for everybody. This is a unique area of fitness that will depend on if the criteria are in effect. Perhaps, the bench press could be substituted with a pec deck machine. The machine will remove assistance from other muscles, so the exercise requires the targeted muscle/muscle group to overcome the resistance. This, matched with good 'mind-muscle control' is a recipe for muscle growth.

To recap, the criteria for training and selecting exercises with the goal of hypertrophy are as follows:

1. They produce all three necessary factors: Mechanical Tension, Muscle Damage, and Metabolic Stress

2. Exercises that inherently target and isolate the desired muscle/muscle group. A resulting 'pump' of the muscle isn't always necessary for growth but can be a great indicator that the appropriate muscle was targeted and adequately stressed

3. Improved body awareness with good mind-muscle connection to enhance targeted stress to desired muscles