Lately we’ve been getting a few more pointed questions and discussions about advanced nutrition and exercise techniques. Two that have come up are:
1) What is the optimal level of glycogen for muscle growth
2) How do eccentrics affect muscle growth
Glycogen is the storage form of glucose and your muscles can store more glycogen after exhaustive exercise. In fact some muscles can store up to 3 times as much glycogen if an exhaustive exercise session is done followed by a surplus of glucose rich liquid is consumed.
This however is typically only done for endurance athletes competing in multiple events over multiple days. The research isn’t so clear on muscle growth and in fact it seems that glycogen levels don’t really have much to do with muscle growth.
If your goal is fat loss, then may notice that your muscles feel a bit less ‘full’. This isn’t anything to be concerned with as it’s normal to feel a bit weaker and a bit ‘flatter’ while you’re reducing calories in an effort to reduce bodyfat.
This is a transient state that will return to normal when you go back to eating maintenance calories.
Eccentric exercise is another issue that comes up with regard to muscle building. Every time you lift a weight you will be doing at least some eccentric work, but some believe that there is merit to focusing on the exact timing of eccentrics.
There is some merit to do focused eccentrics, however there isn’t much evidence to support overly deliberate eccentrics as a mainstay to a muscle building routine.
In both cases it seems that fancy lifting techniques are hypothesized and maybe even romanticized to be able to produce steroid like gains without using steroids.
The truth is the 2 main things that will produce the most muscle gains from a natural body are:
1) Consistency
2) Maximum Effort
Once you have these two factors mastered you can start experimenting with other concepts and theories to accelerate your gains.
In todays audio lesson we’ll go into detail about glycogen, eccentrics and muscle gaining and what the real drivers of muscle gaining are and how our focus and goals can end up in the wrong place.
John
Download Transcription: Can Glycogen Loading and Eccentric Reps Replace Steroids?
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
{ 17 comments }
thanks for this lads. very refreshing podcast. Motivation enough to kill my leg day tomorow :p
Dude. DUDE. I think you guys just answered the 2 biggest questions in my head for the longest time. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU! Gonna listen now!
Is taking a caffeine or ephedrine tablet something you recommend to reach AI goals faster? Assume that I’m adding weight each time I lift anyway
As far as John talking about long negatives or longer TUL (time under load), I have heard in multiple studies that TUL’s of 60-120 seconds are optimal to induce muscle hypertrophy.
I’ve been applying this for 2 months and I have gained, but i cant’ say it’s any better than growth I had with conventional rep ranges.
HOWEVER, my strength has gone up considerably with this method. So anecdotally I can say that a long TUL has worked sufficiently for me, but is no miracle program.
How so? What measure have you used to gauge that your strength has gone up “considerably” with that method?
Just finished listening.
1. If eating very low carb (because this is the type of diet I naturally gravitate towards) means less strength, does that mean I grow muscle slower than if I maintain a higher carb diet?
2. So basically, we should just lift as fast as possible while still maintaining good form?
For whatever it’s worth:
1. I’ve eaten like this since 2001 and my strength has not decreased or stalled. In fact, I have the numbers from annual powerlifting meets to show that it has increased every year. Don’t let anyone tell you that less carbs automatically means less strength. As they say on the podcast, if low carbs is resulting in losing weight/presumably fat, then keep at it.
2. I would say as fast as you can while also maintaining control.
Yeah, I’ve been eating very low carb for like 9 weeks and continued to grow bigger and stronger. But I wonder if I could benefit more by eating more carbs.
I’m glad you had this podcast. I have read too many published studies and to date I have not seen any evidencing levels of glycogen effecting muscle CSA. Until a landfall of literature swamps me showing that it does, I won’t personally give that any credit and will not be dictating my training by my glycogen levels.
Also, I would like to note that using extremes to get your point across is fine, but don’t forget the intermediate. Yes, a decade-plus of solid training will put meat on your arms or legs. Yes, COMPLETELY immobilizing said arm or leg will cause them to shrivel. However, once that arm is built, I have seen plenty of guys coast along on the foundation they built. Don’t forget about them.
Great point
Hey guys,
I suspect that this podcast was started by my questions about whether eating at BMR really causes muscle growth or if “lean bulking” is more effective.
Anyway, this was a great podcast, though I notice you guys like to go on tangents that digress and link to all the other mistakes people make… LOL!
I’d like to hear a podcast about muscle recovery one day. I’ve heard that you need to eat plenty of protein and fat to recover faster between workouts… Such commen nutritional
Myths are still going around! Perhaps you could dispel that!
Great podcast guys,
I listen to the majority of your podcasts and find them very informative. In this cast you eluded to the lower you go in body fat percentage the greater differences you see in day to day “look” of your physique based on your caloric/glycogen intake, but have you ever gone into how body fat relates to AI measurments? Basically what I’m asking is it possible to get to an ideal AI (or close to it) at relatively low body fat percentages (like 5-6%.) Also, when you lose let’s say 1% body fat and your under 10% BF, how much could this effect your shoulder measurment theorectically? I realize this is dependent on a lot of other factors, but can you give a basic idea if someone consistently measured after a fasted state.
Thanks,
Jeremy
“Dieting SUCKS!!!”
heck yeah it does.
Jason
Eccentric work does nothing for muscle growth. I used to watch a rock climber work out at our gym. He trained exclusively in eccentric work and was smaller than everyone in the gym. He had great muscle tone and a real wiry, sinewy look. He could hold his bodyweight with extra weights for longer than anyone else in the gym but did not get any hypertrophy out of it at all. Heaps of strength which I suspect is all in the tendons and ligaments.
I guess eccentric work is included in strength programs for that reason, but it won’t help with muscle growth.
JB I love your insight. And Brad…you are crucial to keeping these podcasts entertaining. Wish you guys released these more than once a week! Keep up the awesomeness
so where am i supposed to get ephedrine? all that is available is hcl, sulfates, and extracts. all those are very low dose and you have to double everything spending a lot of money to get very low dose. where are we supposed to get real then?
Primatine tablets are 25 mg ephedrine HCL.
Bronkaid tablets are 25 mg ephedrine sulfate.
This is a little above the normal dose for the ECA stack (20 mg).
Both are in your neighborhood drug store.
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