SuppVersity - Nutrition and Exercise Science for Everyone

Partial reps for maximal increases in horseshoe (=triceps) size? Believe it or not: A recent Japanese study suggests that "doing everything right" may be holding you back: doing triceps extensions over the full range of motion seems to be inferior to throwing around the weights over a partial range of motion - the effects may be mediated by temporary hypoxia, but before we delve into an analysis of the mechanisms and the practical relevance of the results, let's first take a look at what exactly Masahiro Goto and his colleagues did with their 44 resistance-trained male subjects (members of a resistance weight training club) before they arrived at the conclusion "that intramuscular hypoxia might facilitate muscular hypertrophy with PRE [partial reps] being more effective than FRE [full reps]" (Goto 2017). Read about the latest nutrition, exercise & supplementation science on the SuppVersity Alcohol, Microbes & International Chest Day Cannabis,...

This is the cable curl as it was performed in the study at hand (Signorile. 2016) As Joseph F. Signorile et al. point out in their latest paper, "cable resistance training machines are showing resurgent popularity and allow greater number of degrees of freedom than typical selectorized equipment" (Signorile. 2016). Ok, the "freedom" maybe not as absolute as it is with our beloved free weights, but cables come sign. closer than the average rigid Cybex machine. It is thus only logical that the scientists assume that "given that specific kinetic chains are used during distinct activities of daily living (ADL), cable machines may provide more effective interventions for some ADL" and eventually certain athletic endeavors (Signorile. 2016). To identify these activities and corresponding exercise equipment, the scientists from the University of Miami came up with a study that examined differences in activity levels (rmsEMG) of six major muscles (Pectoralis...

"Is everyone at home taking some time off to recover + prime future muscle growth?" Human beings are creatures of habit. This is particularly true, when it comes to those things and procedures we either like or enjoy or have found to be highly conducive to our goals, in the past. Just like some people simply won't drop their beloved Twinkies and Ding Dongs , although they know that these sugar bombs are bad for them, and others tend to stick to whatever dietary regimen has allowed them to lose 20lbs of body weight in the past, despite the fact that this "trick" has long ceased working for them, many "recreationally active" individuals (aka gymrats) are totally reluctant to any form of carefully planned deviation of their training regimen. Six weeks on, three weeks off - for better or for worse!? If anything, switching gears from a more hypertrophy to a more strength training oriented program, or vice versa, is probably the one modification most...