Muscle hypertrophy, why it happens and how to build muscle mass

by John Bright in blog 750

Observing the success of athletes, we often pay attention to the beauty and strength of their muscles and we ask ourselves the question: how can such physical look be achieved? Here is where the concept of muscle hypertrophy comes in. We will try to figure out what processes take place within the muscle tissue and how to build up its mass to become strong

Muscle hypertrophy: what is it?

To understand what muscle hypertrophy is, you need to know that everything is based on the muscle fibers that form the muscle cell. When the thickness of individual fibers are increased, the cell itself becomes larger and this leads to an increase in the mass of the entire muscle. This process is called muscle hypertrophy.

Muscle building is based on the adaptation of muscles to increasing loads. This is a very important aspect within regular training. When a muscle receives loads that goes beyond its capabilities, it gradually adapts to them, by repairing and responding with an increase in mass.

If mass gains are what you are looking for, there are agents to help and speed this process up by several times such as oral Dianabol or Testosterone and Nandrolone.

Mechanics of muscle hypertrophy

The training process triggers an intense supply of nerve impulses to the muscle cells. This in turn leads to increased muscle contraction, which already contributes to an increase in the fiber strength, but without increasing their size. Furthermore, the nervous system then continues to act on the muscle tissue while stimulating protein synthesis for the repair. When this process lasts and is repeated over several months, the result is a noticeable increase and strengthening of the muscles.

Therefore, muscle hypertrophy is a process that depends on 2 components:

Stimulation;
Recovery.

Each time the athlete begins a workout, the athlete starts this stimulation. Repeated loads that cause muscle contractions damage the muscle fibers. After the end of the workout, the muscle rests and the recovery process begins. This process is later accompanied by an increase in muscle mass.

When a muscle is not working or under load, the damaged fibers begin to heal. At the same time, the regeneration and the creation of new fibers that replace the old ones take place. The result is an increase in the number of fibers and total muscle mass.

Types of muscle hypertrophy

There are 2 types of hypertrophy within the muscle fibers:

Myofibrillar hypertrophy. This type of hypertrophy leads to an increase in muscle density, but the volume of the muscle does not change significantly. Such a process is aimed not so much at increasing the mass, as at increasing the strength indicators of these fibers. The easiest way to achieve this result is with those muscles that spend most of their time under moderate load, for example, the muscles of the legs.
Sarcoplasmic hypertrophy. First of all, bodybuilders work on this type of hypertrophy. The essence of this process is a significant increase in muscle mass, but no increase in strength is observed. This is achieved by changing the angle of application of forces, which increases the load on the muscle fibers. As a result, their endurance increases and the athlete is able to perform more exercises during their training.

Sarcoplasmic hypertrophy makes muscles more beautiful than myofibrillar hypertrophy. This is the case for most bodybuilders. In their sport, it is the volume and the beauty of the muscles that are considered decisive. But for other athletes, this is not so important.

The other athletes, call beautiful pumped up muscles “empty”. And there is a certain sense in this, since the effectiveness in sarcoplasmic hypertrophy is noticeably lower than in myofibrillar hypertrophy.

For the athletes who prefer myofibrillar hypertrophy, supplements such as Anavar be used to speed up this process by several times. Using such supplements, a user can gain lean and defined muscles within a very short space of time and sculpt their body to their needs.

Key factors in hypertrophy

In the formation of hypertrophy, a number of factors matter:

Food. A factor of decisive importance in the process of super-regeneration of muscle fibers. It is food that provides the basis for the formation of the myofibril chains.
Workout. Increased loads contribute to fiber damage and their subsequent recovery. This is what gives the impact for building muscle mass.
Recovery. This factor determines the creation of new fibers to replace the old damaged ones. New fibers will not grow unless an individual takes the time to recover.
Sports nutrition. It is an additional factor on which the formation of myofibrils is based.
Growth hormones and peptide hormones. Promotes artificial muscle growth. However, their functionality does not change. This factor requires protein to work.
Anabolic steroids. Used as an alternative route to muscle hypertrophy. Steroids stimulate enhanced protein synthesis and storage in the muscle cells. Their work requires restorative nutrition and consistent training.
Testosterone secretion stimulants. In their action, they are similar to anabolic steroids, but are more preferable because they do promote harm to the body in any way.

Training

Since muscle hypertrophy means the body’s normal response to physical activity, it is impossible to start this process without training. By loading the muscles with a slight excess of their functional capabilities, the athlete pushes his body to build muscle mass. Here, the factor of the lactic acid formation and intensive recovery of fibers after micro fractures play a certain role.

Nutrition

The buildup of mass must be accompanied by a constant supply of energy. In any stressful situation, the body follows one of the following paths:

Counter the load with a larger volume.
Enable the optimization processes.

But muscle building will not happen unless you consume a regular high-calorie meal that is sure to include a lot of protein for this repair to take place.

The body will not start the hypertrophy process if it does not have enough energy for it. Therefore, the training process must necessarily be combined with proper nutrition.

For people who struggle to consume enough food to keep up with the muscles needs, there are peptide supplements that play a role and help to promote the promotion of the IGF-1 and other important hormones that help with muscle hypertrophy within our bodies, GPRH-6 is a prime example, this peptide promotes an additional feature form its use which is the crave for food. By managing to increase the user’s appetite, this substance can promote that feeling of hunger that some people lack and in turn, they can consume the required amount of calories that is needed and with enjoyment rather than it becoming a chore.

Sports nutrition

Sports nutrition alone will not be able to turn on the processes of hypertrophy. However, this is an essential factor in order to intensify muscle building. The most famous types of sports nutrition include:

Creatine. Stimulates blood circulation by literally pumping blood into the muscles.
Carnitine. Helps create energy support by burning fat. This creates a surplus of energy that allows you to exercise longer during your workouts.
Curcumin. Improves the anabolic background and promotes protein synthesis to take place for effectively within the body.
Protein shakes. They are similar in action to curcumin, but should not replace food.
L-arginine. It is an analogue to the classic protein shakes.
Nitrogen donors. They accelerate the recovery of muscle fibers, which allows you to train more often.

Alternative ways to trigger hypertrophy

Is it possible to achieve significant muscle growth without exhausting training and special nutrition? It is quite possible if sarcoplasmic hypertrophy is needed, but somewhat more complicated if myofibrillar hypertrophy is required. Muscle volume is increased by enhancing protein synthesis. This can be done in two ways:

Anabolic steroids. This is an indirect method, since steroids do not directly affect the process of protein synthesis, however, their use helps to speed it up and make recovery more intense and faster. Hence, there is more strength for prolonged training and pronounced hypertrophy to take place.
Growth hormones. Direct method, since hormones enhance the growth of all components of muscle tissue. Hormonal action allows you to start any type of hypertrophy.

You should choose only one of the methods, if you are a beginner to the use of such substances, combining too many substances at first is classed as unhealthy. Also, you should not turn to doping drugs if you are not comfortable and confident within your choice, as contraindications and side effects as possible if not used correctly.

Conclusion

If you set an appropriate goal for yourself, then achieving beautiful and strong muscles is not so difficult. However, you shouldn’t forget about efficiency. The one who has more muscles is not always stronger. For example, Cross Fit athletes do not have a lot of muscle tissue, but they are often more developed and stronger than other athletes in their field.

Now that you have seen the two main ways for muscle hypertrophy to take place and have learned many benefits and positive ways that you can provoke this to happen, you can now start to build that beautiful dream figure. For those who have tried this and failed, or for those who do not want the longer possess and have decided to take the shorter route or this muscle gain, all of the mentioned anabolic and other substances that can promote a rapid increase in either sarcoplasmic hypertrophy or within myofibrillar hypertrophy, these great enhancing agents can be located within our online store, with much more informed information regarding their use, but most importantly their benefits! You can also find advice on how to use these substances safely without having to put your health or your body at risk.