How to properly optimize the muscle mass building process? (Patreon)

"Train, eat, sleep - repeat" - surely many of you have already heard this famous phrase. It sounds naive, but the fun thing is that these 3 factors are actually the fundamental determinants of progress in all sports. Of course, the fun begins the moment we try to figure out how to train, eat, and sleep (recover) most efficiently. Then, the whole process becomes much more complicated. Let me help you clear these things up.

Muscle building is all about muscle hypertrophy - anabolism (- in short: growth and building). Muscle hypertrophy occurs whenever the rate of muscle protein synthesis is greater than the rate of muscle protein breakdown (catabolism). The process of muscle hypertrophy is triggered when muscle fibers become damaged. Then, the body starts to repair damaged fibers, and whenever the environment enables it, the muscle fibers' mass and strength increase slightly. The whole process's efficiency depends strictly upon diet, recovery, and the hormonal environment.

SARCOPLASMIC vs. MYOFIBRILLAR HYPERTROPHY

We determine two kinds of muscle hypertrophy:

- sarcoplasmic

- myofibrillar

SARCOPLASMIC Hypertrophy (non-functional) is associated with bodybuilders. It refers to an increase in the volume of sarcoplasm in the muscle cell.

Sarcoplasm - the cytoplasm of a muscle fiber ("a fluid which surrounds myofibrils"). It is made up of water, glycogen, creatine phosphate, and ATP. Whenever the volume of sarcoplasmic fluid is increased, as a result, increases the whole muscle fiber, but without a significant improvement in its strength (density/quantity of myofibrils).

This kind of hypertrophy is correlated with a high number of reps in a single set.

MYOFIBRILLAR Hypertrophy (functional) is associated with powerlifters. It refers to an increase in the number of myofibrils in a muscle cell.

Myofibril - the long cylindrical organelle found in muscle cells responsible for muscle contractions. Muscle cells become stronger as the number of myofibrils increases, thanks to the general improvement of their contractile potential.

This kind of hypertrophy is correlated with stress adaptations triggered by the high load of weights and low reps.

However, there is no significant influence of this kind of training (set to induce myofibrillar hypertrophy) on the amount of sarcoplasm. As a result, the muscles hardly gain volume. Instead, they become much stronger. That is the exact reason why many powerlifters don't even look strong and are almost skinny when compared to bodybuilders but able to lift tremendous weights, far out of reach for the most of significantly heavier bodybuilders.

1. TRAINING

The first conclusion is - the type of training performed strictly conditions the way we grow. If your primary goal is to build muscle mass, then you should perform resistance training set to induce a sarcoplasmic hypertrophy.

Sacroplasm-maximizing workout should be based on the following rules:

- high number of reps (5-14)

- sufficient volume (12-14 sets per body part per week)

- exercising the same muscle part at least 2x per week

- appropriate mass of weights lifted (60-80% of REPmax)

- optimal rest between reps (2-4 minutes)

- avoiding muscle failure (keep 1-2 reps in storage)

- avoiding adaptation - change 1/4 of exercises in your workout plan once every 4-5 weeks

All of these factors will lead to the most efficient sarcoplasmic hypertrophy. I highly recommend modified german volume training, which, along with a proper diet and recovery lead to the most efficient gains in muscle mass.

2. DIET

Caloric Surplus

In order to build muscle mass, we must maintain a caloric surplus so having a higher caloric intake than our total metabolic rate is - nothing surprising. Remember that it is almost impossible to build muscle mass without having a caloric surplus (it may only be possible on strong hormonal doping, or by first-timers in weight lifting for the first approx. 4 months). How to build the next floor of a building, when you have already used all of the bricks? ... firstly get more bricks (caloric surplus). The same rule goes for being on "caloric zero."

The most optimal surplus is 300-400 kcal beyond the total metabolic rate. It will maximize muscle gains, simultaneously preventing excessive fat storage.

Protein Intake

High and regular intake of proteins. In order to maximalize muscle protein synthesis, it is crucial to consume 2 - 2.4g of proteins per kilogram of body mass (the ability of protein synthesis is limited, so higher protein intake will not bring any further benefits... unless you are on hormonal doping), as well as provide your organism constant access to proteins, so to consume them regularly - once every 3 hours.

You should also take care of good protein sources. Meat and dairy products have the highest bioavailability of proteins. Avoid high soy consumption, as it may lead to reduced DHT levels. Also, its protein's bioavailability is relatively low, the same as of nuts or beans.

High carbohydrates consumption

Sarcoplasm includes a substantial amount of glycogen. Carbohydrates are the rocket fuel of our bodies, while insulin is one of the most anabolic hormones that every bodybuilder just have to make use of. A high-carb diet is one of the best ways to maximize your muscle growth.
I've written a whole article about why a rich in carbohydrates diet is the most favorable diet for every athlete:

Water

Drink plenty of water. How much daily? You can count it easily: 1.5L + 1L per every 1000kcal consumed (at least). Water is essential when it comes to anabolism. Proper intake will enable the body to fight inflammations and activate anabolic processes. Water is also indispensable in increasing the amount of sarcoplasm (sarcoplasmic hypertrophy). Without its sufficient intake, those processes will become disturbed.

The optimization of muscle growth - Minicuts

Perhaps for many of you it's surprising that I mention a caloric deficit while speaking about muscle growth. Why are they important? Well, let's analyze the chart I made.

[the master of Paint]

The most optimal environment for anabolism ranges between 11 - 28% body fat. Below this range, the potential to cause inflammations is too low to force the organism to trigger anabolic processes. However, whenever your BF reaches 25-28%, inflammations continues to arise, while the capacity for anabolism decreases strongly. That's the exact moment when it becomes a must to perform a minicut and reduce your body fat to at least 15-17% (it should take approximately 4-5 weeks).


Supplementation

Reconsider supplementation:

- creatine monohydrate, which will improve the anabolic potential of the organism and the amount of sacroplasm

- vitamin D3

- L-citrulline

- magnesium

- whey protein (if needed)

- carb blends products (if needed)

- zinc (if needed)

While having an adequately composed diet, it is unnecessary to supplement anything more. Well, unless speaking about GH secretagogues and AAS.

Avoid antioxidants intake near your workout

The crucial point when it comes to muscle building. Research disclosed that supplementing 1g of vitamin C before a training session reduces inflammations up to 75%, thus making the training session inefficient by preventing the body from triggering anabolic processes.
The primary goal of performing a workout is to trigger an inflammatory state in the body, thus giving the organism a stimulus to activate anabolic processes. Well, if we prevent inflammations from occurring by, e.g., supplementing antioxidants before a training session, our heavy workout will go fuck itself.

3. REGENERATION

+ "How to recover the most efficiently? - Diet & Supplementation Tips"

+ Proper sleep hygiene is one of the strongest anabolic compounds [read more: https://www.patreon.com/posts/proper-sleep-one-38288940 ]

In order to optimize hypertrophy you should:
- minimize stress
- sleep properly and long enough (7.5-9h)
- perform an active recovery between your training sessions (i.a. cardio sessions)
- perform massages and stretch sore muscles (on non-training days)
- from time to time make use of saunas (on non-training days (read about Anabolic Saunas)