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I recently listened to the podcast “Science of Muscle Growth, Increasing Strength and Muscular Recovery” by Huberman Lab Podcast.
Please note that these are my personal notes and by no means do they replace or enhance the original content. Andrew Huberman provides lots of useful tips and protocols in his podcast. You can watch the original podcast at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XLr2RKoD-oY&t=6625s
How to exercise to improve your brain function?
10% of your workout, you should exercise to the point where you feel the “burn”. This is because, during the burn, lactate appears where the burn is happening. This burn acts as a hormonal signal to the other organs in a positive way and it is good for the brain, heart, and liver. If you feel the burn during the 10% of your workout, this will improve your brain functionality.
How to make your muscles bigger and stronger?
Although a heavyweight can build muscle and strength, it is not the only way to improve your muscle and strength. Weights between 30% – 80% of one-repetition maximum can actually help you to make your muscles stronger and bigger. For example, if your 1 rep max is 20kg for a dumbbell biceps curl, you can still improve your muscle, if you use the weight ranging between 6kg to 16kg by adjusting the repetition. So it is worth experimenting to identify your 1 rep max for each workout and set your routine accordingly. 3 ways to make your muscles stronger is by using the appropriate weight range and causing stress, tension, and damage to the muscle.
How often do you have to train to get into shape?
The key to getting in shape is to do enough sets per muscle group per week. So what are enough sets? According to Huberman, this can range between 2 to 20 sets per week. And you don’t have to do all the sets in one session. So, 5 sets per week, in the range of 30% to 80% one-repetition maximum, and getting close to failure is enough to maintain muscle. If you want the improvement of your muscles, then you will need to customize the number of sets and volumes depending on your needs (up to 20 sets per week). Another key factor you need to pay attention to is that 10% of resistance training should be to failure, the rest should end near failure.
Is contraction between sets good for muscle growth?
Andy doesn’t seem to be a fan of contraction between sets, hence the reason, he calls it the selfie effect. He agrees that contraction between sets can enhance hypertrophy, but it reduces performance.
How long do you need to rest between the sets?
For hypertrophy and strength, 2 to 6 minutes rest between sets will help you recover your muscles for the following sets. If you choose to do some contractions between the sets, this will increase the stress, tension, and damage, so your muscle won’t recover for the next set. Instead, you can walk around to help with the recovery.
How to do more repetitions without reducing weights?
The palm cooling technique can help you increase the volume without reducing the weights. Cooling your palms is the best way to cool the core of your body. You can do this with ice packs or gel packs. This allows you to do more repetitions and more work at a given time. By using this method, you can accomplish a higher volume of work without reducing weights.
How can you find out if you recovered for the next training session?
Andrew explains that isolation doesn’t allow you to train other body parts the following day. It doesn’t matter how well you isolated muscle groups, you still need to check if you recovered from the previous training session. You can assess recovery by using the following techniques:
Note that both of the below techniques need to be done first thing in the morning.
Grip Strength Test – This will test your ability to generate force when you are squeezing down something (could be a rubber ball). This relates to upper motor neurons controlling your lower motor neurons to generate isolated force. So when you squeeze something that is what you are assessing. The best tool to use to test this is a floor scale. By squeezing the floor scale between your palms, you can see how much force you generate. You need to first see what your baseline score is. Once you know your baseline score, every morning you can test the force you generate by squeezing the scale. The more force you generate, the better covered you are. If you are not recovered, the force will reduce. If you see a 10% to 20% reduction in the force, that means your nervous system is still in the process of rewiring itself, so you haven’t recovered yet.
Carbon Dioxide Tolerance Test – To do this test, you will inhale through your nose as deeply as you can and exhale through your mouth all the way. Repeat this 4 times. Take the 5th to inhale as deeply as you can through your nose, then hit the timer as you release the air slowly. The release has to be as slow as possible through your mouth. It will look like you are releasing the air through a tiny straw. As soon as all the breath is out and when you no longer exhale any more, you will stop the timer (Don’t sit your lungs empty).
Your carbon dioxide discard rate will be somewhere between 1 second to 2 minutes. If discard time will determine your recovery from the previous session.
- If the discard time is less than 25 seconds, you have not recovered yet.
- If it is between 30 – 60 secs, you are in the position to do more physical work.
- If it is between 65 – 120 secs, your nervous system is recovered and ready for training.
How to end each training session to enhance recovery?
After each training session, you need to disengage for five minutes. You will need to engage the parasympathetic arm of the nervous system to calm the nervous system. You can do that through breathing. You can do Non-Sleep Rest for 5 minutes (laying down, closing your eyes, and focusing on your breath) at the end of each training session. You can also use a breathing technique that is called Physical Size, 10 double intakes through the nose and 1 long exhale through the mouth. You can also do this between the sets to help with recovery.
What supplements can help with recovery?
Omega 3 – Lower blood pressure, slows the development of plaque in arteries, reduces the chance of heart attack and stroke. It also reduces the risk of blood clots
Vitamin D3 – It is very important for bone and muscle strength. It helps with inflammation and depression.
Magnesium Malate – It helps with improvements in mood, blood sugar control, exercise performance, and chronic pain.