What is the Hypertrophy Phase of Training?
Muscle hypertrophy (sometimes referred to as muscle building) is the increase in the size, density, and shape of skeletal muscles that is usually achieved through weightlifting or other types of resistance training.
Hypertrophy is typically a slow process. Most muscle tissue is made up of different kinds of proteins. When you lift heavy loads, the muscles tear and the body experiences metabolic stress. In response to this, the body tells the proteins to increase, and the muscles slowly grow. Then, to keep growing your muscles, you have to keep increasing weightlifting volumes over time.
There are several ways you can train to make your muscles bigger. Most hypertrophy training plans focus on lifting heavier loads for a smaller number of reps and sets. However, different bodies might respond differently to the same programs, so there is usually some trial and error when finding your optimal training plan.
Benefits of hypertrophy training?
Any resistance training program has significant health benefits (i.e., weight loss, reduced risk of cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, etc.). But if you want next-level results and even more health benefits, you need to train at higher volumes and intensities than most standard home or class workouts.
Here are some of the benefits of hypertrophy training:
Reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease. Recent research has shown that middle-aged people with the highest skeletal muscle mass had the lowest risk of having a cardiovascular event.
Improving metabolic function. Increased muscle mass has been shown to improve insulin sensitivity and glucose control.
Maintaining mobility. Higher levels of skeletal muscle mass in older adults are directly correlated with the ability to complete daily activities and increased independence.
Reducing loss of bone density (osteoporosis). Lifting heavy loads requires the bone to adapt as well as the muscles and connective tissue, which leads to stronger bones and a reduction of the risk of osteoporosis.
What are the risks of hypertrophy training?
Hypertrophy training can sometimes result in overuse injuries like tendonitis/tendinosis or low-grade muscle tears, especially when the lifter doesn’t properly rest and recover. Lifters who try to lift too much or have poor form can get more serious acute injuries like ruptured discs, ligament tears, fractures, or high-grade muscle tears.
Most of these risks can be avoided if you follow a structured program from a qualified trainer who knows your capabilities. Before you start hypertrophy training, you should have good stability, muscle endurance, and optimal movement patterns to prevent injury.
How hypertrophy and muscular development works
Although the general principle of progressive overload (increasing volume over time) applies to hypertrophy training, there are different mechanisms by which the muscle adapts to training stress.
Exercise-Induced Muscle Damage
When muscles lengthen under tension (the eccentric phase of an exercise), the muscle fibers experience small tears. The body repairs those tears, strengthening the existing muscle tissue so it can withstand that same stress again. As slowly increase volume, your muscles continue to tear and repair to become even stronger.
Metabolic Stress
Metabolic stress is the body’s response to the training that leads to the buildup of metabolites (molecules that serve specific functions, like lactic acid, inorganic phosphate, etc.). These metabolites then increase hormones, signaling the body to build more muscle tissue, especially if the muscle is pushed to failure during the lift.
Mechanical Tensions (Force)
Muscle and connective tissue have receptors sense how much tension the muscle is under and how many muscle fibers it needs to activate to complete a movement. The heavier the load, the more muscle fibers are activated at once, maximizing the force that muscle produces to move the load. Then the muscle increases muscle protein synthesis (building new muscle) so it can withstand the same load again.
Fascia Stretch Training
Fascia is a connective tissue that surrounds your muscles and organs, keeping them in place. Some people genetically have thicker fascia than others, which might keep the muscles from being able to get quite as big. Fascia stretch training can help with this problem.
There are several protocols for fascia stretch training, but the general idea is to lift extremely high volumes to push a lot of oxygenated blood into the muscle over a short period of time. These lifts force the fascia tissue to stretch and expand. And the extra oxygenated blood can help the muscle grow and repair. For proper fascia stretch training, try adding extra sets at the end of a workout, lifting to failure.
What is progressive overloading?
Progressive overloading is the process of gradually increasing the acute variables (load, reps, or sets) to strengthen your skeletal muscles.
Training creates stress. If you put too much stress on your muscles too quickly, you can get injured. If you don’t put enough stress on your muscles, you can lose muscle mass and strength. But if you increase the stress very slowly, the body adapts to that stress and becomes stronger.
