Popular dogma states that to make muscles grow you need to overload
them with heavy weight and low repetitions, but you’d
get an argument about that from several Norwegian physiologists
who looked at this issue recently. These researchers designed
a study to see whether better training effects can be obtained
from using a weight equal to 10 percent of maximum for one rep
or 90 percent of maximum for one rep. They recruited 10 male
subjects, who trained three times a week for 10 weeks. Five
of the subjects trained at 10 percent of maximum, using three
sets of 10 reps on biceps curls. The other five used weights
equal to 90 percent of their maximums for three sets of two
reps during the first four weeks, increasing to four sets of
two reps during the last six weeks.
Using complex computer-aided measuring devices, the scientists
found that the degree of muscular-size increase was the same
for both the heavy- and light-training groups. One flaw of
this study, however, was the fact that the heavy-training
group used only two reps. Most experienced bodybuilders know
that, while doing one-to-two-rep maximums does increase strength,
it does little for adding muscle mass.
Lifting weights that are heavy enough to permit only one to
two reps shifts the focus from muscles to connective tissues,
such as tendons and ligaments. Of course, this doesn’t
mean that no muscle comes into play during such heavy training,
but training with more reps does seem to involve more muscle,
particularly with larger bodyparts, such as back and thighs.
Tom Platz found this out instinctively years ago. Platz initially
used very heavy, lower-rep squats to build his massive thighs,
but when he began experimenting with extremely high reps (as
many as 50 or more per set) his thighs took on the freaky
look that made him famous in bodybuilding circles.
Do bodybuilders need to eat more protein than other
people?
The question of protein needs for strength athletes remains
a controversial one, as two recent studies indicate. The first
study, conducted by Dr. Gail Butterfield and associates at
the Veterans Medical Center in Palo Alto, California, examined
the protein needs of five male recreational weightlifters.
Note that “recreational” is medicalese for lifters
who don’t train very hard.
The subjects, average age 28, followed two different diets
for two-week periods with two weeks’ rest between diets.
The researchers predetermined both the energy and protein
requirements for these men based on existing research. The
first diet was lower in protein but higher in carbohydrates
and fat. The second diet provided a level of protein that
was 1 1/2 times greater than the established need based on
weight and activity for these particular subjects. After measuring
nitrogen balance, an indication of protein use, the researchers
concluded that while a high-protein diet improves nitrogen
balance slightly in weightlifters, the effect may derive more
from the increase in calories associated with a high-protein
diet rather than from the protein itself.
Another study, this one done at Tufts University in Boston,
also looked at the protein and energy needs of people who
regularly lift weights. This study involved seven men, average
age 35, who trained almost daily for one hour with weights.
The researchers found that the average energy requirement
for these lifters was 4,200 calories a day, although the men
only expended an average of 360 calories per workout. The
conclusion here was that even without aerobic exercise people
who lift weights need more calories but require no more protein
than sedentary folks.
At first it appears ludicrous to suggest that bodybuilders
may need no more protein than the average Joe who doesn’t
train at all. Both calories and carbs have a protein-sparing
action, however. In short, you get more protein bang for the
buck if your calories are sufficiently high. In this scenario
all the protein you consume goes toward tissue-repair associated
with training.
The situation becomes the reverse, though, when you go on
either a low-calorie or low-carbohydrate diet. Here the limited
calories you take in may not be enough to spare protein. In
the absence of sufficient carbohydrate or calories your body
tends to break down tissue protein, or muscle, and convert
it into glucose for energy purposes. In this case taking in
extra protein will offset the cannibalizing of muscle that
often results from diets that are too low in calories or carbohydrates.
In fact, the so-called yo-yo syndrome, in which dieters regain
lost weight usually results from a decreased metabolism caused
by extended dieting, particularly without accompanying exercise.
The lowered metabolism is due to the loss of the most metabolically
active tissue in the body.
In summary, you need more protein when you’re dieting,
but if you consume enough calories and/or carbohydrates, you
don’t need to consume massive quantities of protein
or amino acids. The proper amount of protein to fuel normal
training is about 15 percent of your total caloric intake.
Because it contains enough calories to supply the energy you
need, all of that 15 percent is used for tissue building.
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