Last week we went over part 1 of fundamental programming must knows.
This week we continue the programming conversation right where we left off. If you missed last week's episode, stop now, and come back after listening to 92.
Understand mechanical tension and muscle fiber types
Do you even know what your programming is trying to do? Why a given set and rep scheme causes an increase in strength or muscle size?
These are very fair questions to ask. And in my opinion we should be able to answer them fairly easily.
Things that will affect muscle fiber type recruitment and mechanical tension are load used, reps, tempo, and rest periods.
Let us pause and make something very clear. I am not here to shame you for not knowing these things. I am literally here to try and help you better understand these things. Hopefully even just ONE of them.
In moving forward with your programming, make it a point to have a reason and rationale for all of these factors.
My main objective when I interned for two years as a college strength coach was to be great at programming. That was my “thing” if you will. So my mentor set that standard for me very early on. There was no mindless programming. EVERYTHING had a purpose. As it should, truly.
No one asks me or overlooks my programming now, but it behooved me to have that mindset engrained from the get go. So here I am passing it along to you. And make no mistake, a VERY thought through and highly effective program can look VERY simple on paper. Don’t mistake fancy or difficult for thought through or effective.
Back to mechanical tension and fiber types!
Type 1: smallest, high endurance and oxidative capacity, low power output - think endurance athleteType 2: large in diameter, mid endurance, moderate power output and oxidative capacity. think hybrid, she can do both.
Type 2b: Largest in size, high power output, low endurance and oxidative capacity. Think beefcake, or gymnast. Power sports.
These matter because we stress muscle fiber types with different modalities of training. And factors within that training. For instance a heavy eccentric will bypass the normal type 1, type 2 to type 2b progression and go straight to type 2 and 2b. Same goes for max power output like plyometrics. The demand for those big daddy type 2 and 2b fibers is immediate.
So by a rule of thumb, muscle fibers are recruited in order but also remember we’re not robots. As one is recruited, it’s not like the others turn off or stop working. They all live together in bundles. The more demand on the muscle group, the more fibers, and specifically the more type 2 friends will be recruited.
This is the PERFECT segue into tension.
My last point is why you see body builders completely fatiguing the muscle. To the point where they can’t even concentrically contract. They’ll have assistance in the concentric so that they can then control the eccentric. We’re stronger eccentrically than concentrically. #science.
What they’re doing on a physiological level here is two things - recruiting every last muscle fiber that they can and depleting their muscle glycogen.
This is achieved through TIME UNDER TENSION. Or more specifically a large amount of time under tension.
Hello mechanical tension. Before we discuss this, no, you do not need to train to failure in order to elicit hypertrophy. I simply use that example to paint a picture of WHY they’re driving mechanical tension at the highest level.
Time under tension (TUT): We need this to grow muscle fibers, and fiber sizes. This is what we want if hypertrophy or “muscle tone” is the goal of you or your clients.
What I want you to grasp here from a programming point is that time under tension and eccentrics will drive up likely muscle damage, and mechanical tension. Which we need to grow muscles. It’s truly that simple. Know what you’re doing when you choose a set and rep scheme, weight and tempo.
