Today, there are a few questions relating to hardgainers and muscular growth, lactic acid and delayed-onset muscle soreness, as well as protein intake for mass building.
Q. I think about myself a hardgainer because I have a very hard time gaining muscle. Do you have any kind of approaches for me that will work?
A. If you need a basic suggestion for muscle size, an overall total of 30 to 60 reps per body part twice each week is enough to result in size gains in virtually all hardgainers. To use the bench press as an illustration, if you’re following an upper-lower split, you could perform 5 heavy sets of five repetitions, followed by a back-off set of ten (5 x 5 + 10 = 35 total repetitions) on Monday followed by four lighter sets of ten reps (4 x 10 = 40 repetitions) on the Thursday. The majority of hardgainer workouts should be based upon this proven mass-building tenet.
Q. What do you think about the idea that lactic acid results in muscle soreness?
A. The fact is, far from being a waste product, lactic acid is really a supply of fuel for your muscles. In fact, one reason that intense training helps you exercise harder and longer is that it makes your muscles better at making use of lactic acid. The concept lactic acid is bad is among the classic mistakes in the history of science.
Lactic acid has absolutely nothing to do with delayed-onset muscle soreness. In fact, the majority of the lactic acid has disappeared from your muscles soon after exercise.
So why do your muscles get sore a day or two after training?
A session of unaccustomed or unusually intense exercise brings about inflammation – precisely the same biological defense system that triggers the redness, swelling and pain if you cut your skin.
Inflammation is your body’s response to damage so helping to start the process of repair and healing. And one of the steps in this process is a rise in the production of immune cells, which rise to a peak 24-48 hours after exercise.
These cells then generate chemical compounds that make pain receptors in your body – which are to blame for the transmission of certain pain signals – more sensitive.
The outcome?
Any time you move, these pain receptors are triggered. Since they are far more responsive to pain than normal, you end up feeling sore.
Q. Just how much protein is necessary for putting on muscle mass? I’ve seen recommendations which range from 1 to 2.5 grams of protein for each pound of weight, and I have also noticed some individuals claim that virtually no extra protein is needed? Who is right?
A. Protein specialist Doctor Peter Lemon suggests 1.6-1.7 grams of protein per kilogram of body mass daily for individuals engaged in resistance training. As a result, a 70-kg guy would consume about 136 grams of protein on a daily basis. Most bodybuilders will try to get a somewhat larger number – about 2.2 grams for every kilo (one gram per pound) – which will supply our 70-kg male 154 grams of protein each day.
The higher figure mentioned (2.5 grams per pound) is just too high. Excess protein will be burnt off to produce energy, used for ureagenesis or converted into sugar, and won’t be converted into new muscle tissue.