![]() ![]() What’s nice about this bench press arch study is it’s comparing two nearly identical exercise variations with very similar resistance curves. The cable fly tends to be more challenging when our pecs are contracted, which isn’t all that great for building muscle, but it might score great according to EMG research. The dumbbell fly works our muscles under a deep stretch, which is perfect for building muscle, but it would score low in an EMG study. Think of the dumbbell fly and the cable fly. You can imagine how this can cause problems. The reason that challenging your muscles in a deep stretch is so good for building muscle is that it combines both passive and active tension, giving a greater overall growth stimulus ( meta-analysis). Then, when you’re contracting your chest at the top of the movement, muscle activation is off the charts, but you’re not stimulating nearly as much muscle growth. EMG research will tend to show lower muscle activation when the muscles are being challenged under a deep stretch… but that’s actually where most of the muscle growth is being stimulated. Imagine someone doing a chest fly on the pec deck machine. For example, muscle activation tends to be highest when our muscles are challenged in a contracted position, whereas we tend to stimulate more growth when our muscles are challenged in a lengthened position. Just because a muscle shows higher activation doesn’t necessarily mean it will grow faster. ![]() If you’d rather read, read on! The Limits of Muscle Activation Researchīefore we dive into the study results, keep in mind that muscle activation research-EMG research-isn’t the same as hypertrophy research. I’m new still, but the goal is to put out a new video every week or two. I noticed that I’ve really been liking YouTube fitness lately, so I’ve started filming videos for our own channel. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |