What does it take for muscle to recover and repair after a workout?
 |
Recovery and repair processes include those that prepare muscle to perform efficiently again. This includes: reducing the lactate level of the muscle fibers worked, which may not take that long; repleting of glycogen stores, which can take hours; and repairing cellular damage in the trained muscle fibers, which can also take hours or even a day or so. Adaptation, on the other hand, refers to those processes designed to allow the muscle to be better prepared to work again. This will include a net production of muscle proteins that will support contraction the next time around. As muscle cells accumulate more protein, they will also accumulate more water. Therefore, much of muscle hypertrophy is protein and water. In addition, connective tissue providing integrity and support to the overloaded muscle will be enhanced as well. |
Does our energy expenditure increase due to weight training?
The increased energy demand of weight training depends on the intensity level and duration of a workout coupled with the energy needed for recovery and adaptation. The energy needed for a workout may be along the order of 5 to 10 calories per minute while recovery and adaptation may demand 100 to 300 calories the next day. This additional energy expended should be calculated into your total energy expenditure (see Dieting).
The predominant fuel powering weight training is carbohydrate, derived mostly from muscle glycogen stores and secondarily fat from fat tissue and within muscle tissue itself. One of the strongest influences will be epinephrine, which is released from the adrenal glands during intense training. Epinephrine will promote the breakdown of glycogen and fat stores, making those energy sources available to working muscle. On the other hand, both fat and carbohydrate fuel adaptive processes over the next few hours up to the next day or so. The most important factors dictating fuel preference will be meals and corresponding fluctuations in insulin and glucagon levels.
How much energy should be eaten to make the body more lean and muscular?
To become more muscular and lean, people combine weight training with dietary control. In addition, integrating aerobic training will certainly be beneficial. It’s not important not to drastically restrict energy intake, if at all. Drastic energy restriction can place an extra demand upon skeletal muscle to provide amino acids for energy, thus counteracting resistance training to some degree. Thus drastic energy restriction and weight training may create a futile cycle as muscle breakdown contradicts muscle hypertrophy.
If you are at a fairly comfortable body size but you want to increase your muscularity and leanness, you will be best served by eating enough energy to meet your expenditure. That would include the energy expended due to exercise training while also choosing foods higher in healthier carbohydrates and protein versus fat. The major thrust of your efforts should focus on the change in body composition, not necessarily body weight. In fact, as you add skeletal muscle, it is possible that you will gain weight.
For heavier people with a higher percentage of body fat who wish to become leaner, they can begin by estimating their daily calorie needs and then restrict energy intake by 10 to 20% percent. This is easily done by substituting foods with a greater percentage of energy from carbohydrate and protein versus fat. Also, engaging in regular aerobic activities will be of benefit, as discussed shortly.
Recent Comments