After class yesterday, a new student asked me if she would "get muscles" by doing yoga and pilates classes. My answer, "Yes, but . . ." Building muscle mass is not an overnight process. Like most any change in our bodies, muscle growth and regeneration occurs by a complicated series of events involving factors such as age, nutrition, enzyme and hormonal interactions, challenges to the muscles in question, and recovery. To simplify a process that has kept physiologists, biologists, nutritionists, and geneticists employed and published for years is a dangerous endeavor. Nevertheless, here are the very basics of how muscles grow and increase in size.
Muscles get larger by being used. What actually happens during exercise is that little, microscopic tears in the muscle fibers regenerate from satellite cells within the muscle fibers. Resistance exercise (weight training and other forms of exercise that use your body weight for resistance, such as yoga and Pilates) activates and challenges the muscles to "make more" to accommodate the larger or more demanding weight loads.
Once a muscle is used, or challenged, it grows. (And conversely, if a muscle isn't used, it gets smaller.) The growth process involves several factors; awareness and enhancement of those factors can foster muscle growth. Here are some of the major factors influencing the rate of growth of skeletal muscles:
Hormones. Kids and young adults have an edge in muscle development. Human growth hormones are in abundant supply among the young. After age 30, we lose approximately 10% of those hormones for every decade. That explains why some professional athletes have been tempted to pump their bodies with artificially manufactured hormones and "performance-enhancing" drugs. This tactic is illegal, and for good reason. Artificial hormones and/or steriods affect every one of the body's systems, and frequently result in major injuries. And they aren't necessary. With proper training methods, nutrition, and rest, young adults can increase their muscle mass at a remarkable rate, as they have a chemical advantage at this stage of their lives.
Nutrition. Muscles need calories and quality protein to grow. Muscles are much, much denser than fat (about 18% more dense). Muscles' compact and complex fibers can only grow and regenerate with adequate caloric intake. Too much exercise and insufficient calories means that the body will "rob" the existing muscle stores to get calories to keep going. The result is a net loss of muscle mass no matter how much exercise. In fact, with too strict a diet, it's possible to lose weight, but to also lose lean body mass. When you gain muscle mass and all other factors stay constant, you will weigh more than before (but chances are, you'll look better in your clothes and still wear the same size).
Age. It's a sad fact that as we age, we don't build muscle as quickly. The satellite cells in our muscles, cells that signal the growth of new tissue, grow more scarce with age. However, muscle growth is still possible and is desirable. The positive effects of exercise--increased muscle tone, strength, and greater flexibility--yield terrific benefits, but those benefits won't be evident as quickly for older persons. For some of us, such as women over 50, trainers at 24 Hour Fitness factor in an additional 10 per cent body fat. Of course it's possible to reduce our body fat and increase our muscle, but realistically, at 70 years of age, few of us will have the muscle mass of a kid who is 20. Rather than accepting declining growth, adopt another perspective: Imagine what little muscle would be retained if older adults didn't exercise?
Rest and recovery. Muscles grow as a result of exercise, but the actual growth process happens while the body is resting. The best example is that of a human infant. During the first year of life, human beings need lots and lots of sleep for growth. While sleeping, cells regenerate, new growth happens, and muscles develop. Not a lot changes for us as we get older. Adequate rest is essential for muscles to repair and renew. Working out, day after day, without a break doesn't give muscles time to regrow. It's important to build in rest days, especially after demanding workouts. Equally important, sleep helps reset the entire body's metabolism to a more efficient level. How can you tell if you are getting enough sleep? Try lying down during the middle of the day. If you can fall asleep within ten minutes, you might consider getting into a bed earlier. The ancient tradition of ending every yoga practice with savasana emphasizes the importance of rest and recovery. The wisdom of the yogis still hold true after so many thousands of years: Real growth occurs while we take time to recover.
And so, for the young woman who asked me if she would get muscles by doing yoga, the answer is: "Yes, of course. You have age on your side. Just make sure that you eat a quality diet, get plenty of sleep, and don't overdo your program by exercising without rest days." For the rest of us, perhaps we are hoping to have a leaner, more muscular (and less flabby) body, or perhaps we want more strength, or better balance. The same advice holds true: Eat sensibly, get enough sleep, and give yourself enough recovery time between workouts. You can't help but get stronger, leaner (and a bit wiser) every day.
See you all on the 26th!
Namaste, Nancy
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