Quick Q&A on Muscle Growth
Q. On my last few visits to the fitness center, I’ve noticed one or two personal trainers getting their customers to perform various exercises on Swiss balls or wobble boards. Do these items work any better than normal training?
A. The use of stability balls and Bosu balls has become very popular in the last few years. Exercising in an unstable environment is purported to enhance your stability and develop the core musculature.
There are some exercises which can be made more effective when you do them on an unstable surface. Research has shown that ab crunches on a stability ball, by way of example, work your abs harder than the same movement done on the floor.
However there are some movements which aren’t appropriate for doing on a stability ball.
We’ve seen certain individuals doing exercises like the bench press and overhead press while seated on a Swiss ball. The issue is that you’ll need to work with a far lighter resistance than normal, since you have to put so much effort into staying balanced.
Remember that muscle tissue grows bigger and more powerful once you force them to do additional work, either by lifting a heavier weight, or by doing more reps with the same resistance. That’s how to get bigger muscles.
The end result of performing these exercises on a wobble board is that your muscles will lose out on the growth stimulation they require. Keep in mind that there is only a finite amount of time and energy to invest in the gym. Don’t throw away 50% of it trying to do squats on a wobble board.
Q. I hope you can put an end to a dispute about squatting that I have been having with two pals. One buddy says you must never go beyond parallel, while another states that you have to go to the floor. Which one of my buddies is right?
A. How deep to go during the squatting movement has long been a topic of concern for bodybuilders. One belief is that full-depth squats (once your thighs are past parallel to the floor) can be used to place more focus on your hamstrings.
To resolve the dilemma of how the depth of your squat impacts muscle activation, scientists from the Department of Health and Exercise Science at Furman University in Greenville, South Carolina, carried out a scientific study employing experienced lifters.
Using electromyography (EMG), the research workers measured muscle activity in the quadriceps, hamstrings, and gluteal musculature of the subjects during partial, parallel, and full-depth squats.
The researchers discovered that the deeper the men squatted, the gluteus maximus became more active during the concentric phase of the lift. Surprisingly, the amount of work done by the other muscles tested were not altered by increased squat depth.
These findings suggest that full squats might not be as good at emphasizing hamstring growth as many people think.
Q. The only real time I have to work out is for half an hour when I have my lunch break. Is this enough for me to get a decent workout?
A. If you find it hard to find the time to exercise, why don’t you try supersets.
Supersets are simply 2 exercises teamed together and done back to back with no rest in between.
You could match an upper body movement with a lower body exercise (for example pull ups accompanied by squats) or two opposite muscle groups (such as the dumbbell bench press followed by the seated row).