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Strength

Muscle versus Neural “strength.”

People with bigger muscles are not necessarily “stronger” because strength is more than muscle mass.

Slides

Examples

For example, what if I asked you to [do a movement that requires “strength” that is unfamiliar]… does it feel like your body totally tenses up? With some practice, your body will feel less tense and the movement will feel less “effortfull.” You are not necessarily increasing muscle mass as you train this movement, you might just be training muscle recruitment.

For example, “cramps” during loaded movement (try hip flexor raises while sitting) are often a result of the “omg muscle ACTIVATE” signals that lead to co-contraction of more muscles than needed. With practice, less muscles get recruited for the movement and they can activate in a graded manner rather than “all-or-none.”

Additional Resources

• Sale D. G. (1988). Neural adaptation to resistance training. Medicine and science in sports and exercise, 20(5 Suppl), S135–S145.

• Del Vecchio, A., Casolo, A., Negro, F., Scorcelletti, M., Bazzucchi, I., Enoka, R., Felici, F., & Farina, D. (2019). The increase in muscle force after 4 weeks of strength training is mediated by adaptations in motor unit recruitment and rate coding. The Journal of physiology, 597(7), 1873–1887.

• Hedayatpour, N., & Falla, D. (2015). Physiological and Neural Adaptations to Eccentric Exercise: Mechanisms and Considerations for Training. BioMed research international, 2015, 193741.

• The brain can make you stronger

• Suchomel TJ, Wagle JP, Douglas J, Taber CB, Harden M, Haff GG, Stone MH. Implementing Eccentric Resistance Training—Part 1: A Brief Review of Existing Methods. Journal of Functional Morphology and Kinesiology. 2019; 4(2):38.

• Insights into the neural control of eccentric contractions

• Neural Adaptations and Strength Training

• Lifting weights makes your nervous system stronger too

• Cortical, corticospinal and reticulospinal contributions to strength training.

• How We Get Stronger

• STRENGTH TRAINING AND NEUROMUSCULAR ADAPTATIONS

• Schoenfeld B. J. (2010). The mechanisms of muscle hypertrophy and their application to resistance training. Journal of strength and conditioning research, 24(10), 2857–2872.

• HEDAYATPOUR, NOSRATOLLAH; FALLA, DEBORAH; ARENDT-NIELSEN, LARS; FARINA, DARIO. Sensory and Electromyographic Mapping during Delayed-Onset Muscle Soreness. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise 40(2):p 326-334, February 2008.

• [Aagaard, Per. Training-Induced Changes in Neural Function. Exercise and Sport Sciences Reviews 31(2):p 61-67, April 2003.]

• The Hoffmann reflex: A means of assessing spinal reflex excitability and its descending control in man

• Assessment of Neuroplasticity With Strength Training

• Fusimotor Drive May Adjust Muscle Spindle Feedback to Task Requirements in Humans

• Effect of exercise on the motor unit

• Effects of exercise training on alpha-motoneurons

• Mrachacz-Kersting, N., Stevenson, A.J.T. & Ziemann, U. Short-interval intracortical inhibition and facilitation targeting upper and lower limb muscles. Sci Rep 11, 21993 (2021).

• Mechanisms and functional implications of motoneuron adaptations to increased physical activity

• Gabriel, D.A., Kamen, G. & Frost, G. Neural Adaptations to Resistive Exercise. Sports Med 36, 133–149 (2006).

• Science for Sport: Rate of Force Development

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Cell Types and Circuits

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Movement Control: Motor Cortex