30 Seconds SummaryResearch Spotlight: Trained lifters are primarily stronger due to muscularity, not neural adaptations
- Strength gains in trained lifters are predominantly due to increased muscle size rather than neural adaptations, according to a new study.
- The study compared 16 trained men (average 5.9 years of resistance training) with 14 untrained men, assessing muscle strength and size through dynamometry and MRI, alongside motor unit behavior via high-density surface electromyography (HDsEMG).
- HDsEMG, an advanced form of measuring electrical muscle activity, revealed similar motor unit behavior between trained and untrained groups, indicating that neural efficiency did not differ significantly.
- Trained lifters displayed 64.8% greater maximal isometric elbow flexion force and 71.9% greater biceps size than untrained lifters.
- The findings suggest that muscle hypertrophy is the primary factor for enhanced force generation in strength-trained individuals, rather than superior neural adaptations.
- The implication is that for improving strength, particularly in isometric contractions where technique is minimized, increasing muscle size is more effective than focusing solely on neural strategies.
Stronger By Science
Greg Nuckols
