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Muscle memory discovery ends 'use it or lose it' dogma

sciencedaily.com

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Re: Muscle memory discovery ends 'use it or lose it' dogma

#91

Post by SmellyGeekBoy »

sundvor wrote: post #88
janekm wrote: post #83

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As many people who bought previous muscle stimulation "as seen on tv" devices bought, it certainly does still require discipline to shock your muscles for an hour or so daily ;)

I'm going to argue that it would be easier to just go and squat out those 5x5s. The size of the squat rack is another issue however.

Also if your diet is shit and your gut hangs out over the top of your trousers electrically stimulating your abs isn't going to make the slightest bit of difference aesthetically. At least by actually lifting you're also burning calories.

Re: Muscle memory discovery ends 'use it or lose it' dogma

#92

Post by SmellyGeekBoy »

atoav wrote: post #67

When I started playing an instrument again, that I stopped playing ten years ago, all came back. Ofc you need some muscles to play it well (especially when you play something demanding on a bass), but it felt like riding a bike after a long winter.

Agreed. As a finger picker my main issue with taking long breaks from bass is the lack of finger callouses!

Re: Muscle memory discovery ends 'use it or lose it' dogma

#93

Post by SmellyGeekBoy »

kfwhp wrote: post #86
jordinl wrote: post #78

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is incorrect. What's banned (in many western countries) is distribution unless there is a medical prescription. But nothing prevents people from using them, same with other drugs like cocaine and heroine.

Which is exactly the definition of being "banned".

In my country at least I need a prescription from a doctor if I want to take antibiotics, does that mean they're banned here?

Re: Muscle memory discovery ends 'use it or lose it' dogma

#94

Post by [deleted] »

IshKebab wrote: post #85
CptFribble wrote: post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes and no. Individual fibers are either On or Off, but individual fibers are grouped into bundles, and any one muscle is composed of many bundles. When you flex a muscle to move a thing, your brain only recruits some of the bundles. The exact amount is determined by some combination of your willpower, focus, training level, and adrenaline. As you train (that is, try really hard to lift something heavy), you teach yo…

That can't be everything though because otherwise your body wouldn't physically change when you train and they clearly do. Also why wouldn't evolution just make us all strong all the time if it only requires neurological changes?

[deleted]

Re: Muscle memory discovery ends 'use it or lose it' dogma

#96

Post by amnandkishore »

5partan wrote: post #59
amnandkishore wrote: post #50

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I fully respect this view towards athletic competition. But to what extent do you think this is the case now (even if we assume drug testing catches the cheats perfectly)? I'd struggle to believe that a person could succeed in, say, an Olympic athletics event without a top-quality nutritionist and team of trainers, probably including in-depth analysis of their biomechanical patterns and minute adjustments they need t…

There are exceptions to the rule though, Donald Thomas jumped higher at his 7th attempt at high jumping as a basketball player (not measuring his run-up, shoes without spikes, arms behind back to land on the mat as if breaking his fall), than years later at the olympics. Sometimes natural talent beats all the science of the world.

Thanks, this is an interesting story I wasn't aware of. Having said that, I think it only partly suggests that 'sometimes natural talent beats all the science of the world.' After all, even when he first tried high jump, it sounds like he was on a collegiate basketball team, where he'd have been going through closely monitored training. (Not as precise or dialed in as an average Olympian, but still, probably pretty solid). To me his subsequent decline in high-jump suggests one of two possibilities:

1) He was gifted at jumping, but got exceptionally unlucky with timing in that his natural abilities were at their peak when he first tried jumping and basically declined constantly thereafter.

2) High-jump training is far from optimized (at least for all athletes), and potentially has a lot to gain from adopting basketball training techniques, since clearly those worked better for Thomas.

In either case, I'm not sold that this story is representative of a general trend whereby the science of the world can only take you so far - simply because those with incredible natural talent, more often than not, also have incredible science already backing them these days. At the elite levels, my strong belief is that it takes both.

Re: Muscle memory discovery ends 'use it or lose it' dogma

#97

Post by yorwba »

SmellyGeekBoy wrote: post #91
sundvor wrote: post #88

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm going to argue that it would be easier to just go and squat out those 5x5s. The size of the squat rack is another issue however.

Also if your diet is shit and your gut hangs out over the top of your trousers electrically stimulating your abs isn't going to make the slightest bit of difference aesthetically. At least by actually lifting you're also burning calories.

Electrically stimulating your abs also burns calories. Using your muscles requires energy, no matter whether they're activated artificially or not.

Re: Muscle memory discovery ends 'use it or lose it' dogma

#98

Post by dawidw »

leonsmith wrote: post #87
jordinl wrote: post #81

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Testosterone is used to treat hypogonadism and probably other conditions, so I'm not sure what your point is.

I just thought in the legality discussion its worth making sure people are talking about the same class of steroids as they are already treated and classified differently under the law. Anabolic steroids are a Class C drug in the UK so in general are illegal to possess and distribute unless prescribed. Steroids are not legal lol They are legal medicine So both these statements are true and false depending on which cl…

> Anabolic steroids are a Class C drug in the UK so in general are illegal to possess and distribute unless prescribed.

So they are legal - only access is controlled (prescription from doctor).

Alcohol and cigarettes are legal - only access is controlled (age).

Violence is legal - only access is controlled (police).

Tortures are not legal - no one has access to do that.

Capital punishment is not legal (in some countries) - no one has access to do that.

Re: Muscle memory discovery ends 'use it or lose it' dogma

#99

Post by vanderZwan »

From age 12 to 18, I biked 20 km to school and back every day. It's been two decades with a very sedentary life style and the occasional attempt of trying to get in shape. I notice every time that my legs regain strength a lot faster than any other part of my body.

Re: Muscle memory discovery ends 'use it or lose it' dogma

#100

Post by drakonka »

I've read about this concept somewhere before and found it really inspiring. I would think that knowing that my gains are "preserved" in some form would actually make me more lazy since I'm less afraid of completely reverting all progress, but in reality it just drives me more to build a nice bank for the future. It's super cool knowing that the effort you put in now will keep paying off years down the line, makes working out feel less futile somehow on an emotional level...
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