This is one of the mechanisms by which creatine is thought to work, as it increases a cell's fluid volume, which may then promote cell growth.

in-series hypertrophy refers to muscles growing by actually getting longer, like adding segments to a rope

If you want the calves to grow you need to make them do what they're not used to doing.

The guy with really long Achilles tendons, high calves, short muscle bellies, and a higher percentage of slow twitch muscle fibers will have a much more difficult time making his calves into cows than the guy with shorter Achilles tendons, low calves, long muscle bellies, and a higher percentage of fast twitch muscle fibers.

Leg Press Pros

training through a spectrum of repetition ranges is best for those looking to maximize muscle growth. Our recent study looking at a varied versus constant loading protocol suggests a potential benefit to such an approach, at least for increasing growth in the upper body musculature (Schoenfeld et al 2016).

Because the three mechanisms of hypertrophy feed off one another, it's best to follow a daily undulating or concurrent periodization scheme, as opposed to a linear model.

Muscle Damage: Focus on the Negative

The key is to keep constant tension on the muscles by maintaining a continuous cadence (no rest between reps) and reversing direction just short of lockout or just before bottoming out, depending on the exercise's strength curve.

most lifters have some "sweet spot" below the one-rep max for which mechanical tension on the targeted muscles is at its highest. Adding additional weight won't increase mechanical tension and may actually shift it away from the desired muscles and onto passive structures or other muscles.

the ideal number of sets per week would be somewhere between 15 and 30 depending on the muscle group in question, the exercises chosen, and the inherent recovery ability of the individual.

Sticking to solely heavy work or solely high-rep work won’t build the optimal physique – you need the best of both styles of training if you want to reach your maximum muscular potential

Movements that place the greatest tension at long muscle lengths (in a stretched position) are best suited for creating muscle damage.

Movements that either place constant tension on a muscle or place the greatest tension on a muscle at shorter muscle lengths (in a contracted position) are best suited for creating a pump.

In general, performing squats, deadlifts, hip thrusts, bench presses, military presses, chins, and rows will ensure that you’re maximizing mechanical tension across the various muscle groups. However, one exercise alone will not maximize tension on the entire spectrum of fibers within a muscle.

Recall, however, that muscle growth can result from using the lower rep ranges generally associated with strength building, and strength increases can result from using the higher rep ranges generally associated with size

bigger muscle mass better dissipates the impact force and vibration caused by events such as falling, getting punched, and taking or delivering a football hit

Metabolic stress: Increasing time under tension (TUT) increases metabolic stressand gives you incredible pump, or muscle-cell swelling. This swelling cancause both an increase in muscle-protein synthesis and a decrease in proteinbreakdown, which are essential components of the process by which the bodyrepairs and grows muscle tissue after exercise (4,5,6)

muscle damage refers to muscle-tis-sue microtears that occur when working muscles tire and struggle to resist theweight while the muscle fiber is lengthening eccentrically. This can cause theactin and myosin to be forcibly ripped apart, thereby causing damage.

Mechanical tension: This tension is exerted on the muscles from movement andexternal loads to reduce, produce, or control force.

the smartest approach is to use both heavy-load, low-volume work with lighter-load, higher-volume work in an undulating fashion.

mechanical tension can be created either by lifting heavy loads for fewer reps or by lifting medium loads for more reps. So, either can create a stimulus for muscle growth (16). Not to mention, regularly varying sets and reps is an effective means of improving muscle strength and size (17, 18, 19, 20).

So, mechanical tension is really the driving force of muscle growth, and muscle damage and metabolic stress are just the physiological results of it