Training for strength is one thing, but if your goal is muscle growth, you’ll have to change your approach.
When muscle is your priority, it’s important to pay attention not only to how much weight you lift, but also how you do it. Your goal is to load the target muscle to fatigue in order to “trigger” growth. Let’s break down why this is so important and what techniques will help you improve your results.
How do Mind and Muscle work together?
Muscle-mind connection (MMC) is the ability to focus on a specific muscle and feel it contract during an exercise. Instead of mechanically “tossing” the weight around, you consciously control the movement. This depth of focus increases tension in the muscle – the key to effective hypertrophy.
In other words, if you want to “pump” a specific muscle, it’s not enough to simply work a heavy weight for a low number of reps. Without a clear understanding of which muscle you are loading, you may miss the main goal of maximizing muscle fiber damage and subsequent growth.
Why is this important?
As studies and the experience of many athletes show, people who specifically develop MMC get better results in terms of muscle volume and shape. Of course, you can use a strength training format (fewer repetitions with heavier weights), but this has more of an overall “strength” effect rather than targeting muscle groups. If you want to improve specific areas, you should additionally focus on isolation work.
Tips for strengthening the MMC
- Slow down the pace
Slow, controlled movements help you get a better feel for each phase of the repetition. Pay special attention to the eccentric part (lowering the weight): try stretching it for 2-3 seconds, and contract the concentric part in 1-2 seconds. This way the muscles will stay under load longer. - Focus on stretching and contracting
It is important to utilize the full range of motion and keep tension in the target muscle. Taking biceps flexion as an example, try not to sway or “pick up” the movement with your shoulders. Feel the biceps stretching and contracting – your weight will likely decrease, but your efficiency will increase. - Reduce the weight
To control the movement well and “catch” the right sensations in the muscles, it’s often necessary to work with less weight but in a higher repetition range (8-20). This will help avoid unnecessary stress on the central nervous system and increase the accumulation of metabolites needed for growth. - Pre-warm-up
Before moving on to basic exercises, “wake up” your muscles with isolation. For example, do leg extensions before squats to feel your quadriceps. This will make it easier to keep them in focus during the main exercise.
Best exercises for MMC development
- Biceps flexors: emphasize peak contraction at the top.
- Extensions (butterfly) and chest presses: feel both the stretch and contraction of the muscles.
- Lateral shoulder raises: keep tension in the delts throughout the movement.
- Leg curls: focus on working the back of the thigh.
- Pulling exercises (rowing): visualize that you are pulling the weight with your back instead of your arms.
Isolated movements are ideal for MMC development because they allow you to focus on a specific muscle. However, this doesn’t negate the importance of core exercises, which give you systemic strength gains and help build your “foundation.” Add isolation to work lagging muscle groups and enhance the effect of the basic training.
Conclusion
To maximize muscle growth, you don’t just need to lift heavy weights, you need to learn how to feel the work of specific muscles and control this process. Master the muscle-brain connection, watch your technique, choose reasonable weights and don’t forget about isolation. As a result, your muscles will respond with active growth and your workouts will reach a whole new level of effectiveness.
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