Increasing muscle mass keeps us young longer. An expert explains why. And how to train correctly
There are those who say that walking every day or a swim in the pool is enough. In fact, the results of scientific studies lead more and more specialists to advise **strength training as the best antidote to physical and cognitive deterioration.** Muscle is life insurance that protects bones, reduces fat accumulation, prevents the risk of diabetes and improves heart function, to name just a few of its benefits. We may even be aware of it, but we don’t always know how to translate this awareness into action. Don’t be scared by weights or elastic bands, understand that you need to consume a certain amount of protein and strive to mitigate the effects of one **sedentary lifestyle**: this is just the first step.
Below, with the help of **Sara Tabares** physical trainer and director of the PERFORMA personal training center in Valencia, Spain, we talk about progressive overload, volume, and frequency, as well as the optimal conditions that must exist for the increase in muscle mass to be truly effective.
Mechanical tension and muscle failure
As Tabares explains, one of the keys to promoting the increase in muscle mass is **mechanical tension**: “This factor refers to the force generated by the muscle fibers during an exercise,” says the expert. “The greater the mechanical tension, the closer we get to the so-called “muscle failure”, i.e. the impossibility of completing the repetition”. Recent studies, however, indicate that something similar could be achieved through a **high number of repetitions** (up to 30 or more per set), as long as you get to the last few with the feeling of struggling.
The role of the trainer
“Training needs to be a considerable challenge to the muscles,” says Tabares, “but you have to be careful and find the **optimal stress point**, without exaggerating, to avoid injuries or overtraining.” The expert underlines the key role of the physical trainer: «He is the person responsible for planning our workouts so that they are as effective and safe as possible», she explains. “A good trainer, in addition to possessing a legally recognized professional qualification, must have knowledge of **biomechanics, physiology, and training methodology**. We need to be a travel companion with great empathy, a person who does not judge, but who traces a path for us, who provides us with a map to follow, helping us to find our way again if we happen to lose it.”
Progressive overload: what it is and how it works
The goal of strength training is **to progress**, which is achieved with progressive overload, i.e. increasing loads, volume, frequency, or making any other modification that alters the training stimulus (for example, going from working on two limbs to working on just one). In this regard, Tabares underlines how changes must be gradual – not surprisingly, we speak of “progressive” overload – and introduced within a program: «Without planning, there is no order, and, without order, there is no they are results,” he says.
Tabares talks about the “**2 out of 2 rule**”, according to which, if in two consecutive training sessions we manage to complete two repetitions more than the goal, the load of all sets of that exercise should be increased in subsequent sessions.
Volume and frequency
If you want to increase muscle mass, you need to consider two other crucial aspects: **the volume and frequency of training**. «Volume is defined as the amount of exercise we perform in a given period of time», explains Tabares. «Personally, I prefer to start progressively and then increase as the months go by, also integrating further well-planned training sessions». As regards the concept of frequency, however, the expert talks about it as the number of sessions we carry out in a certain period of time. “Research shows that you can gain muscle mass regardless of how many times you train,” she says. «**But you get more results if you train for two days instead of one. It’s the volume that matters**». However, studies indicate that if the volume exceeds 10 sets per muscle in an hour of training, it would be better to divide the said volume into multiple sessions.
«According to the American College of Sports Medicine [ACSM] we should train from **2 to 3 times a week**» says Tabares. «That said, more is not better. A good strength training session, properly planned, can last between 30 and 40 minutes. The important thing is to plan, provide adequate progressions, select exercises and rest. Recovery is an invisible part of training that we must take into account.”
5 good reasons to practice strength training
Strength training is not a fad, but a **need**, and how we plan it determines an effective and healthy progression. We asked Sara Tabares to tell us 5 reasons why working on muscles guarantees healthy aging: