Should You Train Muscles According to Their Fiber Type? (New Study)

Many different ideas are put forth when it comes to maximizing muscle hypertrophy. One idea is that muscles should be trained according to their fiber-type. This idea suggests that muscles predominantly slow-twitch should be trained with lighter loads for higher reps, while muscles predominantly fast-twitch should be trained with heavier loads for lower reps. But do these ideas work?

A recent study by Schoenfield et al. found that the soleus, a predominantly slow-twitch muscle, and the gastrocnemius, a mixed fiber type muscle, responded similarly to the use of heavy and light loads. Therefore, this study does not support the idea of training muscles according to their fiber type.

In the video, I address some of the limitations as well as delimitations of the study. But regardless, on a practical level, there does not seem to be much of an appeal to training muscles based on their fiber type. Apart from the soleus, the lower-body appears to be fairly split between fast and slow-twitch muscles. The same applies to the upper-body.

Even if you as an individual do have muscles predominantly fast or slow-twitch, apart from the study by Schoenfield et al. suggesting muscles do not need to be trained according to fiber-type, there isn't a practical and reliable way to know. There have been previous suggestions that one can determine their fiber-type composition through seeing how many reps they can achieve with a sub-maximal load. However, a study by Terzis et al. found that fiber-type composition has very little role to play in the amount of reps one can achieve with a sub-maximal load.

Taking this together with the rest of the evidence, it appears that for the being at least, training muscles according to fiber type is not a consideration that needs to go into constructing a training program.
-------------------------------
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/houseofhypertrophy/
Twitter - https://twitter.com/hypertrophyhome
-------------------------------
Music: LAKEY INSPIRED - Blue bois
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOmy8wuTpC95lefU5d1dt2Q
SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/lakeyinspired
-------------------------------
References:
(0:35) Schoenfield et al. 2020 - https://physoc.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.14814/phy2.14427
(3:21-4:00) Johnson et al. 1973 - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/4120482
Sirca et al. 1980 - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/6444440
Dahmane et al. 2005 - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16214493
Dahmane et al. 2006 - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17024467
Garrett et al. 1984 - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/6234816
Pierrynowski et al. 1985 - https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/0025556485900677#!
Edgerton et al. 1975 - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/123895
Keh-Evans et al. 2010 - https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/canadian-journal-on-aging-la-revue-canadienne-du-vieillissement/article/comparison-of-histochemical-biochemical-and-contractile-properties-of-triceps-surae-of-trained-aged-subjects/55ABCC9A32012178E84EBB55368C434A
Jennekens et al. 1971 - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/4109253
Gouzi et al. 2013 - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23558383
Travnik et al. 1995 - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7592003
Srinivasan et al. 2007 - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16795030
Tesch et al. 1983 - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/6226203
Mavidis et al. 2007 - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17852684
Schantz et al. 1983 - https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1748-1716.1983.tb07200.x
MacDougall et al. 1984 - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/6520032
Nygaard et al. 1982 - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7137599
(4:31) Douris et al. 2006 - https://journals.lww.com/nsca-jscr/Abstract/2006/08000/THE_RELATIONSHIP_BETWEEN_MAXIMAL_REPETITION.36.aspx
(4:58) Terzis et al. 2008 - https://journals.lww.com/nsca-jscr/Fulltext/2008/05000/Fiber_Type_Composition_and_Capillary_Density_in.28.aspx

Видео Should You Train Muscles According to Their Fiber Type? (New Study) канала House of Hypertrophy