Why Do Muscles Fatigue? When you are working hard, you may feel the uncomfortable sensation of muscular fatigue. While you can push through it to a degree, understanding why this occurs can help you prevent it. While it is impossible to completely avoid fatigue, you can delay the onset and effects. Consult your physician before beginning any diet or exercise program. Adenosine Tri-Phosphate One of the compounds that helps produce energy for muscular contractions is adenosine tri-phosphate, or ATP. Through a process known as the ATP-CPK cycle, ATP is broken down into adenosine di-phosphate, as one of the phosphates is cleaved and the energy from this is used to produce mechanical energy within the cell. This type of energy is used extensively in heavy contractions such as resistance training, sprinting or the heavy events in a track and field competition, but is used to a degree in all muscular contractions. This process can be extended by supplementing with creatine monohydrate in a 5 g per day dose. Glycogen Depletion Glycogen, or sugar, is another source of fuel for muscular energy, and when it is depleted, your muscles no longer function at peak efficiency. While there are multiple systems that use sugar for energy, the end result of all of them is power for contractions generated through carbohydrate use. Glycogen is heavily used in nearly all forms of muscle contractions with the exception being the lifting of limit weights. While there is no way to avoid depletion to a degree, consuming a high-carbohydrate beverage immediately after training can not only help you recover, but provide you with additional energy for your next workout. Microtrauma When you exercise or perform physical labor, the fibers of the muscles contract. If there are enough contractions or the contractions are intense enough, this causes small tears in the fibers of your muscles. If you sustain enough micro-tears, this will limit the ability of your muscles to continue to contract, which limits your ability to perform physical activity. The more force you have to generate, the greater the trauma. The only way to avoid this is to increase the efficiency of your work so your muscles are not subject to as great a strain. This is why when you are new to an exercise or job you are often sore but over time this goes away. Nothing takes the place of skill. Dehydration and Minerals Your muscles consist of approximately 75 percent water. If you are dehydrated, your muscles do not work efficiently. This one is easy to correct: drink more water. If you are working in the sun on a hot day, have plenty of water handy. Certain minerals are responsible for the transmission of signals within your muscles, and if your minerals are depleted, you may suffer early-onset fatigue because of this. A multimineral supplement can help avoid this
Posted on: Thu, 15 Aug 2013 14:45:50 +0000
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