Building skeletal muscle is essential for your health

Skeletal muscle is a vital system of our bodies. Beyond allowing us to move our bodies and maintain our posture and balance, it creates our breath and protects vital organs. It also generates heat needed for our body as well as is a huge player in our hormonal regulation as it exerts effects on, and is the target for many hormones, not the least of which are insulin and testosterone. As an organ system, it is the only system that we think of as having the ability to grow with beneficial results. In later decades of life, the current trend is towards sarcopenia, which is a decline in muscle quality and quantity due to age, as well as other factors including hormonal effects and inactivity. This does not have to be the case! With a little information and a few tips on how to maintain muscle quality and growth, your muscles should provide you years of support. 

To begin, let’s look at the basic structure of muscle, the different types, and how skeletal muscle is different. While this may get a little technical, we’ll try to make it as simple as possible. There are three different types of muscle: striated (or skeletal), cardiac, and smooth. Cardiac muscle surrounds the heart and is similar to skeletal muscle except that it is aligned differently and it is controlled automatically. Smooth muscle is also controlled automatically and cannot be moved through conscious thought. Skeletal muscle is striated, meaning it looks like it has parallel stripes or bands that move past each other in order to contract the muscle. This is done consciously every time we make a decision to move a part of our body. When we smile, stand, walk, chew, wiggle our fingers or toes, we are consciously engaging our skeletal muscle to move our bones which allows us to complete tasks. It is 

Skeletal muscle is composed of muscle fibers called myofibrils, which contain actin and myosin which attach to each other, and pull the fibers past each other to contract the muscle. This process requires calcium to basically display the actin and myosin and a compound called adenosine triphosphate (ATP) to break the connection between the two. In summary, calcium is used in contraction to bring actin and myosin together, and ATP is used in relaxation to allow them to separate. There is so much more to this process, but for beginners, this is as deep as you possibly need to understand. This is the process by which we grow and maintain our muscle to provide strength and balance to our system. 

There is a very unique aspect of skeletal muscle and its relationship to the endocrine system, the system that regulates hormone synthesis and secretion. Growth hormone, specifically, has target receptors on skeletal muscle which promotes muscle growth. This growth is called anabolic effect (or building up) as opposed to catabolic effects (or destructive). When we use our muscles we actually exert a catabolic effect in that we break down muscle tissue. Through rest, we have an anabolic effect in that, not only does the muscle tissue rebuild, but it builds back stronger. This is what you see when you see people who go to the gym and lift weights. Over time, they have destroyed and repaired their muscles to make them bigger and stronger. This is important to remember. 

Growth hormone has been called the anti-aging hormone as it prevents frailty and disability due to loss of muscle mass.1 It works by accumulating protein which is the main component of skeletal muscle, which is why growth hormone is considered a performance-enhancing drug (PED) that is considered one of the most abused in sports, and is banned by most (if not all) professional associations, in the form of hGH, or human growth hormone. Another PED called HGH (capital H), called human gonadotropin hormone is a synthetic drug that replaces our bodies own ability to produce growth hormone, which makes it dangerous, but is on the rise in high school athletes.2 This is a good example of how the natural human process cannot be hacked without a premium penalty. 

While growth hormone is a prominent agent impacting skeletal muscle, it is not alone. Testosterone plays a huge impact on skeletal muscle by inducing cellular growth leading to increased muscular strength and power. Naturally, testosterone increases muscle mass and strength, bone density and strength, sexual arousal and activity, as well as decreasing cardiovascular risk factors and insulin resistance. It also increases high-density lipoprotein (HDL) otherwise known as your “good cholesterol.” HDL is considered beneficial, because it transports cholesterol from your body back to your liver, which accounts for the decrease in atherosclerosis and coronary artery disease. In fact, testosterone does so much for us it’s hard to list all the benefits. It also increases dopamine (DA) which is a neurotransmitter linked to how we experience pleasure through inducing motivation, arousal, sexual function, reward, and learning pathways. 

So the question becomes, if testosterone is good for us, shouldn’t we add more to the system to increase the benefits such as bigger, stronger muscles? While this is an excellent example of  logical thinking, it’s also incorrect and, in this case, very dangerous. The above effects are seen when natural, or what is called physiological, amounts of testosterone is found in the blood. Testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) injects higher than normal doses of testosterone into the body, leading to increases in cardiovascular risks, harmful cholesterol (LDL/VLDL), and myocardial infarctions (aka heart attacks). Therefore, internal synthesis, production, and distribution of testosterone is much safer and more effective than trying to use an external source. Without true, medically-diagnosed hypogonadism, using our own production is best. The real question then becomes, how do we naturally produce more testosterone? The answer is, there are several ways!

A 2019 study looked at supplements from Amazon Marketplace which claimed to “naturally” boost testosterone levels. It should not be a surprise that they found very limited human trials with “no definitive findings of efficacy,” and suggested that patients be cautioned before using these products.3

There are no shortcuts in life or again in health. To naturally increase testosterone takes commitment and tenacity as well as a little bit of information. 

This brings us back to skeletal muscle and why it is so important to strengthen and grow this vital organ system. In order to grow skeletal muscle, and therefore increase testosterone levels, you have to lift weights. All exercise is valuable, and moving your body should be part of your routine, cardiovascular exercises such as running just don’t do as much for skeletal muscle growth and increased testosterone as resistance training does. High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) utilizes short bursts of intense exercise with lower intensity recovery times has shown to be effective in increasing testosterone as well. This may sound highly complicated, but it’s really not. It is designed to speed up your time at the gym, maximize your heart rate, and engage both cardio and strength development. 

However, you don’t need to become so specialized when working out to build skeletal muscle. Going to the gym and focusing on lifting heavier weight for fewer reps will increase muscle and testosterone. Exercises that engage large muscles such as deadlifts, bench press, and squats are ideal for muscle strengthening. While it is sexy to think about developing giant biceps (don’t worry, you still can), it’s important to remember the benefits of leg days. Your legs contain some of the largest muscles in your body, with your butt (gluteus maximus) being the largest. Strengthening your glutes, hamstrings, and quads not only induces more testosterone production, but increases metabolism by burning more fat. Don’t skip leg day! 

If you’re one of those people who are DIY and would rather avoid the gym, increased testosterone is still available for you. Exercises that use your own body weight can be just as effective as weight lifting routines. At home push-ups, sit-ups, pull-ups, and even body weight squats allow you to access a wide range of muscle groups and strengthen muscles and increase testosterone. Plus, the best part about these exercises is that you can do them right now. Close the computer and do 15 push-ups right now. Okay, well, after you’re done reading this do them!

HIIT and strength training are great to increase muscle mass and testosterone, and there are arguable benefits for any type of exercise, some actually decrease your testosterone. Endurance exercises such as long, marathon runs, or excessive cycling can actually decrease your testosterone. These exercises induce the production of cortisol, or what we call the “stress hormone.” We call it that because it is produced in response to stress. When this happens, cortisol will actually tell the body to stop (or down regulate) the production of testosterone. This is the opposite effect we are looking for. What this means is that living stressful lives where our body, mind, and emotions are taxed for resources daily, we produce a hormone that competitively displaces another, beneficial hormone. The implications of this are huge, and we’ll talk about them in a bit. 

So, how we move our bodies is a key element in the growth and strengthening of skeletal muscle and increasing the production of testosterone, but where do we find the energy to do all this work? We have to feed our bodies foods for which it was designed. Our ancestors ate what they could to survive, which consisted mainly of plants as well as animal protein. Today, the biggest staple of modern diets is carbohydrates, sugar, and highly processed foods. A diet full of heavy starches, sugars, and essentially empty calories does not provide the body with enough energy to do the work described above. All the nutrients that our body needs is found in grass-fed animal proteins (including organ meats), free-range eggs, wild fish, and an abundance of organic vegetables. 

There was a myth (or lie) created in 1967 by Harvard scientists working with the sugar industry which looked at the increasing risk of coronary heart disease. They were paid to create evidence that pointed to fat, not sugar as being the biggest risk factor for coronary heart disease. 4 This lie was perpetuated for over 50 years, to the point where many people haven’t even heard about it. This led generations of people to believe that animal fat made you fat (sounds right) but that sugar was fine. Again, this is not only incorrect, but dangerous. Steering people away from the benefits of animal protein for something that has now been mutated into a substance that is unpronounceable and ubiquitous is exploitative and deadly. It is a major factor for the current diabetes epidemic as well as furthers mistrust of the food industry, both research and production. Eat meat! Don’t be led astray by the same people who have killed millions with their lies. 

With a healthier diet and exercise routine, we should be well on our way to creating stronger muscles and increasing our testosterone, but we still need to attend to that pesky hormone that is ever present and gets in our way; cortisol. In order to allow for testosterone production and muscle growth, we need to lead lives that are not dominated by stress. As stress is constant in our modern lives, it’s more applicable to find ways to manage or reduce stress. There are innumerable ways to accomplish this and to be effective, a more personalized approach is appropriate. Meditation, prayer, focused breathing are all ideas for reducing stress. Ultimately, establishing a spiritual practice tends to be the most effective tool for managing stress. However you go about reducing stress, it will impact all aspects of your life and health, from your body to your soul!

There is a lot of information about skeletal muscle and testosterone listed above. There is still so much more to learn. Follow Dr Buttler on Instagram, sign up for regular emails, and get notified for more blogs such as this one. Continue to shape your life to optimize yourself and challenge the beliefs that just aren’t true for you. 

References

1) Chikani, V., & Ho, K. K. (2013). Action of GH on skeletal muscle function: Molecular and metabolic mechanisms. Journal of Molecular Endocrinology, 52(1). https://doi.org/10.1530/jme-13-0208

2) Dangerous Trend: HGH Use on the Rise Among High School Athletes. Orlando Health. October 27, 2014.

3) Balasubramanian A, Thirumavalavan N, Srivatsav A, Yu J, Lipshultz LI, Pastuszak AW. Testosterone imposters: An analysis of popular online testosterone boosting supplements. The Journal of Sexual Medicine. 2019;16(2):203-212. doi:10.1016/j.jsxm.2018.12.008

4) Domonoske C. 50 years ago, sugar industry quietly paid scientists to point blame at fat. NPR. https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/09/13/493739074/50-years-ago-sugar-industry-quietly-paid-scientists-to-point-blame-at-fat. Published September 13, 2016. Accessed August 22, 2022.