肌肉如何增长
What makes muscles grow
原文阅读
Muscles. We have over 600 of them. They make up between 1/3 and 1/2 of our body weight, and along with connective tissue, they bind us together, hold us up, and help us move. And whether or not body building is your hobby, muscles need your constant attention, bacause the way you threat them on a daily basis, determines whether they will wither or grow.
Say you're standing in front of a door, ready to pull it open. Your brain and muscles are perfectly poised to help you achieve this goal.
First your brain sends a signal to motor neurons inside your arm. When they receive this message, they fire, causing muscles to contract and relax, which pull on the bones in your arm and generate the needed movement. The bigger the challenge becomes, the bigger the brain's signal grow, and the more motor units it rallies to help you achieve your task.
But what if the door is made of solid iron? At this point, your arm muscles alone, won't able to generate enough tension to pull it open, so your brain appeals to other muscles for help. You plant your feet, tighten your belly, and tense your back, generating enough force to yank it open. Your nervous system has just leveraged the resources you already have, other muscles, to meet the demand.
While all this is happening, Your muscle fibers undergo another kind of cellular change. As you expose them to stress, they experience microscopic damage, which, in this context, is a good thing. In response, the injured cells release inflammatory molecules called cytokines, that activate the immune system to repair the injury.
This is when the muscle-building magic happens. The greater the damage to the muscle tissue, the more your body will need to repair itself. The resulting cycle of damage and repair eventually makes muscles bigger and stronger, as they adapt to progressively greater demands.
Since our bodies have already adapted to most everyday activities, those generally don't produce enough stress, to stimulate new muscle growth. So to build new muscle, a process called hypertrophy, our cells need to be exposed to higher workloads than they are used to. In fact, if you don't continuously expose your muscles to some resistance, they will shrink, a process known as muscular atrophy.
In contrast, exposing the muscle to a high-degree of tension, especially while the muscle is lengthening, also called an eccentric contraction, generates effective conditions for new growth.
However, muscles rely on more than just activity to grow. Without proper nutrition, hormones, and rest, your body would never be able to repair damaged muscle fibers. Protein in our diet preserves muscle mass by providing the building blocks for new tissue, in the form of amino acids.
Adequate protein intake, along with naturally occurring hormones, like insulin-like growth factor and testosterone, help shift the body into a state where tissue is repaired and grown. This vital repair process mainly occurs when we're resting, especially at night while sleeping.
Gender and age affect this repair mechanism, which is why young men with more testosterone have a leg up in the muscle building game. Genetic factors also play a role in one's ability to grow muscle. Some people have more robust immune reactions to muscle damage, and are better able to repair and replace damaged muscle fibers, increasing their muscle-building potential.
The body responds to the demands you place on it. If you tear your muscles up, eat right, rest and repeat, you'll create the conditions to make your muscles as big and strong as possible. It is with muscles as it is with life: Meaningful growth requires chanllenge and stress.
生词统计
| 单词 | 音标 | 翻译 |
|---|---|---|
| wither | ˈwɪðər | v. 枯萎、凋谢、衰弱 |
| poise | pɔɪz | n. 平衡、姿势、镇静； v. 平衡、准备好、悬着 |
| rally | ˈræli | v. 召集、复原、重新集合、集结、联合； v. 公众集会、汽车拉力赛、竞赛 |
| tension | ˈtenʃn | n. 张力、拉力、紧张、不安、电压； v. 使紧张、使拉紧 |
| appeal | əˈpiːl | n. 呼吁、恳求、上诉、申诉、感染力； v. 呼吁、恳求、申诉、诉请裁决 |
| belly | ˈbeli | n. 腹部、胃、食欲； v. 涨满、鼓起 |
| tense | tens | adj. 紧张的、拉紧的； v. 变得紧张、使拉紧 |
| yank | jæŋk | v. 猛地一拉、猛拉； n. 突然的猛拉 |
| cellular | ˈseljələr | adj. 细胞的、多孔的； n. 移动电话、单元 |
| inflammatory | ɪnˈflæmətɔːri | adj. 炎症性的、煽动性的、激动的 |
| molecule | ˈmɑːlɪkjuːl | n. 分子、微小颗粒、微粒 |
| cytokine | ˈsaɪtoʊˌkaɪn | n. [细胞]细胞因子、细胞激素 |
| adapt | əˈdæpt | v. 使适应、改变 |
| hypertrophy | haɪˈpɜːrtrəfi | n. [病理]肥大、过度增大 |
| atrophy | ˈætrəfi | n. 萎缩、萎缩症、发育停止； v. 萎缩、虚脱 |
| eccentric | ɪkˈsentrɪk | adj. 古怪的、反常的； n. 古怪的人 |
| amino acid | ə,mi:nəu 'æsid | n. [生化]氨基酸 |
| occur | əˈkɜːr | v. 发生、出现、存在 |
| insulin | ˈɪnsəlɪn | n. [生化][药]胰岛素 |
| testosterone | teˈstɑːstəroʊn | n. [生化]睾酮、睾丸素 |
| mechanism | ˈmekənɪzəm | n. 机制、原理、途径、进程、技巧 |
| robust | roʊˈbʌst | adj. 强健的、健康的、粗野的、粗鲁的 |
翻译
Muscles. We have over 600 of them. They make up between 1/3 and 1/2 of our body weight, and along with connective tissue, they bind up together, hold us up, and help us move. And whether or not body building is your hobby, muscles need your constant attention, because the way you threat them on a daily basis, determines whether they will wither or grow.
肌肉，我们有超过600块肌肉，大约占了身体重量的三分之一到二分之一，它们和结缔组织一起组成我们的身体，使我们能够站立和移动。不管健身是不是你的兴趣爱好，肌肉需要你持续投入，因为你每天的锻炼情况会决定肌肉使萎缩还是增长。
Say you're standing in front of a door, ready to pull it open. Your brain and muscles are perfectly poised to help you achieve this goal.
假设你正站在一扇门前，准备拉开门。你的大脑和肌肉会做好充分的准备帮你达成这个目标。
First your brain sends a signal to motor neurons inside your arm. When they receive this message, they fire, causing muscles to contract and relax, which pull on the bones in your arm and generate the needed movement. The bigger the challenge becomes, the bigger the brain's signal grow, and the more motor units it rallies to help you achieve your task.
首先，你的大脑给遥控手臂的神经发射信号，神经系统接受信号后，开始行动，引起肌肉收缩和放松，牵引手臂的骨骼运动从而做出相应的动作。动作难度越大，大脑发出的信号越强，协同完成动作所需召集的神经单位越多。
But what if the door is made of solid iron? At this point, your arm muscles alone, won't able to generate enough tension to pull it open, so your brain appeals to other muscles for help. You plant your feet, tighten your belly, and tense your back, generating enough force to yank it open. Your nervous system has just leveraged the resources you already have, other muscles, to meet the demand.
但是如果门是铁制的呢？现在，光靠你手臂的肌肉是不能产生足够的拉力来开门的，所以你的大脑会让其他肌肉来帮忙。你扎好马步，收紧小腹，拉紧脊背，产生足够的力把门拉开，你的神经系统使用了你的已有资源，别的肌肉，来完成目标。
While all this is happening, Your muscle fibers undergo another kind of cellular change. As you exposs them to stress, they experience microscopic damage, which, in this context, is a good thing. In response, the injured cells release inflammatory molecules called cytokines, that activate the immune system to repair the injury.
当这一切发生时，你的肌肉纤维经历了细胞层面的变化，拉伸细胞时，它们经历了轻微的损伤。这种情况是一件好事，作为回应，受损的细胞会释放出被称作细胞因子的炎性分子，激活免疫系统以修复损伤。
This is when the muscle-building magic happens. The greater the damage to the muscle tissue, the more your body will need to repair itself. The resulting cycle of damage and repair eventually makes muscles bigger and stronger, as they adapt to progressively greater demands.
这就剩肌肉变大的魔法，对肌肉组织造成的损伤越大，身体自我修复就会越多，损伤和修复的循环，最终使肌肉变得大而结实，逐渐适应更大的需求。
Since our bodyies have already adapted to most everyday activities, those generally don't produce enough stress, to stimulate new muscle growth. So to build new muscle, a process called hypertrophy, our cells need to be exposed to higher workloads than they are used to. In fact, if you don't continuously expose your muscles to some resistance, they will shrink, a process known as muscular atrophy.
因为我们的身体已经适应了日常的活动，这就不能产生足够的压力来促进新的肌肉生长了。所以，要长肌肉，需经历一个叫过度增长的过程，我们的细胞需要比它已经适应的更大的工作强度。事实上，如果你不持续锻炼肌肉，它们会变小，这被称为肌肉萎缩。
In contrast, exposing the muscle to a high-degree of tension, especially while the muscle is lengthening, also called an eccentric contraction, generates effective conditions for new growth.
相反的，让肌肉承受更高的拉力，特别是使肌肉伸展，又被称作离心收缩，为肌肉提供有效的生长条件。
However, muscles rely on more than just activity to grow. Without proper nutrition, hormones, and rest, your body would never be able to repair damaged muscle fibers. Protein in our diet preserves muscle mass by providing the building blocks for new tissue, in the form of amino acids.
然而，肌肉生长还要更多的条件。没有所需的营养，激素和休息，你的身体永远不能修复受损的肌肉组织，我们饮食中的蛋白质以氨基酸的形式提供新组织，来维持细胞的质量。
Adequate protein intake, along with naturally occurring hormones, like insulin-like growth factor and testosterone, help shift your body into a state where tissue is repaired and grown. This vital repair process mainly occurs when we're resting, especially at night while sleeping.
足量的蛋白质摄入，与自然产生的荷尔蒙一起，比如胰岛素，生长因子和睾酮，协助组织的修复和成长。这个至关重要的修复过程主要发生在我们休息时，尤其在晚上睡觉的时候。
Gender and age affect this repair mechanism, which is why young men with more testosterone have a leg up in the muscle building game. Genetic factors also play a role in one's ability to grow muscle. Some people have more robust immune reactions to muscle damage, and are better able to repair and replace damaged muscle fibers, increasing their muscle-building potential.
性别和年龄也会影响修复机制，这就是为什么有更多睾酮的青壮年，在肌肉增长上更有优势。基因因素也会影响肌肉增长，有些人对肌肉损伤有更强烈的免疫反应，更容易修复和替换受损肌肉纤维，这都加大了肌肉增长的潜力。
The body responds to the demands you place on it. If you tear your muscles up, eat right, rest and repeat, you'll create the conditions to make your muscles as big and strong as possible. It is with muscles as it is with life: Meaningful growth requires chanllenge and stress.
身体会对你的需求做出回应，如果你撕裂肌肉，补充营养，休息然后重复这些，你就为肌肉变大变强创造了条件，肌肉增长和生活一个道理：有意义的成长需要挑战和压力。