Growth Hormone?

[TapRackBang]

I've seen several posts referring to more "growth hormone" being released when working legs.

What is "growth hormone" and does it stay in the body for any amount of time after a heavy leg workout?

I've seen this referred to as rationale for doing compound lifts like deadlifts and squats.

TapRackBang

 

[Mudge]

It like many hormones will sit in the system for awhile yes, but like many drugs/hormones and actually (IIRC) every single item on the planet earth, it has some kind of half life. Growth hormone is the only substance (other than maybe IGF1) which can cause hyperplasia, the actual formation of NEW muscle cells. Testosterone increase can help trigger this but not directly.

GH is helpfull for not only muscle growth but bodily repair, lots of life extention people like it.

As for it being a rational for doing heavy compound movements, I suppose you could call it that, it is just a fact that heavy compound movements seem to have a synergistic "magical" effect on the body. It seems the more strain you put yourself under, the more your body is going to respond, obviously thats a bit lacking but that is kind of how it works. If you do 50 reps with a small weight, its not going to respond by making you massive or strong, because your bodily input does not require such an outcome.

I can post stuff on hyperplasia if interested, I have a couple long articles on it that I saved from elsewhere.

 

[TapRackBang]

Mudge,

I guess the concept I'm trying to get a handle on is this. If doing heavy compound movments increases production of growth hormone in the body (which would, in theory, benefit other muscles being trained), and the hormone is at an elevated level for some time after, wouldn't it be best to start each weekly routine (assuming a couple of rest days) by working out the legs first?

I know I'm thinking too much, just trying to learn. . .

TapRackBang

 

[Mudge]

I have seen routines that start the week with legs, and I have even read of people who do 1 set of squats before anything else for that day (interesting).

I have also seen a study, where test subject ONLY doing squats gained 1/2" on their arms over a few weeks time. I think it may have been posted here by I Are Baboon but I dont recall for certain.

 

[TapRackBang]

That's pretty interesting. I'll have to do a search and see if I can find that article.

I'm assuming the increase in gains would be hard to measure if the above really is true, but it is interestng.

TapRackBang

 

[TapRackBang]

Here's a related thread . . .

TapRackBang

 

[Mudge]

Let me put my brain to work and I'll see if I can find it, it may take me awhile though, but I saw it just days ago so I will report back later.

 

[P-funk]

I posted the information on the test subject gaining 1/2" in arm width when only doing squats.....Just can't remember were I read it.....lol

Anyway, TRB, you are basically hitting on the the right details here. Start your workouts with your heavy compound exercises and you will see some good gains because these are the exercises wich place the most stress on the bodies systems.

The idea of starting each training session with a set or two of squats sounds really interesting actually.

 

[Mudge]

Oh well, I found the reference, no study

Originally posted by P-funk
I actually read a study (which I could remember were the hell it is so that I can post it for you) that took 15 males and had them workout 3 times a week and only do squats. The reason behind the study was to see the effects that squats have on upperbody composition. There arm size was measured before and after the test. At the end of the test they found that each of the men had an increase in arm size of about half an inch. Pretty impressive if you ask me. Just doing squats made their arms bigger.

 

[TapRackBang]

It makes sense to me.

I probably won't do squats before each workout (it'd kill me right now), but when I change up my routine I'm going to start my week (after my two day rest period) with a good leg session including a lot of squats.

I need overall mass badly. . .



TapRackBang

 

[TapRackBang]

Found a somewhat related article. . .

 

[OceanDude]

I personally am not one that believes that doing compound exercises before others will help release GH. I am a believer in the priority principal ??? hit your weak areas first and with high intensity. Sorry to be out of camp on this. My understanding is GH is released within the first few hours of sleep following a day of intense workout ??? Not during a workout. We stress muscles during workout we do not grow muscles during workout. So at night is when the body tries to repair the damaged tissue and grow new tissue to complete the adaptive response. This is why it is important to take a slow release protein at bed time ??? like cottage cheese. This insures that you have an available pool of amino acids that the body can use to build new tissue. You can also take heavy doses of key amino acids which are precursors to GH to help get a larger GH response before going to bed. I can recommend specific formulas if interested. Some even take GH supplements of the homeopathic HGH variety. These are safe and considered natural so this will not hurt your standings in natural competitions. I have not personally used the homeopathic HGH products but this site seems to be very well respected (http://www.hgh-pro.com/) and the site owner is a registered nurse and is very knowledgeable. But, if you are under age 35-40 you should have plenty of GH naturally occurring after a workout to get a good growth response going without supplementation. So stress those muscles, ingest protein before bed and sleep well.

 

[Mudge]

Ocean, I do believe it, even if it is not instantaneous. Now working out has been proven to increase testosterone in males compared to a couch potato lifestyle, so I fully believe hormonal increase.

Do I think its the same as injecting HGH? Heck no, but I do believe that it is an overall way of improving quality of life hormonally and physically, they go hand in hand somewhat. I do not believe it is some magical instantaneous secretion, just a 'trigger' if you will to tell the body more juice please.

 

[OceanDude]

Originally posted by Mudge
Ocean, I do believe it, even if it is not instantaneous. Now working out has been proven to increase testosterone in males compared to a couch potato lifestyle, so I fully believe hormonal increase.

Do I think its the same as injecting HGH? Heck no, but I do believe that it is an overall way of improving quality of life hormonally and physically, they go hand in hand somewhat. I do not believe it is some magical instantaneous secretion, just a 'trigger' if you will to tell the body more juice please.

Let me restate what I said - it came out wrong.

I do not believe that GH will be released immediately or even a few hours later. It happens during the sleep cycle and the amount of GH is a function of how intense your workout was. I am a HUGH believer in harmonal manipulation through natural exercise and nutrition. It has been absolutely key in helping me.

 

[Mudge]

Bingo, now we agree. I'm not a doctor so heck if I know, but it seems obvious to me that the body will somehow be triggered into maintaining some of its youthfullness through keeping physically fit. To me fitness is not about living to be 130, simply about quality of life, alot of people knock dieters and workout buffs simply because they dont live to be 130 years old, thats not what its about IMO.

Jack Lalane is perhaps a fair example.

 

[TapRackBang]

Hey OceanDude,

I think the way I've worded things may have muddied the issue at least from my standpoint.

My previous posts may have led one to think (that I believed) that growth hormone would be produced immediately after or during a leg workout. In reality I had no idea when growth hormone would be produced, but I felt it may be produced and "available" in the body for sometime afterward (hence my question).

Also, when I said "wouldn't it be best to start each weekly routine by working out the legs first?" I meant have a leg day to start off the week, not start every workout with legs.

Essentially, what I'm thinking is that a good heavy leg workout early in the week will benefit the entire body as you work it out the remainder of the week (because of the increased growth hormone encouraged by the leg workout). Just trying to think things through. . .

TapRackBang

 

[Mudge]

GH is higher at night, testosterone in the morning - people choose one of these two reasons sometimes to workout at night or in the daytime, so again nobody agrees on why or how

 

[TapRackBang]

Then I guess the only way you lose is to NOT work out at all.



TapRackBang

 

[oaktownboy]

Originally posted by Mudge

Jack Lalane is perhaps a fair example.
You gotta love Jack Lalane.He was one of the first people to intriduce physical fitness to the U.S. remember his show every week?Now he swims from Santa Catalina to L.A. , Alcatraz to S.F.Geez is he fit! Oh yeah, can't forget his juicers!

 

[Mudge]

I never watched his show but it started in I believe 1951, which was when my dad was born. He does or did, advocate a once weekly fast of no real solid foods for a day though, and I'm not really into that.