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Analysis v2
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People who have not previously trained respond with varying amounts of muscle growth depending on the type of resistance training they perform.

0
Pro
52
Against

Mechanism

Synthesis from 1 study

How it works

When untrained people lift weights, their muscles all feel the same stress, but their bodies build new muscle at different rates because of natural differences in how their cells respond to that stress. This is why some people grow more than others — not because one workout is better, but because...

Most probable mechanism

In Simple Terms

When someone who hasn't trained before lifts weights, their muscles sense how hard and how long they're being stretched and pulled. This sensing triggers different levels of protein building in different people, which means some muscles grow more than others — not because the workout was different, but because their bodies respond to the same stress in slightly different ways.

Causal chain
1

Mechanical tension from resistance training activates integrin and focal adhesion kinase signaling in muscle fibers

Indirect evidence only
which leads to
2

This signaling modulates mTORC1 activity, which regulates the rate of muscle protein synthesis

Indirect evidence only
which leads to
3

Interindividual variation in baseline mTORC1 sensitivity, satellite cell availability, and intracellular nutrient sensing leads to divergent protein synthesis responses

Indirect evidence only

Evidence from Studies

Supporting (0)

0

Community contributions welcome

No supporting evidence found

Contradicting (1)

52

Community contributions welcome

52

Assessing differential responders and mean changes in muscle size, strength, and the cross-over effect to two distinct resistance training protocols.

Randomized Controlled Trial
Human
2020 May

Gold Standard Evidence Needed

According to GRADE and EBM methodology, here is what ideal scientific evidence would look like to definitively prove or disprove this specific claim, ordered from strongest to weakest evidence.

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Similar Assertions

Just because you move your muscles through a bigger range during strength training doesn't always mean they'll grow more — the science isn't clear on this, and it might depend on how each muscle works.

1
0
82%

If you're a young adult who doesn't lift weights or do strength training for 8 weeks, your muscles won't get noticeably bigger or stronger on their own — you need to actually train to see changes.

38
0
82%

Some people get much bigger and stronger from weight training than others—even when they do the exact same workouts—because everyone’s body responds differently to exercise.

1
0
80%

Some people grow more muscle with regular heavy lifting, others grow just as much or more when they add blood flow restriction — there’s no one-size-fits-all answer.

46
0
79%

More lifting helps, but only up to a point—after that, each extra set gives you less and less benefit, no matter if you’re trying to grow muscle or get stronger.

48
0
79%

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