When you first start lifting weights, your muscles get tiny tears — and the protein your body makes right after working out is mostly used to fix those tears, not to make your muscles bigger yet.

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The development of skeletal muscle hypertrophy through resistance training: the role of muscle damage and muscle protein synthesis

Narrative Review

2018 Mar

After you first start lifting weights, your muscles get a little torn up, and your body uses the extra protein-making activity to fix those tears — not to make muscles bigger. Only after you’ve trained for weeks and the tears stop happening does that protein-making start actually building bigger muscles.

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Source Study

The development of skeletal muscle hypertrophy through resistance training: the role of muscle damage and muscle protein synthesis

Score: 1

DOI: 10.1007/s00421-017-3792-9

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