Muscle Building: Function, Task & Diseases

Muscle building means growth of the musculature, caused by an increased load, such as physical work, sports or special muscle training. In today’s industrialized nations, muscle gain is usually intentional, which is expressed in the numerous fitness studios and sports offers. While moderate muscle gain is not pathological, there are numerous diseases of muscle reduction.

What is the muscle gain?

Muscle building means growth of muscles, caused by an increased load, such as physical work, sports or special muscle training. Muscle building or muscle growth refers to the increase in volume of the musculature of the musculoskeletal system, the striated skeletal muscles. Your muscle tissue consists of fine fibers that ensure the contraction of the muscles. Up to 50 of these fibers form a muscle fiber bundle. Within a muscle fiber are longitudinally arranged structures called myofibrils. At the molecular level, the myofilaments are located there. They consist of the protein molecules actin, myosin and tropomyosin. The regular arrangement of the molecules creates the typical transverse striation of skeletal muscles. The build-up or volume increase of a muscle can basically take place in two different ways. Today scientifically comprehensible is hypertrophy, the increase of the muscle cross-section through a growth in thickness of the individual muscle fibers. However, animal experiments and observations on bodybuilders have shown that a new formation of muscle fibers, hyperplasia, can also be responsible for the growth of a muscle. Hypertrophy is caused by exertion beyond what is normal for the individual. The increased activity exerts a stimulus at the molecular level. More protein is produced, which in turn leads to an increase in the volume of the cells and thus the cross-section of the muscle fiber. Muscle growth can also be stimulated by a high-protein diet or by taking growth hormones, anabolic steroids. In this case, growth occurs only through hypertrophy.

Function and task

Both types of muscle growth serve as a protective function for the body against muscle overload. By increasing the cross-sectional area of a muscle’s fibers or the number of fibers, the load is distributed over a larger mass of cells. The individual muscle fiber is relieved. At the same time, the force of the muscle increases because it increases in proportion to the cross-section of the muscle fiber. This also relieves the individual fiber. The muscle soreness that sets in when overuse occurs warns against premature further use of the affected muscle. However, other components also play a role in the strength development of a muscle. Even small people can have great muscle strength. It is also dependent on intramuscular coordination and biomechanical principles such as the laws of leverage, among other factors. A well-developed and proportioned musculature is therefore a prerequisite for the musculoskeletal system to operate effortlessly and without damage. In addition to muscle development, athletic disciplines such as yoga or tai chi promote a functionally developed musculature. By specifically and consciously controlling physical movements, they promote intramuscular coordination. The skeletal musculature performs various tasks in the human body. Not only does it enable skeletal movement through the ability to contract and relax. Since it constantly receives light impulses from the central nervous system, which permanently put the muscles into a basic tension, the muscle tone, it also guarantees the effortless uprightness of the body. Another function of the skeletal muscles is to participate in the energy balance of the body. Only the basic tone already generates 25% of the energy turnover and thus body heat. During exercise, this value increases significantly. Although part of the energy is consumed in the moving muscles, they release additional heat as a side effect.

Diseases and ailments

The increase in musculoskeletal muscle is usually desirable and not pathological. A testimony to this is the high number of visitors to bodybuilding studios and recreational athletes. In contrast, a decrease in muscle leads from mild discomfort to severe disease.Muscles build up and break down again in a constant process, depending on whether the person uses the respective muscle more or less, in relation to the normal load for him. If muscles are not used for a longer period of time, their volume is visibly reduced, resulting in tissue or muscle atrophy. Here, the diameter of the individual muscle fibers decreases. This already falls within the range of experience of an average person today. Especially people who lack natural physical activity in their professional life and everyday life complain about complaints in the musculoskeletal system. The musculature lacks an even, coordinated load. Muscles that are under-utilized regress and become flabby, while other muscles tense up to enable relieving postures. In the long run, this leads to serious, multi-layered consequential damage throughout the body. This can be prevented by compensatory sports or targeted muscle training. Muscle atrophy due to lack of activity can be clearly observed when the patient is immobilized in a cast. However, the affected muscles can be easily rebuilt through targeted training. Severe inactivity atrophy is present in cases of complete paralysis. The conduction of impulses from the motor nerve cells to the muscles is interrupted. In space travelers, atrophy due to lack of gravity is observed. Among other things, malnutrition, metabolic disorders, alcoholism or hormonal changes can also be triggers for muscle atrophy. Other severe forms of muscle atrophy, the muscular dystrophies, are hereditary. Due to mutations in the genetic material, there is a deficiency or defect of the muscle-building protein dystrophies. This leads to degeneration of the musculature with progressive muscle weakness and atrophy. Various diseases of the nervous system can also lead to a decrease in muscle mass. Neural and spinal muscular atrophies should be mentioned here in particular. On the other hand, excessive muscle building can also lead to serious diseases. Extreme sports or bodybuilding, in which individual muscle groups are extremely enlarged while others are neglected, can cause postural deformities, among other things. The use of anabolic steroids to support muscle build-up, i.e. doping, leads in any case to serious consequential damage if taken over a long period of time. There is always extensive damage to organs, especially the cardiovascular system, the liver and the reproductive organs. Studies also show a four- to fivefold higher mortality rate.