Myotatic Reflex Training For Mass-Building
Here’s how it works:
First, you’re going to be supersetting two exercises (performed back-to-back), both targeting the SAME muscle group. For this example, we’re going to use everyone’s favorite…the CHEST!
Your first exercise is going to be an isolation exercise that uses a “super stretch” movement. An example of this would be incline dumbbell flyes where, at the bottom position, your arms are below the body and you can feel a “stretch” in the targeted area.
Your second exercise is going to be a compound “power mover” where you can push a lot of weight. For this example, we’re going to work the incline barbell bench press.
By first performing your isolation exercise and getting a deep stretch at the bottom of the movement, your muscle fibers get extremely elongated. Your body, as it’s programmed to do, senses this extreme stretch position as a potential “crisis” and triggers what’s known as a “myotatic reflex” – a hyperstimulation of the central nervous system to ward off injury by calling in more muscle fibers around the targeted area to help out.
(Note: I’m not talking about “ultra-stetching” the muscle to the point of injury. Just lower the dumbbells in a controlled fashion until you feel a deep – but safe – stretch in your pecs, then raise the weight to the top position)
This initial hyperstimulation of your muscle fibers is the perfect setup for your next exercise that uses the “aftershock” of the myotatic reflex to activate even more muscle fibers. Compound exercises like the incline bench press are ideal for this type of training because your first set isolated your targeted muscle group first and now you can get help from your other supporting muscles (like your shoulders and triceps) to push more weight and hit your Type II muscle fibers even HARDER!
Not to be confused with simple “pre-exhaust” training, this myotatic reflex training looks deceptively similar and simple…but the effects are felt deep in the epicenter of your muscles where real growth begins!
Jeff Anderson
