Perform with Dr. Andy Galpin: Why Muscle Matters & How to Build It

- **Skeletal Muscle and Health:** Skeletal muscle quality and quantity are crucial for overall health and longevity. Studies show that low grip strength can be a significant risk factor for dementia, attributing around 30% of cases to this issue. Moreover, higher muscle mass is associated with lower risks of all-cause mortality, emphasizing the importance of maintaining muscle strength.

- **Adaptability and Plasticity:** Skeletal muscle is highly adaptable due to its multinucleated structure, making it the most adaptable organ system in response to stimuli like physical activity, nutrition, and lifestyle factors. This ability allows muscles to preserve their function and size, particularly vital for aging populations to prevent sarcopenia (advanced muscle loss).

- **Muscle Fiber Types:** Muscle fibers are categorized primarily into type I (slow-twitch) and type II (fast-twitch). Slow-twitch fibers are more efficient for endurance activities, while fast-twitch fibers are crucial for high-force, high-speed movements. Maintaining fast-twitch fibers through consistent strength training is important for preserving muscle function and preventing age-related muscle loss.

- **Muscle and Brain Connection:** Research highlights the strong relationship between muscle strength and cognitive function. Notably, low grip strength is linked to a higher risk of dementia, making muscle strength a potential factor in reducing cognitive decline and promoting brain health.

- **Impact of Lifestyle:** Lifestyle factors such as physical activity and nutrition significantly influence muscle fiber composition and overall muscle health. Consistent strength training can help maintain or increase muscle fiber numbers, while a sedentary lifestyle leads to a decline in muscle function.

- **Muscle and Metabolic Health:** Skeletal muscle plays a vital role in regulating blood glucose metabolism and overall energy production. Athletes are considerably more effective at glucose uptake than non-athletes, highlighting muscle’s role in metabolic health.

- **Increasing Muscle Mass:** Resistance exercise is crucial for muscle growth. Recommendations include performing 15-20 working sets per muscle group per week, with adequate caloric and protein intake, especially aiming for 1.6 to 2.2 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight.

- **Enhancing Muscle Quality:** Muscle quality involves training through full ranges of motion, ensuring balance in movement planes, and maintaining good posture and movement techniques. The "3-to-5 Rule" for muscle quality involves performing exercises with 3-5 sets and repetitions, resting adequately between sets, and training multiple times per week.

- **Preventing Age-Related Decline:** Chronic strength training is essential for preserving fast-twitch muscle fibers, which decline with age. This preservation is crucial for maintaining functional capacity in tasks requiring quick, powerful movements, such as preventing falls.

- **Evaluating Muscle Health:** Assessing muscle health involves understanding both muscle quantity and quality using tools like MRI or Dexa scans and performance metrics like speed, power, and strength tests. For example, a broad jump test is a practical measure of muscle power.