White Vs. Red Muscle

Balance and moderation are a few characteristics required in effective strength and conditioning. The over working of one muscle group is the biggest misunderstanding. Individuals who attend the gym once a day and focus on one muscle group are wasting their time and money. A proper program consisting of a wide range of muscle groups strategically organized to counteract one another is the best way to get an efficient work out.

Attacking the white and red muscle fibers with the proper rest to allow the muscle fibers to rebuild before breaking them down again is the most efficient way to build lean muscle. White muscle tissue holds little oxygen and is responsible for explosive movements such as moving a lot of weight for a short period of time. Red muscle fibers on the other hand is filled with oxygen and is responsible for endurance, such as moving small amounts of weight for a long period of time.

When only focusing on one of these types of fibers, athletes are known to hit a wall, also known as plateauing. This is where the muscle group is not breaking down much anymore; nor is it rebuilding. A simple solution to this problem is to mix and match heavy weight lifting with cross fit. Naturally, humans are born with a greater amount of either white or red muscle tissue; so once you can figure out what your weaknesses are, (whether it’s running a 5k or putting up 135 on the bench) they can be attacked and with simple adjustments and can be transformed into strengths. The well-rounded athlete will prevail.

Fun fact: In the Soviet Union around the early 50’s, to prepare for future Olympic events, muscle biopsies were preformed on children. This is where muscle samples were taken to determine whether the children were dominant in red or white muscle tissue. Tests indicating more white fibers resulted in the introduction of steroids. If one showed a high number of red fibers, you were trained in endurance.