One afternoon while working out at Anytime Fitness, I walked past a fitness class room. I saw a professional bodybuilder doing some serious flexing. We talked and he gave me the scoop on why flexing is important....
He simply told me that "flexing is good for muscle stimulation." He continued flexing and posing while veins ripped his skin and sweat popped from his pores. While he was flexing he also exhaled heavily with each flexing pose. He went further to explain that the static hold of a flex stimulates muscle fiber growth. Don't worry, I'll explain. I found that very intriguing as I never flexed before I met him- well, only in the bathroom mirror after a shower. Hey. I know I'm not the only one who has done that. You'll probably go flex right after reading this post lol.  |
| Kai Greene, pro bodybuilder |
So flexing stimulates muscle fiber growth. Let me break that down by explaining Time Under Tension (TUT). Have you ever heard of squeezing and holding while hitting your reps in the gym? The reasoning behind that is you are maximizing blood flow to that muscle (squeeze) while forcing the muscle fibers to sustain a load (hold). The longer you hold (TUT), the more broken down the muscle fibers become and blood flow is directed to the muscle feeding it vital nutrients to repair it. When it comes to flexing, the same principal applies. You exercise TUT forcing blood to the flexing muscle and stimulating growth. Additionally, flexing teaches you how to properly stimulate a particular muscle. For instance, knowing how to flex your rear delts (back of shoulder) will help you specifically target that muscle when performing rear delt exercises. There you have it! Flexing in essence, is exercising. Remember how we talked about how the bodybuilder exhaled as he flexed. That's important. If you flex without exhaling there is a good chance you will get light-headed or faint.
Benefits of Flexing:
- Muscle stimulation
- Increased blood flow
- Muscle growth
- Muscle memory
As always, thank you for your time and for putting your health first.
No comments:
Post a Comment