Muscle Talk

Popeye Was on to Something
Ecdysteroids are the steroid compounds in spinach-type plants. Researchers at Rutgers University have been doing experiments with ecdysteroids for years. They’ve already demonstrated a relationship between the compound and making the muscle cells of rats grow faster, while also making the animals stronger. In a recent experiment, mice were given a diet consisting of 60 percent fat and 10 milligrams ecdysterone per kilo bodyweight. Other mice were given a diet of only 10 percent fat. In the high fat plus ecdysterone group, scientists noticed that the concentration of glucose in the blood didn’t rise as much as they expected it to if the mice were just being overfed. They also recorded that the high fat plus ecdysterone group put on 18 percent less weight; apparently, this could be because ecdysterone can potentially inhibit the growth of fat tissue. Keep these “ecdy-supplements” findings in mind as a potential tool to use on days you know you’re going to cheat.

Bigger, Stronger, Faster … Stem cells?
No doubt if you’re had any interest in scientific research in the past couple of years, you’ve heard of resveratrol. It’s a potent polyphenol with antioxidative properties. Previously, it’s been studied in terms of its disease-combating effects, but most recently, Italian scientists have been looking at what it can potentially do in young stem cells and muscle cells. Their “data demonstrated that resveratrol could control proliferation, start the myogenesis process and induce hypertrophy”— simply put, resveratrol supplementation sped up the development of muscle cells but also resulted in them becoming longer and thicker. Next, it stimulated the production of mitochondria (meaning the muscle cell can do more work) and assisted in the production of IGF-1 (an anabolic hormone) in the muscle cells. If this doesn’t sound like the perfect natural supplement for bodybuilders, then what does?