I want to dedicate this article to the very muscles that we so want to pump up, although many beginners (and not so beginners) don’t even know what function they perform in the human body and what kind of exercises they need to train.
Let's start from the top, as shown in the figure, namely, with the back muscles
1) Trapeze
The trapezius, as can be seen in the figure, refers to the muscles of the upper back; with the help of the trapezius we raise the shoulders. To develop these muscles, exercises such as “shrugs” (standing, lying, sitting) with a barbell or dumbbells are done. For example, I am not comfortable with a barbell.
2) Lat
In slang, the latissimus dorsi muscles are called “wings”; it is these muscles that give our pumped up bodies the shape of a triangle, and are especially clearly visible from the back. They take on the function of bringing the shoulder blades together and spreading them, therefore, they train with the help of exercises in which the shoulder blades are brought together, mainly these are: bent-over rows, T - rows, dumbbell rows, and read more types of rows
3) Longus dorsi muscle
These are one of the most powerful muscles in humans; they are responsible for flexion and extension of the torso. To train this important muscle, deadlifts and its variations are used.
4) Breasts
The pectoral muscles make up a fairly large percentage of all human muscles, the pectoral muscles pump everything without exception, since the bench press is the favorite exercise of the average gym goer. However, not everyone knows that the chest works better in the dumbbell press than with the barbell. The main exercise for the chest is the bench press at different inclines, as well as all kinds of flyes and dumbbell presses. It is worth noting that the chest is conventionally divided into several parts: upper, outer, inner. However, breast shape still greatly depends on genetics.
5)Press
The abs work by flexing and extending the torso. There are a lot of exercises for the abs, but I consider only those in which the lower back does not come off the support to be effective, since in other exercises only some parts of the abs are worked and there is unnecessary stress on the lower back. My choice is twisting with concentration or twisting on a block. I will also say that abs will be visible only in a person who has a very low level of subcutaneous fat. And fat tends to accumulate in the abdominal area.
6)Delta
The deltoids are a small muscle - divided into three bundles: anterior, middle and posterior. With the help of the delta, we can raise and lower the arm, as well as rotate it in different directions. To train the deltas, the basic exercises are: chest press (front bun) and overhead press (middle bun). You can also use dumbbell presses and swings.
7)Biceps
The biceps is also a relatively small muscle, but having big biceps is the dream of any aspiring bodybuilder. Using the biceps, we bend the arm at the elbow joint. Basic exercises for biceps are standing barbell curls, as well as all kinds of dumbbell curls.
8) Triceps
The triceps is the largest muscle on the arm; the muscle is an antagonist of the biceps, that is, it is used to extend the arm. Many people mistakenly believe that arm girth depends on well-developed biceps, however, this is not true; arm girth depends more on good triceps. To pump up the triceps, the basic exercises are: close-grip bench press, French bench press and all kinds of arm extensions.
9)Forearms
The forearm is a small muscle in the arm that is used to make a fist, move the fingers, and rotate the wrist. I consider the deadlift, as well as pull-ups, to be the basic exercise for the forearms; in fact, the forearms are involved in almost all bodybuilding exercises.
10) Gluteal
The gluteal muscles are not popular among exercising men, but women, on the contrary, are paying more and more attention to these muscles. These muscles work when a person squats very deeply, therefore, the best exercise for the buttocks is deep squats and lunges with dumbbells or stepping on a platform.
11)Biceps femoris
The biceps femoris is needed to bend the leg. The most effective exercise for the hamstrings is straight-legged deadlifts and leg curls on a machine.
12) Quadriceps
The quadriceps is the largest muscle in the legs, an antagonist of the biceps femoris, and is needed to extend the leg. A basic quadriceps exercise is the squat and leg press.
13)Calves
The calves (lower leg) are the strongest muscle in the legs, despite their size, because when we walk, they are tense all the time. You need to train your calves with an exercise such as calf raises while standing or sitting.
That’s actually all I wanted to tell you about the main muscle groups. Of course, these are not all human muscles, but only the main ones, but this information should at least be enough to not torment others with stupid questions. For example, “What exercise should you do for biceps?”
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Our body is a very complex device. It consists of the smallest cells from which bones, skin, internal organs and tissues, blood and, of course, muscles are built. Muscles perform important functions - they help us move, speak, breathe, see, and also help our internal organs. In other words, everything that moves in our body, in particular the most important thing - blood supply and breathing, is carried out with the help of muscles.
In total, there are a huge number of muscles in our body - up to 850 (counting methods are different). When thinking about what function this or that muscle performs, sometimes you wonder - which one is the strongest? Most likely - the largest - the thigh biceps, for example, or the quadriceps, or the back muscles, which are very wide and often voluminous... But if you look at the answer to the question which the strongest muscle in the human body- precisely from a medical point of view, then for many it will be somewhat unexpected. It’s quite difficult to figure this out on your own.
In general, the largest in our body are buttock muscles, and the smallest ones are attached to small bones that are located in the ear. How is the strength of a particular muscle determined? Naturally, the weight she can lift. Those muscles that are located outside the body can lift much more weight than those that are inside it.
So, a list of the strongest muscles in the human body
- according to the force created - the masticatory muscle;
- according to the force that is applied to the point of its attachment to the skeleton - this is the quadriceps muscle in the thigh (gluteus maximus);
- according to the force applied to stretch - the calf muscle;
- The heart muscle is the leader in terms of endurance (it works 24 hours a day).
Thus, the strongest muscle in the truest sense of the word, i.e. in terms of force level, it is the masticatory muscle. But if you don’t know about it in advance, it’s quite difficult to guess this fact.
The question seems simple and specific, but it is not.
In other words, many muscles can be considered the strongest in our body.
Difficulties, strengths
The strength of each muscle depends on three factors that intersect with each other:
- IN physiological strength: muscle size, thickness, response to exercise, and so on.
- Neurological significance: How strong is the brain signal that leads to muscle contraction
- By mechanical strength: the angle at which force can be used, muscle mass, lever lengths and the characteristics of the joints.
This means that muscles never work alone, and you cannot compare the strength of muscles that work individually.
At the same time, the forces that muscles exert act on different functions and can be measured in different ways: there are muscles that can exercise absolute force, and others that have greater strength, dynamics (repetitive movements), for others - strength elastic (faster), and for others, resistance force (resist load).
Given these clarifications, there are a number of muscles that can be considered strong.
Chewing muscles
In simple and everyday terms, when we refer to the strongest muscle in the human body, we are referring to the one that can exert more force on an external object, such as lifting a weight.
In this sense, the strongest muscle is the masseter, the jaw muscle that we use to chew. She can exert strength up to 90 kg.
The muscle itself is nothing special, but exerts a lot of force while having a very short lever arm.
Quadriceps femoris
On the other hand, we take into account the force exerted by the muscle itself, without reference to an external object. The strongest muscles are those with the largest cross-sectional area. This is because the tension exerted by an individual muscle fiber does not vary across muscles.
The strongest muscle according to this measurement is the quadriceps femoris, located in front of the thigh, which supports our weight and works when we walk, run or sit.
Extrinsic muscles of the eye
The extrinsic muscles of the eye are the strongest in relation to the function they perform, which mainly involves moving the small and light eyeball.
These muscles are often said to be "100 times stronger than they should be" although there are eye movements (such as saccades) that require high speed (dynamic force) and these muscles also remain active at night during rapid eye movement sleep .
Heart
- This is the muscle that performs the most powerful physical work throughout a person’s life and does this continuously. However, the force exerted is only 1 to 5 watts (the quadriceps can produce up to 100 watts of force, but only for a few minutes).
Language
This is the most common myth that says that the tongue is the strongest muscle in the human body, but this is a wrong statement.
The tongue is not a muscle, but an organ consisting of eight different muscles.
The myth comes from the fact that essentially language always works. It not only helps in the process of chewing food, but also performs its function in speech, with movements and positions that help form different sounds, provides filters against bacteria, and also remains active at night.
The anatomy of human muscles, their structure and development, perhaps, can be called the most pressing topic that arouses maximum public interest in bodybuilding. Needless to say, the structure, work and function of muscles is a topic that a personal trainer should pay special attention to. As in the presentation of other topics, we will begin the introduction to the course with a detailed study of the anatomy of muscles, their structure, classification, work and functions.
Maintaining a healthy lifestyle, proper nutrition and systematic physical activity help develop muscles and reduce body fat levels. The structure and work of human muscles will be understood only by sequentially studying first the human skeleton and only then the muscles. And now that we know from the article that it also functions as a frame for attaching muscles, it’s time to study what main muscle groups form the human body, where they are located, what they look like and what functions they perform.
Above you can see what the human muscle structure looks like in the photo (3D model). First, let's look at the musculature of a man's body with terms applied to bodybuilding, then the musculature of a woman's body. Looking ahead, it is worth noting that the muscle structure of men and women is not fundamentally different; the musculature of the body is almost completely similar.
Human muscle anatomy
Muscles are called organs of the body that are formed by elastic tissue, and the activity of which is regulated by nerve impulses. The functions of muscles include movement and movement in space of parts of the human body. Their full functioning directly affects the physiological activity of many processes in the body. Muscle function is regulated by the nervous system. It promotes their interaction with the brain and spinal cord, and also participates in the process of converting chemical energy into mechanical energy. The human body forms about 640 muscles (various methods of counting differentiated muscle groups determine their number from 639 to 850). Below is the structure of human muscles (diagram) using the example of a male and female body.
Muscle structure of a man, front view: 1 – trapezoid; 2 – serratus anterior muscle; 3 – external oblique abdominal muscles; 4 – rectus abdominis muscle; 5 – sartorius muscle; 6 – pectineus muscle; 7 – long adductor muscle of the thigh; 8 – thin muscle; 9 – tensor fascia lata; 10 – pectoralis major muscle; 11 – pectoralis minor muscle; 12 – anterior head of the humerus; 13 – middle head of the humerus; 14 – brachialis; 15 – pronator; 16 – long head of the biceps; 17 – short head of the biceps; 18 – palmaris longus muscle; 19 – extensor muscle of the wrist; 20 – adductor carpi longus muscle; 21 – long flexor; 22 – flexor carpi radialis; 23 – brachioradialis muscle; 24 – lateral thigh muscle; 25 – medial thigh muscle; 26 – rectus femoris muscle; 27 – long peroneal muscle; 28 – extensor digitorum longus; 29 – tibialis anterior muscle; 30 – soleus muscle; 31 – calf muscle
Muscle structure of a man, rear view: 1 – posterior head of the humerus; 2 – teres minor muscle; 3 – teres major muscle; 4 – infraspinatus muscle; 5 – rhomboid muscle; 6 – extensor muscle of the wrist; 7 – brachioradialis muscle; 8 – flexor carpi ulnaris; 9 – trapezius muscle; 10 – rectus spinalis muscle; 11 – latissimus muscle; 12 – thoracolumbar fascia; 13 – biceps femoris; 14 – adductor magnus muscle of the thigh; 15 – semitendinosus muscle; 16 – thin muscle; 17 – semimembranosus muscle; 18 – calf muscle; 19 – soleus muscle; 20 – long peroneal muscle; 21 – abductor hallucis muscle; 22 – long head of the triceps; 23 – lateral head of the triceps; 24 – medial head of the triceps; 25 – external oblique abdominal muscles; 26 – gluteus medius muscle; 27 – gluteus maximus muscle
The structure of a woman's muscles, front view: 1 – scapular hyoid muscle; 2 – sternohyoid muscle; 3 – sternocleidomastoid muscle; 4 – trapezius muscle; 5 – pectoralis minor muscle (not visible); 6 – pectoralis major muscle; 7 – serratus muscle; 8 – rectus abdominis muscle; 9 – external oblique abdominal muscle; 10 – pectineus muscle; 11 – sartorius muscle; 12 – long adductor muscle of the thigh; 13 – tensor fascia lata; 14 – thin muscle of the thigh; 15 – rectus femoris muscle; 16 – vastus intermedius muscle (not visible); 17 – vastus lateralis muscle; 18 – vastus medialis muscle; 19 – calf muscle; 20 – tibialis anterior muscle; 21 – long extensor of the toes; 22 – long tibialis muscle; 23 – soleus muscle; 24 – anterior bundle of deltas; 25 – middle bundle of deltas; 26 – brachialis muscle; 27 – long biceps bundle; 28 – short biceps bundle; 29 – brachioradialis muscle; 30 – extensor carpi radialis; 31 – pronator teres; 32 – flexor carpi radialis; 33 – palmaris longus muscle; 34 – flexor carpi ulnaris
Muscle structure of a woman, rear view: 1 – posterior bundle of deltas; 2 – long triceps bundle; 3 – lateral triceps bundle; 4 – medial triceps bundle; 5 – extensor carpi ulnaris; 6 – external oblique abdominal muscle; 7 – extensor of the fingers; 8 – fascia lata; 9 – biceps femoris; 10 – semitendinosus muscle; 11 – thin muscle of the thigh; 12 – semimembranosus muscle; 13 – calf muscle; 14 – soleus muscle; 15 – short peroneus muscle; 16 – flexor pollicis longus; 17 – teres minor muscle; 18 – teres major muscle; 19 – infraspinatus muscle; 20 – trapezius muscle; 21 – rhomboid muscle; 22 – latissimus muscle; 23 – spinal extensors; 24 – thoracolumbar fascia; 25 – gluteus minimus; 26 – gluteus maximus muscle
Muscles have quite a variety of shapes. Muscles that share a common tendon but have two or more heads are called biceps (biceps), triceps (triceps), or quadriceps (quadriceps). The functions of the muscles are also quite diverse, these are flexors, extensors, abductors, adductors, rotators (inward and outward), levator, depressor, straightener and others.
Types of muscle tissue
Characteristic structural features allow us to classify human muscles into three types: skeletal, smooth and cardiac.
Types of human muscle tissue: I - skeletal muscles; II - smooth muscles; III - cardiac muscle
- Skeletal muscles. The contraction of this type of muscle is completely controlled by the person. Combined with the human skeleton, they form the musculoskeletal system. This type of muscle is called skeletal precisely because of its attachment to the bones of the skeleton.
- Smooth muscles. This type of tissue is present in the cells of internal organs, skin and blood vessels. The structure of human smooth muscles implies that they are located mostly in the walls of hollow internal organs, such as the esophagus or bladder. They also play an important role in processes that are not controlled by our consciousness, for example in intestinal motility.
- Heart muscle (myocardium). The work of this muscle is controlled by the autonomic nervous system. Its contractions are not controlled by human consciousness.
Since the contraction of smooth and cardiac muscle tissue is not controlled by human consciousness, the emphasis in this article will be focused specifically on skeletal muscles and their detailed description.
Muscle structure
Muscle fiber is a structural element of muscles. Separately, each of them represents not only a cellular, but also a physiological unit that is capable of contracting. The muscle fiber has the appearance of a multinucleated cell; the fiber diameter ranges from 10 to 100 microns. This multinucleated cell is located in a membrane called the sarcolemma, which in turn is filled with sarcoplasm, and within the sarcoplasm there are myofibrils.
Myofibril is a thread-like formation that consists of sarcomeres. The thickness of myofibrils is usually less than 1 micron. Taking into account the number of myofibrils, white (aka fast) and red (aka slow) muscle fibers are usually distinguished. White fibers contain more myofibrils but less sarcoplasm. It is for this reason that they contract faster. Red fibers contain a lot of myoglobin, which is why they got their name.
Internal structure of human muscle: 1 – bone; 2 – tendon; 3 – muscular fascia; 4 – skeletal muscle; 5 – fibrous membrane of skeletal muscle; 6 – connective tissue membrane; 7 – arteries, veins, nerves; 8 – bundle; 9 – connective tissue; 10 – muscle fiber; 11 – myofibril
The work of muscles is characterized by the fact that the ability to contract faster and stronger is characteristic of white fibers. They can develop force and speed of contraction 3-5 times higher than slow fibers. Anaerobic physical activity (working with weights) is performed primarily by fast-twitch muscle fibers. Long-term aerobic physical activity (running, swimming, cycling) is performed primarily by slow-twitch muscle fibers.
Slow fibers are more resistant to fatigue, while fast fibers are not adapted to prolonged physical activity. As for the ratio of fast and slow muscle fibers in human muscles, their number is approximately the same. In most of both sexes, about 45-50% of the muscles of the limbs are slow muscle fibers. There are no significant gender differences in the ratio of different types of muscle fibers in men and women. Their ratio is formed at the beginning of a person’s life cycle, in other words, it is genetically programmed and practically does not change until old age.
Sarcomeres (components of myofibrils) are formed by thick myosin filaments and thin actin filaments. Let's look at them in more detail.
Actin– a protein that is a structural element of the cell cytoskeleton and has the ability to contract. It consists of 375 amino acid residues and makes up about 15% of muscle protein.
Myosin- the main component of myofibrils - contractile muscle fibers, where its content can be about 65%. The molecules are formed by two polypeptide chains, each of which contains about 2000 amino acids. Each of these chains has a so-called head at the end, which includes two small chains consisting of 150-190 amino acids.
Actomyosin– a complex of proteins formed from actin and myosin.
FACT. For the most part, muscles consist of water, proteins and other components: glycogen, lipids, nitrogen-containing substances, salts, etc. Water content ranges from 72-80% of the total muscle mass. Skeletal muscle consists of a large number of fibers, and characteristically, the more fibers there are, the stronger the muscle.
Muscle classification
The human muscular system is characterized by a variety of muscle shapes, which in turn are divided into simple and complex. Simple: spindle-shaped, straight, long, short, wide. Complex muscles include the multicipital muscles. As we have already said, if the muscles have a common tendon, and there are two or more heads, then they are called biceps (biceps), triceps (triceps) or quadriceps (quadriceps), and multitendon and digastric muscles are also multi-headed. The following types of muscles with a certain geometric shape are also complex: quadrate, deltoid, soleus, pyramidal, round, serrated, triangular, rhomboid, soleus.
Main functions muscles are flexion, extension, abduction, adduction, supination, pronation, raising, lowering, straightening and more. The term supination means outward rotation, and the term pronation means inward rotation.
By grain direction muscles are divided into: rectus, transverse, circular, oblique, unipennate, bipennate, multipennate, semitendinosus and semimembranosus.
In relation to the joints, taking into account the number of joints through which they are thrown: single-joint, double-joint and multi-joint.
Muscle work
During contraction, actin filaments penetrate deep into the spaces between myosin filaments, and the length of both structures does not change, but only the total length of the actomyosin complex is reduced - this method of muscle contraction is called sliding. The sliding of actin filaments along myosin filaments requires energy, and the energy required for muscle contraction is released as a result of the interaction of actomyosin with ATP (adenosine triphosphate). In addition to ATP, water plays an important role in muscle contraction, as well as calcium and magnesium ions.
As already mentioned, muscle function is completely controlled by the nervous system. This suggests that their work (contraction and relaxation) can be controlled consciously. For the normal and full functioning of the body and its movement in space, muscles work in groups. Most of the muscle groups in the human body work in pairs and perform opposite functions. It looks like this: when the “agonist” muscle contracts, the “antagonist” muscle stretches. The same is true vice versa.
- Agonist- a muscle that performs a specific movement.
- Antagonist- a muscle that performs the opposite movement.
Muscles have the following properties: elasticity, stretching, contraction. Elasticity and stretching give the muscle the ability to change in size and return to its original state, the third quality makes it possible to create force at its ends and lead to shortening.
Nerve stimulation can cause the following types of muscle contraction: concentric, eccentric and isometric. Concentric contraction occurs in the process of overcoming the load when performing a given movement (lifting up when pulling up on a bar). Eccentric contraction occurs in the process of slowing down movements in the joints (lowering down when pulling up on a bar). Isometric contraction occurs at the moment when the force created by the muscles is equal to the load exerted on them (keeping the body hanging on the bar).
Muscle functions
Knowing the name and location of this or that muscle or group of muscles, we can move on to studying the block - the function of human muscles. Below in the table we will look at the most basic muscles that are trained in the gym. As a rule, six main muscle groups are trained: chest, back, legs, shoulders, arms and abs.
FACT. The largest and strongest muscle group in the human body is the legs. The largest muscle is the gluteus. The strongest is the calf muscle; it can hold weight up to 150 kg.
Conclusion
In this article, we examined such a complex and voluminous topic as the structure and functions of human muscles. When we talk about muscles, we of course also mean muscle fibers, and the involvement of muscle fibers in the work involves the interaction of the nervous system with them, since the execution of muscle activity is preceded by the innervation of motor neurons. It is for this reason that in our next article we will move on to consider the structure and functions of the nervous system.
Many people have heard that the tongue is the strongest muscle in the body. However, in reality this statement is not true.
The tongue is not the strongest muscle because it is not a single muscle, but an entire structure consisting of eight separate fibers. As for its unique characteristics, they are determined by the nature of the interaction of the fibers, as well as the strength of their weave.
Features of human language
Due to its unique structure and developmental features, the tongue has increased flexibility and endurance. Only this organ of the human body can bend in any direction, wrap itself into a tube, and quickly change position.
We eat and talk with the help of our tongue, and it almost never gets tired. However, all this does not mean that this is the strongest muscle in the body.
According to experts who study this issue, a person simply does not fully use many of his muscles. But the tongue works with maximum load, which is why many people think that it is the strongest muscle in the body.
However, since the muscles that form it are not attached to the bone, they do not grow. It’s just that as a person grows older, the structure of these muscles becomes denser, and they are more tightly intertwined with each other.
How to measure muscle strength
But if the tongue is not the strongest muscle in the human body, which one belongs to this high title? Scientists say that a clear answer depends on the chosen measurement method.
For example, if you use the brute strength method, the gluteal muscles and quadriceps muscles located in the front of the thigh will deserve special attention. They are the ones who work with maximum load in a person’s daily life. Moreover, the bones to which these muscles are attached act as levers.
However, practice shows that very often, when speaking about strength, we mean endurance. And here language really takes the lead. Although it is a mistake to consider it the strongest muscle in the body, it is a whole system. In addition, the human heart is an extremely resilient muscle. After all, it works without interruption throughout life.
Is it necessary to develop and strengthen the tongue if it is not the strongest human muscle? Modern scientists say that for some people it is very useful. This practice helps patients who have recently suffered a stroke, as well as those who are familiar with swallowing problems.
In addition, strengthening the language is necessary for people suffering from speech pathologies and those who want to improve their diction. Therefore, if you really want, you can make your tongue the strongest muscle.
To increase the efficiency of the tongue, it is recommended to train according to a special program. In addition, a very simple exercise will help you. You need to fill your mouth with small smooth pebbles and read aloud.
The pebbles will become a kind of “weight” for your tongue, and therefore the exercise will help strengthen it and improve diction. Moreover, it can be performed at any time and in any circumstances - it will only take a few minutes.
If you are still wondering why the tongue is the strongest muscle, remember that this is not the right question. Study your entire body and find out which is the strongest muscle in the human body specifically in your case.
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