Want To Build Muscle? Think About It

Can just thinking about building muscle actually build muscle? Researchers at Ohio University’s Ohio Musculoskeletal and Neurological Institute think so. HealthDay reports that scientists at the institute put 29 people in casts that completely immobilized their hand and wrist for four weeks. Fourteen of those people were told to routinely perform an imagery exercise, imagining that they were intensely contracting their wrist for five seconds with five seconds of rest. Wait, there’s more: As they performed this imagery exercise, they were guided by the following instructions: “Begin imagining that you are pushing in as hard as you can with your left wrist, push, push, push . . . and stop. (Five-second rest.) Start imagining that you are pushing in again as hard as you can, keep pushing, keep pushing . . . and stop. (Five-second rest.)” The instructions were played four times and followed by a one-minute break, and participants completed 13 rounds per session and sessions each week. Yes, the other half of the cast group did not perform any imagery exercise. Ready, the envelope please….After four weeks, all of the participants who wore a cast lost strength in their immobilized hand and wrist, but those who had performed mental imaging lost 50 percent less strength than the group that didn’t do mental exercises.