I get it in my lower back and quads very regularly during lifting sessions. Heck, I get that pump in my lower back when I’m doing a dynamic flexibility warm up. I have always attributed this feeling to accumulated muscular fatigue as I never get the pump when on return from a long hiatus from training.
However, during my last workout, I took 10 days off from legs so that I could deload a bit and do a max squat test. What I noticed was, that during my warm up sets, I immediately got a massive pump in my quads. This, for the most part, is actually pretty annoying b/c it makes my legs feel very stiff. But my conclusion from this is that maybe this pump has zero to do with fatigue considering my 10 days off prior.
To my question, does this muscular pump have anything to do with accumulated fatigue of a muscle?
I don’t think so. I notice when I’m sore, I tend to have some inflamation (slight pump).
You SHOULD be a fan of the pump. I hear from more sources all the time that it is very effective for growth.
It stretches the fascia tissue covering the muslce which can allow for more hypertrophy. A muscle is also 10 to 15% stronger when fully pumped (full pump is usually about 90 seconds after ending of set). You are also much more impervious to injury when pumped (warmed up).
The more blood you can occlude (block blood flow) during a set, the bigger pump you will get after. This is why long continuous tension sets work well.
It sounds like you just pump well. Many people take NO supplements to achieve what seems to come easy to you.
Wow, I guess I’ll take what I can get considering my hard gaining and slow strength progress.
Thanks for the info. Thinking about it now, i always worried that my lumbar was being over stressed, but I guess the pump was probably improving stability and helping rather than telling me that I have been overworking it.
[quote]them0fo wrote:
MytchBucanan wrote:
You SHOULD be a fan of the pump. I hear from more sources all the time that it is very effective for growth.
Is this actually true?
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All I know is if I work hard enough to grow I get pumped. Every muscle. I do nothing special to accomplish this or even try for it to happen. It’s unavoidable. Blood rushes to areas of the body it senses are experiencing trauma. I don’t see how there can be progress with no trauma and if there’s trauma the normal response is for blood to gather at the traumatized site.
The problem seems to come when someone works to get a pump, and doesn’t let the gut busting hard work do it for you. Do sets of 50 triceps pushdowns with a weight you can handle for 75-100 reps, guarantee you’ll have a pump. Do close grip presses for sets of 10 with a heavier weight than you’ve ever done before, you’ll most likely get a pump as well. The question is which of those is really making you grow?
It is according to several studies I have read.
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Is it really? I have a lot of reservations about all the BS in the NO product ads. Unless they are actually utilizing some objective method of defining a ‘pump’, and are somehow able to rate productive vs. nonproductive workouts, I think it’s all a load of crap.
I feel more of a pump when i do a larger number of reps or keep my rest period to a minute or less between sets of 8 to 12 reps.
When i am in the 5 rep heavy range and taking longer rest periods, i dont really feel the pump as much; but thats just me.
I never considered the pump a sign of fatigue in the overtraining sense. I more consider it a sign that i am pushing my muscles to the point of fatigue during my sets; but thats what i want to do.
Is it really? I have a lot of reservations about all the BS in the NO product ads. Unless they are actually utilizing some objective method of defining a ‘pump’, and are somehow able to rate productive vs. nonproductive workouts, I think it’s all a load of crap.
S
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The study I read was comparing two groups of lifters. The two groups trained their arms and legs exactly the same but one group used a blood pressure cuff for their arms and legs to maximize occlusion. The “tourniquet” group ended up with more cross-sectional mass after so many weeks than the non-pumpers.
The author of this article was tying this into heavy/light training and how important these occlusion techniques are for the light day.
OKay. I’ve read various tourniquet theories, and yes, I have heard that it does improve performance somehow (I’m still a little baffled on the particulars), but it doesn’t make me buy into the Nitric Oxide crap you see at GNC, or even thinking that if I did 20 sets of DB curls, with a 10 lb weight, that I would somehow add an inch to my arms because of the awsome pump. If someone can convince me, I’m all ears
[quote]The Mighty Stu wrote:
OKay. I’ve read various tourniquet theories, and yes, I have heard that it does improve performance somehow (I’m still a little baffled on the particulars), but it doesn’t make me buy into the Nitric Oxide crap you see at GNC, or even thinking that if I did 20 sets of DB curls, with a 10 lb weight, that I would somehow add an inch to my arms because of the awsome pump. If someone can convince me, I’m all ears
S
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Obviously 10 lb curls will not add an inch to your arms. I don’t even think you would get a pump. I think the idea is to use about 60% of 1rm.
I use “naNO” vapor and notice that it does help me warm up quicker and get a slightly better pump. It doesn’t work miracles however and I can see why some would consider it a waste of $$.
The pump is not a result of fatigue or overtraining. Like Tiri said, it’s because of all the blood rushing there.
If you even have to argue over what defines the “pump”, then you’ve never had one. Also, it’s ridiculous just to train for a pump. The pump should be the side effect of lifting heavy ass weight with anadequate amount of volume.
