Research

Hormonal

Resistance exercise-induced skeletal muscle hypertrophy is primarily regulated by internal biological variables (e.g., mechanotransduction, mTORC1 signaling, ribosomal biogenesis) rather than external programming alone, with internal variables acting as the dominant determinant of the hypertrophic response.

To maximize muscle growth, focus on consistent resistance training that provides mechanical load. Your body's internal biological machinery (signaling pathways, gene expression) will determine how much muscle you build from that load. Don't chase acute hormone spikes or muscle soreness, as these are not the primary drivers of long-term hypertrophy.

GoodQualifiesHIGH confidence
Here, we posit that despite considerable research on the impact of external variables on RET and hypertrophy, internal variables (i.e., inherent skeletal muscle biology) are dominant in regulating the extent of hypertrophy in response to external stimuli.
Changhyun Lim et al. · Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise · 2022

Why this rating

This is a narrative review synthesizing multiple high-quality studies and mechanistic models, though it acknowledges gaps in human-specific data for some pathways.

Source

An Evidence-Based Narrative Review of Mechanisms of Resistance Exercise–Induced Human Skeletal Muscle Hypertrophy

Changhyun Lim et al. · Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise · 2022

DOI 10.1249/mss.0000000000002929

narrative_reviewCited 122×
Read the paper
DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10

This is one finding among thousands. Every one is graded and traced to its source, so you can see what the evidence actually supports. Browse the research →