Build Muscle Faster.

This is a good article promoting what I understand to be true.

http://blog.metaboliceffect.com/2012/02/24/muscle-building-secret-knows/

Here is the text reposted:

Jade Teta
Building muscle is probably the most worthwhile endeavor in all of fitness. Muscle is a major determinant of resting energy use; the more you have the more energy you burn. It also greatly enhances the metabolic health of your body by controlling glucose usage and fat burning. And of course nothing can substitute for a well defined, firm toned body. In the quest for muscular development, many different approaches have been formulated and many of them work very well. But what if they don’t work? What if you have tried everything and just can’t seem to add an ounce of muscle to your frame?
Believe it or not this is far more common than you might first suspect. While it definitely takes a back seat to the throngs of overweight people who would die just to lose 10 pounds, the quest for shapely glutes, tight thighs, and well developed chest and arms is made by many. If you are one of those people who have a difficult time putting on muscle in any part of your body, than this article is for you.
There is a well-kept secret in the world of fitness when it comes to putting on muscle and we are going to share it with you, but first we need to cover some basics. The common perception about muscular development is to work the area you would like to accentuate over and over and over again and hope the muscle in that area responds. We are not going to tell you this approach is completely wrong, because it definitely plays a role. But, in order for muscle to grow anywhere on the body it must be given the proper biochemical stimulus. In the world of muscle growth, this stimulus comes from hormones. Whether you are male or female, if you don’t have the proper hormonal stimulus for growth, than all the bicep curls and triceps extensions in the world will not change your shape.
Hormonal growth
Males and females require the same hormones to grow muscle. Testosterone and human growth hormone (HGH) are the hormones we are talking about. The very reason men can build much bigger muscle than women is because they have higher resting levels of testosterone. This is also the reason women are unable to develop the same muscular physique of their male counterparts. That being said, the stimulus for muscle growth depends on the release of these hormones.
There is more to triggering testosterone and HGH production than just picking up some weights. The major factors associated with the release of these key hormones are intensity and amount of muscle tissue involvement. Intensity relates to both how heavy a weight is and also how hard the muscle has to work. Mechanical strain from overcoming heavy resistance and metabolic strain from lactic acid and other byproducts of training are major determinants of intensity. The other factor involved is how much muscle mass is subjected to the intensity of a workout. The greater the muscle mass involved the more beneficial hormonal effects induced.
Train your legs
So, are you ready for the big secret? In order to grow muscle anywhere on your body whether it is your biceps or your glutes, you have to work your legs. This is perhaps the most ignored or unknown principle in all of weight training. The legs are both the strongest and biggest muscle in the body. Together they represent a massive hormonal stimulant reservoir. As the legs engage in full muscle contraction they have the potential to cause your body to release large amounts of testosterone and HGH. These hormones do not act locally, but rather interact with the entire body sending signals of growth to all the muscles. Deriving the same degree of hormonal effects from bicep curls or a chest press is not remotely the same due to the relatively small size of muscle worked with these exercises.
It may seem counterintuitive, but training the legs not only develops the lower body but provides the growth-promoting stimulus needed to repair from your arm workout as well. While training the arms can be effective at breaking down tissue locally, the hormonal stimulus of the leg training assures the arm muscles respond with growth. For men this means intense leg training literally helps build the upper body as well. For women, the benefit is tight legs and developed arms and back. Leg training cannot be avoided if you are trying to build a muscular and balanced physique.
Leg exercises are not all equal
It would be great if any leg exercise did the trick, but they don’t all provide the same benefit. Remember it is about getting the whole leg and glute involved. When it comes to hormones generated from leg training compound leg movements are more effective. Squats, leg press, and lunges are the exercises that pay hormonal dividends. That is because these exercises recruit all the muscles of the leg. Leg extensions, leg curls, and calf raises fall short because they do not involve as much muscle mass and are unable to deliver the same intensity.
Several studies support our contention that lower body exercise excels at the hormonal growth effect. A study in the Journal of Applied physiology (vol. 82, 1997) showed a squat jump protocol induced double the testosterone release of the bench press; 15.1% increase for the squat jumps vs. 7.4% increase for the bench press. Another study published in the Japanese Journal of Physiology (vol. 46, 1996) showed a single bout of lower body exercise could increase testosterone production by 12%. And one of the most interesting studies regarding the power of lower body exercise and hormones came at the 2001 conference of The American Society of Exercise Physiologists. At that conference scientists reviewed one study showing heavy squats increased human growth hormone release by 10 times!!!
These few studies highlight the tremendous power lower body exercise has to generate growth. However, that is not all. These same hormones are also potent fat burners. Talk of HGH and testosterone often scares the female fitness enthusiast away for fear of looking too muscular. However, these hormones are even more important to women wanting to build a muscular lean body because they build muscle and burn fat. This is the very definition of lean.
Making it Work

Now that you know the secret, lets discuss the best way to begin the process. The first thing you need to decide is whether you want to devote a full day to just leg training. This approach works well for many. The important thing to remember is to stick to multiple joint movements like the squat. This exercise is better than any other for generating the hormonal response needed for growth. Completing 3 to 5 sets of 8 to 12 repetitions of the squat on leg day is a good place to start. Don’t make the same mistake of most other people in the gym who stay too light and are able to complete15-20 repetitions. By the time you reach your eighth rep on the squat you should be nearing mechanical failure where the weight is becoming to heavy to lift. At this point take a deep breath and power out 2-4 more reps to deliver the hormone surge you are after. It is a good idea to enlist the help of a spotter when doing heavy squats.
Another approach we frequently use with our personal training clients is to incorporate one to two heavy sets of squats on their upper-body days. This can be done before the upper-body workout or after. Since the hormonal surge is delayed and usually comes shortly after the workout, this is not a critical point, but you will be able to go heavier and put more into the exercise if you start with the squat rather than end with it. This technique works especially well for those satisfied with their leg development, but who would just like their upper body to catch up. You will be surprised how well this technique works without generating a huge growth response in the legs.
Finally, to round out the technique, you must focus the bulk of your attention on the muscle you are trying to develop. If you want bigger biceps, than make sure you are going after that muscle group with intent. Using soreness as a biofeedback tool is useful here. A very mild degree of soreness in the target muscle for no more than two days is a good sign you have worked the muscle sufficiently and are recovering easily. Prolonged or excessive soreness is an indication that you are not recovering adequately and you will need to focus your attention on quality rest days and sufficient nutrition. When using the legs to catch up a weak muscle group, leg soreness is not necessarily required.
Final Thoughts
For men and women looking for the key to gaining muscle, leg training cannot be avoided. The lower extremity represents the single most important stimulus for growth promoting hormone release. Many fitness enthusiasts spend years attempting to develop muscle in the upper body or tone and firm up the hips and thighs. The secret to success in this endeavor is leg training. Using movements that involve all the muscles of the leg will significantly enhance the production of growth hormone and testosterone, two of the most potent fat burning and muscle building chemicals in the natural world.
And finally, some of you may be skeptical of this whole idea and want to see some science to back it up. Admittedly the above article is written for a lay readership and was purposely sensationalized for its publication in Onfitness Magazine. However, the hard science version of this concept was covered in depth and the article is/will be published in the international alternative medicine journal Townsend Letter. You can read the pre-edited version at our ME Trainers Academy Blog ( http://metraineracademy.com/train-legs-for-full-body-effects-is-there-any-evidence/ ).