Do Genetics Play a Role in Building Muscle?
It goes without saying that you need to work incredibly hard and give your body enough time to build muscle and overall strength. This includes eating enough protein and calories, getting enough sleep & proper recovery, and being patient in order to see the progress. But have you ever felt that it is easier for some people than others?
Well, you felt right.
Genetics, to some extent, determines how easy or challenging it is to build muscle and strength. That influencer with the shredded 6 packs weeks after baby, the girl with the peachy glutes or her with the long chiseled legs. Yes genetics are involved. When it comes to athletic and physical performance, genetics can be attributed to about 50-60% of the difference between your skills and someone else’s. The other 40-50% comes down to environmental factors like training, diet, and lifestyle habits (i.e. sleep)
However, don't start blaming your genetics until you’ve ensured and are being honest with yourself on whether or not you are focused on the proper training protocol, nutrition, and ideal amount of rest.
Genetic Influences on Body Weight
So now that we know genetic involvement in muscle growth. We can assume that genetics may drive our weight more than we think. This is also true. When trying to lose weight, you have a team of factors as to why you may be struggling. These include how our hunger and appetite hormones function, how well we absorb and store calories, the type of fat our bodies store, and metabolism, among others.
Many of these factors are outside our control. Yes, you can add more exercise and muscle mass to improve your metabolism. But much of what determines weight comes down to our gene makeup based on past generations.
Other factors that play a role in your metabolism:
Body size- Which includes Lean Body mass. This is your organs, skin, bones, body waters and muscle mass. A good percentage of lean body mass boosts your metabolism and makes it easier to maintain the healthy weight you want.
Sex - Men tend to have more muscle than females, which means they’re burning more calories automatically.
Age- You lose muscle mass as you get older, so your metabolism begins to slow down, and you burn fewer calories.
Weight history- a theory called “biological set point.” This is why you might plateau or gain weight again after a significant amount of weight loss. Your body can reduce your basal metabolic rate even lower than the calories it previously needed to drive you back to a higher weight, making it hard to lose weight.
Genetics play a role in determining your weight. But that’s not the whole story. Environment, lifestyle and healthy choices still contribute a great deal to how much you weigh.
Everyone Can Improve Body Composition
It's important to keep in mind that everyone should work on achieving a healthy body composition. Start living up to your athletic potential by tweaking your training and nutrition to turn your genetic weaknesses into strengths. It’s about understanding the genetic information you can act upon (workouts or nutrition plans) that optimize or improve your chances of reaching your goals.