Muscle Fibre's

There are three types of Muscle Fibres, one of these are Type 1 fibres, S.O
(Slow oxidative)
Type I Fibres (Slow oxidative)
These Iibres, also called slow twitch or slow oxidative Iibres, contain large
amounts oI myoglobin, many mitochondria and many blood capillaries. Type I
Iibres are red, split ATP at a slow rate, have a slow contraction velocity, very
resistant to Iatigue and have a high capacity to generate ATP by oxidative
metabolic processes. Such Iibres are Iound in large numbers in the postural
muscles oI the neck. The contract slowly and repeatedly but exert low levels oI
Iorce and are extremely resistant to Iatigue, this is why long distance runners and
similar sports use this a lot and are most commonly Iound in. this is because the
muscles can generate little Iorce Ior a long period oI time e.g. a marathon runner.
These Iibres have a very good blood supply due to the dense capillary network
surrounding them,
The second fibre types is Type II A Fibres (Fast oxidative fibres)
These Iibres, also called Iast twitch or Iast oxidative Iibres, contain very large
amounts oI myoglobin, very many mitochondria and very many blood capillaries.
Type II A Iibres are red, have a Iast contraction velocity and are resistant to
Iatigue. Such Iibres are inIrequently Iound in games players as they needs
To have both slow oxygenated and Iast glycoltic because their environment is
constantly changing and varied.

The third muscle type is Type II B Fibres (Fast glycolytic fibres)
These Iibres, also called Iast twitch or Iast glycolytic Iibres, contain a low content
oI myoglobin, relatively Iew mitochondria, relatively Iew blood capillaries and
large amounts glycogen. Type II B Iibres are white, geared to generated by ATP
anaerobic metabolic processes, not able to supply skeletal muscle Iibres
continuously with suIIicient ATP, Iatigue easily, split ATP at a Iast rate and have a
Iast contraction velocity. Such Iibres are Iound in large numbers in the muscles oI
the arms and legs. Such Iibres are mostly Iound in Iast explosive activities like
100metre sprinters and shot putters. This is because they have a very explosive
activity which only last a Iew seconds and because they Iatigue easily.




Type I fibers Type II a
fibers
Type II x
fibers
Type II b
fibers
Contraction
time
Slow
Moderately
Fast
Fast Very Iast
Size of motor
neuron
Small Medium Large Very large
Resistance to
fatigue
High Fairly high Intermediate Low
Activity Used
for
Aerobic
Long-term
anaerobic
Short-term
anaerobic
Short-term
anaerobic
Maximum
duration of
use
Hours 30 minutes 5 minutes 1 minute
Power
produced
Low Medium High Very high
Mitochondrial
density
High High Medium Low
Capillary
density
High Intermediate Low Low
Oxidative
capacity
High High Intermediate Low
Glycolytic
capacity
Low High High High
Major storage
fuel
Triglycerides
Creatine
phosphate,
glycogen
Creatine
phosphate,
glycogen
Creatine
phosphate,
glycogen
Myosin heavy
chain,
human genes
MYH7 MYH2 MYH1 MYH4



Agonist, antagonist and muscle action

Agonist works with the muscles, and the antagonist is the muscle working against
it in a contraction. i.e. a Bicep curl, the agonist is the Biceps brachii and the
antagonist muscle is the triceps brachii.
Only one muscle will be working at any time this is called the agonist, the muscle
that is then not working is called the antagonist, the labels then reverse when the
antagonist muscle works.

An example oI this is a Biecep curl, this requires your biecep to start lengthend and
the triceps contracted as the picture below shows labled 1, once the biecep is
lengthend and the tricep is contracted the bicep then contracts to pull the weight in
the pane oI the elbow hinge joint against gravity, at this point the tricep is then
starting to relax until it is relaxed Iully.






Synogist and fixater
A synergist muscles is a muscle or group oI muscles that act as a stabilizer Ior one
part oI the body during movement, i.e. a bicep curl. The deltoid would be the
synergist in this movement as it helps to stabilize the body.
Sometimes, a synergist muscle can Iorm part oI what is known as a Iixator group.
Fixators are designed to 'Iix or stabilize a joint. For example, when people stand
up, Iixator groups at the ankles keep the joints stable so that the ankles will not
bend or wobble, causing diIIiculties with balancing. Fixator groups are also what
allow people to isolate movements to a speciIic joint or area oI the body, with the
muscle group holding nearby joints in place.
A sporting example oI this could be a rugby player in a lineout jumping to compete
Ior the ball, when he is being liIted and when he is liIted he needs to be stable in
the air, not just by his liIters but he needs to stabilize himselI, a example oI these
muscles could be your transversus abdominis muscle, this helps all your core to
stabilize when doing any movement with your vertebrae.
Isotonic Contractions
Isotonic contractions are those which cause the muscle to change length as it
contracts and causes movement oI a body part. There are two types oI Isotonic
contraction.

Concentric
Concentric contractions are those which cause the muscle to shorten as it contracts.
An example is bending the elbow Irom straight to Iully Ilexed, causing a
concentric contraction oI the Biceps Brachii muscle. Concentric contractions are
the most common type oI muscle contraction and occur Irequently in daily and
sporting activities.

Eccentric
Eccentric contractions are the opposite oI concentric and occur when the muscle
lengthens as it contracts. This is less common and usually involves the control or
deceleration oI a movement being initiated by the eccentric muscles agonist.
For example, when kicking a Iootball, the Quadriceps muscle contracts
concentrically to straighten the knee and the Hamstrings contract eccentrically to
decelerate the motion oI the lower limb. This type on contraction puts a lot oI
strain through the muscle and is commonly involved in muscle injuries.














uxley`s sliding filament theory

The sliding Iilament theory is the method by which muscles are thought to
contract. The diagram below is a common one used to explain sliding Iilament
theory but dont worry about trying to understand it all just yet.

At a very basic level each muscle Iibre is made up oI smaller Iibres called
myoIibrils. These contain even smaller structures called actin and myosin
Iilaments. These Iilaments slide in and out between each other to Iorm a muscle
contractions, hence called the sliding Iilament theory!
The diagram above shows part a myoIibril called a sarcomere. This is the smallest
unit oI skeletal muscle that can contract. Sarcomeres repeat themselves over and
over along the length oI the myoIibril.

Here is what happens in detail. The process oI a muscle contracting can be divided
into 5 sections:
1. A nervous impulse arrives at the neuromuscular junction, which causes a
release oI a chemical called Acetylcholine. The presence oI Acetylcholine
causes the depolarisation oI the motor end plate which travels throughout the
muscle by the transverse tubules, causing Calcium (Ca) to be released Irom
the sarcoplasmic reticulum.
2. In the presence oI high concentrations oI Ca, the Ca binds to Troponin,
changing its shape and so moving Tropomyosin Irom the active site oI the
Actin. The Myosin Iilaments can now attach to the Actin, Iorming a cross-
bridge.
3. The breakdown oI ATP releases energy which enables the Myosin to pull
the Actin Iilaments inwards and so shortening the muscle. This occurs along
the entire length oI every myoIibril in the muscle cell.
4. The Myosin detaches Irom the Actin and the cross-bridge is broken when an
ATP molecule binds to the Myosin head. When the ATP is then broken
down the Myosin head can again attach to an Actin binding site Iurther
along the Actin Iilament and repeat the 'power stroke'. This repeated pulling
oI the Actin over the myosin is oIten known as the ratchet mechanism.
5. This process oI muscular contraction can last Ior as long as there is adequate
ATP and Ca stores. Once the impulse stops the Ca is pumped back to the
Sarcoplasmic Reticulum and the Actin returns to its resting position causing
the muscle to lengthen and relax.
(http://www.teachpe.com/anatomy/slidingIilament.php)

Stretched Muscle

The diagram above, it shows a stretched muscle where the I - bands and the H -
zone is elongated due to reduced overlapping oI the myosin and acting Iilaments.
There would be reduced muscle strength because Iew cross bridges can Iorm
between the acting and myosin. This could be when a liIt has just completed a split
jerk where the bar is over head arms Iully extended.
Partially Contracted Muscle

The diagram above shows a partially contracted muscle where there is more
overlapping oI the myosin and actin with lots oI potential Ior cross bridges to Iorm.
The I - bands and H - zone are shortened.


Fully Contracted Muscle

The diagram above shows a Iully contracted muscle with lots oI overlap between
the actin and myosin. Because the thin actin Iilaments have overlapped there is a
reduced potential Ior cross bridges to Iorm again. ThereIore there will be low Iorce
production Irom the muscle.