My presentation dealt with exercise, especially in relation to strength and muscles. Every type of movement your brain wants you to make is executed by muscles. Muscles are connected to bones through tendons. When your brain wants a movement, the muscle contracts, pulling the bones closer together. Muscles are made up of aerobic (slow twitch) and anaerobic (fast twitch) fibers. Slow twitch fibers are red because they are supplied with oxygen. These give the muscle its endurance, or ability to endure strain for long periods of time. Fast twitch fibers are white because they operate without oxygen. They give the muscle its power. Power is strength, actually, but power in a muscle manifests itself in movement as speed. Because the muscle can handle resistance more easily, it can contract faster. Strengthening occurs with these fast twitch fibers in a process called hypertrophy. Hypertrophy is the healing process which goes into effect not during, but after exercise. In this process, the muscle rebuilds itself with more proteins than before, making the muscle bigger and stronger.

The exercise which I used in my experiment was the squat. The squat uses fast twitch fibers in the lower back, quadriceps, and hamstrings. To do the exercise correctly, start with feet more than shoulder-width apart. Place the bar on the upper back. Lower into a crouched position and stand straight up. Throughout the exercise keep the back arched with shoulders back and head up.

I hypothesized that I could increase the amount of weight that I could squat. This hypothesis was correct. A possible source of error was nutrition. Without sufficient protein in the diet hypertrophy cannot occur properly. Carbohydrates provide an instant energy source, and carbohydrate intake controls short-term energy. Sleep, stress and other exercise do not significantly affect anaerobic exercise.

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