Unlock Your Superhero Potential – Build Type 2 Muscles For Peak Fitness And Healthspan
- Feb 6
- 7 min read
Updated: Feb 9
Written by Dan Raynham, The Fitness Scientists
Dan Raynham is a leading innovator of biohacking, peak fitness, and age reversal. He is the founder of The Fitness Scientists, the world's only measurable wellbeing system. His latest passion project, "The Biohacking Handbook," is a TV show that aims to democratize peak health, combining his background in science and the arts.
Do you want peak fitness, longevity, age reversal, disease risk prevention, increased healthspan, enhanced brain health, and a powerhouse body? Then you need to develop your fast-twitch muscles! The primary method for developing type 2 muscular fibres is plyometric training (fast and explosive). Plyometrics cause you to tire in seconds. At 51, I have more type 2 muscle than I did in my twenties! There is a common notion that as we age, we should avoid plyometric activities. I hypothesise that this misconception is the primary cause of type 2 fibre waste with ageing. Although this article is a basic introduction to type 2 fibres, I hope it will kickstart or reinvent your health and fitness regimen today![1]
The hidden key to peak fitness and healthspan
Even among those considered the fittest in the world or regular gym attendees, type 2 muscle fibres are often overlooked and undertrained. Over the past 20 years of research and practice, I hypothesise that activating type 2 muscle fibres is one of the few crucial factors to efficiently unlocking most human health and lifespan benefits. Consider a “fit” runner who runs 60 km per week but does little supplemental training. Their upper body is underutilised, and hardly any of their body is trained using plyometrics. They are operating at a fraction of their health potential and are likely to sustain an injury at some point.
What are type 2 muscle fibres?
To answer this, we need to examine the main fibre types.
Type 1 = Slow endurance muscle (mainly skeletal). Type 2 = Fast & powerful muscle.
Type 1, slow-twitch muscle. They are red in colour, which is caused by high levels of myoglobin and mitochondria. They are responsible for repeated low-intensity contractions via aerobic pathways. This fibre type is common in the sedentary modern global population, including many people who exercise.
Type 2a, fast-twitch muscle. These contain a high concentration of mitochondria and myoglobin. They differ from type 1 in that they produce and consume ATP more quickly through both aerobic and anaerobic metabolism. They are strong and rapid but fatigue quickly unless you are in peak fitness condition. They are the ideal muscle type to aim for.
Type 2X. I like to refer to these as super fast-twitch muscles. They have lower levels of myoglobin and mitochondria, which makes them appear white. They are completely anaerobic, producing ATP at a slower rate but breaking it down extremely quickly. Suitable for short, powerful bursts of energy.
Research on these muscle fibre types in exercise science is still in its early stages. I hypothesise that combining different fibre types can generate muscle contractions across a progressively wider range of speeds. Naturally, this can enhance overall fitness, agility, and coordination.
How to train for fast-twitch muscles
Essentially, engage in explosive, 'shocking', quick, and unpredictable movements like burpees, jumping push-ups, and squat jumps. Additionally, try switching from one plyometric exercise to another so that the brain cannot detect a pattern, as observed in modern dance or martial arts.
Type 2 muscle fibres can also be activated through traditional resistance training and other activities, but not as effectively, efficiently, or comprehensively. Training should include the aforementioned exercises to fully optimise peak health and fitness.
Most medium to long-distance, repeatedly performed training will not be beneficial. You will not achieve the biological rewards. Therefore, incorporate plyometrics into your weekly routine as soon as possible!
I'd like to take this further. Even among fitness enthusiasts who perform plyometric exercises, the focus is almost always on the legs. For optimal fitness, the entire body must be trained plyometrically. You need to find plyometric solutions for your whole body, just as you do with dynamic or isometric exercises. For example, jumping push-ups for chest and shoulders, jumping tricep dips, catching weighted balls for biceps and forearms, jumping Lalannes for the core, etc. It may seem challenging, but I have devised plyometric exercises for my hands, fingers, intercostal muscles (rib muscles), and deep core muscles.
What happens to muscles when you train plyometrically?
They convert from type 1 (and to a lesser degree some type 2x) into type 2a.
There is an increase in the cross-sectional size of type 2 muscle fibres, not an increase in the number of cells.
Your body adapts into a more powerful, fast, and agile machine through the input of plyometric training. The fact that the body readily converts type 1 muscle into type 2 says a lot about their perceived value to the body machine. Sedentary, unfit modern bodies are dominated by type 1 muscles.[1]
A sample of the benefits of type 2 fibre activation
Genetic (epigenetics)
Much research needs to be done in this area, which I believe will yield some groundbreaking results.
Researchers discovered that targeted acute explosive exercise can pause shrinkage and even lengthen telomeres. Telomeres function like a biological egg-timer of death (please check back for my future article on telomeres). They are located at the ends of your chromosomes. This appears to be linked to muscular atrophy (wastage) with ageing, resulting in the loss of type 2 fibres. Even though many studies attribute the cause to a natural process, I hypothesise it is mainly due to a sedentary Western lifestyle, particularly between the ages of 25 and 60. I know people in their mid-70s who are practising plyometrics and strength routines that they did not undertake before the age of 65, and their muscular wastage has reversed.
Increased type 2 muscle mass also helps to prevent sarcopenia and a variety of other health risks, including obesity. Practical health benefits include being able to survive falls with less injury, having faster reaction times, and so on. This all contributes to increased survivability and longevity.[2]
Tendon & ligament strengthening
Studies have demonstrated that the combination of muscle and tendon functioning together (muscle-tendon complex) gains more strength and suppleness with plyometric training than weight training or other 'regular' types of exercise. People tend to believe that explosive motions make you stiffer, yet the contrary is actually true. It is an area of research that I would like to pursue further. I have definitely become more flexible, nimble, and faster as a result of intense training developing my type 2 muscle, rather than from mild exercise or stretching.[3]
Disease resistance
It is well known that exercise of all types helps to reduce the risk of most diseases. Increasing type 2 muscle can supercharge this because it boosts HGH, Insulin-like growth factor 1, and the immune system, etc. (see plyometric-induced hormonal activation).
As mentioned above, the ability to reprogram existing muscle fibres from one type to another may benefit muscle disease treatments, such as inactivity from bed rest, obesity, Duchenne muscular dystrophy, Facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy, heart failure, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, to name but a few.[4]
Immunity boost from type 2’s
Hypertrophy (muscular increase) is associated with increased immunity and anti-inflammatory response. Considering that inactive modern humans have low type 2a fibre, we can argue that a type 2 increase is the most effective way to boost a myriad of immune benefits in combination with full vaccination programmes. Many immunity improvements are aided by some of the hormonal responses below.
Plyometric-induced hormonal activation
HGH (Human Growth Hormone) is one of the key factors studied in explosive training. Type 2 training increases HGH (Human Growth Hormone). This is called an Exercise-Induced Growth Hormone Response (EIGR).[5]
HGH can:
Helps to metabolise fat. Increase the insulin-like growth factor 1. Promote the growth of bone, skin, and cartilage. Boost protein production. Increase lean muscle mass.
Reduce the risk of heart disease. Enhance physical performance. Increase skin thickness. Aids faster injury recovery. To name but a few.
Studies have revealed that a single bout of intensive or acute exercise can increase HGH levels by up to 100%. This may peak up to an hour after training. It is enormous. It is possible to have HGH levels higher than those of a 16-year-old for two hours if combined with being in a fasted state! The amount secreted is more closely related to the peak intensity of the exercise than its duration.[6] Quality and intensity, not quantity!
To summarise
Incorporate rapid, explosive plyometric movements into your weekly exercise routine so they account for at least half of your effort. You will gain enormous benefits at the muscular, organ, metabolic, cellular, and genetic levels! Quicker and more efficient than conventional training, it fits into busy lifestyles without the need for gyms or lots of equipment.
An invitation to connect
Contact me at any time to discuss biohacking and how to increase your body's fitness. I am available to assist you with every facet of your health or the overall well-being of your organisation. At The Fitness Scientists, we believe that everyone deserves the opportunity to reach their full health potential. We use credible research and methods driven by science to break through the media and internet noise. Providing you with a clear path to success!
Read more from Dan Raynham
Dan Raynham, The Fitness Scientists
Dan Raynham is a science-driven biohacker who believes that everyone should have access to optimal health. As a child, he suffered poor health, and didn't start exercising until his 30s. Now, at 51, he is an elite athlete who outperforms teens to 20s and professional athletes. Over the course of 20 years, he has honed a ground-breaking system that activates the body into peak fitness and age reversal. It works at a cell and molecular level in an incredible display of biochemistry. An ardent supporter of science-led, compassionate health and mythbusting, his company, The Fitness Scientists, offers the first and only data-driven wellbeing plan in the world.
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