Tendons are the connective tissues that attach muscles to bones. Without tendons, muscles cannot contract and pull or push. They allow the muscles to generate force and strength.
Since tendons fundamentally play a role in muscle structure and function, strengthening the tendons would increase strength or improve muscle function, including endurance.
Tendons famously (or infamously) take much longer to grow and repair than muscles, typically projected to take around 2-3 months of consistent exercise before significant changes occur. This is also why injuries to tendons and sprains take so long to fully heal. This is largely caused by reduced blood flow to the tendon. The tendon itself does not contain blood vessels, only the surface does. This means proteins and components need to be diffused (pass through) this otherwise ‘inert’ structure. This inertness I find reflects its nature of durability and longevity as seen with various adages and wisdom throughout the world. ‘It is not living, and therefore does not die’ in a way, similar or moreso than bones.
A famous Chinese idiom says ‘stretch (lengthen) tendons by an inch, extend your life by 10 years’.
Another Chinese saying roughly means ‘tendons strengthened in youth will last your entire life’. Just as tendons take longer to build up, they also take longer to break down if at all. This saying highlights how training and strengthening your tendons in youth, will last until very old age, helping to prevent falls, weakness, and retain mobility.
It is somewhat akin to bodybuilders whom easily retain and regain muscle in old age even with greatly reduced exercise; The body is built and the body learns or remembers.
Tendons play a role in springiness and instantaneous strength. By strengthening your tendons, you improve all aspects of athletic performance and physicality, as well as outright strength, endurance, agility, resistance to injury, flexibility, and such.
Shaolin monks, MMA fighters, and various athletes all famous for their speed, flexibility, sprightliness, and agility all have vastly stronger and thicker tendons than normal individuals and even hobby athletes. This facilitates their performance.
Simply and fundamentally put, if you want to be stronger, faster, greater, and more powerful, strengthen your tendons.
Benefits of Strong Tendons
- Strength
- Endurance
- Agility
- Injury Prevention
- Longevity
- Flexibility
- Speed (Sprinting & Running)
- Jumping
- Athletics & Sports
How To Strengthen Tendons
Copper
Copper is an essential cofactor for collagen synthesis, which as stated are the building blocks for tendons and other connective tissues. By ensuring an adequate intake of copper or supplementing certain sources of copper, one can greatly enhance their collagen and tendons.
This is why copper peptides are trending and efficacious in the skincare & beauty industry, by stimulating collagen production in the skin for youthful appearance and skin rejuvenation. This is also why a copper deficiency can cause tendon, joint, and skin degeneration due to the lack of collagen production.
Oysters and liver are high in copper, alongside shiitake mushrooms. Almonds and various other common foods can also be decent sources of copper. Excessive zinc supplementation can deplete copper, causing a deficiency. This is becoming increasingly recognized to the point of this specific warning being placed on most zinc supplements in North America in recent years.
Vitamin C
Vitamin C is also a cofactor for collagen synthesis. This is also part of the reason vitamin C is so prominent in skincare products, where it can acutely help stimulate skin-collagen production. Eating more vitamin C or supplementing it can help with the tendons and collagen production.
Acerola cherries or powder is a natural and highly concentrated source of vitamin C. It is superior to normal vitamin C supplements (ascorbic acid) in that it is the whole vitamin C complex which differs from isolated ascorbic acid. Naturally, other fruits like oranges, kiwis, grapes, and mangoes are good sources of vitamin C.
Increase Blood Flow To Tendons
The slow blood flow to the tendons is the biggest reason for the slow growth and repair of tendons. Therefore, tendons are strengthened according to their blood flow; The more you increase blood flow, the stronger the tendons become directly. Exercise is one of the best ways to increase blood flow, and some other ways are listed below.
Ways To Increase Blood Flow To Tendons
- Increase Nitric Oxide
- Beetroot Powder (or Beets)
- Walking
- Exercising
- Vasodilators
- L-Citrulline
- Nitrates (i.e. Leafy Vegetables)
Increase Collagen
Since tendons are composed of collagen, increasing collagen production would naturally increase the strength and growth of tendons. As stated, copper and vitamin C can increase collagen, but there are other ways to increase collagen production. Just like more protein means more muscle, the same is true for collagen (protein) and tendons.
Ways To Increase Collagen Production
- Copper
- Vitamin C
- Red Light & Near-Infrared Light
- Protein
- Glycine
- Sleep
Collagen Peptides
Collagen peptides are hydrolyzed collagen protein, meaning it has been broken down into the smallest individual molecules. The thought is that these collagen proteins are absorbed better, and can potentially circulate directly through the blood stream into the tendons or other connective tissues to build them up. It is somewhat similar in concept to nano-hydroxyapatite which directly ‘fills in’ tooth enamel.
There are some studies showing that collagen peptide supplements improve joint, skin, and tendon health. Collagen peptides are considered ‘collagen protein (powder)’ and used for any connective tissue the same as protein powder is for muscles and bodybuilding.
Protein
Protein as a whole can also increase collagen or strengthen tendons, as the amino acids in protein make up collagen and tendons. Collagen proteins, such as bone broth or soups, are best for this of course. Meat or animal products and fish contain more of the amino acids involved with collagen than plant sources.
Red Light & NIR
Red light therapy (RLT) can stimulate blood flow and collagen production, as well as tissue repair. This means theoretically, using RLT on your tendons or whole-body RLT devices can help to strengthen tendons or accelerate their growth & recovery. A true ‘sci-fi supersoldier’ concept if you will.
Decrease Inflammation
Decreasing inflammation can improve tendon strength by reducing damage and mechanisms that interfere with recovery & growth. All aspects of health decrease inflammation, but sunlight, antioxidants, sleep, magnesium, and red light are very effective for this.
Exercise
Exercise is arguably the fundamental way to strengthen tendons, just like muscles. Exercise causes minor damage to tendons like micro-tears with muscles, causing them to strengthen and grow. As stated earlier, exercising increases blood flow to the tendons, meaning the more you exercise the more you grow or repair your tendons two-fold. All exercise and workouts will help enhance the tendons, but some are better than others.
Gentle or continuous exercises are best for the tendons, as they stimulate anabolism and circulation without causing strain that heavy weight lifting or sprinting does. As you do them, blood is ‘manually’ directed to the tendons like water flowing through or washing over something. This also illustrates the connection between tendons and longevity, and the wellness practices of long-living peoples like monks or ascetics as shown below.
Sports and athletics as a whole, like track and field, are also great for the tendons. Essentially, anything that focuses on mobility than static strength will improve the tendons more.
Exercises For Tendon Strengthening
- Walking
- Yoga
- Tai Chi
- Swimming
- Running
- Martial Arts
- Cycling
- Sports
- Gymnastics
It can be seen clearly how the image of shaolin monks and martial arts was created, with the synergy or correlation between these mobility, flexibility, and wellness practices and tendon conditioning. Imagine the speed and agility of shaolin monks, martial artists, MMA fighters, and top tier athletes when you imagine tendons and strenghtening them.