LSJL Photo Proof

Many people have commented that their are no visible gains in the diaphysis of the tibia. As I mentioned here, most of the gains seem to occur in the epiphysis rather than the diaphysis.  People who have grown in the diaphysis like St.it likely have actively differentiating chondrocytes or left over type II collagen so that the stem cells are guided to differentiate near the shaft of the bone.  However, adults are likely to form new growth plates where there are stem cells and that's likely to be along the length of the horns of the tibia rather than at the very end of the tibia which would lengthen the diaphysis.  There's a lot more epiphysis after where the shin bone forks into two pieces than before thus if stem cells differentiate at the region of hydrostatic pressure they are more likely to differentiate along the horns then in the small portion where the tibia is one piece.

Growing along the horns will still make you taller.  It'll be interesting to continue to progress my finger growth as that has horns much shorter than the length of the clamp so if the diaphysis of the fingers grow then it could possibly be a positional problem and you need to clamp closer to where the tibia is one piece and on the epiphysis to grow taller along the diaphysis.

Here's the proof I grew along the horns:

In this picture the calf begins at 3 1/8" and the slope changes at 0(you can't see a lot past 0 but you can still see a change in slope).  The rotation of the calf may matter so the tibia epiphysis seems to be about 4 3/4".  So the length of the epiphysis is 3 1/8"

It may be hard to see the slope change in that picture so here's an earlier picture:

An inch is about 73.8 pixels.  The length of the line is about 262.3 pixels which is about 3.55 inches.  The black line on the ruler is what I used as an inch.  I think it's a little bit less than an inch.  If you go closer to what an inch is you would get a smaller number of total inches than 3.55 so there's still a definite height gain(given that later values are closer to 4).

Here's an early picture of my progress with LSJL.  The slope changes at about 1/8" and the calf changes at about 4".  So a about 3 3/8" of growth.   He's a picture of me with LSJL later.

Where the calf ends is at a little under 4(where the calf ends isn't quite where the epiphysis ends but it's less open to interpretation).  Where the slope changes is a hair under 0.  So we'll say about 4 inches.  You can see that I estimated the end of the epiphysis at 6" in the earlier picture whereas I estimated it at 5 inches in the later picture which is why I dropped it as a measurement.

Tricks for Growing Taller: How a 19 year old grew 0.6"

st.it from the grow tall forum has reported a 0.6" height gain from LSJL using the table clamp method.  I assume 30 seconds on the ankles and knee.  0.3" is from the ankle to the knee.  He took Niacin but that really shouldn't increase height.  NAD+ which is increased by Niacin does have a stimulatory effect on osteoblasts but I would think that would have a long term effect on height not a 0.3" increase.  NAD+ does suppress lipolysis which inhibits the GH response but that should result in an increase in height over time not an increase in a month.  It could be that the other 0.3" is coming from an increase in femur height due to knee loading.  Here are his pics:

You don't as large an increase in ankle size as you typically see with LSJL like in my height increase pictures or in Slimchanse's height increase pictures or you can see David's huge ankle size gain.  It could be that the table clamp has more of a stimulatory effect on height gain rather than ankle size and tapping/loading with weights has more of an effect on bone quality/ankle size.

You can see a stronger/thicker bone in the november pic than the october pic.  Maybe dumbell loading/tapping just induces a more specific adaptation on the ankle whereas the table clamp increases bone quality all over.

How R. Venter grew 1/4" with LSJL

R. Venter started Lateral Synovial Joint Loading on July 6, 2010.  His age was 28 and his height was 5'5".  He weight trains 3 times a week which would help by inhibiting myostatin and increasing his GASP-1 levels.  He started out using a 10lbs hammer and loading the ankles and knees for 5 intervals of 20 seconds a piece.  On July 13, 2010 he reported a growth of 2mm.  Starting Week 2 of August he started using the 10" clamp.  He gained another 1 mm on his right leg as of September 1, 2010 and no further gains in his left leg.  As of October 14th, he reported a total growth of 1/4" in his right leg but no further growth beyond the 2 mm in his left.

So in about 3 months R. Venter grew 1/4" but what's interesting is that his left leg did not grow beyond 2mm.

This study here shows the various load pathways involved in LSJL.  LSJL upregulates more genes in the ECM(extracellular matrix) than anything else.  If you look at the growth plates under LSJL you can see the massive amounts of Matrix secreted(the white stuff).  LSJL also increases levels of hyaluronan synthase which has been used as a carrier for BMP-2(which can encourage chondrogenic differentiation).  LSJL also upregulates levels of MMP-3 which is involved in the vascularization and ossification of chondrocytes but also in the formation of cartilage canals.

R. Venter reported that he's always had issues with his left knee possibly due to the fact that his left knee is not secreting extracellular matrix properly.

LSJL can work by multiple mechanisms.  One of the mechanisms could be bone deposition on the subchondral plate resulting in Venter's 2mm gain in his left tibia.  Another could be differentiation of stem cells and periosteal progenitor cells into chondrocytes as a result of TGF-Beta, hydrostatic pressure, and hyaluronan-mediated BMP-2.  These cells then form cartilage canals(thanks to MMP-3) through the perforating fibers of the periosteum, then these cartilage canals turn into new growth plates.  LSJL also inhibits MMP-1 which degrades the extracellular matrix.

The seeming peak that occurs to LSJL could be due to myostatin(inhibited by exercise and other things), telomere length, and DNA Methylation.  Also, cartilage likes hypoxic environments and most adult growth plates are already vascularized.  Exercise increases hypoxia inducible factor-1 which would help cartilage grow.  Also, bone is never completely vascularized allowing some cartilage to grow in the un-vascularized areas.

The diminishing returns of LSJL can also be due to an increase in bone vascularity inhibiting the formation of new cartilage canals.

Slimechanse grew 1/4" with LSJL

Slimechanse has reported that he's gained 1/4" with LSJL.  LSJL upregulates genes involved in the TGF-Beta, PI3K, ECM, and Wnt pathways.  Wnt is involved in mechanotransduction.  ECM is involved in the production of new extracellular matrix which could explain the large amounts of white in rats post LSJL in the growth plate.  PI3K increases cellular proliferation.  TGF-Beta regulates cellular proliferation and p15 is a part of the TGF-Beta which stops cellular proliferation but overall TGF-Beta is anabolic and it helps cause the differentiation of stem cells into chondrocytes.

Slimechanse has been performing LSJL for a few months and has submitted his ankle picture.

 

The date on the picture is wrong.  This ankle picture was taken recently. Here's a child's ankle picture:

The right ankle is normal so look at that whereas the right ankle is bruised.  Here's a pic of a normal adult ankle:

In the normal adult ankle, you can see a very hard bone.  No cartilage is on the lateral portion of the ankle.  In the child's bone you can see a softer looking ankle.  In Slime's bone you can see cartilage on the side of the ankle.  There is not supposed to be cartilage on the lateral side of the ankle meaning that LSJL by upregulating TGF-Beta expression caused the differentiation of stem cells into chondrocytes in new areas.  And Slime is 35 years old.

The exact mechanism of LSJL is unclear but it does seem to be successful at achieving growth of new chondrocytes.

Some evidence of LSJL

I recently received this letter from someone about their success with LSJL: " I've started using a 10 inch clamp on my right leg almost 3 weeks ago and definite growth, I estimate 3mm using my specific measuring technique. I stopped with the left leg & dumbbell, think loading was not enough & bone adapted, so had no gains beyond 2mm. I'll get really excited once I reach 5mm on my right leg. As I previously said this is not measurement error.I've been extremely tired in the mornings, not sure if the growth is tiring me since it drains all your minerals. Can this be? I work from my cell, so can't seem to post on your blog."

CH Turner, one of the scientists behind LSJL, speculated that bone is stimulated by interstitial fluid flow. Unfortunately, CH Turner passed away so we won't be able to get his opinion on how chondrocytes and stem cells are stimulated versus osteoblasts. Also, we can't ask if there's a change in mechanosensativity of stem cells over time which would explain reduced results over time. We can increase the load however. I've noticed more results when I went from using a 70lbs dumbell to a 75lbs dumbell. I'll have to see if there's any studies about decreased mechanosensativity to loads over time. This shouldn't be a problem thanks to the table clamp which can generate almost infinite pressure. The goal being to get stem cells to the hyaline cartilage growth plate line which they will proceed to undergo endochondral ossification. If you look at the second picture in the analysis of epiphyseal distraction you'll see that the blue hyaline cartilage growth plate line remains post ossification. LSJL doesn't upregulate SOX9 expression but it does upregulate TGF Beta expression which is very important in endochondral ossification. CH Turner also mentioned in the study that impact exercises can drive interstitial fluid flow. According to our theory, these exercises should increase bone size by both the periosteum and the growth plates in relevant bones. The exercises that should generate enough impact are as follows:

Sprinting(feet)
Punching bag(hands)
The next exercises should affect all bones a little bit:
Jumping
Farmer's walk/Shield Carry/Refrigerator Carry from Strongman

Now, these exercises can't generate nearly as much pressure as a table clamp can but if CH Turner's theory is correct then boxers should have bigger hands and sprinters should have larger feet(I think sprinting is better for generating impact on the feet than kickboxing bag). Unfortunately, we only have anecdotal evidence for either of these two things(pitchers having longer arms). If you have any specific instances please post in comments. The reason why boxers don't get bigger hands indefinitely is due to adaptation and reduced long-term sensitivity to load. Eventually, there's a point where a boxer has to work a lot harder to punch that bag harder. However, the table clamp makes it really easy to generate more fluid flow in the bone...


Those legs are from someone who's been performing LSJL mostly on the right leg. This is the same guy who got a bigger ankle with LSJL. You can see a definite increase in thickness in the right leg, if you got that same thickness in the spine you'd get height gain. His left leg is 1 cm longer than his right. He reported no length increase. Maybe you have to reach a certain threshold to get enough stem cells to that hyaline cartilage...