Building muscle requires you to understand and put to action three main principles of exercise. It's not as hard as some of the muscleheads make it out to be. These three principle are universal and applies to everyone looking to build muscle mass. They are the principles of exercise, nutrition, and proper sleep and recovery. Together they make up the bodybuilding equation.
Get the factors right within this bodybuilding equation and you'll guarantee some good results from your muscle gaining efforts. Each factor of this muscle building equation are interrelated with sub-factors that will determine results and the number of muscle pounds you'll gain. Anyone can easily build muscle if they take action and put to use their knowledge and training information they've acquired.
Let's take a quick look at each bodybuilding factor and drill down what needs to be done for each in order to gain lean muscle mass. Follow this guide to learn how to build muscle.
Exercise
Building muscle requires the right type of training. This is the principle of specificity. Gaining muscle mass, in this case, requires strength training and weightlifting workouts to properly target and stimulate the muscle fibers for growth and strength. It wouldn't make sense to run 6 miles every single day if you're looking to build muscle. Nor would it make sense for a marathon runner to lift weights 3 hours a day. Specificity is key here.
Train for your goals. In our case, we're aiming for bodybuilding and to pack on muscle weight. If we want to learn how to build muscle, then resistance training is the key. Resistance training is strength training. Strength training is the best exercise modality for bodybuilding and gaining muscle. Training properly with weights is also essential so be sure to check out some of the articles on this site and products you can purchase for detailed training information and step-by-step blueprints of proper weight training.
Training Options
Many options exist for strength training with weights. The strength training and bodybuilding options include,
- body splits routines; each muscle group is trained at least once a week
- full body workouts; each muscle group is trained multiple times a week, these routines are currently the most popular and used for many beginning and intermediate lifters for building muscle and strength
- upper and lower body split workouts on different days; split up strength workouts into upper body on one day and lower body on another days
- periodization with conjugate and linear variation routines; these are specialized routines for athletic and skill-specific goals
- priority training for weak body parts; for more advanced lifters to emphasize one or two muscle groups in a training cycle
- powerlifting routines; strength workouts specifically for gaining strength with limited mass gains
- combination of body weight and free weights routines; these can be effective to gain muscle mass and strength endurance if additional loading and more difficult movements/exercises are mixed into the routines
Any of the above type of weight training can be used to build muscle and gain strength when done properly on a consistent basis. Bodybuilding is all about focuses and specific training; for goals to gain muscle, improve athletic performance, and fat loss.
Nutrition
To build muscle, you must also have a good muscle building diet plan with plenty of calories. The old bodybuilding axiom of, "Eat Big to Get Big," holds true for everyone. Muscle building nutrition is pertinent and central for gaining muscle mass. The body depends on food as fuel for survival. Food is of primary importance to gain muscle. Lean muscle tissue is very energy intensive as it requires a lot of "fuel" (food) to maintain itself. The more muscle you have and the more muscle you want to build, the more food you must eat. You must create a positive energy balance by eating more than you burn off in calories by the end of each day. The way to do this is to eat more than you normally eat. Increase the amount of calories you eat to gain muscle.
Tack on an additional 300-500 calories above maintenance intake and you're set to begin a bulking diet for building muscle. A calorie calculator can help in determining how many calories you need to gain muscle for your bodybuilding regimen.
Also, pay attention to macronutrients: carboyhydrates, protein, and fats. Take plenty of carbs, protein, and essential fats (the good fats like flax and fish oil, omega 3s and 6s). A distribution of 40% of calories coming from carbs, 40% from protein, and 20% from fats is recommended. Other options include 50/30/20 and 35/35/30.
Muscle Building Foods
- lean chicken breasts
- lean cuts of white meats and diary meats; turkey, ham
- lean red meats and steak
- cottage cheese, plain cheese
- egg whites, egg yoke, whole eggs
- whole skim milk
- nuts
- wheat bread and grains
- brown and white rice
- yogurt
- protein supplement meals, protein powder; whey, casein, soy
- all types of fruits and vegetables; the "greens, reds, yellows, and oranges"
Take post workout meals and whey protein shakes after an intense workout so muscles can start repairing and growing immediately. The body becomes extremely receptive to nutrients since it will be "screaming" for fuel to start repairing and growing.
Rest and Recovery
Rest and recovery simply means to get lots of sleep, at least 6-8 hours. Muscle grows in the kitchen (while you're eating) and outside of the gym while you sleep. The most repair and muscle growth occurs while you're sleeping. This process of hypertrophy (muscle growth) during sleep is called supercompensation to gain muscle mass. So make sure you allow your body adequate rest and sleep a lot. Sleep prevents overtraining and rejuvenates the body for the next day. You will be able to train intensely and hard after a good night's sleep. It is also a good idea to take several small 5-10 minute naps throughout the day, especially if you get less than 6 hour of uninterrupted sleep a night.
Essentially, building muscle and bodybuilding in general can be reduced to the above three principles of fitness. Put all three into action and reap the gains. Gaining muscle mass is about understanding what you have to do with the proper knowledge, and then going out and doing it. The devil is in the details. If you want a step-by-step blueprint of an absolutely effective training program to build muscle, then check out some of our recommended training programs here. Each program that we write about and recommend has been personally tested by us to ensure they work for gaining muscle and strength. You will learn how to build muscle and gain muscle mass with the best exercise and diet programs available.
Above all, train hard. Eat properly and eat a lot. Then sleep well and sleep a lot. You'll build muscle mass to your potential if you follow the proper rules. In bodybuilding, learn to gain muscle the easy and efficient way today.
Browse around this site and don't forget to read the rest of the articles with product reviews and recommendations on the best and most effective muscle building programs available.
Train Hard. Train Safely. Train Smart
If you have any questions or comments, don't hesitate to leave a comment below of email me at ZQH245@gmail.com or ZQH250@gmail.com
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