Archive for the ‘Bodybuilding’ Category

Proper Diet To Gain Muscle Mass

Sunday, March 22nd, 2009

When you decide to gain weight, you always want the fastest way. But the reality is you have to put in your time and pay your dues at the dinner table. It doesn’t have to be complex and difficult though. Here are some quick tips that you can do today to get that muscle mass you want.

The key is to eat lots of meals per day. You want a total of actually 6. Your breakfast, lunch, and dinner strong meals should all consist of at least 30-50 grams of protein from primarily a meat source. Just as the 3 above exercises are your backbones, these 3 meat meals are your eating backbones. In addition to protein, you need lots of complex carbohydrates and good fats too.

Remember, we talked about 6 meals. Three being large, and 3 being small. Let’s talk about the small meals. Now in between your 3 strong meals you need to consume 3 minor meals, such as a protein shake or a couple of protein bars, or essentially some snack which is going to contain another minimum of 30-50 grams of protein, but you are allowed to have this in protein shake form or other easy, convenient protein forms. And the carbohydrate amount need not be as heavy. This is the ideal eating plan for how to gain weight and muscle.

Now let’s talk about the big three meals. This means eating rather heavy at breakfast, lunch and dinner. You want to add food that is going to contribute to weight and muscle gain and the simple way to do this is just to add a large serving of protein to each meal. For instance at breakfast if you normally just eat cereal and toast, you’re going to have to start throwing some eggs in the mix. The key thing to remember is that muscle is made out of protein, and you will need lots of it to build muscle.

It’s great if you can eat egg whites for breakfast. Try for 3 or more. For lunch, if you normally have a burger, then your going to have to double it and have two burgers. And for dinner, if say you normally have something like pasta, then your going to have to add a hefty amount of meat in the sauce to get that protein in. If you usually have a serving of protein at dinner, say a chicken breast, then double it and have two chicken breasts. And if you can eat them baked or streamed, great. Basically your upping your protein intake with solid, strong weight gaining food. On thing to be stressed again is that you need to make sure you are getting alot of pure protein. Eating fatty and fried foods will not help you.

Again, If your serious about gaining weight, then in between your meals, sometime during the day you’ll want to down a high calorie protein shake. This should consist of protein, juice or milk, a tablespoon or two of peanut butter, a banana, and any other fruit you prefer. You could drink half of it between breakfast and lunch and the other half between lunch and dinner. Or if its not convenient just down the whole thing at once during one of those two periods.

The mathematics require you to eat more calories than you burn. You’ll basically force your body to gain weight on this program if you are consistent with it and stick to it day in and day out for at least 6-8 weeks. Make sure you are not just eating fat and not exercising. If you do that, you have a recipe for getting fat, not gaining muscle.

About the Author:

Are muscle building supplements worthless?

Sunday, March 22nd, 2009

If you have ever read a book on goal setting, you know that one of the most important concepts is being able to divide your goal into smaller chunks. Writing your goal on paper and pointing out obstacles from the very beginning are also important to help you reach your destination. However, I think the most important aspect of goal setting has to be the emphasis on long-term gains instead of short-term achievements.

Like many people, I usually focused on the short term results of my actions rather than focusing on a long-term investment. Basically, if a project didn’t work out immediately, I would get discouraged or distracted and move on to something else. After all, there’s always something new and exciting to drag you away. Now, how exactly does this tie into strength training or muscle building?

When it comes to trying to build muscle, too many people are spending their precious time trying to find that perfect supplement that will take care of all their needs. Instead of focusing on the most important concepts, they try to find a shortcut so they don’t have to do the work.

Let’s face it, supplements are not the core of a muscle building program, regardless of what the advertisements out there might be telling you. The latest supplement fad from the bodybuilding gurus will not improve your workout or make up for your lack of self discipline.

Unfortunately, it seems that human nature is to look for a shortcut or silver bullet that will give us the results that we want without the hard work. This is absolutely relevant to bodybuilding supplements, because most trainees are looking for an easy way out instead of focusing on the fundamentals. If you try to look for a muscle building supplement to do all the work for you, you really are wasting your time and money. When you think about how simple (although not easy) natural weightlifting methods are, it really is unnecessary to focus on supplements. It all comes back to self discipline and trying to achieve a goal slowly over time.

Many experts trainers who have the muscles to back up their theories are warning us about trying to rely on supplements. Supplements will have only a slight benefit for the advanced bodybuilder, and they might have zero benefit for a beginner.

Most supplements, however, are either useless or are simply not necessary. The essential components of any bodybuilding program will always be progressive resistance training and increasing one’s daily calories. Looking for shortcuts when you have not even mastered the basics will simply lead to disappointment and a lot of wasted money.

I know it doesn’t sound very exciting when you’re told that supplements are not the way to go and that you’ll have to work hard to achieve the results that you want. It’s also not that comforting to imagine all of the workouts you’ll have to complete and how strict you’ll have to be with your diet plan. However, when you realize that there really are no shortcuts, you have to decide whether or not it’s worth it. I think you know that it is worth it, but you just have to start thinking about long-term results.

About the Author:

How a little planning can avoid a lot of muscle pain

Saturday, March 21st, 2009

Starting out on any project can be a lot of fun. There’s usually excitement, and this is enough to get people going for a while. Unfortunately, this period is more like a honeymoon and doesn’t really last long. Building muscle, for example, takes consistency over long-term.

If you’re serious about building a huge amount of muscle, you’ll need the right information to get started. This information can help you make progress more effectively and more quickly while avoiding injury. If you don’t take time to learn some fundamentals in the beginning, you may end up paying for it down the road.

The first thing you should do is address any preexisting injuries before taking on an intense muscle building program. Getting a checkup with your family doctor is a good start, but you may need to consider some other therapies such as myofascial release to clear up any trigger points or scar tissue. Even some forms of massage therapy can be quite helpful, and many are surprised by the relief that these therapies can provide.

You may not be familiar with these kinds of therapies, but more and more people are taking advantage of them. The key is to tackle these injuries before they get out of hand, and you certainly should be careful before beginning any kind of weight training while nursing an injury.

After beginning a muscle building program, many unfortunately don’t follow a good recovery program. You have to remember that the actual growth of your muscles does not occur in the gym, so you need to give your muscles enough rest in between workouts. Following this warning can help you progress more quickly as well as avoid injury. So many make the mistake of increasing their workouts when they don’t see immediate results.

Their logic is simple: more is better. While this may be a simple concept, it is inherently flawed because it ignores the basic principles of muscle-growth. The goal of a strength training workout in the gym to is to challenge the muscle beyond its previous limits and create small tears in the muscle. The body will adapt to this new stress by rebuilding the muscle in a larger size (hypertrophy). However, the growth of the muscle itself will occur during the recovery phase, not during the actual workout in the gym. Allowing the body to heal before the next workout is critical to long-term success, and many experts only recommend as few as 3 hours of training per week!

Getting plenty of rest is actually one of the most important parts of muscle building. Do not underestimate the importance of a good night’s sleep. Growth hormone is released during deep sleep, which is why you need to get plenty of sleep if you’re serious about building a good amount of muscle. Also remember that your entire body is under stress during a workout, not just your muscles. You need to give your entire body a chance to recover before returning to the gym.

The last bit of advice I would like to give you before you begin your new weightlifting program has to do with listening to others. When you start going to the gym or hanging out in a bodybuilding forum, you’ll probably be exposed to many different opinions that contradict each other. It’s tough to sort it all out, but you need to look for people who have proven their philosophies and achieved success. Look for a trainer who has proven how to build muscle naturally without steroids and even with no supplements (or a minimum of supplements).

About the Author:

Stretching Tips and Techniques for Bodybuilding

Thursday, March 19th, 2009

A bodybuilder can benefit from stretching, one of the most valuable aspects of any fitness routine, since it gears up your muscles before each workout and decreases the possibility of injuries. When you want to perfect your technique and exercise with good form, completing a stretching circuit will help you get on the right track for any type of workout.

The first part of the stretching routine that is responsible in the supply of blood and oxygen to your muscles and joints is warming up. You can warm up by using a stationary bike and alloting at least 5 to 10 minutes in it, do some fast-paced walking, or utilize a jumping rope. This is meant to activate pumping of blood in your entire body and speeding up your heart rate.

Next, you’ll need to prepare your joints by completing movements that encourage your muscles to extend through their entire range of motion.The author of the book Getting Stronger, Bill Pearl, explains how it helps to prevent the self from injuries by preparing the joints before engaging in a workout through stretching.To lessen the body’s soreness after lifting and stress on the muscles, it is also necessary to do stretching.

Ideally, beginning bodybuilders may do stretching for 15 - 20 seconds only or until such time that you feel some pressure in your muscle group. Relax for several seconds, then push just a little further for another 15-20 seconds.Take in fresh supply of oxygen at each step and see to it that you inhale and exhale thoroughly at each push.

In order to protect your muscles and joints, you’ll need to make sure you’re not bouncing your muscles on each count. Many beginning bodybuilders and athletes make the mistake of bouncing or jerking their muscles as they perform each stretch, and this can actually do more harm than good. An intensive weight training may require you to go through longer stretching routines to ensure that increasing flexibility is your focus. Bodybuilders and weight lifters become especially flexible and limber because of the continuous stretching practice.You may be able to perform your exercises with better control and good form as you enhance your flexibility and by increasing the intensity and resistance, you may have better returns of muscle gains.

Maintaining the proper stance throughout your stretching routine is essential for preventing injuries and making the most of your core muscle groups. Avoid injuries by making sure you’re wearing the right types of shoes or boots to balance your center of gravity, and keep your head and neck straight as you perform each movement. Abdominal muscles can also be tucked to support your spine.Although mastering these movements takes time, it will help you significantly when you aim to practice consistently all the basic routines in stretching.

Most importantly, breathe! With adequate supply of oxygen in the body, you can sustain your energy throughout your workout and and may be able to do each movement well.This can be done by breathing in as you start your stretching, holding your breath when you push, and exhaling as you transition to the next routine.

About the Author:

6 Tips to Build Muscle Faster

Thursday, March 19th, 2009

The majority of people are impatient, especially when they are trying to achieve their muscle building goals. Here are some good bodybuilding tips for those who are looking for the secrets of building muscle faster. Follow these tips; you will see results in weeks.

First, when you are building muscles by working out, you should be careful not to do too much. Logically, it seems as if working harder, doing more reps, lifting more weights will make you see results far faster, but this is incorrect.

Since there are so many ways for building muscle faster. Don’t overtrain your body. It is seriously wrong way to do it. Damaged muscle recover takes time. If you damage or strain muscles, it may take up to monthly to cover for next working out exercise. While lying on your back, you can’t build your muscles.

Your weight lifting workout exercise should set at 70% to 80% of your maximum muscle strength. The damaged muscle will repair itself. And the more muscle damaged, the more muscle will be added when it repairs. And 70 to 80% is the good muscle damage point for this purpose. Quickly building muscle means you should take on quick workouts that last no more than one hour each, or the lactic acid buildup will create negative effects.

Aerobics No More

Aerobics don’t help in muscle mass building. But they are good for cardio. They can actually interfere with your attempts to build muscle.

Eat More Fish and Meat

Eat plenty of fish and red meats that are lean. Salmon is good. Salmon have loads of Oemga-3. The proteins in red lean meats will help your muscle growth faster.

The Benefit of Rest

Have a full day rest after a day of weight lifting. Which mean no continuous workout for 2 days. You also can train certain part of muscle in day 1 and train totally different part of muscle in day 2. The main purpose is letting muscle rest and repair itself. Sleeping is also important for your health as well as muscle repair itself. As we mention before, our body will add more muscles after the muscle repairs itself.

Proper hydration is also needed for building muscles. Proper hydration means enough water in your cell for carrying nutrition and riding of body waste, regulating body temperature and protecting your joints. These are tips that you should try out for having healthy body and good working out.

Good Protein Source

In order to build muscles faster, you should add lean chicken, tuna, turkey, lean red meats and eggs in your meal plan. Intake lean protein is important for building muscle. Some protein sources like red meat and salmon have fats. They can boost your testosterone levels and help your muscle growth and increase muscle strength.

Visit Your Doctor

For the proper rest of muscles, you need to talk to your doctor regularly. Your doctor will give you many tips on staying as healthy as possible.

More Sleep the Better

Sleep 8 to 10 hours daily is important for building muscles faster. For this amount of sleep, your muscle can relax and build muscle mass faster. Much of the growth of your muscles happens while you are asleep, so sleep then whenever you get the chance.

About the Author:

Natural Supplements For Bodybuilding

Tuesday, March 17th, 2009

Want to know which one is the best bodybuilding supplement? Nowadays, you find search many types of supplements from the Internet or magazine. But choosing the right one for working out is not easy. What we say “right” or “best”, we are talking about the muscle building supplements that bring you the best results.

The most useful muscle building supplement for your working out is protein. And many bodybuilder experts agree with this point. Protein helps bring all the necessary muscle building enzymes to where they need to be. You need protein to have a higher energy stage for more exercise while building muscle.

While execute your muscle building program, whey protein is one of the supplement you should not skip. Intaking correct dosages and correct amounts of whey protein can bring your the best results.

Another choice of essential muscle building supplement is creatine. Creatine can help you fight tiredness and let you have better working outs. Creatine is a natural nutrient already exists in body. If you want to have better workout results, you should increase creatine level in your body and take creatine supplement is a good choice.

Your muscles are suffering a certain amount of pressure when you are doing weight training exercises in your muscle building program. Your body has to produce a chemical called nitric oxide to fight with this pressure or stress. Supplying nitric oxide to your body is very important especially when you are carrying out stressful working out exercises. Effecting sexual health is the side effect of nitric oxide. Since many users claim that they don’t have such side effects, you can choose to use it on your own risk.

Achieving the best outcome of working out, you can also check out another bodybuilding supplement - glutamine. Glutamine helps to transfer the bodybuilding nutrients to muscle and make it growth faster and bigger.

It is up to you to choose what kind of muscle building supplement to use. Set up a realistic goal and pick one supplement that can accomplish your desired goals. Muscle building supplements work differently and lead to different results. Picking the right one can help you achieve more effective working outs.

There are many brands and companies produce supplements. Select one with verified results. The exaggeration usually occurs in many supplement companies. So before buying supplement, remember to check the affiance of the supplement. Before buying any supplement, it is vital to check the users’ reviews. Selecting a right supplement become vital for enhancing your weight training exercise as well as accomplishing the results you want.

About the Author: