Body Banao

The major mistake people make at the time of building muscle is following the routine of Pro Bodybuilders. Many of them don’t workout naturally, have excellent genetics and started training differently. Following their routine will in fact hamper your muscle growth. Here are the steps an average person should follow to build muscle.

1. Become Stronger: Increased strength builds more muscle. Start strength training, particularly weight lifting, since you can start with light weights and then keep on increasing the weights. Body-weight exercises are also effective.

Weight Lifting: Begin with an empty bar and master correct form. Increase weight every workout to force your body out of comfort zone.
Calisthenics: Push-ups, Pull-ups, Dips, Pistols, Reverse Crunches, etc. Change to difficult forms or increase weight as soon as they become easy.

2. Stick to Free Weights. Barbells allow you to lift the maximum weights. Higher weight puts lot of stress, leading to more muscle. Dumbbells are excellent for support exercises, but not for the important lifts. Avoid machines.

Secure: Machines push you into predetermined, abnormal motion patterns thus leading to injuries. Free weights imitate natural movements.
Effective: Free weights compel you to restrain and stabilize the weight. They develop more muscle than machines, which steadies the weight for you.
Practical: Strength developed on machines is useless for free weights or real life. In real life, there is no machine that stabilizes the weight for you.
Multipurpose: A single barbell lets you perform innumerable exercises. It saves you plenty of money and space, particularly if you are interested in a home gym.

3. Perform Compound Exercises. Don’t copy Pro Bodybuilders. Isolation exercises should be done after you’ve laid foundation of strength & muscle mass. But in the initial stage, select exercises that target many muscles simultaneously as they are better. Avoid Biceps Curls, Triceps Kickbacks and Leg Extensions. Instead choose Pull-ups, Chin-ups, Barbell Rows, Bench Press, Overhead Press, Dips, Squats & Deadlifts.

4. Workout Your Legs. Squats use your entire body, so they’re the most essential exercise. Your look will change completely after you can Squat 1.5 times your body-weight, which is free weight Squat, where hips go below the knees. Your entire body tenses when you perform Squats & Deadlifts. They treat your body as a single piece and allow you to handle heavy weights. Don’t waste time with Biceps Curls. Squat & Deadlift with heavy weights will give you bigger arms.

5. Perform Total Body Workouts. Don’t follow Pro Bodybuilders. Body part splits with isolation exercises can be done after you’ve developed a base, meaning squatting 1.5 times your body-weight.

6 Focus on Recovery. Pro athletes exercise 5-6 times a week. However they achieved that after a long time. You will end up overtraining if you follow their programs. Beginners require more recovery.

Rest. Muscles grow when you rest, not when you workout. Start with 3 full body workouts per week and focus on intensity, not gym time.
Sleep. Growth hormone releases when you sleep, building muscle. Aim for 8 hours sleep. Nap post workout if your lifestyle allows.
Drink Water. Avoids dehydration and helps muscle recovery. Drink 2 cups water with each meal, and sip water during your workout.
Eat. “Eat like a horse. Sleep like a baby. Grow like a weed”. Your training is useless if you don’t eat plenty of whole foods. More below.

7. Eat Unprocessed Foods. Your body fat will go down, thus helping you display the muscles better. Besides the vitamins & minerals speed up recovery. Don’t eat food kept from a box. Eat unprocessed foods mostly.

Proteins. Meat, poultry, fish, whey, eggs, milk, …
Carbs. Brown rice, oats, whole grain pasta, quinoa, …
Veggies. Spinach, broccoli, tomato, salad, carrot, …
Fruits. Banana, orange, apple, pineapple, peers, …
Fats. Olive oil, fish oil, real butter, nuts, flax seeds, …

8. Eat A Lot. Food is required for energy, muscle development and recovery. More recurrent meals also increase your metabolism, thus aiding fat loss.

Consume Breakfast. Obtain calories right from the moment you get up.
Eat After Workout. Obtain proteins & carbs after workout to speed up muscle recovery & restore energy levels.
Eat After 3 Hours. 6 meals per day. Provides your muscles a regular supply of protein, promotes muscle restoration & recovery, increases your metabolism.
Eat body weight in lbs x 18kcal. Keep a record of your daily calorie consumption by using FitDay. You should eat minimum of your body-weight in lbs x 18kcal for weight maintenance.

9. Increase Weight: Its difficult to get a muscular look, if your weight is just 140lbs at 6?, irrespective of the amount of training you have done. This can be done in following manner:

Consume Calorie Rich Foods. 100g raw spinach contains 25kcals, while the same amount of wild rice contains 380kcals. Consume pasta, oats, olive oil, mixed nuts, etc.
Develop Strength: Boost your Squat to 1.5 times and Deadlift twice your body-weight for minimum of 1 rep. Increased strength means more muscle.
Consume Whole Milk: If you are not averse to putting on some fat, drink a gallon of whole milk daily in addition to your current food consumption. You will put on 25lbs in a month along with 3 squat sessions per week.

10. Eat Protein. Proteins have the maximum thermic effect. You require 1g protein for each pound of body-weight daily to develop & retain muscle. Consume whole proteins with every meal.

Red Meat: Ground round, steaks, deer, buffalo, …
Poultry: Chicken breast, whole chicken, turkey, duck, …
Fish: Tuna, salmon, sardines, mackerel, …
Eggs: Consume the yolk as it is rich in vitamins.
Dairy: Milk, cottage cheese, quark cheese, yogurt, whey, …

Persevere: Become stronger, record progress and persevere till you get the desired muscles. The major change in physique will be seen after staying on this course for 2 months.