In theory building muscle should actually be a simple concept. However, simple doesn’t mean easy, and many people struggle to get results. So let's take a look at some important principles when building muscle.
TRAINING STYLE
One of the most common mistakes made when setting out on a muscle mission is spending too much time on focusing on certain moves for example bicep curl. While these have their place in any programme, they are much more effective when basic fitness and physique foundations have been developed too.
Why? moves that are isolations aren’t that efficient for all-round muscle development. As the name suggests isolation moves are specific to one particular muscle. You’ll get more out of your training by turning your attention to compound moves like the deadlift, bench press, squat and bent over row. These will stimulate the release of growth hormone in the body which in turn aids the muscle building process.
NUTRITION
To reach muscle gain goals, it is important to focus on your nutrition just as much as your training. It is recommended to consume around 2g per kg of bodyweight of protein per day, evenly spilt over 4-6 meals. As well as this, enough calories in a mix of carbohydrates to fuel training and fats for the important roles it plays in the body, such as cellular signalling and the production of hormones.
You should be using protein from a quality source such as meat, eggs, dairy, or protein powder to increase your daily intake.
VOLUME OF TRAINING
Training volume for a given exercise is the load multiplied by the number of reps and sets. This means we can also increase volume by increasing the number of sets. This includes the amount of times we do an exercise as well as using techniques like super sets and giant sets.
If you can’t increase reps at a certain weight, another option is to lower the weight and do more reps.
Muscle building is a process that requires a you to be consistent and sensible with your training and your nutrition. In order for your training to be successful, we need to provide enough of the right quality nutrients to support these processes. For those who require extra nutrients in their diet, supplementation can be used to fill in the gaps check out the supplements we have to offer here