Working out is one of the most important ways to keep your body
looking muscular, lean and youthful. Building muscle and strength
training is one of the fastest ways to achieve the body that you want.
In this article I am going to discuss methods of weight lifting that
have given me the best result in gaining muscle size, not necessarily
strength.
The amount of reps of each exercise that you do can make a large impact on the amount of muscle size that you gain. To achieve strictly strength gains and moderate size gains, one of five reps for each exercise is what is recommended by most experts. For maximum size gains and moderate strength gains 6 to 8 reps per exercise is recommended. For maximum definition and moderate size gains experts recommend 9 to 15 reps per exercise.
In this article I will focus on maximizing size gains and that alone. The workout routine that I lay out later in this article can be used for strength, size or definition depending on the amount of reps that you do for each exercise. You can also mix-and-match between the amount of reps that you do week by week to keep your muscles guessing and to the custom tailored results that you are looking for in your workout routine.
Diet plays a huge factor in how much muscle you gain from your workouts. An increase in the amount of protein in your diet is necessary to grow the maximum amount of muscle. Without protein your body doesn't have the building blocks it needs to build muscle. It would be like trying to drive a car without fuel. Most experts agree that during a weight lifting program you should take in 1 to 1.5 grams of protein per pound of body weight. So for example a man weighing 200 pounds should consume 200 to 300 g of protein per day. I know this sounds like a lot of protein to be eating, but with protein supplements this can be accomplished very easily. Most protein supplements contain 20 to 25 g of protein per serving. I usually like to drink two servings at a time, three times a day. This accounts for 150 grams of protein in itself. My personal favorite protein supplement is Gaspari Myofusion - Milk Chocolate. It contains 25 g of protein, 157 calories, 3 g of fat and only 1 g of sugar per serving. It is also my personal favorite because it is relatively cheap, ($37 online) for a 5 pound bottle that contains 63 servings.
When you drink your protein is also very important to gain the maximum amount of muscle. Your body builds muscle at all times and needs a constant flow of protein to fuel this building. The first protein drink you should take within 30 minutes of waking up. Upon waking up your body is basically empty and looking for fuel. Without any fuel to build protein your body goes into a catabolic state (Lack of nutrients and protein) and will actually begin to eat muscles to create fuel for the rest of the body. So drinking a protein drink upon waking up is essential to build muscle throughout the day.
The next dosage of protein you should consume should be roughly 2 to 2.5 hours after drinking the first protein drink. This midmorning snack can be anything that has a moderate amount of protein. Yogurt, cottage cheese, a protein bar, almonds or any other kind of nut, beef jerky are all good choices. But any other type of food with a decent amount of protein will work. One of my favorite mid morning snacks is a healthy (Not Captain Crunch) Cereal. Some of my personal favorites are Cheerios, Special K Vanilla Almond and Smart Start. Cereal is a good mid morning snack because it provide Carbs needed for energy throughout the day and also provide protein from the milk.
Next is lunch, lunch should consist of a protein source and vegetables. I personally like to precook chicken breasts, lean pork, steak and eat with mixed frozen vegetables. I find this lunch to be very easy to pre-make and is extremely healthy and low-fat for you. You can obviously tailor your lunch to your particular preferences as long as you get a decent amount of protein.
Post workout is the most important time that your body needs protein. By working out you are actually tearing down muscle fibers and your body immediately begins trying to repair and grow them back larger. For this reason you need to drink protein as soon as possible after your workout. About an hour after drinking the protein drink, you will most likely begin to feel hungry. This is the perfect time to enjoy healthy dinner. I will not go into a list of healthy dinners as there are far too many to name, but if you need some assistance there are many websites online that offer healthy recipes for dinner.
The next and last dosage of protein is also an extremely important one. Drinking a protein drink before bed gives your body fuel to build muscle while you sleep. Studies have shown that the body repairs itself during sleep and one of the main things that repairs is worn muscles. So giving your body 50 g of protein to work with throughout the night will definitely ensure the maximum amount of muscle gain.
This very simple daily routine will help cut fat and add huge amounts of muscle in no time. I was able to drop from 245 pounds and 21% body fat, down to 204 pounds and 13.5% body fat in roughly 7 months. These results were achieved with almost no cardio. If you can follow this simple daily routine and stay away from foods high in fat and sugar's I am confident that you will achieve the same kind of results.
I have created a workout schedule that focuses on 1 to 2 muscle groups per day. It is based on a five day workout week, meaning that you workout five times per week. The other benefit to this schedule is that you will give each muscle at least 48 hours of rest before you work it out again. This ensures that each muscle group will have sufficient time to fully heal and regrow itself.
Keep in mind that this schedule can be altered or modified to fit your personal schedule. This is my optimal schedule for my life but yours may differ.
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The amount of reps of each exercise that you do can make a large impact on the amount of muscle size that you gain. To achieve strictly strength gains and moderate size gains, one of five reps for each exercise is what is recommended by most experts. For maximum size gains and moderate strength gains 6 to 8 reps per exercise is recommended. For maximum definition and moderate size gains experts recommend 9 to 15 reps per exercise.
In this article I will focus on maximizing size gains and that alone. The workout routine that I lay out later in this article can be used for strength, size or definition depending on the amount of reps that you do for each exercise. You can also mix-and-match between the amount of reps that you do week by week to keep your muscles guessing and to the custom tailored results that you are looking for in your workout routine.
Diet plays a huge factor in how much muscle you gain from your workouts. An increase in the amount of protein in your diet is necessary to grow the maximum amount of muscle. Without protein your body doesn't have the building blocks it needs to build muscle. It would be like trying to drive a car without fuel. Most experts agree that during a weight lifting program you should take in 1 to 1.5 grams of protein per pound of body weight. So for example a man weighing 200 pounds should consume 200 to 300 g of protein per day. I know this sounds like a lot of protein to be eating, but with protein supplements this can be accomplished very easily. Most protein supplements contain 20 to 25 g of protein per serving. I usually like to drink two servings at a time, three times a day. This accounts for 150 grams of protein in itself. My personal favorite protein supplement is Gaspari Myofusion - Milk Chocolate. It contains 25 g of protein, 157 calories, 3 g of fat and only 1 g of sugar per serving. It is also my personal favorite because it is relatively cheap, ($37 online) for a 5 pound bottle that contains 63 servings.
When you drink your protein is also very important to gain the maximum amount of muscle. Your body builds muscle at all times and needs a constant flow of protein to fuel this building. The first protein drink you should take within 30 minutes of waking up. Upon waking up your body is basically empty and looking for fuel. Without any fuel to build protein your body goes into a catabolic state (Lack of nutrients and protein) and will actually begin to eat muscles to create fuel for the rest of the body. So drinking a protein drink upon waking up is essential to build muscle throughout the day.
The next dosage of protein you should consume should be roughly 2 to 2.5 hours after drinking the first protein drink. This midmorning snack can be anything that has a moderate amount of protein. Yogurt, cottage cheese, a protein bar, almonds or any other kind of nut, beef jerky are all good choices. But any other type of food with a decent amount of protein will work. One of my favorite mid morning snacks is a healthy (Not Captain Crunch) Cereal. Some of my personal favorites are Cheerios, Special K Vanilla Almond and Smart Start. Cereal is a good mid morning snack because it provide Carbs needed for energy throughout the day and also provide protein from the milk.
Next is lunch, lunch should consist of a protein source and vegetables. I personally like to precook chicken breasts, lean pork, steak and eat with mixed frozen vegetables. I find this lunch to be very easy to pre-make and is extremely healthy and low-fat for you. You can obviously tailor your lunch to your particular preferences as long as you get a decent amount of protein.
Post workout is the most important time that your body needs protein. By working out you are actually tearing down muscle fibers and your body immediately begins trying to repair and grow them back larger. For this reason you need to drink protein as soon as possible after your workout. About an hour after drinking the protein drink, you will most likely begin to feel hungry. This is the perfect time to enjoy healthy dinner. I will not go into a list of healthy dinners as there are far too many to name, but if you need some assistance there are many websites online that offer healthy recipes for dinner.
The next and last dosage of protein is also an extremely important one. Drinking a protein drink before bed gives your body fuel to build muscle while you sleep. Studies have shown that the body repairs itself during sleep and one of the main things that repairs is worn muscles. So giving your body 50 g of protein to work with throughout the night will definitely ensure the maximum amount of muscle gain.
This very simple daily routine will help cut fat and add huge amounts of muscle in no time. I was able to drop from 245 pounds and 21% body fat, down to 204 pounds and 13.5% body fat in roughly 7 months. These results were achieved with almost no cardio. If you can follow this simple daily routine and stay away from foods high in fat and sugar's I am confident that you will achieve the same kind of results.
I have created a workout schedule that focuses on 1 to 2 muscle groups per day. It is based on a five day workout week, meaning that you workout five times per week. The other benefit to this schedule is that you will give each muscle at least 48 hours of rest before you work it out again. This ensures that each muscle group will have sufficient time to fully heal and regrow itself.
- Monday - Chest and Calves
- Tuesday - Biceps & Forearms
- Wednesday - Shoulders & Triceps
- Thursday - Legs & Abs
- Friday - Either a Rest Day or Back
- Saturday - Either a Rest Day or Back - I prefer to work my back on Saturday as it is hard to hit the gym 5 days in a row without becoming fatigued.
Keep in mind that this schedule can be altered or modified to fit your personal schedule. This is my optimal schedule for my life but yours may differ.