If you were able to ask one fitness based question and get a straight answer, most men would ask for advice on how to build muscle as easily as possible. Sadly, getting a straight answer on any topic in fitness is something which most men deem to be impossible. Simple techniques such as high intensity interval training and power-based explosive training have been over complicated beyond the point where most people can hold their interest.
This may come as a little shock, but the foundations of building lean tissue are primarily the same as they were thirty or forty years ago. Things have got more advanced in certain areas, but the overall principles still stand tall.
They are:
1. Focusing on compound lifts is imperative.
Exercises such as the lat pulldown, bench press, squat and lunge remain key figureheads in any size and strength routine.
The body is forced to grow at an advanced rate with these particular exercise because it needs to recruit far more muscle fibers to get you through the exercises.
2. Learn how many reps to perform.
While high rep training has it's own benefits, you should be aiming for the 8-12 range if your goal is muscular hypertrophy. This is backed up by years of key studies from medical research studies carried out on the subject.
This weight will change on each exercise, of course, but use this rep zone as a guide to tell you if you are lifting heavy enough to see progress.
3. Consistency is the enemy.
While consistently attending the gym is a great thing, consistency can also be a bad thing, as you're about to see.
The number one way to keep building new gains is to hit your body with a resistance which it cannot handle comfortably. Yet, for some bizarre reason, many men do the same program for years and stick largely to the same weights on their biggest exercises. Variety and progression are the keys to success.
4. Sleep is hugely important to increasing muscle size.
Sleep is vastly under-rated by most gym users. You must remember that the body undergoes it's major rebuilding phase during the hours of a deep sleep.
The majority of this recovery phase takes place while you sleep, so be sure to register at least 8 hours whenever possible. If you have consistently neglected your sleeping patterns over a prolonged period, you should expect to see very little return for your sweat in the gym.
Disallowing sleep is comparable to building a wall one day and then returning the next day to knock it all down and build it again. Overall, you may have a nice new wall but it is not any bigger than it was yesterday.
These time tested, established techniques set the foundations for how to build muscle as far as relevant scientific research goes. While it's easy to over complicate things and turn any gym program into a science lesson, the basics of techniques such as hypertrophy, high intensity interval training and fat loss are primarily the same as they were a decade ago.
This may come as a little shock, but the foundations of building lean tissue are primarily the same as they were thirty or forty years ago. Things have got more advanced in certain areas, but the overall principles still stand tall.
They are:
1. Focusing on compound lifts is imperative.
Exercises such as the lat pulldown, bench press, squat and lunge remain key figureheads in any size and strength routine.
The body is forced to grow at an advanced rate with these particular exercise because it needs to recruit far more muscle fibers to get you through the exercises.
2. Learn how many reps to perform.
While high rep training has it's own benefits, you should be aiming for the 8-12 range if your goal is muscular hypertrophy. This is backed up by years of key studies from medical research studies carried out on the subject.
This weight will change on each exercise, of course, but use this rep zone as a guide to tell you if you are lifting heavy enough to see progress.
3. Consistency is the enemy.
While consistently attending the gym is a great thing, consistency can also be a bad thing, as you're about to see.
The number one way to keep building new gains is to hit your body with a resistance which it cannot handle comfortably. Yet, for some bizarre reason, many men do the same program for years and stick largely to the same weights on their biggest exercises. Variety and progression are the keys to success.
4. Sleep is hugely important to increasing muscle size.
Sleep is vastly under-rated by most gym users. You must remember that the body undergoes it's major rebuilding phase during the hours of a deep sleep.
The majority of this recovery phase takes place while you sleep, so be sure to register at least 8 hours whenever possible. If you have consistently neglected your sleeping patterns over a prolonged period, you should expect to see very little return for your sweat in the gym.
Disallowing sleep is comparable to building a wall one day and then returning the next day to knock it all down and build it again. Overall, you may have a nice new wall but it is not any bigger than it was yesterday.
These time tested, established techniques set the foundations for how to build muscle as far as relevant scientific research goes. While it's easy to over complicate things and turn any gym program into a science lesson, the basics of techniques such as hypertrophy, high intensity interval training and fat loss are primarily the same as they were a decade ago.
About the Author:
Taken from: Pick up more proven rules revealing how to build muscle and how to implement high intensity interval training properly for maximum results via the free fitness blog from top online strength coach Russ Howe PTI.