Best Way To Build Muscle

Posts Tagged ‘muscle building nutrition’

Holding down two jobs, meetings to get too, kids to pick up from school and so on there are so many distractions, pressures and time constraints that if we are not careful can only lead to one thing… not sufficient time to organise your meals. As far as muscle building nutrition goes that is the ultimate crime. The main reason is that it can lead to eating junk fast food.

Fast food is exactly what you don’t want to eat to build muscle up. Too much fat and very little nutrient value combined with little in the way of decent energy providing nutrition. So, how is it possible to not go to fast food joints when you have all of these limiting time constraints and how cane we eat properly if we do go there?

Here are a few golden rules for eating at fast food restaurants in order to build muscle up:

Avoid the apparently good value for money drink and fries. A portion of medium fries can get up to as much as 400 calories with around 20 grams of fat and the drink we are looking at around 200 calories with bags of sugary content!

Always select the grilled option. You can save around 80 calories coming mostly from fat by eating a McDonald’s grilled chicken sandwich as opposed to a premium crispy chicken. A simple choice but often overlooked.

Make sure you skip the dessert. At a fast food joint there are a huge array of dugary snacks in store for you that if you really must have a sugary item then keep it down to a kiddies portion size.

Make sure you restrict your use of those extra sauces. A good deal of these is that many of these are high in fat content with very little muscle building nutrition content. You know what I am talking about, those little packets of mayonnaise, tartar sauce and so on. Do yourself a service and give it a miss.

What can I eat if a fast food joint really is the only option?

If you want to build muscle food that you could eat at McDonalds would be:

For the bulk of your dinner/lunch a Premium Grilled Chicken Sandwich will yield you with 420 calories, 10 grams of fat, 51grams of carbohydrates and 32 grams of protein. A Honey Mustard Snack Wrap (Grilled) would yield 260 calories, 9g fat, 27g carbs and 18g of protein. The Asian Salad Grilled Chicken would give you 390 calories, 12.5g fat, 38g carbs, 33g protein with the low fat Sesame Ginger Dressing. Probably the best option is the Caesar Salad Grilled Chicken that provides 220 calories, 6g fat, 12g carbs and 30g of protein.

If however you reside in Australia the choices might look slightly different as follows:
A Lean Beef Burger: 250 calories, 8g fat, 25g carbs, 18g protein or a Herb Fusion Chicken Salad: 100 calories, 2g fat, 3g carbs 20g protein.

A decent breakfast selection would be: 12 grams of fat, 300 calories, 30g carbs and 18 grams of protein. Possibly a Sausage Burrito including 300 calories, 16g fat, 26g carbs, 12grams of protein or If you are looking for just a snack then how about the Fruit ‘n Yogurt Parfait which beaks down into 160 calories, 2g fat, 31g carbs, 4g protein.

I hope that gives you some idea of exactly how you can eat relatively healthily even at a fast food joint if you make the correct choices. Of course it would be better to allocate some time for planning decent meals throughout the week but if you can’t do this then the above selections should be a good guide and on some level help you burn the fat feed the muscle.

We hear loads of advice and guidance on what to do to build up muscle but much of it is conflicting. For that very reason we are going to set the record straight on a numberof different issues right here and now. Here we go, 7 things not to do when trying to build muscle up:

1) Train for more than 45 minutes. training longer than this can be counter productive as at this point a hormone is released that actually inhibits the muscle building process, train for less than this and the hormones are at the right level for building muscle.

2) Eat lots of all types of food. Often you hear people say to eat as much of everything as you possibly can. Well of course we need extra calories to add muscle mass but do you really believe that stuffing yourself full of E numbers, fatty red meats, fast food, simple carbs (sugars) and so on is going to be healthy for you long term. Of course not stay with the nutritious muscle building foods and these will then make sure that you develop lean muscle mass and prevent your body suffering long term health problems.

3) Isolation muscle building exercises. That refers to exercises such as tricep presses that place focus on one individual muscle alone. This is not an efficient use of time and energy. Exercise using multi joint exercises such as squats, pull ups,presses and so on. These exercises stimulate muscle growth in more than just one muscle at a time.

4) Do not ignore aerobic exercise. I’m sure you have heard that you should steer clear of aerobic stuff as it consumes valuable calories that could be put towards building muscle. yes this is correct but come on there is a sensible balance to be had. Sure get big but do you want to be huge and not be able to walk up a few flights of stairs without panting. Train aerobically two or three times a week and just consume additional calories to make up for these sessions.

5) Change exercises too much. You may know that variety ensures muscles keep growing, that is correct but naturally at the same time not letting your muscles establish an exercise rhythm can also limit your progress that you might otherwise make. Use an exercise for two or thress months before you drop it.

6) Train too often. The major cause of lack of muscle gain is over training. One to two workouts a week for each muscle group should sufficient fro most people.

7) Give in. Too many bodybuilders quit just because there muscle growth eases up a bit. This is the exact time when you should be rising to the challenge and training with more intensity, paying attention to muscle building nutrition and showing determination.

Go get huge!

We hear loads of advice and guidance on what to do to build up muscle but much of it is conflicting. For that reason we are going to clear up a few things right now about what not to do to build up muscles. Here we go, 7 things not to do when trying to build muscle up:

1) Train for more than 45 minutes. training longer than this can actually inhibit muscle gains because at this point a hormone is produced that limits the muscle building process, train for less than 45 minutes and the hormones level is about correct for building muscle.

2) Eat lots of all types of food. Frequently you hear others say to consume as much of all types of food as you possibly can. Well sure we need excess calories to build muscle mass but do you really think that stuffing yourself full of E numbers, simple carbs (sugars), fatty red meats, fast food and so on is going to benefit you long term. Of course not stay with the nutritious muscle building foods and these will then make sure that you develop lean muscle mass and prevent your body suffering long term health problems.

3) exercises that isolate individual muscles. That refers to exercises such as tricep presses that place focus on one individual muscle alone. This is not an efficient use of time and energy. Stay with compound multi joint exercises such as squats, pull ups,presses and so on. Muscle growth is triggered in more than just one muscle at a time.

4) Ignoring cardio-vascular fitness. I’m sure you have heard that you should steer clear of aerobic stuff as it consumes valuable calories that could be put towards building muscle. yes this is correct but come on there is a sensible balance to be had. Sure get big, but do you really not want to be able to walk up a few flights of stairs without losing your breathe. In order to preserve long term health then do aerobic exercise 2-3 times a week and simply make up for this by eating more.

5) Switch exercises a lot. You may know that variety keeps the muscles growing, that is true but at the same time not allowing your muscle to establish an exercise groovecan also stop you from making the progress you otherwise could do. Use an exercise for two or thress months before you drop it.

6) Over train. The major cause of lack of muscle gain is over training. One to two workouts a week for each muscle group should sufficient fro most people.

7) Give up. Too may people give in when there muscle growth diminishes. This is the exact time when you should be rising to the challenge and training with more intensity, paying attention to muscle building nutrition and showing determination.

Go get massive!

A typical dilemma for any active sportsmen who lifts weights and wants to gain muscle mass is that they know there goal to build muscle up conflicts with the fact that they do a lot of cardio-vascular work. How can someone like this build muscle fastest whilst still doing cardio, indeed is it even possible?

Quite often it is suggested that in order to build muscles fastest you have to keep cardio training down to as limited an amount as possible. This is said because cardio workouts do two main things that work against muscle building, they are: 1) use up a lot of calories 2) increase the speed of your metabolism. Both of these two things contribute to the same problem, namely, not getting enough calories on board. How many calories ought I to be eating is therefore the next natural question?

Well, to keep at the same weight every day you would be required to consume enough calories to cover the energy usage of your body as if it were resting (basal metabolic rate), then eat enough extra calories to provide energy for your workouts. If you want to add muscle mass on top of this then you have to add an extra 500 calories every day.

Is there a way to figure out this total?

Yes, certainly one method of doing so is by using the Katch-McArdle formula (BMR based on lean body weight). Here it is:

Men: BMR = 66 + (13.7 X wght in kg) + (5 X hght in cm) – (6.8 X age in years)

Women: BMR = 655 + (9.6 X wght in kgs) + (1.8 X ht in cm) – (4.7 X age in years)

Once you have gotten this figure you should then multiply it by one of the following to allow for your daily activity levels:

Sedentary = BMR X 1.2 (little or no exercise, desk job)
Lightly active equals BMR X 1.375 (light exercise/sports 1-3 days/wk)
Mod. active = BMR X 1.55 (sports 3-5 days/wk/moderate exercise)
Very active equals BMR X 1.725 (hard exercise/sports 6-7 days/wk)
Extr. active equals BMR X 1.{9 (hard daily exercise/sports & physical job or 2X day training, i}.e marathon, contest etc

So, should you be doing cardio and weights frequently then you should multiply this by at least 1.725. This will give you the figure that will cover your daily energy needs. This total then needs to changed according to your specific goals. Presuming it is muscle building, you would need to add at least a further 500 calories per day.

So, for arguments sake lets say the number you figure out is 3000 calories then that would mean 6 meals everyday which each contain 500 calories. Each meal would then be made up of 62 grams of carbohydrate, 37 grams of protein and 11 grams of fat. This is because 1 gram of carbohydrate or protein is 4 calories and one calorie of fat equals 9 calories.

Correct muscle building nutrition and working out your calorie needs like this is what is going to ensure you build muscles fastest, not any miracle new exercise!

 It is a well known fact nowadays that to build muscle diet is a key component that will determine whether you are successful or not. If your diet is poor regardless of how hard you train you won’t grow. So just quickly we’ll outline a few basic rules for a great ‘build muscle diet’ and then we’ll reveal some of the best foods for building muscle.

Ok, quick guidelines for a diet to build muscle:

1) Eat 5-7 meals per day. This will mean that you can easily eat the required amount of calories in order for you to grow. It will ensure that your body has high levels of energy throughout the entire day. 

2) Divide your meals up in to approximate portions of 50% carbohydrate, 30% protein and the remainder can come from fats.

3) Eat about an hour half to two hours prior to your workout and eat immediately or at least within an hour after your workout. Your post workout meal may indeed be a meal replacement powder but it must be high in protein. To support muscle growth throughout the night then consuming a protein shake or eating a meal before bed is a smart move. After waking eat as soon as possible as your muscles will be low on energy at this time.

4) Take supplements if you can afford it. Try supplementing with these: essential fatty acids, multi-vitamin pills, whey protein and creatine. Whilst you are aware to build muscle diet is key you may also wish to give yourself an further boost by taking supplements.

5) Drink water, little and often. many of the reactions in the body require the presence of water. They occur much more easily in the presence of ample supplies of water. Water is required for muscle growth do drink plenty. Try not to drink massive amounts at once as this will leave you feeling bloated.

Alright, so we have go the basic covered. Now then for muscle building purposes what food is good. Here are some great foods for your to try:

Protein is needed for growth and repair of muscles. Naturally this will be an important factor for those wishing to stack on mass.Fantastic sources of protein include: Cheese, Egg Whites, Turkey Breast, Salmon, Lean Beef, Chicken Breast, Tuna Cottage Whey Protein.

Carbohydrate is the bodies supply of energy and fuel for day to day activities and for supporting muscle growth.To maintain energy levels and also to support muscle growth try and include the following in your diet: Brown Rice, Baked Potatoes, Bagels, Oatmeal, Fat Free Yogurt, Whole Wheat Pasta, Sweet Potatoes, and Beans.

Build muscle diets often neglect to mention that fats are important too. Some essential metabolic functions require certain types of fat. For fats that build muscle try to include in your diet: Avocado, Olive Oil, Nuts, Flax Seed Oil, Natural Peanut Butter and Fish Oil

Vitamins and minerals play a wide variety of roles in all of the important reactions in the body including muscle growth.Great sources of vitamins and minerals are: Broccoli, Cauliflower, Asparagus, Green Beans, Peas, Carrots and Spinach.

By following the above guidelines you ought to be able to pack on some serious size. Just don’t forget that in order to grow your body needs to take on board excess calories for energy and to support mucle growth. If you don’t consume excess calories you won’t grow. Follow these above rules and a sensible ‘build muscle diet‘ containing these types of foods and you should have no problems building muscle.

Just before I tackle the main purpose of this article which is to show how to build muscle vegetarian style I will briefly outline the different types of vegetarians. Vegans do not eat dairy products or any other animal by products,  pesco-vegetarians will eat fish and dairy products and lacto-ovo vegetarians will drink milk and eat eggs but won’t eat meat. This is enough detail for our purposes here although bear in mind there are a few other types.

Why choose to be a vegetarian?

Well due to the dangers of the food that none vegetarians eat, vegetarians actually have a decreased risk of a variety of diseases such as: coronary artery disease, hypertension, cancers and diabetes mellitus. As you may agree the reasons for changing to be vegetarian are compelling indeed and that is before we even begin to discuss the idealistic side of things such as being less cruel to animals, saving food for starving others, conserving the rainforest, becoming more friendly to the enviroment and such like.

Ok , then as a vegetarian how exactly am i going to take on board enough protein?

Well the answer is pretty straightforward, Soy. Soy in reality has higher levels of protein than beef and also contains all eight of the essential amino acids. Particularly good sources of soy include: seitan, miso, soy milk, tempeh, textured soy protein and of course tofu. These ingredients can form the basis of a good deal of tasty dishes. Beans, rice, seeds, legumes, nuts and even vegetables are another great supply of amino acids which together should ensure you never get short on protein.

Alright so that is protein deficiency crossed off the myth list now how about vitamins and minerals like: zinc, vitamin D, calcium, iron and vitamin B12?

Well a supplement would actually be appropriate for a vegan here. Vitamin B 12 is found in dairy products so other types of vegetarians ought to never go short of this. The others can easily be gotten from a decent meal replacement powder. Of course however many minerals and vitamins are easily available in the form of leafy green vegetables and fruit that you should not overlook if you wish to build muscle vegetarian style. 

So, overall there are many health benefits to being a vegetarian and being a vegetarian need not prevent you from achieving your bodybuilding goals. Of course a key factor to your diet succes will be the ability to plan, however this is just as crucial for meat eating bodybuilders also. With the above guidelines in mind go ahead and build muscle vegetarian style!! 

Bodybuilders are typically always searching around for new ways to bust through training plateaus, to provide variety for your routines and to find new ways to trigger muscle growth and improve strength levels. Discovering new variations is critical for bodybuilding success as your body soon adjusts to new demands of new exercises and will not continue to grow unless new ways to stimulate muscle growth are found.

There are a variety of ways in which to stimulate growth including the standard progressive overload principle of using sets and reps and doing as many repetitions as you can until muscle failure. Other types of variations for stimulating growth include supersets, compound sets, drop sets, 21s, partials and so on. However today we are going to look at negatives as a way to stimulate muscle growth.

So, what is a negative? And how can you build muscle fast using negatives?

Well, negatives are performed as follows. Lets use the bench-press as an example and imagine that you usually do 8 repetitions at 110kg. You have become stale and your struggling to add anymore muscle and got stuck at this weight. Add to the bar an extra 20 kilos and get your friends to spot you and help you to press this weight up with their assistance. Now from the top start position get your helpers to let go of the bar so that you can gradually under control lower the barbell. Then let your friends help you press it back up once more. Do this repeatedly as many times as you can until you are unable to do any more reps safely.

Why do negatives? And will I build muscle fast using negatives?

Well it happens to be that your muscles are actually in the lowering phase stronger than what they are in the lifting phase. So, by doing negatives you can get your muscles used to handling a heavier weight. Do a few sessions like this and you can stimulate muscle mass and improve your performance for regular repetitions and increase your overall muscle mass.

Does doing this pose any problems?

As your muscles are likely to not be used to doing this and for physiological reasons your muscles are more than likely going to be sore on the following days. Obviously do not return to the gym until you have totally recuperated and keep high your protein intake and be completely sure to take a very good protein shake straight after your training session.

Negatives can be made use of for just about any exercise but work best for the classic mass builders such as the major compound multi-joint exercises like: squats, deadlifts, pull ups, shoulder presses, and such like. However use these sets infrequently as a occasional way to break your way through training plateaus and to trigger muscle growth.

With those points in mind keep taking on good solid muscle building nutrition, rest plenty and workout vigorously and regularly and you will likely have no problems stacking on muscle mass. Now go ahead and build muscle fast using negatives.

Ok, great, so you have finally decided that you are going to do something about your skinny physique and try and pack on some muscle mass. Whether it is because you want to look good at the beach or you have just watched another ‘Rocky’ movie or you just want to improve your sporting performance. So obviously you know that you are going to need to pump some iron. However you may not be aware of what you are supposed to be eating for muscle building nutrition. This mini muscle building nutrition guide will give you enough knowledge to install an effective muscle building diet.

Firstly to build muscle eat more often. Try to eat 5-7 smaller meals every day. This is due to the fact that your body needs excess calories to support muscle growth and build muscle. If you don’t get enough calories then you cannot build muscle. 5-7 meals per day will allow you to take on more food comfortabley without eating too much at anyone sitting.

Secondly, you will need to cut out a lot of the junk food that you are probably eating at the moment. Go on admit we are all guilty of it at some time or other but these measl need to be replaced with decent muscle building nutrition.

Thirdly, you are going to have to consume more water than you did before. Ensure that you have a bottle of water near you throughout the day to sip from. nearly all of the bodies reactions require water to some degree or other and that includes muscle growing reactions too.

Fourthly, try to divide each meal up into portions of the following amounts of protein, carbohydrtates and fats. Try to make them equal to 50% carbohydrate, 30% protein and 20% fat.

Fifthly, you will need to educate yourself as to the kinds of foods that you should be eating. Here is a start to illustrate what some of the best muscle building foods are:

For protein: turkey, chicken, fish and shellfish, eggs, red meats, dairy products. These are brilliant sources of quality protein so include them in your daily meals as regularly as you can. Be aware that these are high in saturated fat so you would be wise to mix them with the following foods that supply protein but with much less fat: Egg whites, Lean meats like poultry and fish, Non-fat or low-fat milk and dairy products (skim milk and cottage cheese are terrific foods), Turkey breast, Lean cuts of red meat and skinless chicken breast.

For carbohydrates and sustained energy release: bread, brown rice, oatmeal, bagel, pasta cereals and potatoes. For instant bursts of energy try to eat: fruits such as apple, raisins, orange, bananas, grapes and sports drinks.

The fat portion of your meals will come naturally from the above foods. Also be sure to get plenty of vitamins and minerals from leafy green vegetables. If you have enough money for muscle building supplements then go for a decent multi-vitamin, essential fatty acids, whey protein and creatine.

Finally a few words of advice on exactly when to eat. To build muscle eat within one hour of finishing your workout, before bed and immediately on rising. If you desire muscle growth then these are very important times. You will be in a great place to start making good muscle gains if you follow the above guidelines.

There are numerous articles, websites, blogs, magazine columns and such like that all give information and advice about the easiest ways to stimulate muscle growth. so, if there are all these varied methods to stimulate muscle growth then how come it is so such a difficult task for certain people? Well, the answer is partly supplied by the question itself. With so much conflicting and individualistic advice about, both on the net and in bookstores and magazines, how on earth is someone new to bodybuilding supposed to know what to do?

The new bodybuilder really needs to merely have knowledge of the essential basics in order to start growing therefore much of this information will be irrelevant. So with that in mind here are three sure fire steps to help anyone build muscle easily.

1) Train hard. Make use of the all time classic muscle mass building exercises such as: deadlifts, rows, squats, benchpresses and pull ups. These time proven exercises will help you build muscle mass easily. Try to veer away from exercises that promote isolation of individual muscles, these are really for muscle carving and defining and not for building mass. Get in the gym, workout vigorously for 45 minutes, stay focused and then get out.

2) Pay attention to muscle building nutrition. For decades now experienced trainers have been saying that at least 80% of muscle growth success is down to good muscle building nutrition. This is still true today! As a rule of thumb 50% of your food should be from carbohydrates, 30% from protein and the rest made of fats.

The following foods are recommended, for carbohydrates: potatoes, rice, pasta, brown breads. For protein: chicken, turkey, beef and fish, especially mackerel and tuna. fats will come naturally in all of these foods. If you have a few spare dollars to spend then try supplementing with: whey protein, essential fatty, acids, creatine and a good multi-vitamin product.

3) Rest. Muscle grow whilst you are asleep and at rest so it therefore comes as know surprise that you need to spend quality time resting. Many people new to bodybuilding overtrain and do no give their body adequate time to rest and recuperate. Two workouts per muscle group a week will be sufficient for most people.

Yes, I did indeed say it was simple and it is. If you just stick to those basics you too can build muscle easy. Of course you can go into as much detail as you like within any one of those subject areas but in essence that is all you need to know to grow. With those points in mind, go out there, train intensely in the gym, follow a good muscle building diet and give yourself time to grow!

There is much advice floating around both on and offline about how to build muscle fast. As a personal trainer myself here are a few little known facts and secrets that I personally consider worth your while contemplating on your quest to build muscle mass:

I often hear that you should train each muscle group just once a week. Whilst this may be provide optimal progress for extremely hardgainers it is not true for the vast majority of people. You only improve at something if you practice a lot, once a week in my opinion is not enough, twice a week is more like it for each muscle group. Muscle groups should be hit at least twice a week, no less. In a perfect world you should try to go a month or two where you push your body hard and near overtraining and then a month or two where you near undertraining. This provides times when there is a lot of stress for the body to handle and other times when the body has more time to recover and build momentum for another push. This technique will help you avoid training plateaus.

Ensure that your training sessions don’t exceed 45 minutes. If you deem that time limit to short then possibly your routine is too lengthy or you are not remaining focused and intense in your workout efforts. Focussing on intensity and quality should ensure that 45 mins is more than enough time. If your workouts last longer then this then testosterone levels drop dramatically due to the increased production of cortisol which actually causes the body to eat muscle tissue and store fat. precisely the reverse of what we need.

In an ideal world you should put your training sessions in to cycles. after a while your body adapts to a routine so that it no longer stimulates growth. Vary your routine before your gains start to diminsh. You should also avoid switching your routine too often. Doing so could confuse your bodies muscles overly so and stop it working its way into a nice groove.

If you use the wrong exercises you are unlikely ever to make big gains. The classic time proven muscle building exercises are the multi-joint exercises otherwise known as compound exercises. The number one exercises being: bench presses, rows, squats, pull ups, shoulder presses plus any exercise that moves your entire body through air ie, not just moving individual limbs. If you use these exercises, with a few of their variations and correct muscle building nutrition then you can’t help but stimulate muscle mass growth. With those guidelines in mind, go pump some iron, eat correctly and get huge.