Muscle Building FAQ – 1
Muscle Building FAQ – 1
Muscle Building
How many reps do I need?
How many reps you need to do depends on your goals. As a guideline try and stay within 2 to 6 reps for strength and power, 8 to 12 reps for muscle size and 15 to 20 reps for endurance. If our goal is to build muscle then your reps range should be around 8 to 12 reps i.e. the weight should be heavy enough to allow only 8 reps, actually you should only be able to get 6 reps with great difficulty on the 6th, but you need to continue on to fight for those last 2 reps, it should be an absolute struggle to get those last two reps. That’s where the muscle growth is. You always need someone there to watch over you when you are performing reps like these. On your next visit you should aim for 9 reps, then 10, 11 and 12, these reps should also be a struggle. When the time comes that you can force out 12 reps with great difficulty, it’s time to up the weight.
How many sets for muscle growth?
Not counting warm ups, 1 good heavy set is enough to induce muscle growth, if done correctly to total muscular failure, however, very few people can or know how to use the 1 set principle correctly so 2 to 3 heavy sets is usually better to ensure muscle growth stimulation. Anything above 3 sets per exercise is usually a waste of time and recovery energy.
How many days a week should I workout?
You should workout 2 to 4 days a week and no more. You simply cannot fully recover and grow when you are working out 5 and six days a week. It usually takes 48 to 72 hours for a muscle group to recover from an intense weight training session. Only until after full body recovery will muscle growth happen. An every other day routine is good.
What exercises should I be doing for muscle mass?
You should be doing the heavy basic exercises like squats, dead lifts, and basic presses. These are the exercises when done correctly and safely will produce the best results for muscle mass. The “simple” isolation exercises can be added on later when you have gained a respectable amount of muscle from the basics. Don’t waste your energy doing isolations if your goal is muscle mass fast.
How much rest between sets?
As much as you need. You should allow your body to recover between sets and let your breathing return too normal. Usually 1 to 2 minutes sometimes you’ll need 3 or more minutes to recover, it depends on the exercise and how hard you pushed yourself.
Should I warm up?
Yes you should warm up, it is very important that you do, but just don’t spend half the day doing so. A few light muscle stretches followed by a couple of light sets of the first exercise you are going to do that day. Then stretch again in between those light sets.
Should I stretch between sets?
You should stretch between sets on your first exercise only. Don’t over do the stretching, the idea is to loosen up muscle for heavy lifts, not burn out muscle before you execute heavy lifts.
Should I workout at home or join a gym?
It’s a matter of personal preference really. Do you like the gym atmosphere or would you rather the privacy of your own home. 3 questions to consider: Can you really concentrate at home to lift really heavy? have you someone there to help? Have you got enough weights and equipment? If you’ve answered yes then maybe you could train at home for a while and see how you get on, otherwise I think the gym would be a better option for you.
Do I need a fitness trainer?
You could consider a fitness trainer if you find that no matter what you try to do, you are not getting the results you desire. If you find that you cannot concentrate on your workouts then you could consider hiring a personal trainer for a time. Read more
Bodybuilding Muscle
The Differences and Similarities: Bodybuilding Muscle and Traditional Training
Bodybuilder Muscle
Depending on where you find yourself in the spectrum of fitness, you may view the steps to bodybuilding muscle as a different and more challenging set of steps than the average person takes in the gym. There is an extremist assumption wrongly associated with bodybuilding. The truth is the majority of people that are hitting the gym are “technically” bodybuilding. The dictionary defines bodybuilding as, “The process of developing the musculature of the body through specific types of diet and physical exercise, such as weightlifting, especially for competitive exhibition.”
So based upon that information, the only real difference between bodybuilding and the new neo-traditional view of working out is whether or not competition is the motivation for the gains. The physical benefits and results that people are getting from weight lifting are catching the eyes and ears of the American Heart Association, health and fitness magazines, and medical organizations across the globe. However, most people don’t realize that their workout, if it is designed to develop muscles or tone in the body, is strictly based upon sound bodybuilding principles.
People tend to think that bodybuilding is an island unto itself and its training techniques are either too monstrous or difficult for the average person to achieve. While bodybuilding muscle to increase mass has a differing end goal, a competition, the program itself is not a drastic departure.
Bodybuilding is actually much more prevalent in today’s mainstream fitness world than has ever been seen before. Sure, you may go into a gym and see the stereotypical lifter grunting and groaning his way to bulk, but what you may not notice is the svelte woman in the corner lifting “heavy”, or the middle aged man in the back with his six-pack squatting it out under the Smith machine. Read more
