Muscle Building Tips For the Hardgainer If you have had a hard time gaining lean muscle mass in the past, don't stress! Your gains are just around the corner.
Here are a few muscle building strategies that will help you start to get bigger, stronger, and more muscular.
First, we will take a look at INTENSITY and exercise selection, and see why those isolation exercises like concentration curls and chest flys are probably NOT the best way to approach gaining muscle.
Next, we will look at diet, specifically protein consumption, and see how much you actually need to gain muscle (you might be surprised!).
Finally, we will have a look at the importance of rest - why even if your training and diet are in order, if you are not resting properly, YOU WON'T GAIN! So, let's begin...
Muscle Building Tips - INTENSITY If you want to get bigger, you will need to get stronger.
And if you are lifting the same amount of weight, in the same way you were a month ago, you haven't gotten any stronger, and it's no surprise that you haven't gotten any bigger! Each week, strive to lift heavier and heavier weights.
Use intense compound exercises like deadlifts, squats, bench/overhead presses, pullups and rows, to activate your body's hormonal response and brain to muscle connection.
Strive for around 4 or 5 sets of 4-8 reps of a leg/total body strengthener/testosterone activator like deadlifts and squats, then a heavy pressing and heavy pulling motion.
That's it.
You shouldn't be doing more than around 15 sets per workout.
A workout like this shouldn't take you more than 30-45 minutes to complete.
This will maximize your body's testosterone release (testosterone levels peak around 30 minutes into a workout, and go sub-normal after around 45 minutes in), leading to strength and size gains.
Nutrition - Protein Consumption Protein is key ingredient in building muscles, as is total calories.
If you are a hardgainer and trying to gain muscle, you are going to have to eat several times per day, to insure that your body has plenty of the raw material required for muscle growth.
However, don't fall into the trap of downing massive amounts of protein - simply 1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight should be enough.
One pro trainer tried an experiment - several years were spent consuming 1 gram/lb bodyweight, and two years were the spent trying 2 grams/lb bodyweight.
The result - No difference in gains! Across clients including pro athletes, desk jockeys, and stay at home dads, there was no difference in the gains that came from upping protein consumption to two grams per day.
Muscle Gaining Tips - Rest and Recovery Your body will add muscle WHILE YOU REST! Working out is the stimulus that causes this to happen, but your gains don't happen WHILE you are in the gym! Studies have shown that taking a 'back off' week every 5th week, where you decrease the intensity of your workouts (lifting less weight, etc.
) causes more strength gains.
Additionally, take one week off COMPLETELY from working out every month or two.
This will prevent burnout and maximize injury prevention.
Summing up...
Now you have some good clues on how to gain muscle as a hardgainer.
Train hard, eat well, and rest well, and you will be happy with your results!