Weightlifting to build muscle is a complex process with many elements that can affect the results you’ll see on yourself. However, it’s not an impossibly hard task that only a few of us can accomplish. It’s a process and with hard work and dedication, it can be achieved by anybody. Follow these tips to maximize your weightlifting and time in the gym to gain muscle fast!
It goes without saying that if you want to build muscle then you need to get to the gym, or workout at home, fairly often. There will be times you’ll need to sacrifice other plans to pursue your goals of building muscle because a key component to weightlifting for building muscle is multiple workouts per week. Of course, almost just as important as the time in the gym is the rest you give your body. You should be working out about every other day to give your muscles a day in between workouts to both rest and strengthen more efficiently. You should fill your rest days with a proper diet (to be discussed later), plenty of sleep and perhaps some light cardio training. Activities such as hiking, cycling, maybe some yoga or at the very least some stretching & foam rolling will better help your muscles recover and get ready for the next day’s weightlifting session!
To maximize your workouts and weightlifting to build muscle fast then you’ll need to tailor the volume and intensity of each weight training exercise. Volume refers to the number of sets and repetitions you do of each exercise and intensity is the amount of weight you choose to use. So a great rule of thumb for your muscle-building workouts is to do high volume exercise sets, such as 10 to 15 repetitions with less than a minute rest between your sets. Medium intensity means you’ll use weight that isn’t too easy to lift but also isn’t so heavy it’s impossible to finish out your set. The idea in these high volume & medium intensity workouts is that you want to stimulate more lactic acid in your muscles, which appears to stimulate muscle growth.
As expected the term failure in weightlifting means that you’re physically unable to do one more repetition in a set because of your fatigue. You want to push all your sets to near failure for that will stimulate more lactic acid build-up and thus more muscle growth. Starting with a higher number of reps at a heavy weight, such as 15 repetitions, and then reducing each set by a few reps. As your muscles tire you should be going for the full 15 reps even though your target would be 13 or 11 by the last set. Even only completing half a repetition, and pushing yourself to try to get that last rep, works your muscles really well!
Choosing the correct weight for your exercises is a crucial part of weightlifting. The goal is to avoid injuring yourself but also to push your muscles at a reasonable increasing rate. Trying to lift very heavy might seem like the fastest way to get stronger, and you’ll look and feel stronger to the other gym patrons, but lifting too heavy of weight can be dangerous. It’s an easy way to strain and tear muscles which will sideline you from weightlifting and working towards your goal of building muscle for a decent amount of time. On the other side, however, if you increase weight at too conservatively of a rate then you won’t be pushing your muscles enough and will both stunt your results and plateau your progress. Finding the right balance is tough and different for everyone. An easy rule of thumb is to pay attention to the effort you’re exerting during your sets. If your last few reps of a set (with the best form, of course) feel similar to that of your first few reps then it’s time to increase the weight for that exercise.
Something to keep in mind when working on your weightlifting goal to build muscle fast is to be careful of too much cardio. Mixing cardio and weightlifting workouts isn’t altogether a bad fitness combo but the types of workouts and training differ greatly. If, for example, you’d like to build lots muscle of fast but also want to train for an upcoming marathon then, unfortunately, you’d need to choose one to concentrate on because they can contradict each other. Cardio does have its place in weightlifting workouts but not so much as to you’re burning into your muscle energy. Oppositely, weightlifting can help in pure cardio fitness goals but the increased calories from working towards building more muscle are not ideal for losing fat.
A huge aspect of your weightlifting fitness plan geared towards building muscle fast is to increase your protein intake. When you lift weights you are breaking down your muscles and proteins build them back up. So by consuming more protein, you’ll better promote muscle repair, recovery, and growth after workouts. You can generally consume about one gram of protein per pound of body weight per day for good results. On the webpage verywellfit.com there is a calculator that you can use to calculate your estimated lean body mass (LBM). The same page has a breakdown from where you take your LBM and what to multiply it by to figure out how much daily protein your body needs if you want a more specific amount based on your level of activity. There are many different sources you can get protein from such as fish, chicken, turkey, lean beef, eggs, low-fat dairy, and more. There are also protein supplements such as whey protein powder but natural sources of protein from meats and dairy are preferable. Also, eating protein before your workout can help jumpstart your body to build more muscle!
To provide adequate energy and nutrients to promote quick muscle growth then you’ll need to consume more calories overall. Sadly this doesn’t mean you can eat tons of junk food as much as you want. As discussed earlier consuming more protein daily is essential to building muscle fast and can also be a way to hit higher daily calorie counts. A way of looking at this is: if your body recognizes that you’re consuming fewer calories than you are burning each day then it is going to feel less inclined to build new muscle because food/energy is considered to be in short supply. There are a plethora of fitness websites to use to calculate the extra calories you need based on your height/weight/activity level. Maintaining plenty of protein in your diet, you can try aiming for about 250 to 500 extra calories per day — but for some people, you’ll need more or less than this to properly build more muscle and not fat.
Casein protein is a type of protein found in milk that bodybuilders and other weightlifting advocates take advantage of. It’s a protein that absorbs more slowly than other types so it can keep your muscles fed with the essential amino acids for longer than whey and plant proteins. So consuming some casein protein from supplements or milk products such as cottage cheese or Greek yogurt before bed will help your muscles recover and build up overnight!
Sleep is an extremely important part of your plan to build muscle fast. Weightlifting is just part of the process along with diet and rest & recovery. When your body sleeps you release hormones that help your muscles grow as well as physically resting for the next day’s workout. The National Sleep Foundation recommends adults that are aged 18 to 64 sleep seven to nine hours per night!
Your dream of being extremely muscular isn’t going to happen overnight. You need to be patient as well as set reasonable & obtainable goals for yourself during this process. Weightlifting can be dangerous if not managed properly! Keep up a workout regime that works for you and your schedule and stick to it. Being consistent in your workouts and your diet will better help your body adjust and be prepared to maximize muscle growth. Working out and dieting for a week then taking two weeks off will not work out for you in the end. Start off slow and build up into a comfortable pace and regime that you can maintain! Work hard and believe in yourself and you can bulk up in no time as long as your workouts and diet are adequately adjusted.
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