Gain Muscle Mass
What’s the best way tobuild muscle mass?
Well then, you really need to read this. What could be better than seeing all your difficult efforts at the gym pay off? It’s a great feeling. And you’ll live longer if you focus on building muscle as well as just doing cardio.
So how is it done? You MUST have a clean diet. You MUST have a workout routine that you STICK to.
Having these things is the ONLY way to gain muscle mass now.
What are the basic steps to gain muscle mass? Everyone must know this. If you DON’T have an excellent diet, you’re cheating yourself. If you’re smoking cigarettes, drinking alcohol to excess, you’re cheating yourself. If you’re NOT showing up to the gym AT LEAST three times a week, you’re cheating yourself. You must have these things in line, or you will not get what you want.
It’s a shame to see time after time weight lifters eager to make themselves bigger making the same mistakes. It’s so predictable, I bet you’ve seen them before, the guys that come in with their friends and do a couple bench presses and curls and then leave? Well, they aren’t building muscle. They are just wasting time. So do yourself a favor and stick to these simple rules when you decide to build muscle.
1. Eat clean food, and lots of it.
2. Be consistent with your workout routine. Don’t switch around time and time again.
3. Push yourself to lift more and get exhausted EVERY time you go to the gym.
4. Do some simple cardio to keep your heart and lungs strong (so that you can lift more!).
That was a short list no? But to be sure, there are only a few simple rules to follow when you’re trying to build muscle mass. Consistency is key. So, let’s break down each of these things into more detail shall we?
1. Clean Food-Here is a typical shopping list you might get:
-Oatmeal
-Peanut Butter
-Boneless skinless chicken breast
-Canned Tuna
-Canned Salmon
-Fruits
-Vegetables
-Lean Steak
-Frozen Shrimp
-Eggs
-Avocado
-Green Tea
-Coffee
-1% Milk
-Whole Wheat Bread
-Cold Cuts
-Low-fat mayo
-Low-fat veggie dip
-Mixed Nuts
-Beef Jerky
This should get you started! Now go to Fitday and start logging what you end up eating. Try to make sure you are eating at least 3000 calories a day, possibly more if you can stand it. And make sure your nutrient ratios are something like 30% fat, 40% protein, and 30% carbs, or thereabouts. If you consistently eat this way, combined with everything else I’m going to tell you, you WILL gain muscle mass.
2 & 3-Be Consistent With Your Workout Routine and Push Yourself-Let’s face it, there are some days you just don’t want to go to the gym. But, everyone can get into a rhythm where it becomes natural and push past these feelings. Not everyone can PUSH themselves when they get to the gym, but guess what? The guys that do will be the ones gaining muscle mass! Okay…so what exactly do I mean by “pushing yourself” I mean, that’s a pretty general phrase isn’t it? Let me show you.
Suppose you decide to go to the gym three days a week.
-Day one-Legs and Back
-Day two-Chest and arms
-Day three-Abs and Shoulders
This is just an example…
Now, suppose that one day you do a bench press where you do 4 sets of 6 repetitions. All I’m saying is, every two weeks, you HAVE to make SURE you’re lifting like 2% more. How do you do this? Eat what I told you to eat, push yourself, and be consistent.
4. Cardio-Okay, last bullet point here, and I know what you’re thinking…CARDIO? What difference does it make? I’m trying to GAIN WEIGHT! Not LOSE it! Well, what I’m going to show you is not the typical method of cardio. But it will help you, mark my words.
Now, what I want you to do is, twice a week, go to the cardio room and do a 23 minute workout. That’s all. I want you to go on any of the machines: rowing machine, stair-stepper, treadmill, or whatever.
Run the cardio session like this (or something similar)
NOTE: I use the word rowing, but it could be any machine as I said, just make it challenging!
-3 minutes easy rowing
-30 seconds of “sprinting” rowing
-2 minutes easy rowing
-40 seconds “sprinting” rowing
-2 minutes easy rowing
-50 seconds “sprinting” rowing
-1 1/2 minutes easy rowing
-60 seconds “sprinting”
-3 minutes easy rowing…
And repeat…
Until you get to 23 minutes.
Why work out this way? It’s more like how sprinters train. You’re pushing yourself really hard, raising the level of cardiac stress your body can handle, without wasting precious calories.
DONE!
Now get out there and do it!
I believe in you! 
If you need additional assistance, please feel free to visit any of my squidoo lenses on building muscle mass:
