As a fitness instructor, people regularly ask me how to build muscle quickly. Today's article will give you a quick overview on the simple things you need to focus on if your goal is to build a bigger body over the next couple of months.
That's right, I said a couple of months. Not a year.
For most people the main obstacle which has held them back over the years is not lack of potential but rather lack of solid advice. Everywhere they turn they see somebody telling them they need to do something different or buy the next big supplement.
The rules to building a more powerful physique are very simple. Too simple, perhaps, for many people to believe them. Instead they spend years looking for the over complicated version.
#1 Go with compound movements for maximum results.
#2 Use your rep range to keep progressing the resistance.
#3 Don't forget you also need to have a good diet.
Within the three easy to follow rules you see above lie the secrets to a great muscular physique. Furthermore, I have been doing this for over seven years and in the course of that time I've seen countless people get results with these three little steps.
First let's take a look at point number one, which asks you to use compound movements in the gym. It has been shown time and time again that big compound exercises like shoulder press and bench press force more muscular growth than small isolation movements.
During your next workout session take a quick look at the free weights section and you'll see the common problem we speak about. Guys love doing endless sets of bicep curls but hate doing big movements like pull ups or squats. They're holding themselves back.
Of course, there is more to this than just knowing which exercises will get you the results. You also need to know how many repetitions to aim for and have a system in place to consistently progress you to new levels.
For muscular hypertrophy you should be achieving around 8-12 repetitions in every set. Use this as a guide and it will also help you to progress at a very consistent rate. Each time you are able to push out over twelve reps with a certain weight you should be looking to increase the resistance, pushing yourself back down towards the 8 rep mark and working with that weight until your strength increases.
Of course, we wouldn't be very much help to you if we didn't cover the third point which is diet. Try not to make the common mistake of assuming just because you want to get bigger you can eat anything you want. You don't just want to add size, you want it to be the right kind of size.
All calories are not creating on an equal playing field. It's important to realize that two people eating the same number of calories could get totally different results, as one could be feasting on junk food whereas the other is quite healthy. A split of 30%, 50% and 20% between protein, carbs and fats respectively will be a good start.
If you've had a certain body part which has proved difficult to get results with, you will find that the three steps will help you to bring it back up to speed. So before you spend hours pouring over the best shoulder building exercises or top chest workouts we recommend getting on top of the basics first.
Too many people are endlessly trying to figure out how to build muscle that they miss the obvious answer by over complicating it. Once you know the three simple rules you are ready to go.