Your Ultimate Guide on How to Build Muscle

Learning how to build muscle should be the main focus point for individuals and athletes before they even lift a dumbbell. Walking straight into the gym and curling a dumbbell for hundreds of reps is not going to help you build muscle and put on weight. Without the correct knowledge you are setting yourself up for disaster straight away. Take a step back from training and firstly learn how to build muscle before you even go out and attempt it. When you know how to build muscle your training, nutrition and hard work will all eventually pay off. The only problem is that many people simply do not know how to build muscle and are wasting valuable time and effort in the gym. Luckily for you I have written a whole article dedicated to building muscle and will explain to you in simple terms how to build muscle through good nutrition and effective training.

How to Build Muscle – Eat More Calories

The first thing you will need to know about building muscle is that you will need to eat more calories. In order for your body to put on weight and muscle you will need to be eating a calorie surplus. This basically means you need to be eating over your bodies maintenance level of calories to put on weight. Your bodies maintenance level of calories is the amount your body needs to maintain what it currently has and nothing more. When consuming more calories than your body needs it will use these additional calories to build muscle. However, it is important you do not overload your body with thousands of calories just because you need them to build muscle. Eating too many calories will not make you build muscle any faster it will simply add more fat to your body. Be smart and eat around 500 calories a day over your maintenance level to put on weight and muscle. This will save you from wasting time trying to burn off the fat you gained later on resulting in less time dieting and more time spent building muscle. When I say eat more calories this does not mean eat anything. You should be eating clean foods with a good combination of carbohydrates protein and fats. We will discuss this a bit more in a moment but let’s discuss probably the most important macro-nutrient out of the three. Protein.

How to Build Muscle – Consume at Least 1g of Protein per Pound of Bodyweight

When looking to build muscle protein is vital. Without it you are unlikely to build any noticeable amount of muscle mass and your results will stall very quickly. Protein is what our bodies use to heal, repair and rebuild muscle tissue. Without sufficient amounts of protein there is no way your body can fully repair and rebuild your muscles. If your muscles are not fully recovered before your next workout you will feel weaker and lift less weight. Overtime this will lead to you losing both muscle and strength which is the exact opposite of what we want happening. When you workout you are actually tearing down your muscles. Good nutrition, rest and a sufficient amount of protein are then required to rebuild your muscles and make them that little bit stronger before heading into your next workout. Aim to consume at least 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight. This means that if you currently weigh 160 pounds consume 160 grams of protein each day. Your probably thinking that your never going to be able to consume all that protein in one day but it is surprisingly easy. You will want to be eating a complete protein source with every meal you have throughout the day whilst ensuring you are consuming at least 4 meals a day, preferably 6 or 7. Space your meals out throughout the day and take your pre-workout meal and post workout meal into consideration. These will both count as a meal/snack so make the rest up consisting of a complete protein source along with some complex carbohydrates and healthy fats if possible.

Be sure to lookout for Your Ultimate Guide On How To Build Muscle Part 2 in the upcoming weeks!

Mark Crossan

http://www.easyfitness4you.co.uk/

If your looking for more quality articles about building muscle be sure to check out EasyFitness4you Weightlifting Tips. EasyFitness4You is a fitness orientated site providing valuable information on how to lose weight, how to build muscle and how to perform cardio.