Building muscle is a process, but these tips can help you reach your goal sooner.
Are you trying to build muscle, but it seems you are not improving? It might be that you are missing some essentials. Keep reading to find out the top 5 tips for muscle building.
Get a quality sleep
Getting good quality sleep is important for muscle building since that is when muscle building happens.
When you are in a deep sleep, human growth hormone (HGH) is at its highest level in your body. HGH helps to build muscle mass, boost metabolism, and burn fat. If your sleep is interrupted, the complete repair of soft tissue is impossible due to the absence of HGH.
Therefore, make sure to get 7-9 hours of quality sleep every night.
Eat for muscle gain
Nutrition is, after sleep, the second most important factor when it comes to muscle building. You need to provide your body with enough nutrients to properly recover after the workout and build muscles.
To achieve this, you need to consume nutrient-rich foods and be in a caloric surplus (consume more calories than you spend). It might seem complicated, but you can use Calories Calculator to determine how many calories you need, regarding your gender, age, and level of physical activity.
Another important muscle building tip is to eat enough protein. Proteins are building blocks of your body. Muscle tissue damaged by training rebuilds itself through a process called protein synthesis. To consume enough protein for muscle building, your daily protein intake should be around 1.7-2.2 g/kg (0.7-0.9 g per pound) of your body mass.
However, keep in mind that research suggests that muscle protein synthesis is maximized at the intake of 30 grams of protein in a single meal, everything higher than that won’t cause a significant increase in muscle protein synthesis.
Last, but not least, drink enough water. If your body is dehydrated, your performance will be affected as well. Compromised performance won’t do you good if you are looking to build muscle.
Train for muscle gain
To achieve muscle gain, you need to train for muscle gain. Muscle growth is an adaptation mechanism of your body to the external resistance. Resistance training, such as body weight training, is a great way to achieve this without the need for equipment or gym.
Another thing you need to look after is muscle overload. Simply said, this means you need to exercise your muscles at a level that’s greater than you are normally accustomed to.
As your muscles adapt and grow stronger, you will need to progressively overload them. Meaning, you need to add higher resistance to your training, to make your muscles adapt further. In terms of bodyweight training, this means switching to a more advanced version of the exercise once you are able to do 12 repetitions of the exercise without a problem.
Remember - changes don’t happen in your comfort zone.
The frequency of your training is also important to build muscle. If you are a beginner, it is recommended to train three times a week. For the intermediate level, four times a week is recommended frequency, while advanced athletes should train five times a week.
Supplement (if you want)
Certain supplements can help improve your muscle gain. The three most common ones are whey protein, creatine, and BCAA.
Whey protein
Usually sold in the form of flavored powder for protein shakes, whey is the optimal protein source to support muscle protein synthesis at rest and following resistance exercise, as well as to induce muscle building and strength gains with resistance training.
Creatine
Creatine increases muscle mass by increasing the water content in your muscle cells. Also, it can positively affect your exercise performance and indirectly help muscle growth.
BCAA
BCAA, or branched-chain amino acids, consists of three essential amino acids: leucine, isoleucine, and valine. BCAA is beneficial for muscle building, and for the best results, it’s recommended to combine it with whey protein shakes.
Stick to the plan
Changes won’t happen overnight, so persistence is crucial. Find a good workout plan with a schedule that is tailored for your fitness level, goal, and time you have to invest in training. Some of the recommended workout plans are:
Home Transformation 1&2
Both of these 12-week plans will help you build muscle and lose fat at the same time, from the comfort of your home. Workouts vary in duration from 15 to 60 minutes and target muscles of your entire body.
Home Muscle Building
This 6-week plan is designed to help you build muscles at home, and you only need a pull up bar to do so. Workouts last from 30 to 40 minutes, and most of the exercises are low-impact (except occasional dynamic abs exercises such as high knees or mountain climbers).
Home & Strong
This 6-week plan is designed to help you build muscles of an entire body and lose fat. With workouts lasting from 15 to 45 minutes and no equipment needed, this plan is easily incorporated in a busy schedule.
Once you choose your workout plan, stick to it and you will see results.
Takeaway
Muscle building is a process that takes time and dedication. However, if you follow certain rules, you may see results rather soon.
Remember that changes never happen in a comfort zone, choose the right training, right nutrition, and give your body enough rest. With these muscle building tips, results are guaranteed.