If you are undertaking a muscle building regime, there is a lot of information out there to help you get started. The problem is that there is so much information, and often conflicting advice, that you may not know how to start.
Why not start with what not to do? Here are some factors that can delay or stall your muscle building progress:
1. Buying overpriced gym memberships.
If you are considering a gym membership, it may be much better for you to save yourself the expense. While gyms tout their stack-pulley, computerized, or hydraulic machines as much more effective and safe than free weights, the best workouts are the low-tech, low-cost ones that you can do in the comfort of your own home.
In the comfort of your own home, you can use inexpensive free weights or totally free exercises like pushups, lunges, squats, and more. These are some of the most effective moves for building muscle, and all you need is your own body and a few free weights.
2. Letting your body get bored.
When you start working out, you may see results and be so happy that you stick with the same routine. After all, it worked, didn’t it?
Your body is a remarkably efficient machine: doing the same workout causes your body to become used to it. It is much less work to execute moves you’ve done over and over. Once that happens, it uses fewer calories to complete the exercises, making the workout much less effective.
When your body becomes used to doing the same workouts, it needs to use fewer calories. To avoid this problem, don’t let your exercise routine become too routine. Add some variation and/or intensity into your sessions. This has two benefits: one, you continue to build muscle, and two, you don’t get bored.
3. Not doing any cardio.
Cardiovascular exercise is an important part of building muscle, yet it is something that many people trying to gain muscle mass usually ignore. Focusing only on weight training can halt your results.
Cardio can keep you from gaining fat and also help your body recover from weight training sessions. For optimal muscle building, perform cardio immediately after your weight training. Also, cardio should be performed with high intensity intervals for no more than twenty minutes.
4. Exercising too much.
Your body builds muscle while it is resting, so it is important to take breaks for your training regimen. Take two or three days off per week and allow your muscles to rest.
Muscle fatigue and injury are other problems that will cause you to build muscle much more slowly. To avoid this, work different muscle groups during each workout. Try working on your arms and back one day and your legs and abs the next. This will allow muscle to grow.
5. Ignoring Diet
Not eating properly is a big reason why many people fail to build muscle. Food is necessary for your body’s health and to put it into optimum muscle building mode.
Especially important is protein, which is essential to muscle building. Make sure you get plenty of lean meat, poultry, eggs, and dairy in your diet, and eat a protein snack within thirty minutes of your workouts.
6. Abandoning your goals.
Everyone’s body is different, and it takes some people longer to build muscle than others. Quitting because you are not seeing results fast enough is a huge mistake.
There are several things you can do if you notice your efforts are stagnating: look at your fitness routine to see if there is anything you can change. Look at your diet to see if you are eating properly. If your body just takes more time to build muscle, giving up will be a great loss.
Quitting negates all the work you have done so far. It puts you back at square one with the same body. Make some adjustments and keep fighting.
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