Helpful tips for muscle building

Muscle building is a hotly debated topic in forums and gyms around the world. Just like helpful tips and advice, there are a number of myths and theories surrounding this topic. These could be more or less refuted or confirmed over the years. But what really helps?

Is it the training which must be changed? Is it the frequency or the training volume or is it even due to completely different factors, which must be adjusted for it? Of course, it is impossible to make a blanket statement about what helps against reduced muscle growth, but there are some pillars that can be used as a guide.

Muscle building through protein

Protein is one of the most basic nutrients that should be present in the diet of an athlete. Protein not only helps the muscle heal after a workout, but also burns fat. The accelerated healing process allows the muscles to regenerate stronger, faster and thus grow more effectively.

Professional athletes consume up to 3.5 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per day during the bulking phase. Although this sets the bar very high, it is not everyone’s incentive to pursue a career as a professional athlete. Nevertheless, the nutrient should not lose importance. During the diet, care should be taken to consume as much of the healthy protein as possible.

Sufficient drinking

Drinking is still underestimated far too much. The majority of people regularly consume too little water every day. Although this condition is perceived as normal, but only due to the fact that one has become accustomed to it. At least 3 liters of water should be drunk per day. It does not play a role whether it concerns mineral water or fizzy drink.

The water will kick-start the metabolism and more oxygen can be utilized. This oxygen is needed in the muscles and can contribute to regeneration or performance-enhancing processes during training.

The right training

The right training is crucial for muscle building. With a rich selection of training systems and variations, different goals can also be pursued. For example, with endurance sports it is possible to burn a greater amount of fat, because this is especially the metabolism is brought to an enormously high level. However, in order to build muscle, the muscle must be loaded appropriately.

The best way to perform this load is for the muscle to completely exhaust its power reserves in the process. In plain language: train until muscle failure. The method of maximum strength training is therefore so popular because the muscle can be loaded with an enormously high additional weight. The strength reserves can be exhausted in such a way strongly, however not completely. The pyramid system is ideal for this.

With an increasing load and a decreasing load towards the end of the set, the muscles and their power reserves can be used optimally, so that the maximum possible energy can be used with each repetition. A workout can only be effective if you are willing to go to the limit for it. If you are aware of this training philosophy, nothing stands in the way of intensive muscle building.

Pay attention to nutrient timing

A certain nutrient timing is especially important for building muscles, not least because of the supply of proteins. But not only is protein absorbed better and faster immediately before and after training, the timing of carbohydrate intake also plays a role. Carbohydrates primarily provide energy.

If this energy is now supplied before training, it is available during the training load and can benefit the muscles. On the other hand, this very energy, if supplied at a time when no physical exertion was imminent, would cause an energy surplus in the body’s internal system.

This energy surplus would be stored then, because of lack of usefulness, into the fat cells. This is where the myth comes from that no more carbohydrates should be eaten in the evening in order to lose weight effectively. Nutrient timing is therefore important for effective muscle mass building, not least in terms of protein and carbohydrate intake.

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Exercise, push-ups: Pixabay © 5132824 (CC0 Creative Common)
Lifting weights in training group: Pixabay © skeeze (CC0 Creative Common)