Beginners Guide to Bodybuilding

Building muscle is accomplished by using specific resistance training parameters to cause micro-trauma to the muscles, which when repaired will result in the building of extra muscle tissue. You are essentially breaking down muscle tissue so it can be built back for a net gain. Many factors play a role in building muscle including:

Frequency of TrainingResistance Exercises PerformedNutritionRestSupplementation

Frequency of Training

For building muscle, training each muscle group twice per week is ideal. This allows enough stimulation to cause micro-trauma and adequate rest time to recover and make gains. Dividing the muscle groups into two separate workouts and performing each workout twice per week is the easiest way to accomplish this. Beginners filled with zeal and motivation will sometimes train every day hoping to speed up their gains, but this strategy inevitably backfires, as the body cannot keep up with this training frequency.

Resistance Exercises Performed

Not all exercises were created equal, as some do a much better job at stimulating growth than others. Basic, compound movements are ideal for building muscle, so choose exercises like:

SquatsDead-liftsPressesRowsChin-ups

The ideal repetition range for adding new muscle is 6-12 repetitions per set. It is best to perform sets throughout this range rather than focusing on just performing sets of 8 reps, for example.

Nutrition

Nutrition is often overlooked for its role in facilitating muscle growth, but it is very important, and will have a significant impact on your results. You must eat 500-700 calories over maintenance each day to give your body the raw materials it needs to grow. Choose healthy, nutritious foods like lean meats, fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, nuts, and legumes. Some beginners just load up on junk food thinking they will gain a bunch of muscle, but are disappointed when it all goes to their gut.

Rest

Your body doesn’t synthesize new muscle tissue while you are working out it is build while you are resting. This means you must get adequate sleep each night and take adequate breaks between workouts. It is best to never workout more than two days in a row before taking a day off, and to limit the training of each muscle group to twice per week. It may seem like more would be better, but this is often not the case. Too much training will hamper your body’s ability to adequately recover between workouts, and the result will be stagnant progress.

Supplementation

According to the muscle magazines anyone trying to build muscle should be taking twelve different supplements each day, but this is far from the truth. Most of what you need to build muscle will come from your diet. Using a quality protein powder is recommended, and perhaps a vitamin D supplement and some fish oil, but beyond that you can easily do without all of the overpriced products the supplement companies are trying to sell you. Keep it simple and you will not be disappointed.

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