subject: The Three Main Components of Muscle Building [print this page]
OK, you've made the excellent decision to get in shape by taking up recreational bodybuilding, so what happens next?
You need to plan out what you're going to do, to get the absolute best results from your efforts, which means planning out an intelligent routine.
Essentially, bodybuilding can be broken down into three main areas;
1/ Programme design - the exercises you do and when you do them
2/ Nutrition - you want to eat the right foods in the right quantities to make muscle gains
3/ Recovery - you need to have enough rest so the body can recover and build muscle
These three areas are all of vital importance - if one of these pieces of the puzzle is missing, then you won't achieve the results your hard work deserves.
Let me quickly qualify the last remark. Bodybuilding can be hard work, especially when you're lifting heavy weights - but it doesn't have to be a lot of hard work. The really good news here is that muscles grow when they're at rest.
This means that you don't want to be working out more than three times a week - absolute maximum. The plan is that you work hard enough on the right exercises, then get out of the gym and rest.
This is just one reason why bodybuilding is a terrific hobby - unless you're competition standard, which 95% plus of us won't be, you shouldn't become a slave in the gym - it will not help you gain more muscle - in fact it will hinder your progress!
Let bodybuilding become a part of your life - it comes with all sorts of rewards and health benefits - but it should only be a part of your life.
Doing the right movements only three or even better two times a week can really transform your body in a few months, or even faster. That means that you have four or five days when you're not training. If you have normal genetics, ie you're in the 97% majority of us, then you won't be able to make muscle gains if you workout more than three times a week, If you're working hard when you do train.
The reason I'm putting so much emphasis on training frequency is because I believe it to be one of the main reasons why so few people make decent muscle building gains - in gyms all over the world people are training too often on the wrong exercises, and not working hard enough at the same time.
Too many workouts on the wrong movements equals zero results apart from frustration. Don't fall into this trap!
