Anthony's Muscle Building Guide |
Anthony Farmer's Complete Muscle Building Guide
So you want to build huge amount of dense, ripped muscle mass? Whether it's because you want to pull the girl sitting next to you at work or just feel more confident in yourself I'm here to help!
It doesn't matter if you are completely new to bodybuilding, or have been training for a while with few results, our guide can help you towards your best physique. So read on and follow our muscle-building guide with tips on supplements, training and nutrition!
Doing A Job In The Gym
You've got to approach your gym sessions with professionalism and desire. You have to get in the correct mindset when you go to the weight room otherwise you will get easily distracted and your muscle gains will suffer.
Don't get distracted by chatting with your mates, or go to the gym without a specific plan for your session. If you approach your gym sessions with a purposeful plan of action you are already half way there!
You must also avoid copying everyone else in the gym, or working only your posing muscles like most guys that make no progress. If you do endless bicep curls and chest flyes every time you hit the gym you will make no progress.
Good form is also essential to build your physique, so don't just pile on the weight. Rather lift a weight you can perform with excellent technique and feel the squeeze in the muscles you are working; this will work your specific muscles better and create the well-rounded physique you desire.
Doing Things Right
You have to approach muscle in building in an educated manner if you want to make the best gains. There are certain things you must do in the gym that will prevent you from getting injured, leaving you unable to build new mass. So make sure that you warm up before you start your workout, and even before starting a new muscle group. Simply perform 1 or 2 sets with a light amount of weight to get into the rhythm and form of an exercise and to also fill that muscle group and surrounding area with blood. Warming up correctly may take a few extra minutes but it you tear a pec you will never be able to train the same way again - it's your choice!
Training Schedule
I often get asked what the 'best' number of sets and reps are to build muscle mass. The truth is that there isn't a perfect number of reps that will build muscle, but there is a range of reps that most people agree is the perfect number for growth.
The 8-12 repetition range is the muscle building range that you should be using in your mass building routine. So for a movement you should be able to perform around 12 reps, with the last 1 or 2 reps being really hard to perform as to make your muscles reach failure at the 12th rep. If you can do more reps for an exercise then it's time to pile some more weight on that bar! If you can't perform 8 reps then take some weight off and concentrate on the pump in your muscles.
Training Split
Your training split is the second most important factor to your muscle building results. How you exercise your muscles and when, directly relates to your results and how quickly reach your goals. A training split must be planed so that you train each muscle group adequately per week, whilst allowing enough time outside the gym to fully recover from your workouts and actually build some muscle mass!
Depending on your schedule you may have a lot, or a little amount of time each week to compete your regime. The key in choosing a training split is not to over-reach yourself leaving you with a plan that just isn't feasible for you. Be realistic with the amount of time you can put in each week so that you won't get discouraged.
At the end of this section I have made two sample training splits that you can use depending on the amount of time you have each week. Both are fantastic, proven training splits that are designed to pack on as much muscle mass as possible. The first 3-day split is a push/pull/lower split that will target each muscle directly once per week. The 4-day split is great if you have more time to go to the gym each week and targets specific muscle groups each workout. The 4-day split is my preferred option for the most muscle growth, but if you don't have the time then the 3-day split is by no means a slouch.
Key Training Tips
You should take about 1-3 minutes rest between sets to allow your body to recover. If you are using a lighter weight then make it closer to I minute, and if you are lifting heavy make it closer to 3, but any longer than this and your workouts won't be intense so be sure to watch the clock in your gym.
Focus on the muscle you are training at the time; it's far to easy to lift a weight with other muscle groups than the one you are supposed to be training! Really focus on squeezing the muscle fibres of your targeted muscle group. You may find you have to drop the weight when you do this, but this is a sign that you are focusing on that specific muscle. remember you are bodybuilding, not weightlifting.
Sample Training Splits
4-day
Day 1 Back & Biceps
Barbell Deadlift 4 x 8-12
Bent Over Barbell Row 4 x 8-12
One Arm Dumbbell Row 3 x 10-12
Chin Ups 4 x 10
Barbell Curls 3 x 8-12
Preacher Curls (with EZ bar) 3 x 8-12
Dumbbell Incline Curls 3 x 8-12
Day 2 Chest & Triceps
Incline Barbell Press 4 x 8-12
Dumbbell Bench Press 4 x 8-12
Incline Flyes 4 x 8-12
Tricep Rope Pushdown 3 x 8-12
Skull Crushers 3 x 8-12
Close Grip Bench Press 3 x 8-12
Day 3 Legs
Barbell Squat 4 x 8-12
Lunges 3 x 8-12
Leg Extension 3 x 8-12
Leg Curls 4 x 8-12
Calf Raises 4 x 8-12
Day 4 Shoulders & Abs
Dumbbell Shoulder Press 4 x 8-12
Side Lateral Raise 3 x 8-12
Dumbbell Shrug 3 x 8-12
Crunches 4 x 10
Rope Pull downs 4 x 12
Leg Raise 4 x 15
3-day
Day 1 Push
Incline Bench Press 4 x 8-12
Dumbbell Bench Press 4 x 8-12
Incline Dumbbell Flyes 3 x 8-12
Standing Barbell Press 4 x 8-12
Side Lateral Raise 3 x 8-12
Rope Pushdown 4 x 10
Day 2 Pull
Wide Grip Pull-ups 4 To Failure
One Arm Row 3 x 10
T-Bar Row 4 x 8-12
Shrugs 3 x 8-12
Barbell Bicep Curl 4 x 8-12
Dumbbell Concentration Curls 4 x 8-12
Day 3 Legs & Abs
Squats 4 x 10
Lunges 3 x 12-15
Lying Leg Curl 4 x 8-10
Calf Raises 4 x 15
Hanging Leg Raise 3 x 10-15
Crunches 3 x 10-15
Well, the simple truth is that you have to work just as hard on your nutrition plan as you do on your workouts. Your muscle grows outside the gym when it's being fed the necessary nutrients, not when you are working out, so get ready to learn exactly what to eat to build muscle mass.
A Simple Equation
The equation needed to build muscle mass is actually quite simple, it's a matter of energy consumption. Calories are the units of measure we use to determine how much energy we need in a day. The most important aspect to adding muscle mass is to eat more calories than you consume. So the first question to ask is, how many calories do I need to build muscle?
Firstly you need to calculate how many calories you burn on a daily basis. This is called your maintenance calorie level and is how many calories you need to eat to stay at the same level. There are a few different ways of calculating this using kg or lb as a unit of measure so you could either use hartnutrition's BMR calculator, or just simply multiply your bodyweight in lb by 15 (Ex 160lb x 15 = 2400).
After this, if you are looking to add muscle mass you need to eat about 500 calories more than your maintenance, so the person in the example would need to eat 2900 calories each day to add mass.
Macronutrients
The macronutrients are carbohydrate, protein & fat and the ratio of them in your diet is an important factor in building muscle mass. If you took your intake of protein, carbohydrate and fat as 100%, then the amount you eat of each in a day will make up a certain percentage of each.
The most common ratio for building muscle mass is 40/40/20 of carbohydrates, protein and fat respectively. You may think that as long as you are eating enough calories it doesn't matter what you eat, well if you eat too much of the wrong foods you are going to put on a lot of unwanted fat, and I know you don't want to do that.
Protein
Protein is responsible for the growth of muscle tissue and repair of other tissues around the body. If you are working out hard in the gym you need a lot of protein each day to recover and build new muscle mass. Be sure to add protein at every meal you eat in the form of chicken, tuna, turkey, eggs and whey protein.
Carbohydrates
Carbohydrates are what your body uses as energy to fuel your intense training sessions. If you are training hard you need to eat a lot of carbohydrates in the form of brown rice, pasta, oats and brown bread.
Fat
If you are thinking that 20% of your daily intake can come from mayonnaise then prepare to be upset. 20% of your calories should come from healthy fats such as almonds (and oils) olives (and oils) fish (and oils) and also omega 3 supplements. Eating healthy fats will supply your body with extra calories, but more than this these fats are known as essential, so you must consume them from your diet.
How Much You Should Eat Each Day
Protein and carbohydrates contain 4 calories per gram and fat contains 9 calories per gram, so a simple equation will give you the exact amount of each you need to eat each day.
If we take the example of a 160lb person who needs 2900 daily calories to add muscle mass, then the macro ratios are as follows:
40% protein, 1160 kcal/day, (1160/4 = 290g/day)
40% carbohydrate, 1160 kcal/day, (1160/4 = 290g/day)
20% fat, 580 kcal/day, (580/9 = 64g/day)
How & When To Eat
You know how much to eat, and what types of food, but another important aspect is the timing and frequency of your meals. Your daily intake of calories, protein, carbohydrate and fat should be evenly split between 5-6 small meals each day. Forget the 3 square meals approach, this won't build huge amounts of muscle on your frame.
The timing of you meals is also very important, so eat a big breakfast gull of protein as soon as you wake up and eat another meals every 2-3 hours to keep your body primes for growth. Pre and post workout are also important times for nutrition, so make sure you eat plenty of carbohydrates and protein before and after your workouts to give your body the best chance of building dense muscle. if you don't eat within 30 minutes of your workout your body will be breaking down muscle tissue, instead of building new mass.
Key Nutrition Tips
Nutrition is definitely the hardest part of any get-fit regime. Going to the gym and lifting weights feels good (it even releases endorphins) but putting in the effort every day to eat the right food and not eat junk is very hard. If you want to make a change in your life you must understand and accept this fact.
There are always times when you will find it hard to stick to your plan, but if you make the right decisions you will make better progress than if you don't. As an example when you eat out you could definitely ruin your plan, but make sure you go for the lean protein meal with some rice or potatoes on the side. If you make the better decision every time you are forced to make one you will make better progress.
You should also keep track of what you eat, and how much on a daily basis. This will only take 10 minutes at the end of your day, but will let you know if you need to eat more, or less. Also keep track of your weight, as the heavier you get the more calories you will need to gain muscle so make sure to add calories accordingly.
Nutrition Recap
Below I have displayed a sample mass building meal plan that contains 6 meals per day for the 160lb individual requiring 290g day of protein and carbs, and 64g day of fat. This diet may not contain foods that you enjoy, so below this is a list of great muscle building foods.
Muscle Building Meal #1
45g Oats with milk
1 1/2 Scoops protein shake with milk
EFAs
Muscle Building Meal #2
190g Chicken
70g Brown rice
10g Almonds
Muscle Building Meal #3
190g Lean meat
70g Pasta
Vegetables
Teaspoon olive oil
Muscle Building Meal #4 (post workout)
50g (2 scoops) Dextrose
50g (2 scoops) Whey protein
OR
Weight Gainer with these amounts
Muscle Building Meal #5
190g Lean Meat
3 Slices brown bread
2 Teaspoons (natural) peanut butter
Vegetables
Muscle Building Meal #6
2 Scoops casein protein
3 Slices brown bread
2 Teaspoons (natural peanut butter)
Other Great Muscle Building Foods
Carbohydrates
Brown rice
Sweet potato
Pasta
Oats
Brown Noodles
Protein
Tuna
Chicken
Turkey
Sirloin steak
Cottage cheese
Salmon
Egg whites
Protein shakes
Fat
Avocado
Almonds
EFAs
Fish Oils
Peanut Butter
Vitamins, Minerals & Fibre
Tomato
Broccoli
Asparagus
Green Beans
Carrot
Mushroom
The top supplements I recommend for muscle building are a weight gainer, creatine and a multivitamin. Depending on your regime and diet you may benefit more from taking other supplements such as a pure protein powder, and post-workout recovery product or a pre-workout booster.
The Top Three
Weight Gainer
Weight gainers are formulated to give you high amounts of protein and carbohydrates, which are essential when building muscle mass. Good weight gainers will contain quality proteins such as whey, egg and casein to fuel your muscle growth and carbohydrates to replace your glycogen stores. Gainers are very versatile and can fit into your regime to make life a lot easier. You can take your weight gainer between meals, as a meal replacement or after workouts.
Creatine
Creatine is a wonder supplement that increases muscular power, strength and recovery times. There are a huge number of creatine supplements available, the choice is up to you and I recommend you try a few and check your results to see what works best. All in all creatine monohydrate powder will be the best option for most people.
Multivitamin
The standard multivitamin you find in the supermarket simply wont give you anywhere near the amount of nutrients your body needs when you train 3 or 4 times a week. The FDA made regulations about how many nutrients your body needs on a daily basis (called RDA). However these recommendations are based on the 'normal' sedentary individual and not someone who wants to gain massive amounts of muscle. Therefore a specific multivitamin that gives you the right amounts for you, as a bodybuilder is vital.
Apart from the three fundamental weight gain supplements there are others that you might want to invest in to get the best results from your training.
Pre-Workout Booster
A pre workout supplement will contain a blend of strength boosting ingredients to increase your intensity and workout performance, after all the more weight you shift in your workouts the more you will grow. From a quality pre-workout supplement you should look for 3-5g of creatine, l-arginine, l-citrulline, caffeine, amino acids including BCAAs, beta-alanine and in some cases a good dose of carbohydrates. All of these ingredients will serve to increase strength and blood flow to muscle tissue, which in turns leads to better recovery.
Post-Workout Supplement
Straight after your workout, after you have torn all those muscle fibres, it's time to rebuild and grow. A post workout supplement will contain the exact amounts of nutrients your body needs to start growing new muscle right away.
A post workout muscle builder will contain a huge dose of fast digesting carbohydrates, high quality whey protein, BCAAs, glutamine and creatine. Studies show that the intake of protein, carbohydrate and BCAAs after exercise increases the ability to recover more than taking one or two of the aforementioned ingredients.
So now you have your supplement stack you should be well on your way to massive muscle growth. Remember to fit your supplements into your regime to best suit your needs.
In Summary
Building and impressive physique is by no means easy, it requires a lot of hard workout and dedication, but the results you achieve will be worth it. You have to be consistent in your approach to the three main areas of training, nutrition and supplements and if you make sure you are doing things right, you will reach your goals.
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So you want to build huge amount of dense, ripped muscle mass? Whether it's because you want to pull the girl sitting next to you at work or just feel more confident in yourself I'm here to help!
It doesn't matter if you are completely new to bodybuilding, or have been training for a while with few results, our guide can help you towards your best physique. So read on and follow our muscle-building guide with tips on supplements, training and nutrition!
Muscle Building Training
The first place to start building muscle is a suitable training regime. You need a bodybuilding routine that is intense, manageable and progressive to ensure you train to your best on a consistent basis.Doing A Job In The Gym
You've got to approach your gym sessions with professionalism and desire. You have to get in the correct mindset when you go to the weight room otherwise you will get easily distracted and your muscle gains will suffer.
Don't get distracted by chatting with your mates, or go to the gym without a specific plan for your session. If you approach your gym sessions with a purposeful plan of action you are already half way there!
You must also avoid copying everyone else in the gym, or working only your posing muscles like most guys that make no progress. If you do endless bicep curls and chest flyes every time you hit the gym you will make no progress.
Good form is also essential to build your physique, so don't just pile on the weight. Rather lift a weight you can perform with excellent technique and feel the squeeze in the muscles you are working; this will work your specific muscles better and create the well-rounded physique you desire.
Doing Things Right
You have to approach muscle in building in an educated manner if you want to make the best gains. There are certain things you must do in the gym that will prevent you from getting injured, leaving you unable to build new mass. So make sure that you warm up before you start your workout, and even before starting a new muscle group. Simply perform 1 or 2 sets with a light amount of weight to get into the rhythm and form of an exercise and to also fill that muscle group and surrounding area with blood. Warming up correctly may take a few extra minutes but it you tear a pec you will never be able to train the same way again - it's your choice!
Training Schedule
I often get asked what the 'best' number of sets and reps are to build muscle mass. The truth is that there isn't a perfect number of reps that will build muscle, but there is a range of reps that most people agree is the perfect number for growth.
The 8-12 repetition range is the muscle building range that you should be using in your mass building routine. So for a movement you should be able to perform around 12 reps, with the last 1 or 2 reps being really hard to perform as to make your muscles reach failure at the 12th rep. If you can do more reps for an exercise then it's time to pile some more weight on that bar! If you can't perform 8 reps then take some weight off and concentrate on the pump in your muscles.
Training Split
Your training split is the second most important factor to your muscle building results. How you exercise your muscles and when, directly relates to your results and how quickly reach your goals. A training split must be planed so that you train each muscle group adequately per week, whilst allowing enough time outside the gym to fully recover from your workouts and actually build some muscle mass!
Depending on your schedule you may have a lot, or a little amount of time each week to compete your regime. The key in choosing a training split is not to over-reach yourself leaving you with a plan that just isn't feasible for you. Be realistic with the amount of time you can put in each week so that you won't get discouraged.
At the end of this section I have made two sample training splits that you can use depending on the amount of time you have each week. Both are fantastic, proven training splits that are designed to pack on as much muscle mass as possible. The first 3-day split is a push/pull/lower split that will target each muscle directly once per week. The 4-day split is great if you have more time to go to the gym each week and targets specific muscle groups each workout. The 4-day split is my preferred option for the most muscle growth, but if you don't have the time then the 3-day split is by no means a slouch.
Key Training Tips
You should take about 1-3 minutes rest between sets to allow your body to recover. If you are using a lighter weight then make it closer to I minute, and if you are lifting heavy make it closer to 3, but any longer than this and your workouts won't be intense so be sure to watch the clock in your gym.
Focus on the muscle you are training at the time; it's far to easy to lift a weight with other muscle groups than the one you are supposed to be training! Really focus on squeezing the muscle fibres of your targeted muscle group. You may find you have to drop the weight when you do this, but this is a sign that you are focusing on that specific muscle. remember you are bodybuilding, not weightlifting.
Sample Training Splits
4-day
Day 1 Back & Biceps
Barbell Deadlift 4 x 8-12
Bent Over Barbell Row 4 x 8-12
One Arm Dumbbell Row 3 x 10-12
Chin Ups 4 x 10
Barbell Curls 3 x 8-12
Preacher Curls (with EZ bar) 3 x 8-12
Dumbbell Incline Curls 3 x 8-12
Day 2 Chest & Triceps
Incline Barbell Press 4 x 8-12
Dumbbell Bench Press 4 x 8-12
Incline Flyes 4 x 8-12
Tricep Rope Pushdown 3 x 8-12
Skull Crushers 3 x 8-12
Close Grip Bench Press 3 x 8-12
Day 3 Legs
Barbell Squat 4 x 8-12
Lunges 3 x 8-12
Leg Extension 3 x 8-12
Leg Curls 4 x 8-12
Calf Raises 4 x 8-12
Day 4 Shoulders & Abs
Dumbbell Shoulder Press 4 x 8-12
Side Lateral Raise 3 x 8-12
Dumbbell Shrug 3 x 8-12
Crunches 4 x 10
Rope Pull downs 4 x 12
Leg Raise 4 x 15
3-day
Day 1 Push
Incline Bench Press 4 x 8-12
Dumbbell Bench Press 4 x 8-12
Incline Dumbbell Flyes 3 x 8-12
Standing Barbell Press 4 x 8-12
Side Lateral Raise 3 x 8-12
Rope Pushdown 4 x 10
Day 2 Pull
Wide Grip Pull-ups 4 To Failure
One Arm Row 3 x 10
T-Bar Row 4 x 8-12
Shrugs 3 x 8-12
Barbell Bicep Curl 4 x 8-12
Dumbbell Concentration Curls 4 x 8-12
Day 3 Legs & Abs
Squats 4 x 10
Lunges 3 x 12-15
Lying Leg Curl 4 x 8-10
Calf Raises 4 x 15
Hanging Leg Raise 3 x 10-15
Crunches 3 x 10-15
Muscle Building Nutrition
You know, the vast majority of beginners I come across have completely no idea what to do when it comes to their diet. They either think they can't cook, won't cook, or have the wrong idea about what is actually required to build an enviable physique; and sometimes all three.Well, the simple truth is that you have to work just as hard on your nutrition plan as you do on your workouts. Your muscle grows outside the gym when it's being fed the necessary nutrients, not when you are working out, so get ready to learn exactly what to eat to build muscle mass.
A Simple Equation
The equation needed to build muscle mass is actually quite simple, it's a matter of energy consumption. Calories are the units of measure we use to determine how much energy we need in a day. The most important aspect to adding muscle mass is to eat more calories than you consume. So the first question to ask is, how many calories do I need to build muscle?
Firstly you need to calculate how many calories you burn on a daily basis. This is called your maintenance calorie level and is how many calories you need to eat to stay at the same level. There are a few different ways of calculating this using kg or lb as a unit of measure so you could either use hartnutrition's BMR calculator, or just simply multiply your bodyweight in lb by 15 (Ex 160lb x 15 = 2400).
After this, if you are looking to add muscle mass you need to eat about 500 calories more than your maintenance, so the person in the example would need to eat 2900 calories each day to add mass.
Macronutrients
The macronutrients are carbohydrate, protein & fat and the ratio of them in your diet is an important factor in building muscle mass. If you took your intake of protein, carbohydrate and fat as 100%, then the amount you eat of each in a day will make up a certain percentage of each.
The most common ratio for building muscle mass is 40/40/20 of carbohydrates, protein and fat respectively. You may think that as long as you are eating enough calories it doesn't matter what you eat, well if you eat too much of the wrong foods you are going to put on a lot of unwanted fat, and I know you don't want to do that.
Protein
Protein is responsible for the growth of muscle tissue and repair of other tissues around the body. If you are working out hard in the gym you need a lot of protein each day to recover and build new muscle mass. Be sure to add protein at every meal you eat in the form of chicken, tuna, turkey, eggs and whey protein.
Carbohydrates
Carbohydrates are what your body uses as energy to fuel your intense training sessions. If you are training hard you need to eat a lot of carbohydrates in the form of brown rice, pasta, oats and brown bread.
Fat
If you are thinking that 20% of your daily intake can come from mayonnaise then prepare to be upset. 20% of your calories should come from healthy fats such as almonds (and oils) olives (and oils) fish (and oils) and also omega 3 supplements. Eating healthy fats will supply your body with extra calories, but more than this these fats are known as essential, so you must consume them from your diet.
How Much You Should Eat Each Day
Protein and carbohydrates contain 4 calories per gram and fat contains 9 calories per gram, so a simple equation will give you the exact amount of each you need to eat each day.
If we take the example of a 160lb person who needs 2900 daily calories to add muscle mass, then the macro ratios are as follows:
40% protein, 1160 kcal/day, (1160/4 = 290g/day)
40% carbohydrate, 1160 kcal/day, (1160/4 = 290g/day)
20% fat, 580 kcal/day, (580/9 = 64g/day)
How & When To Eat
You know how much to eat, and what types of food, but another important aspect is the timing and frequency of your meals. Your daily intake of calories, protein, carbohydrate and fat should be evenly split between 5-6 small meals each day. Forget the 3 square meals approach, this won't build huge amounts of muscle on your frame.
The timing of you meals is also very important, so eat a big breakfast gull of protein as soon as you wake up and eat another meals every 2-3 hours to keep your body primes for growth. Pre and post workout are also important times for nutrition, so make sure you eat plenty of carbohydrates and protein before and after your workouts to give your body the best chance of building dense muscle. if you don't eat within 30 minutes of your workout your body will be breaking down muscle tissue, instead of building new mass.
Key Nutrition Tips
Nutrition is definitely the hardest part of any get-fit regime. Going to the gym and lifting weights feels good (it even releases endorphins) but putting in the effort every day to eat the right food and not eat junk is very hard. If you want to make a change in your life you must understand and accept this fact.
There are always times when you will find it hard to stick to your plan, but if you make the right decisions you will make better progress than if you don't. As an example when you eat out you could definitely ruin your plan, but make sure you go for the lean protein meal with some rice or potatoes on the side. If you make the better decision every time you are forced to make one you will make better progress.
You should also keep track of what you eat, and how much on a daily basis. This will only take 10 minutes at the end of your day, but will let you know if you need to eat more, or less. Also keep track of your weight, as the heavier you get the more calories you will need to gain muscle so make sure to add calories accordingly.
Nutrition Recap
- Eat carbohydrates, protein and fat in a 40/40/20 ratio
- Eat every 2-3 hours with your meals reflecting this ratio
- Eat 500 calories more than you burn in a day
- Pay attention to the meals at breakfast and around your workout
- Always keep track of what you are doing, and make changes accordingly
Below I have displayed a sample mass building meal plan that contains 6 meals per day for the 160lb individual requiring 290g day of protein and carbs, and 64g day of fat. This diet may not contain foods that you enjoy, so below this is a list of great muscle building foods.
Muscle Building Meal #1
45g Oats with milk
1 1/2 Scoops protein shake with milk
EFAs
Muscle Building Meal #2
190g Chicken
70g Brown rice
10g Almonds
Muscle Building Meal #3
190g Lean meat
70g Pasta
Vegetables
Teaspoon olive oil
Muscle Building Meal #4 (post workout)
50g (2 scoops) Dextrose
50g (2 scoops) Whey protein
OR
Weight Gainer with these amounts
Muscle Building Meal #5
190g Lean Meat
3 Slices brown bread
2 Teaspoons (natural) peanut butter
Vegetables
Muscle Building Meal #6
2 Scoops casein protein
3 Slices brown bread
2 Teaspoons (natural peanut butter)
Other Great Muscle Building Foods
Carbohydrates
Brown rice
Sweet potato
Pasta
Oats
Brown Noodles
Protein
Tuna
Chicken
Turkey
Sirloin steak
Cottage cheese
Salmon
Egg whites
Protein shakes
Fat
Avocado
Almonds
EFAs
Fish Oils
Peanut Butter
Vitamins, Minerals & Fibre
Tomato
Broccoli
Asparagus
Green Beans
Carrot
Mushroom
Muscle Building Supplements
Correct use of bodybuilding supplements in your regime will help you get big and ripped much faster; who wants to wait for results?The top supplements I recommend for muscle building are a weight gainer, creatine and a multivitamin. Depending on your regime and diet you may benefit more from taking other supplements such as a pure protein powder, and post-workout recovery product or a pre-workout booster.
The Top Three
Weight Gainer
Weight gainers are formulated to give you high amounts of protein and carbohydrates, which are essential when building muscle mass. Good weight gainers will contain quality proteins such as whey, egg and casein to fuel your muscle growth and carbohydrates to replace your glycogen stores. Gainers are very versatile and can fit into your regime to make life a lot easier. You can take your weight gainer between meals, as a meal replacement or after workouts.
Creatine
Creatine is a wonder supplement that increases muscular power, strength and recovery times. There are a huge number of creatine supplements available, the choice is up to you and I recommend you try a few and check your results to see what works best. All in all creatine monohydrate powder will be the best option for most people.
Multivitamin
The standard multivitamin you find in the supermarket simply wont give you anywhere near the amount of nutrients your body needs when you train 3 or 4 times a week. The FDA made regulations about how many nutrients your body needs on a daily basis (called RDA). However these recommendations are based on the 'normal' sedentary individual and not someone who wants to gain massive amounts of muscle. Therefore a specific multivitamin that gives you the right amounts for you, as a bodybuilder is vital.
Apart from the three fundamental weight gain supplements there are others that you might want to invest in to get the best results from your training.
Pre-Workout Booster
A pre workout supplement will contain a blend of strength boosting ingredients to increase your intensity and workout performance, after all the more weight you shift in your workouts the more you will grow. From a quality pre-workout supplement you should look for 3-5g of creatine, l-arginine, l-citrulline, caffeine, amino acids including BCAAs, beta-alanine and in some cases a good dose of carbohydrates. All of these ingredients will serve to increase strength and blood flow to muscle tissue, which in turns leads to better recovery.
Post-Workout Supplement
Straight after your workout, after you have torn all those muscle fibres, it's time to rebuild and grow. A post workout supplement will contain the exact amounts of nutrients your body needs to start growing new muscle right away.
A post workout muscle builder will contain a huge dose of fast digesting carbohydrates, high quality whey protein, BCAAs, glutamine and creatine. Studies show that the intake of protein, carbohydrate and BCAAs after exercise increases the ability to recover more than taking one or two of the aforementioned ingredients.
So now you have your supplement stack you should be well on your way to massive muscle growth. Remember to fit your supplements into your regime to best suit your needs.
In Summary
Building and impressive physique is by no means easy, it requires a lot of hard workout and dedication, but the results you achieve will be worth it. You have to be consistent in your approach to the three main areas of training, nutrition and supplements and if you make sure you are doing things right, you will reach your goals.
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