Importance of Workout Schedule for Building Muscle

There are many tools not that talked about in the muscle building world and an important one is on having a workout schedule for building muscle. It is of great importance of having a schedule for building muscle, as it will help you stay consistent and focused throughout your muscle building journey. We will in this article go through the benefits of having a workout schedule for building muscle and what it can look like.

Why do you need a workout schedule for building muscle

The obvious reason for having a workout schedule for building muscle is that it will be harder to get side tracked. Once you have a schedule, you will know exactly when to train, how to train and on which days. Furthermore, if you have a workout schedule for building muscle and exercise the same time each day, you will create a habit in your mind and it will be a lot easier packing your bag and going to the gym.

A simple workout schedule for building muscle could look like the following:

Monday: Chest 
Tuesday: Back 
Wednesday: Rest 
Thursday: Shoulder 
Friday: Arms 
Saturday: Legs 
Sunday: Rest

Benefits of having a workout schedule to build muscle

The above schedule for muscle building is just one of the many you can find. But by having a workout schedule like the one above or any other, you won't look like a question mark when entering the gym, because you know exactly what to work on and you have probably visualized your whole session before entering the gym.

A mistake a lot of people make when starting to workout and not having a schedule for muscle building, is that they a lot of times hit the same muscle twice or more. Your muscles need rest to grow and it is actually on your rest days that your muscles grow to become muscular.

When you don't have a workout schedule for building muscle, the chance for hitting the same muscle repeatedly is increased and by working on the same muscles, your body will adapt to your routines and you will not experience the accelerated growth that you want in your muscle building journey.

However, if you have various schedules for muscle building, with different exercises to choose from, you will keep on surprising your body and surprising the body is the best way to increase your muscles.

If there is one thing I want you to get out of this article, it is the importance of having various training schedules for muscle building. This will not only help your muscles grow faster, but it will also be more exciting to work out. We as human beings like variation and having different exercises in your workout schedule for building muscle is the best way to stay consistent and ensuring yourself your dream physique.

You can either do this by gathering different workout schedule for building muscle from various sources or you can invest in a muscle building program that offers a lot of variety, both in exercises and also in nutrition, which is as important as working out. So make sure to get a workout schedule for building muscle and enjoy the results for yourself.

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Why you need protein to grow

It is an established fact that a high protein diet is essential for muscle building and growth. Muscles like all other forms of body tissues are made up of proteins. Proteins form the basic building block for any kind of muscle growth to occur. The proteins from high protein dieting regimes are also necessary for the generation of all forms of tissues like hair, nails, bones, muscles, hormones, enzymes, antibodies and many others. For any form of growth to occur, proteins are needed. Of particular interest for bodybuilders is the fact that 60-70% of all proteins are found in muscles. Given this fact, it is not surprising that there is a lot of hype amongst bodybuilders on high protein diets for muscle building. Let us try and get a better understanding of how this type of eating regime helps muscle building.

Proteins are made up of smaller units called amino acids. These are truly the smallest building blocks for the body to use to build muscles in a high protein diet. There are about twenty types of amino acids, and all of these can be combined in various permutations into proteins for muscle building. Of these twenty, there are two types of amino acids - non-essential and essential amino acids. The non-essential variant can be produced by the body when needed. Whereas the latter type of amino acids need to be ingested through a high protein diet. Of particular concern to bodybuilders are the essential amino acids since these cannot be created by the body. They are nonetheless essential for muscle building. That is why it is not uncommon to see bodybuilders scrutinizing their foods and supplements to ensure that essential amino acids are found in what they eat.

In planning their high protein eating plans, bodybuilders often look for different sources of proteins in their foods. First on the list are complete proteins. These are essentially a balanced combination of essential and non-essential proteins found in the food types of an eating plan. Examples of complete protein sources include, lean meat, seafood, egg whites, fish, protein powder and milk. The second type of proteins is the incomplete protein source that can be found in most grains, legumes and beans. There are certain amino acids missing in this category, but they are nevertheless necessary in any eating plan as some amino acids from this incomplete source are not found elsewhere. Finally, there is vegetarian protein source. The protein from this source is found in vegetables and plant products only. To many bodybuilders, determining the source of their protein is very crucial to ensure that their hard training regime will reap ma
ximal muscle growth. Sometimes, bodybuilders ingest so much protein into their system through their high protein diet, that it can become counterproductive in their quest for muscle growth.

So does, a high protein diet really leads to solid muscle growth? There are two schools of traditional arguments here. On the one hand, conservative dietitians and medical community has long argued that the body only requires its Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) of protein, which is approximately 0.8 grams per kilogram of body weight. Anything in excess will be wasted. On the other side, 'protein pushers' with their prescribed high protein diet recommends taking 400-500 grams of proteins in a single day. This is way in excess of the RDA. Modern research has shown that, increased training activities have resulted in an increased utilization of proteins within the body.

Therefore, extra protein is actually required to stimulate maximal muscle growth. In other words, for any hard training bodybuilder, the extra protein stipulated in an eating plan makes sense. However, it is also wise to not over consume proteins, as there are side effects and detrimental effects to muscle growth. It is important to strike a balance between taking in more proteins in a high protein diet to induce growth, and at the same time, ensure that only the required amount is consumed to prevent side effects from occurring.

Mike Mass

The Best Supplement to Build Muscle Revealed!

Finding the best supplement to build muscle is something to cherish considering the large number of muscle building supplements in the market today. Of course, these supplements have a big role to play in gaining muscle mass, yet bearing in mind, from the outset, that the exercise and nutrition components play bigger roles in all of this, will help.

Nevertheless, among the few known effective supplements, one stands out. It is known as creatine monohydrate. Apart from helping to burn fat and boosting strength, it also helps in the development of lean muscle mass within days.

Taking creatine supplement increases the level of creatine phosphate in the muscles which can be taken to be water drawn into the muscles. This is necessary because approximately 70 percent of muscle's overall mass is contributed by water with protein taking about 20 percent while the rest is shared by mineral and high energy phosphates. So, taking Creatine supplement increases the level of water in muscle cells which eventually translates into larger muscle size. The beautiful thing about this is that with a daily dose of 20 grams of creatine monohydrate for 5 days, you can put on 9 pounds of strong lean muscles. Even after you stop using the supplement, its beneficial effects will still be conspicuous particularly when considered from a muscle building perspective.

Creatine supplement is regarded as the best for several reasons. In the first place, depleted adenosine tri-phosphate (ATP) can be easily replenished by increasing the muscle stores of creatine phosphate. ATP serves as the "fuel" that facilitates muscle contraction. ATP is used up whenever muscles contract. With sufficient creatine phosphate in the muscles as replenishment for the used up ATP, training harder and consequently building muscle fast will be an easy venture.

Creatine supplement also enhances greater filament thickening by increasing the amount of water in muscle cells. This is otherwise known as greater cell volumisation. Filament thickening occurs when the myosin and actin filaments in muscle become stronger and thicker. This is one way creatine contributes to building muscle fast.

Some recently conducted researches are suggestive of the fact that production of some anabolic hormones may be increased with the help of creatine supplement. Testosterone and growth hormone, two hormones that assist in gaining muscle mass, are among these anabolic hormones.

As mentioned earlier there are also some other effective muscle building supplements like testosterone boosters and protein powder. Both helps with building muscle fast but are no where near creatine monohydrate in terms of rapidity and significant gain.

By Dane C. Fletcher  

One creatine product I recommend is;

Will Lifting Heavy Weights Make You Bulky?

Many people who aspire to good health and a sleek physique, particularly women, eschew weight training because they fear it will make them big and muscular. Many others, particularly men, embrace it for precisely the same reason. So what are the facts? Does weight training, or weight lifting, make you bulky?

Genetics and gender can define the extent to which that happens, as can age. Women have far less testosterone - essential to the process of gaining lean muscle mass - than men, and the process of growth slows considerably with age, although some growth is still possible at more or less any age.

Eat Up, Rest Up and Bulk Up

The received wisdom is that performing limited repetitions with a heavy weight is best for bulking up, whilst increasing the "reps" and reducing the weight is the preferred method for "cutting", or definition. For many gym users the intention is to tone rather than to grow, and to gain strength without becoming bulky or excessively muscular.

And up to a point that is sound, but it overlooks some essential truths. First off, weight or resistance training is only part of the deal if the object of the exercise, if you'll pardon the pun, is to pack on lean mass. Over-stressing the muscle causes it to break down, but it needs to be nourished and replaced if it is to grow. This is where diet comes in or, more specifically protein. Protein is the foundation stone of muscle and without sufficient protein intake the muscle will not expand no matter how hard it is punished. This is one of the reasons why you will see guys in the gym who have been training all their lives and pump impressive weights but still look like the sand-in-the-face man from the Bullworker adverts of old.

On top of this, the recovery process is only made possible when the muscles are given sufficient time to rest. It is a well-established truism that failure to allow the body enough time in which to rest and recover will always lead to failure in the process of muscle development.

Grow With Gravity

This doesn't at all mean that there are not ways of inducing muscle growth which do not involve barbells and dumbbells and clunking slabs of heavy metal. There is increasing enthusiasm for bodyweight exercises, that is using the natural weight of our bodies and the simple force of gravity to provide the resistance needed to stimulate muscle growth. It adopts the same principle and is usually a lot cheaper, but the range of available movements can be limited.

So the answer to the question is that lifting heavy weights can make you bulky, but only if this is what you desire and you stick to the plan. By embracing proven scientific principles and adopting a regime which includes consuming the right foods in the right quantities and taking enough rest, working out with weights which are heavy and become progressively heavier will result in muscle gain.

Phil Andrews is a freelance English-language content writer specialising in articles, web content and blogging. He is the author of The Best Year Of Our Lives, a historical fiction novel set in 1976 about a group of young people growing up in a restless West London suburb beside the River Thames.

 Here is a great video I found to help build muscle, following the last post!

How to Build Muscle

Here is a list of 5 things you need to know on how to build muscle mass. I will cover exercises to build muscle, recovery methods and all the essential information you need to start building muscle as quickly as possible. Only the truth about what really works for people genetically normal like you. So let's start.

1. Gaining strength is key to develop muscles

When people ask me how to build muscle, the first thing I say is that they should add more weight to the bar before trying something else. If you want to grow, you have to gain strength. If you always use the same weight, you'll never get big. This rule applies not only to weight lifting. Some of the most effective exercises to build muscle are bodyweight exercises. You must progress to more difficult levels of any move you make.

2. Use Compound Exercises

Don't waste your time doing exercises like leg extension and Concentration Curls. Compounds exercises (multi-joint exercises that allow you to use more weight) develop muscle faster than anything.

These exercises are: • Squats
• Deadlift
• Pull-ups

• Standard Push-Up
• Military Press
• Bench Press
• Rowing with bar

3. Use free weights and body weight exercises

Your exercises should be done with free weights or body weight resistance (Pull-ups, Standard Push-Up). Those exercises lead to a higher level of neuromuscular activation and build muscle and strength faster.

4. Train at least 4 days a week

When I say "train" I do not necessarily mean lifting weights. You could do three days of strength training and one day of sled pushing or hill sprints. But forget about training three times a week for 13 minutes and then rest for the rest of the week. There are 168 hours in a week. Are you going to train only 90 minutes of those 168 hours? The human body is capable of much more than you think.

If you really want to gain muscle as fast as possible, you should do strength training at least three times a week. Also, you have to do 1-3 sessions of sled or hill sprints. Rest is very important to build muscle but don't be afraid to train hard. The body is very strong and will adapt to that training.

5. Don't let your training lasts more than 60 minutes

Frequent and shorter sessions give faster results than infrequent and longer sessions. When you start training, your body will raise your testosterone levels naturally. In the 45th minute, testosterone levels return to normal and after 60 minutes the body starts producing less testosterone and more cortisol, a hormone that eats muscle tissue and increases fat storage. So don't train more than 60 minutes, or you will not be able to build muscle and gain weight.

John Douglas.