Amongst other things, building muscle mass requires a consistent weight training schedule.
Try incorporating these top 10 tips into your daily routine to achieve faster results: 1.
Sleep On It Successful bodybuilders know that working out in the gym is only a part of the overall equation.
A longer, deeper sleep will ensure your muscles regenerate twice as fast.
If you are working on a full body program, try adding an extra hour of sleep.
Your muscles will feel the benefit and you'll feel much more alert.
2.
Drop The Weight Warming your muscles up with lighter weights doesn't just prevent pulls and strains, it kick starts your muscles and helps you to lift heavier weights, quicker.
Try lifting approx 30% of your maximum rep for 10 minutes of fast reps of lunges, squats and dead lifts.
3.
Put Your Feet Up Add an extra days rest will actually increase your gains.
Your body needs at least 48 hours between sessions.
Throw in another one before that and you're in danger of undoing all your good work.
4.
Food For Thought Building those guns starts when you lift your knife and fork.
A mix of carbs and protein with a 65-35 ratio, eaten 2 hours before a workout can add as much as a fifth to your muscle building growth.
Just make sure you don't eat too late.
Undigested food in your gut can actually inhibit your body's production of growth hormone by 50%.
5.
Full Body Program Instead of concentrating on more frequent body part specific workouts, try a full body program 3 times a week for a more effective way of gaining muscle.
Start off with squats, lunges and dead lifts.
6.
Mix It Up Grow bigger by doing less and then by doing more! Keep your muscles guessing and ultimately growing by alternating between high rep, low weight sessions with your normal heavy weight routines.
Two weeks for one and 2 weeks for the other.
7.
Music To Your Muscles Listening to your favorite banging tunes has a proven effect of relieving pain in your muscles while weight lifting.
Not only can music help you to complete your reps by up to a third, it can also give you that all important psychological motivation.
8.
Drink Up The recommended amount of water intake per day is approx 2 liters.
Drink more than this and you can pack on up to an extra 10% of bulk.
This is because protein must be dissolved in water as it produces metabolic waste.
Without it, your muscles won't recover nearly as quickly.
9.
Snack Before Sleep During sleep your body works its magic.
It uses the nutrients in your body to repair itself and build more muscle.
Eat some protein with wholemeal toast to help absorption.
Try a couple of hard boiled eggs on 2 pieces of toast, washed down with a glass of skimmed milk.
While we're talking milk; it has been shown that weight lifters who drank 500ml of skimmed milk a day, gained up to 10% more muscle than those who drank sports drinks.
10.
Stretch It Out By incorporating dynamic stretching between sets, you will help the flow of blood to your muscles without fatiguing them.
Not only will you be able to lift for more reps you will also start the healing process of your muscles during the workout.