Tips to Build Muscle and Improve Strength

Introduction

Do you want to build muscle but don’t know where to start? Let’s get started!

Many people want to be fit and healthy, but it’s not easy to commit to a healthier lifestyle, especially when workouts and diets require a lot of time and commitment.

While doing physical activities helps you live life with more energy and keep your health in good condition, it won’t hurt to take your fitness regimen up a notch.

Building muscle is difficult since it involves intense workouts and disciplined diets, but the payoffs of looking lean and toned make it all worth it.

If you want to start building muscle, but don’t know what to do, this guide will help you begin with your fitness journey.

First Step, Get Your Health Checked…

It’s best to get a checkup before you start doing intense workouts at the gym. Muscle building will put a lot of strain on your body, so you need to know if you can handle intense exercises without the risk of injuries.

Check if you have body parts that may be prone to injuries so you can avoid specific workouts. For instance, you can get injured if you do many weighted squats and have weak or injured knees. Knowing your current physical condition will help you optimize your workouts without the risk of getting hurt.

Some consultations can also examine your current body composition. You can check how much muscle mass and body fat you have, so you know what to target when you hit the gym. How your body is currently built will affect how much you need to work out, and how long will it take before you see results.

Tips To Build Muscle

Here are some simple but important muscle building tips to help new gym goers jumpstart their muscle building journey off on the right foot.

Do Strength Exercises

It would be best to start with workouts that will strengthen your muscles if you’ve never lifted heavy weights before.

Lifting light to moderate weights for more reps will help your body get accustomed to practicing proper form. It will also help your muscles develop strength and look toned.

Once you get used to doing weighted exercises, you can increase the weight you lift for different exercises. Deadlifts, squats, and workouts with dumbbells can help you build strength all over your body. There are also targeted workouts, like bicep curls or leg lifts, that help develop your muscles in specific parts of the body.

It’s advisable to seek assistance when starting, so you know the right form and have someone spot you if the weight you’re trying to carry feels too heavy to lift.

Try Workout Supplements

The truth is, maintaining a well-built body is complicated. One slip-up in your diet can make the abs you worked hard for disappear or make you gain water weight.

It may be difficult even for seasoned bodybuilders and athletes to further build their bodies after a while since the muscles get accustomed to workouts over time. That’s why there are supplements that help improve the body’s performance to better develop muscle and burn fat.

For those new to bodybuidling, tried, tested and safe products such as whey protein, creatine, glutamine, and others are going to be their go-to supplements, however, seasoned bodybuilders will almost always take things to new heights.

Two of the most common “legal” performance enhancers are SARMs and prohormones, but before you purchase one to help your fitness journey, it’s essential to know the difference between the two and how they can affect your body.

Here is the difference between SARMs vs prohormones:

• • SARMs – Also known as selective androgen receptor modulators, SARMs are supplements that target specific receptors in the muscles, fats, and bones to trigger an enhanced response. The benefits of taking SARMs include an increase in muscle mass, strength, and loss of body fat.
  • Prohormones – They’re precursors to hormones, which are then converted by the body to produce certain hormones that support muscle growth and performance. For instance, the body can better develop muscles when there are adequate testosterone levels, and taking a prohormone can help increase the amount of that hormone.

Of course, you need to check if your body will respond well to a workout supplement before settling on one, especially SARMs or prohormones. In fact, even a whey protein may not work for your body. Lactose intolerant folks can’t always stomach whey, for example.

So the best way for you to find which will work best for you is by trying out different products and observing how your body reacts to it. But this doesn’t necessarily mean you should be putting yourself in a human Guinea pig situation.

A key takeaway here is to make sure you know what you’re doing and what exactly you are going to be putting into your body. Consulting with a specialist first is always a good idea, especially when considering moving into more powerful supplementation options.

Don’t Skip The Cardio

Don’t be afraid to incorporate cardio exercises into your workout routine. Contrary to the belief that doing cardio can harm your muscle gains, doing this type of exercise can actually help you burn fat and improve overall strength. Burning fat will help make your muscles look more visible, so you need to do exercises that can help you reduce your fat mass.

Slow bouts of cardio or aerobic exercises can help improve your cardiovascular performance and increase your endurance, which is essential when you’re often doing intensive workouts.

Cardio exercises will also help your body recover from strenuous activities and give your muscles time to heal. Try to incorporate a cardio workout between your weekly gym visits and try to alternate it with your weightlifting days.

There are various cardio exercises you can try, like running or jumping rope. There are also many gym equipment made for cardio workouts, like an elliptical machine or a treadmill. But, if you don’t like those kinds of activities, you can try sports that focus on cardio, like swimming or cycling.

Focus On Your Diet

You won’t achieve the goals you’ve set if the only aspect of getting fit you’re focusing on is your time at the gym. What goes into your body also plays a vital role in helping you build muscles.

Try to avoid eating foods that are filled with sugar and carbohydrates since these can hinder your body from burning fat efficiently during workouts. However, this doesn’t mean that you have to cut off carbs from your diet completely. It means you should only eat as much as you need to help you power through your workout.

Instead, eat foods rich in protein and vitamins since these will help your muscles recover, and become stronger and toned. Try to incorporate foods that help grow your muscles, like lean meats and beans, and don’t forget to eat after a workout to replenish the energy your body lost.

The Takeaway

Once you decide to look more toned and build muscle, know that you won’t see changes in your body overnight. It takes time before you see the results you want, as well as a lot of patience and dedication both in and out of the gym. Remember that with the right lifestyle and discipline, you’ll be able to achieve the body you’ve always wanted.

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• Muscle Building for Beginners

About Theresa Duncan

Originally from Detroit, MI, Theresa has been offering health and fitness advice for the last 30 years while working as an engineer. She decided to turn her passion into a profession, and finds nothing more satisfying than helping others reach their health and fitness goals.