Don’t We All Want To Gain Muscle
It’s something that we hear all the time in the gym, I want to gain muscle. Most times its usually from the beginners, that are just starting out, using the worst lifting techniques, way to much weight, drinking a can of soda for a sugar rush before the gym, and lighting a smoke when they are walking out of the gym to a car.
When you’re starting out in the gym, it really easy to get caught up with doing EVERY thing wrong. It seems like everyone wants to complicate things in the gym. Wanting to gain muscle is a great thing, whether it’s to compete on stage, or just to look good at the beach.
It’s not enough to just say I want to gain muscle, slap some iron on the bar and lift away. You need to approach it with some thought, planning, discipline and lots of effort. So lets take a quick look at how that looks:
Lifting
There is two areas here to focus on:
Weight
The first area is you need to have enough weight on the bar, to be able to lift to failure, in the 6 – 8 rep range, in the last set. To many people like to be able to do 15 reps each set, with a very light weight, and they barely break a sweat.
Technique
This is the scary one, there is nothing worse than watching someone at the gym, with a ton of weight on the bar, straining and struggling, bouncing the bar. If you don’t control the lift every time through the full range of motion, then drop your weight slightly, until you do.
Diet
Another big area, where everyone gets it wrong. Stop trying to eat like a Mr Olympia. Stick to the full, and wholesome foods, like full cream milk, and wholemeal or grain breads, Red meats, white meat, eggs, fruits and vegetables.
Sleep
This is the most misunderstood, part of gaining muscle. Sleep at least 8 hours per day. You want and need your body to recover every chance you get. The lifting is what tears your muscle down, the diet and sleeping is what will help your muscles recover and grow.
I want to gain muscle is the catch cry of every young weight lifter that’s ever been in the gym. But take the time to really plan out what you want to do in there. There is plenty of information about diets, lifting, programs to try different methods, out there on the web.
Do your research, take the time to talk to the gym instructors. You can gain muscle mass with a little effort. Just remember the simple saying., Lift Big, Eat Big, Sleep Big, and you’ll get there in the end.
