If you are trying to build muscle it can be a daunting prospect at first, particularly if you are new to the fitness scene and just starting out. There is a lot of advice and conflicting information out there and it might seem like an impossible dream.
But, if you are dreaming of that better body definition and increased strength then the good news is there are ways to help develop those muscles without spending every waking minute working out at the gym.
While exercise and good diet is the key to building strong muscles, it’s important to get professional advice and if you have any concerns speak to a fitness professional or your doctor as you don’t want to end up with a nasty injury from trying to do exercises you aren’t ready for.
However, once you are in the exercise zone and working out regularly, there are also quite a few tips and tricks which you can do to help your body along the way, building muscle more quickly.
For this guest post we asked the team behind SportzBits – a great source for info and news on sports gear, and they gave us these five effective ways to build muscles.
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Increase your protein intake
Increasing your protein needn’t be hard – you can simply drink low fat milk or a portion of Greek yogurt and you will have taken in the necessary amount. Try adding chicken and eggs into your diet and make sure every meal has a good portion of protein. The best time to consume protein to help with muscle building is just before you go to bed and after you complete a work out. Simple.
If you are unsure of how much protein you should be eating every day, speak to a nutrition expert – there might be someone at your gym who can advise you on the best approach to take for muscle development as diet plays a big role in supporting muscle growth.
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Add in resistance training to your work out
A really effective way to build muscles quickly is to make sure you take on some resistance training, whether by using weights or sprinting on a machine at a high resistance setting. Either of these practices will help enhance your muscle creation efforts down at the gym.
Make sure you seek advice from your trainers at the gym before going down this route to ensure you build up the resistance levels and don’t take on too much too quickly, which could cause injury.
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Try using creatine
A creatine supplement can help you to achieve results more quickly as it can help to boost your ability to work out with more weights so it’s worth thinking about taking it if you are looking for every possible way to boost your muscle power. You could also use creatine protein powder as a smoothie to add to your protein intake as well – you can find it in most sports and health food shops so use it whichever way works best for you.
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Try detoxing
If your body is sluggish and clogged up it won’t perform at its optimum no matter how hard you try to push it so sometimes having a gentle cleanse using a detox tea or detox smoothie at the start of the day can get you back on the right track.
Try drinking a herbal detox tea when you wake up so your system is on top form and ready to cope with all of the exercise routine and work outs you have prepared to throw at it during the rest of the day.
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Omega 6 supplements
Another good supplement to try is Omega 6 or the created form of it known as CLA. Omega 6 is found naturally in foods and CLA has been proven to help improve the body fat ratio, reducing fat and helping to enhance muscle growth. If you are looking to lose weight as well as boost your muscle strength and creation then this is another supplement to give serious consideration to.
Conclusion
Clearly exercise alone won’t help to create a perfectly sculpted body if you are gorging on fast food and doughnuts when you are not at the gym. You will need to adjust your eating and drinking habits to help lose weight and build muscle – after all your body won’t be able to perform well at the gym if it has the wrong fuel inside it.
These five health tips will go some way to helping you develop muscles in combination with a good diet, plenty of protein and a good workout routine but it will be down to persistence and hard work and isn’t going to happen overnight.
Try working with a personal trainer to make sure you are getting the most of your work outs, particularly if you don’t feel you are getting the results you want as quickly as you think you should be – there might be a reason for that which a personal trainer will be able to spot and highlight.
You should also make sure you have plenty of variety in your exercise routine so that you don’t get bored and give up halfway through. Don’t be afraid to try different types of exercise and to make sure you are active outside of the gym as well as inside.
Don’t rule out classes like yoga or Pilates, which are really good for helping to stretch and tone the body, as well as weight-focussed classes to build muscle mass. Remember your body is an overall machine so it’s good to work out the whole of you, rather than focus on one particular issue.
Try working with an accountability buddy as well – someone who knows your aims and goals and can offer you support and motivation on those days when you are sick of the routine and really can’t face another afternoon down at the gym. Ideally it should be another person on a similar journey, rather than just a friend or family member, as that way you can motivate each other and won’t be tempted to give up and go to the pub.
