The strategies for increasing muscle mass and gain are not complex. Even though many body-building authors out there, will over complicate things so that their strategies sound like the next best thing since the variable resistance body building machine. Now what we are going to talk about in this article is just some basics in muscle building, but ones that can have a huge effect on how well your muscle gain can be achieved.
Now there are some powerful tools that you should use in your muscle building strategies, and the most important one is not what you may expect to be. It is a very simple tool that most people do not use, but can be very effective in building your muscles. Quite simply it is a pen and paper, yeah I know what your thinking, "pen and paper" ? you must have muscle on the brain. No, I am quite serious, you see by bringing these two items to your workout it will allow you to make outstanding gains in your muscle building, compared to others that may only have modest gains. The reason for this is very simple because that pen and paper will allow you to keep a detailed record of each and every workout you perform.
So Why Is Recording Your Workouts So Important?
It's because the entire foundation for building muscle is progression. Okay let me explain, when you are doing your workout you break down your muscle fibers by stressing them with weights, this is referred to as "muscle overload". What happens is after you finish your workout, your body will use the nutrients that you have consumed to repair the damages that have been done. Nevertheless, as a natural evolutionary reaction, the muscles will be repaired larger and stronger so that the body is protected against future damage.
This is where progression comes into effect, in order to make repeated gains in muscle size and strength, you must put 100% of your focus on improving upon your previous workouts by progressing in either a) the amount of weight lifted or b) the number of repetitions performed. By progressing in either the amount of weight lifted or the number of repetitions week after week, you body will be given the motivation to grow larger and stronger. If you stop or slow down the muscle size and strength will decrease or stay the same. To sum it all up, your body will become larger and stronger when your body's workout is stressed beyond its capacity. Now this is where the pen and paper comes in to effect, in order to get your gain in muscle size and strength you must make that increase in either amount of weight or the number of repetitions. So to do this you need to keep track of every detail you do each week on your workout, if lets say this week you did 3 reps of 80 pounds during your exercise. Then next week increase the weight by 5 pounds or add an extra repetition or two, by doing this week after week you will be well on your way to getting that increase in muscle size and strength.
Even though the specifics of muscle building are important to understand and implement, the truth is no matter what style of training you use the ultimate deciding factor on whether you succeed or fail is progression. Now there are many bodybuilding gurus out there, that have the solution you need in your quest for the ultimate body. Some of them are just out for a quick buck and some actually know what they are doing and have great programs for you to use. One such program that I came across is The Total Health For Life, because he not only focuses on your muscle building strategies but also on your mind building strategy. "The right attitude will give you the strongest effect"!
