Resistance Work

If you want toned muscle, you should try to work out with weights every other day. Working out with weights strengthens the muscles of your body and stops muscle atrophy.  It also makes your body look more aesthetically pleasing.

Cardiovascular Exercise

If you want a gorgeous body, you’ll also need to do regular cardiovascular exercise.  This will help you lose body fat so that your muscle cuts show. You should aim to do at least half an hour of cardiovascular exercise four times per week. You can increase the duration and difficulty of the cardiovascular exercise once you start getting fitter.

Whole Foods

Exercising regularly won’t do you much good if you eat the wrong foods and consume more calories than your body burns. The key to eating correctly is to eat the foods people ate one hundred years ago. That means eating foods that haven’t been altered or processed. If you want a striking body, try to fill up on fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, seeds, beans, legumes, white meat, oily fish and low fat dairy products. Where possible, avoid foods that have been heavily processed.

Avoiding Sugar

An excess of sugar in the diet can lead to obesity. Cakes, chocolate, pastries, candies and cookies are obviously full of sugar. Sugar is also added to several other processed food products and beverages. You do not have to cut sugar out of your diet completely, but you should limit your intake if you want to lose excess flab and get the body you’ve always wanted.

A Regular Detox

Detoxification products are designed to eliminate toxins that have built up in your body over the years. Detoxification products can also help you to lose weight and reduce abdominal bloating. You should use a detoxification product once every few months.

Stay Hydrated

Hydration is considered a key aspect of weight loss. Drinking water can do a great deal to suppress your appetite. Staying hydrated also helps to boost your metabolism. Ideally you should aim to drink at least eight glasses of water each day.

Avoid Stress

When you’re under stress, your body releases a hormone called cortisol. The hormone cortisol has been shown to increase abdominal weight gain. If you want a sexy body, you should avoid stressful situations wherever possible. You should also find the time to relax and have fun on a regular basis.

Sleep

Getting sufficient sleep helps you to avoid stress and irritability. Getting less sleep than you need makes you hungry because your body tries to get energy in other ways. If you want an attractive body, aim to get about eight hours sleep each night.

Here’s an excerpt:

In terms of the formatting of the workout log, I’ve included areas for you to record:

• the date of your workout
• time started and finished
• vital stats for the day like your scale weight and body fat percentage
• how many hours of sleep you got the previous night
• cardio and conditioning training
• weight and resistance training
• diet and nutrition info (specifically pre-workout and post-workout nutrition and any supplements you might be taking)
• your overall workout rating on a scale of 1-10

Also, I tried to provide plenty of space for recording weight, sets, reps, rest period and especially training notes.

Free Workout and Excercise Log

Look in the mirror and see where you are now, close your eyes and visualize how you want your body to be. Take a few minutes and don’t worry if you don’t see visuals, we all have visualization skills. Don’t believe me?  Ok, picture your front door, putting the key in the lock….

Now that you have the visual of how you want your muscles to look, make a plan. If you are going to the gym great, remember not to overdo sessions/per week if you’re looking to bulk up (1x a week max to gain, 2x a week for tone).

If you can’t go to the gym because you live in the boonies, are married to your job, busy looking after your kid, can’t afford it right now because of the credit crunch, etc, etc.  You can always do pushups twice a week, triceps (with chair behind and feet on couch, lowering yourself down and back up), find a place in your house for chin-ups (or you can buy the gadget to put in your doorway), squats & calves (just find something heavy to hold comfortably), there’s lots of stuff for abs you can do, if you’re real agile you can do headstand push-ups =)

Just kick your own butt into action and once you start challenge yourself to do as many or more as last time. Think “strength, power, overcome obstacles”. It’s really all mental, don’t stress if results aren’t coming overnight, take a picture and then work out hard for 4 weeks and take another picture, you’ll see a difference and this will help your motivation.

I’m in Thailand right now and no gyms in my neck of the jungle, keeping most of my size though and these excercises are great for strength. Mixing in some yoga, staying flexible. Remember, No Excuses!

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After you’ve been doing bodybuilding and weight lifting for quite some time you’ll gather your favorite exercises. You begin to figure out which ones does the best job and gives the best workout for your muscles. I have done bodybuilding for many years and I’ve gone through and tried a lot of different exercises and in this way found out what works. If you’re new to weight lifting you can be grateful that there are so many that has done the work before you and that are willing to share their knowledge with you.

So, to the list of the exercises I’ve found to be the most efficient(however, you want to use some more of course to ensure that all your muscles get trained properly);

• The squat
• Dead lift
• Bench press with Dumbbells
• Hanging Leg Raises
• Chin ups
• Glute Hamstring rise
  
• Lying Back Extension
• Military Press
• Leg Thrust
• Bicep curls

These are all exercises I do regularly and that I’ve found really makes my muscles grow the most. However, you want do some exercises for your calves and your neck as well while you’re at it.

What most bodybuilder finds after training for many years is that you don’t need to have a huge number of exercises to alternate between. It’s often more efficient to have a few killer ones that you’re getting really good at performing. In this way you’ll ensure that you keep track of your progress and that you’re increasing the weights properly over time.

More important than to have many different exercises is to know the best way to perform the ones you already do. I’ve seen so many people doing a lot of the more common muscle building exercises in ways that most likely won’t give them the results they’re after. If you really want to gain big muscles you’re better off getting a good personal trainer that can show you how to go about it. Or, in some cases even better, buy yourself a proper book with good instructions that can guide you to do the exercises in the best way. This will most likely ensure that you’ll be able to gain the muscles you’re after.

In the beginning when we start going to the gym, you might prefer just to have a handful of exercises and become familiar and comfortable doing them. After all, you want to perform each exercise in the right way so that you don’t risk any torn or damaged muscles. This is why it can be so helpful to have a personal trainer too with you in the beginning. Of course, having a personal trainer gives you a lot more motivation as well which can be extremely helpful when we’re starting out.

Some people prefer to try out a whole range of different exercises right of the bat and in this way, find those that they prefer.

This is nothing I recommend, even though I know that some people like the variety and feels it makes the training more fun and entertaining. But, if you want to really get the most out of your training your better off doing fewer exercises and to do them properly. As time goes by and you get more experienced, you’ll be able to add more specific exercises.

The advantage of having only a few exercises in the beginning is that you’ll learn how to do each one of them better and it’s also easier to keep track of your progress. If you have a lot of different exercises you might forget how much you were lifting last time and you might not be able to know how much more you should add to your weights etc. A training log, which is something I highly recommend, easily takes care of this issue.

It’s best is to see your training as a learning curve. Allow it to unfold and don’t expect to be a master straight away. Luckily there are lots of people that have more experience than you and those are the ones you want to learn from.

My favorite exercises came to me with time and a lot of them I got recommended by my personal trainer and others around me who knew more than me. Then I integrated them into my training routine and found out how it suited me to work with them. Experiment and let the process come naturally and you’ll do great.

[TAG-Tec]muscles[/TAG-Tec] [TAG-Tec]excercise[/TAG-Tec]

So what are the secrets?

First of all, train your mind. This may seem a bit weird to some but I promise you, if your mind is not focused on muscle gain you will become sloppy and start to miss out on doing your training properly. Remind yourself over and over again what your goal is and keep your focus on that. Imagine how good it will feel to have the body you have dreamed of etc. If you are not interested in bulking up, then what’s the point? Make sure it is something you do because you want to do it, make it fun. You will start to include more and more things into your lifestyle that will be of great aid when you are to gain muscles.

Alright then, so you are focused and motivated, you know what you want. What then is the fastest way to success from here? Now you have to have a good training technique to get the most out of the hours spent in the gym. Make sure you train with intensity. No use to spend long hours at the gym – you are better off spending 30-45 minutes each time and work out hard this time. The fewer reps the better in general if you are after big muscles. After you have done a set of 6-8 reps you should not be able to make another one, this is how heavy the weights should be to maximize the results.

Another important aspect that you want to bring to your lifestyle is to eat properly. If you don’t have the right building blocks for your muscles they won’t be able to grow. Eat food that are high in protein, a good idea is to add a few protein shakes to your diet each day. You also want to increase the amount of calories you eat every day and with a few extra protein shakes to your daily diet, this will be taken care of easily.

Last and also important is to sleep properly every night. Make sure you get a good amount of sleep, 7-8 hours at least. This is the time when your muscles grow the most and if you make sure you have a good rest you make it easier for the body to do its thing and repair and build up the muscle tissue in your body.

Instead of going the artificial way about it, take the path where you trigger the amount of  testosterone to raise the natural way. By training in a certain way, as well as eating food that’s appropriate for this purpose you can make your muscles grow much faster.

Testosterone exists naturally in both the female and the male body, but in a higher concentration in the
male. This hormones controls a range of different  activities in the body, and one of them is the  rebuilding of muscle tissue.

To keep your testosterone levels high, you want to  focus a lot of your energy on working out your legs. Make it a habit to train your legs properly since this helps to keep your levels of testosterone high. The squat and the deadlift are excellent examples of exercises that boosts your testosterone levels.

Also you want to make sure that your work out  sessions are performed in an intense way, that the  weights you are lifting are maximizing your  capacity. When you have finished you last rep (of  which there shouldn’t be more than at most 10 in  set) you should not be able to lift one more time  and you know that you gave your most.

Zinc is a mineral that we naturally gain from some  of the food we eat and it keeps the levels of  testosterone high. Oysters are packed with this  mineral and you can also find a good amount in red  meat and poultry. Other sources are beans, nuts,  whole grains, seafood and dairy products. Eat a lot  of those foods, and cut down on the alcohol intake,  since alcohol has the effect to decrease the zinc levels in the body which leads to less testosterone.

Other food products that boosts testosterone levels in the body are; garlic, eggs, broccoli and cabbage.

You also want to have a diet with a high amount of monounsaturated fats. Those can be found in high concentration in most vegetable oils, nuts and seeds. Don’t cut down on your fat intake if you want to gain muscle, make sure it comes from sources with fat that has a high quality. Monounsaturated fats naturally increases the levels of testosterone in  your body.

High stress levels also decreases the amount of testosterone by making the amount of corticosteroid in your blood increase. If you feel stressed a lot of the time, find ways to relax that works for you.  Also make sure you get enough sleep, since it is during your sleep that the levels of testosterone naturally increases and most of the cell repair and is going on.

These are some of the ways to give you a natural gain of testosterone which in its turn will lead to faster muscle gain, and your body will still be  healthy.

Women have a higher concentration of estrogen in their blood, while their testosterone levels naturally are lower than in the male body.

Testosterone is one of the most important hormones for muscle growth and is one of the reasons why the male body usually has a relatively larger amount of muscles than the female.

The female hormone estrogen on the other hand has the quality to make the body store fat easier, and is one of the reasons why the female body by often is more soft and with a larger layer of fat.

Because of this natural condition of the body, the female bodybuilder may have to work a bit harder for her results, but there are ways to maximize your results, and it’s possible to do so without having to use steroids that raise testosterone levels artificially.

If you focus a lot of your training on the lower part of your body, you will gain a natural increase of testosterone in your body, and so the muscles will be able to grow with more ease. Make sure you fit in a lot of exercises for your legs each week, even though you have to give them a good rest every now and then too.

When you work out you want to do it in an intense way and have short sets with maximum weight. This also increases testosterone and aids muscle growth. Make your sets about 6-8 reps for most muscle groups and don’t do more than three sets on each muscle growth. The fewer reps you do the better and the heavier weight, the faster your muscles will grow.

Female bodybuilders might also want to increase their intake of food that naturally raises testosterone levels. All foods with a high amount of zinc are great, with oysters at the top. Red meat and poultry also has a high concentration of zinc as well as beans, nuts, wholegrain and seafood. Also make sure the fat you eat has a high concentration of monounsaturated fat, since it is helpful for muscle growth.
These are a few ways that the female bodybuilder can use to be able to gain muscles easier and faster.

Many female bodybuilders are finding that they can rapidly gain muscle by following a disciplined routine. These women are looking to add sizeable muscle. A lot of other women who go to the gym are just interested in toning their arms, stomachs and legs. Remember, short sets with heavy weights to get big, long sets with light weights to get toned.

But is it possible to gain muscles without the extra protein that comes from meat? Protein is essential for muscle building and without it, they won’t grow. Luckily, there are many other sources that you can use as a vegetarian.

It’s important that the protein you are taking in is of good quality. Protein contains amino acids of which there are many different types, some of them can be produced by the body but still a few are what we call essential and can only be gained from the foods we eat. When you are eating vegetarian it’s important to make sure you eat with variation, this ensures that you get all the amino acids that you need.

If you are a lacto-ovo vegetarian which means you’re eating egg and dairy products, you can increase your intake of protein by eating more eggs and adding more milk and cheese to your diet. Eggs have a lot of high quality proteins with many of the essential amino acids, a great source for muscle gain. You can make omelettes and add egg to your salads and other meals.

If you are eating a strict vegan diet, you’re main source of protein comes from legumes, beans and grains. Beans in general and especially soybeans have a large concentration of high quality protein, and there are many different usages for it. Made into tofu and tempeh you can use it in a similar way as you are used to making meat.

Black beans are especially good for you as they are a complete protein. You have to soak them overnight and they take a few hours to cook so I recommend making a large amount and then putting the extra in the freezer. Having a black bean burrito is an excellent way to get your protein.

Broccoli is also excellent to add, it not only has a very large protein percentage but also a lot of vitamins and minerals that are essential for a healthy body. Variation is the key, eat a variety of vegetables and you’ll naturally making sure that you gain all the nutritions that your body needs for bodybuilding.

Grains are a great source of protein and often have a lot of vitamins, usually from the B-group which is the most difficult to find for vegans. Grains like quinoa, bulghur, hirs and buckwheat all have a good amount of protein and nutrition. By eating those instead of white rice and pasta, your protein intake will naturally rise.

Also you want to make sure that you get enough energy for the body to be able to work out and renew itself. Add extra fat to your diet to gain extra calories and look for food that has a lot of energy. It’s also a good idea to add nuts and seeds to your diet since they have a lot of good quality fat in them.

If you’re really aiming to gain muscles fast and efficiently, it might also be a good idea to get a soy-based protein powder. This adds the extra proteins you need. Make sure you get a good quality powder with a high concentration of the essential amino acids.

By following these guidelines you can easily gain muscles even if you want to keep a healthy vegetarian diet.