The Basics to Building Muscles
April 13, 2009
Before you begin to build muscle you need to come up with a muscle building program. This isn’t as hard as it may seem. To start you need to decide on a goal.
You may just be looking to tone your body. If this is the case, then you will start with a beginner’s workout. If, on the other hand, you have been lifting weights for a few months and you are now looking for a challenge, you will need to design an intermediate level program.
If you have been lifting weights for quite some time and are looking to get bigger, you will have to design a specialized routine. If you do not know what your goals are you will not be able to plan out the proper routine.
To build muscle you will have to perform resistance exercises using weights. Such a form of exercise is weight lifting. Here you combine free weights and machines to build muscle.
You can also use the weight of your body to build muscle with exercises such as chin ups or dips.
As your body becomes more accustomed to the weight lifting routine, add more free weight exercises and compound exercises to your routine. Compound exercises include squats, bench presses, dead lifts and barbell rows.
These types of exercises are referred to as multi-jointed exercises because they work both the targeted muscle groups as well as the muscles that support them.
Now that you have devised a workout plan, you have to understand the different components of a workout. They are repetitions and sets. Repetitions are the amount of times you cause a muscle to contract.
For example, a push up is one repetition. Many repetitions make up a set. A set usually consists of about ten repetitions.
The number of sets that you perform is based on your fitness level and your goals. Beginners should start off slowly with two sets for each body part they work. A beginner should focus on doing more repetitions with lower weights.
As you get used to the weights and exercises, you will build strength and muscle. From there you can do fewer repetitions but use heavier weights. This is how muscles are built.
Now that you have done one repetition you will need to do several more. This group of repetitions is called a set. Those new to weight lifting should remain with one or two sets for each exercise.
After a few months, bump up your sets to promote muscle growth again.
As you move on in weight lifting you will need to add more stress to your muscles to promote muscle growth.
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