Many programs are based on the idea that the best way to make muscles grow is to expose them to a heavy load once a week with a large number of exercises, sets, and reps.
A typical workout program might look like this: Monday – chest muscles, Tuesday – back, Wednesday – shoulders, Thursday – legs, and Friday – arms. Although many people get good results following such a program, I think there are better options.
When you train a certain muscle group once a week, protein synthesis increases for 1-2 days after the workout. But after 36-48 hours it returns to normal levels. And simply by damaging muscle fibers, you cannot extend the period of increased protein synthesis.
Furthermore, experienced athletes peak protein synthesis after training and return to normal faster than inexperienced athletes. Bottom line: only small changes in protein synthesis are achieved among advanced athletes.
In other words, when you directly train a certain muscle group once a week, the muscles are in an anabolic state for a few days after that. But if you don’t return to that group again during the week, you miss the 2nd (or maybe 3rd) opportunity to stimulate muscle growth.
How fast (or slow) should you perform each repetition?
With few exceptions, an extremely slow speed does not offer any advantages compared to training when you lift the weight as fast as possible and lower it slowly.
Some exercises are better suited for lifting weights quickly than others. You would be unlikely to do a biceps dumbbell lift at a fast pace and a barbell lift at a slow pace.
Self-weight exercises such as bar push-ups, floor push-ups, horizontal and vertical pull-ups, and most single-joint exercises are better done at a slower speed, using a moderate tempo.
But in almost all other exercises, in order to build mass and strength, the weight should be lifted as fast as possible and lowered slowly. There is no need to count the seconds for each repetition. Just concentrate on the movement of the bar from point A to point B and forget about everything else.
Don’t copy workout programs you read about in magazines
After working on each muscle group with 4-5 different exercises the next day you will feel sore muscles, but that does not mean that you will grow faster.
There is no proven relationship between soreness and growth, and there is no rule that says you have to “kill” every muscle group to make it grow
Despite this, there are many people who see soreness as a goal. They believe that if their muscles are sore, it means the workout was good for them.
Sometimes you will feel pain the day after a workout that is part of a program designed to improve your body physically. But the same program will sometimes include workouts that will not bring such painful sensations.
You go to the gym to work out. Most of the other people you see there are there to exercise. There’s a difference between the two. “I have to say, not everyone is interested in working out,” says coach Mark Rippeto.
“For many people, doing the exercise is already enough. They just want to burn calories, get in shape a little bit, and pump up their abs. That’s not a bad thing for them. But if you want more, if you are determined to achieve the maximum possible results, finish the exercise. 20-25 “working” sets per workout (not counting warm-ups) is more than enough to cause rapid growth in strength and mass. 25 reps are not for each muscle, but 25 reps total for the entire workout, divided between 1-3 exercises for each muscle group. In rare cases, more reps are needed.
Write a workout plan
Before you cross the threshold of the gym, it is very important to know exactly what you are going to do there. If you want to build muscle mass, you need to be properly prepared. That’s why I highly recommend keeping a workout diary.
Probably the most important advantage of the diary, and the main reason most people don’t have one, is that it forces you to face facts. Is what you’re doing getting results? Or are you just repeating the same program over and over again in the hope that it will suddenly start working?
It’s also a good idea to have an unloading or relief week every 3-9 weeks of heavy training. Yes, I understand that you’re worried that such a break will weaken you and reduce your size, especially if you’re the type of person who sees any interval as a missed opportunity for progress.
But your body is not a machine, and it will benefit from rest, especially as you get older. I know it’s a cliché, but sometimes you have to take a step back to take two steps forward. Your work at the gym is only half the battle if your goal is to gain muscle mass.
Without consuming enough food, many weight gain efforts will go to waste. Here’s a quick and easy way to know your caloric needs for muscle growth:
- First, calculate your lean body mass. For example, if you weigh 80 kg and have 14% fat, you have 11 kg of fat and 69 kg of lean body mass.
- Multiply your lean body mass by 20. If you have a lean body mass of 69 kg, you need 1,380 calories per day.
If you find that you are not gaining weight, then increase your intake by 250 calories a day until the scale starts moving in the right direction.
I know this diet doesn’t look impressive, especially when you compare it to some diets that involve consuming 5,000 calories. But you’re not going to make your muscles grow faster just by stuffing your stomach with food.
That’s why there is an upper limit to the number of calories you can consume and turn them into muscle. If you are currently consuming calories below this limit, you can build muscle faster if you increase your caloric intake.
But once you reach your maximum muscle gain rate, increasing your caloric intake will not automatically increase your growth rate. You’ll just start gaining fat.
I often read about how you have to change your workout program every few weeks to keep your muscles from adapting and make them grow. For many people, this is a flawed approach. There is no point in variety for the sake of variety, and the best way to have no progress at all is to jump from one program to another. Don’t let people mess with your head.
Sean Phillips expressed it best when he said that variety stimulates the mind and consistency stimulates the muscles. A workout program built around a few basic exercises will always be effective if you follow it correctly. You should care about the approaches, reps, frequency of workouts and the size of the weight on the bar, not the exercises you do. There is a time and place for changing exercises, but only if it is part of a structured plan designed to achieve a specific goal. Doing a bunch of random exercises is useless if you want to get bigger and stronger.
Are you bored doing the same exercises all the time? Nothing destroys boredom like the feeling of getting closer to your goal. When you see results, boredom will no longer be a problem. People who are bored usually don’t make much progress. Finally, forget about your body type or your genetics. You can’t change them, so there’s no point in thinking about it. Set high but realistic goals for yourself, and work to the limit to achieve them.
