How Fast Can Someone Realistically and Naturally Build Muscle?

Building additional muscle mass is a relatively complex process that hinges on a number of variables. Many individuals will often combine a standard, high-calorie eating plan with high-intensity exercise in order to put on lean mass. This method has significant anecdotal and experimental evidence, which makes it almost universally efficacious. Yet, such eating plans can provide wildly varying muscle accretion results. This large difference can only be accounted for by examining the different factors that limit muscle growth.
The Natural Limits of Muscle Growth
Human evolution is the result of constant ecological pressure towards energy efficiency and energy storage. This genetic fact is consistently proven by way of the growing population of overweight, low muscle mass individuals. Muscular growth is genetically programmed through a variety of limiting agents.
The primary regulating factor in muscle growth is myostatin, a protein that inhibits muscular hypertrophy and hyperplasia. Defective coding of the myostatin gene results in spontaneous lean tissue accumulation. This effect is most notable within the Belgian Blue breed of cows.
Testosterone synthesis and responsiveness is also a considerable factor. Reduced testosterone production in females results in both reduced muscle gain and lower total muscle mass.
Training experience and previous muscle growth is also highly influential. Experienced lifters have much more difficulty growing lean tissue than beginners. This factor is believed to be dependent on myostatin.
Any loss of previous muscle mass also contributes to future muscle gain. Athletes who attempt to regain lost muscle can expect increased gains up to their previous limit. This effect is attributed to changes in mitochondrial DNA within muscle cells.
Expected Muscle Growth
While mutations in myostatin coding, endocrine dysfunction and training restriction can create unnaturally low or high muscle growth, most individuals can expect a certain amount of growth per length of time. Different experts provide different amounts of average growth, but two pounds of lean tissue growth per month is the norm. It should be noted that 68 percent of the population is genetically average in this respect.
Creating an Environment for Growth
The previously mentioned rate of muscle accretion should only be expected while undergoing high intensity training, eating hypercalorically and consuming adequate amounts of protein. Failing to adhere to this minimum of discipline will yield subpar results.
Additionally, maximizing testosterone production through proper nutrition and vitamin D intake is necessary. Although myostatin production cannot be currently manipulated, testosterone synthesis is highly dependent on outside stimulus and nutrition.

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3 Essential Factors In Muscle Building For Beginners

Muscle building for beginners is an ideal regimen if you're a skinny guy who wants to gain weight and muscle mass. Or if you're a fat guy, you can do muscle building for beginners if you want your shoulder to be broader than your waistline. Otherwise, if you just want to be stronger and faster, you can do so by building muscles. Building muscles need you to do 3 things so that you'll gain muscle and get bigger and stronger:

• You should lift things that are heavy
• Stick to a diet that promotes your muscle-building goals
• Provide time for rest

Lifting heavy things is an essential part of building muscles. To do this more effectively, workout in a gym that has an efficient section for free weights. Do some body weight exercises. It'll bring big results for your weight loss goals and in maintaining your muscles. If you're serious about weight training, look for a gym with more complete equipments such as a bench, a squat rack, barbells and enough space where you can do chin ups, pull-ups and dips. You'll want to gain functional muscle strength and size, and in this case you should do full-body workout routines in combination with compound exercises. Multiple muscle groups have to be targeted by your exercises. Don't waste any more time in doing isolated muscle workouts using weight machines. You need to work not only specific muscles, but more importantly, your stabilizer muscles. Do barbell squats instead. It's a compound exercise that works every muscle in your physique. Exercise using dumbbells and barbells and avoid using machines.
What about your diet? It depends on your current built. If you're skinny, your diet will comprise 90% of the muscle building battle. If you want to build size, you have to create a calorie surplus through your diet. In other words, you should take in more calories than what you burn. When you get that problem wherein you're not gaining weight despite lifting ample weights, it means that you have to improve your diet. What are tips for a weight gaining diet? First off, eat lots of whatever food. It's a different approach for weight gain that works. Make sure about your protein intake. It has to be 200 grams a day. Then gorge the rest of the 3500 calories from any foods that you find delish, such as milk, pasta, rice, pizza, chicken, protein shakes, milk shakes and so on. You'll gain sufficient amounts of weight via this eating technique. Another approach to gaining weight for building muscles is to eat plenty of healthy foods. Your food choices for this option include brown rice, chicken, oatmeal, homemade shake, almond butter sandwiches of whole-grain wheat bread, fruits and veggies, milk, beef and eggs. Eating lots of healthy food is kinder to your insides, and it's better than eating lots of any stuff. It may not work optimally for weight gain, but still, it makes sense.

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Protein Blends - The Best Way To Build Muscle

Purchasing supplements can be an extremely difficult process as you're bombarded with many answers from bodybuilding forums, internet "specialists", supplement store "experts" and your local gym rat.
Well, with a growing amount of research and an immense spike in the supplement industry over the last decade, scientists have been able to understand the concept of protein supplements better.
Whey vs. Casein
A growing body of research over years of work now confirms that a proprietary blend of protein sources far exceeds the simple single source of protein most products are selling to you. A combination of fast-digesting whey protein immediately supplies your body with the right nutrients to recover from a brutal workout. On the other hand, the medium to slow-digesting protein blend, such as the casein blend, supplies your body with the right nutrients at a steady rate that feeds your body through the day/night. A combination of these two protein blends only speaks for itself. Not only are you absorbing fast digesting protein but also slow-digesting, fueling your body through a hectic day, continuously helping the muscle-building and recovery process.
Whey protein is digested immensely and at a rapid rate allowing insulin levels to spike again after a workout that drained your body of energy. The whey protein supplies the muscles in your body with the appropriate amino acids that furthermore spike the MSI (muscle protein synthesis). The muscle protein synthesis is the major reason in repairing the damaged proteins and aiding in building new ones for faster and more effective muscle growth. The fast digesting process of this protein is effective only till the point your protein synthesis drops again. This is where the proprietary blend of slow-digesting micellar casein comes in. This protein blend acts as a protein blend that slowly and steadily provides your body with the fuel it needs to continuously be fed and thus recover and grow.
The combination of both has proved to be the best blend. This reason being due to the continuous supplementation of amino acids carried out by the casein and whey protein sources. When the whey protein discontinued to supply these amino acids to the muscle protein synthesis, the slow-digesting blend takes over, leaving your body with a continuous flow of amino acids to recover and grow.
The Takeaway
The most powerful combination of both fast and slow digesting proteins allows your body to refuel, recharge, and recover in order to grow muscle. Don't forget to eat well, as supplements are always excellent but that is exactly what they are, supplements. Eating the correct foods that meet all your macronutrients and micronutrients requirements, and getting the adequate rest serves as the perfect formula in recovery and growth.

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How To Mix The Best Ingredients For The Ultimate Muscle Building Shake

When people think of muscle building, they usually imagine barbells, dumbbells, and workouts but give little thought to the role nutrition plays in muscle building. This has led many an aspiring muscle building enthusiast to give up in frustration when he or she sees little or no result after months of hard work at the gym.
In contrast, professional body builders know the value of proper nutrition and almost as a whole pay as much attention to what they consume as they do to their workouts. They not only eat a well-balanced diet but also augment it with protein-rich shakes and powders that their aching muscles need after workouts. If you want to develop strong and well-developed muscles, you should the same. All types of ready-made preparations are available at places like wholefoods but you will not get a fraction of what you can get if you prepare muscle shakes yourself. Fortunately, it is quite easy if you know what ingredients you need as we show you below.

• Whey Protein Powder - the undisputed king among protein sources, whey protein is loaded with protein. No serious muscle building fan should be without it. Period!
• Greek Yogurt - also high in protein but low in sugar, this is a nice addition to a shake that will enhance the overall taste of the shake.
• Frozen berries - known for their high antioxidant content, berries also blend beautifully in a shake and give it a thicker milk-shake like texture.
• Ground flaxseeds - high in healthy omega fats, they provide an easy and fast way of consuming the healthy fats your body needs and craves.
• Dried coconut - known for its tasty flavor and energy enhancing qualities, this is another source of healthy fats you don't want to be without.
• Natural nut butter - nothing beats nut butter as a source of healthy fat and as an easy way to give your shake a creamy tasty flavor. Make sure you choose almond or peanut butter variety.
• Cottage Cheese - this is another fine ingredient that can serve as an alternative to or as a substitute for Greek Yogurt.
• Dry Ground Up Oats - a great source of energy releasing carbohydrates, they lower cholesterol level among other health benefits. Best of all, you will not notice any difference in the taste.
• Bananas - are such a rich source of potassium that they should always be included in all shakes. They also improve the taste significantly and keep your muscles healthy.
• Xanthan gum - a tiny amount of this is all you need to turn the mix into a very thick muscle building milk shake. It is an essential component to any shake.
• Milk - finally, milk will supply your muscles with calcium and protein while also helping to make the shake thinner.

The above ingredients are all you need to prepare a muscle shake high in protein and other essential nutrients that your muscles and body desperately need. If you regularly consume a shake using the above set of ingredients while also maintaining a regular workout routine you will soon wake up one fine morning to stare at yourself in the mirror wondering if that impressive physique with lean and well-defined muscles is really you. It is really within your reach if you regularly exercise and nourish yourself with foods high in proteins and other essential nutrients.

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The Best Exercises to Include In Your Muscle Building Routine

As you go about you workout routine, it is important to discover the best muscle building exercises that you can be doing. This will point you in the right direction by eliminating wasted time, and mobilizing you to spend your energy on exercises that are proven to provide excellent results. Fortunately, there are a number of time-tested, basic exercises that have consistently provided outstanding muscle and strength gains for professional athletes, bodybuilders, powerlifters, and for anyone willing to put in the required level of work.
The benefits of muscle building exercises are well documented. Incorporating them into your workout routine will build lean muscle mass, which will increase your body's metabolism, allowing you to burn fat more efficiently. It will also lead to significant strength gains. An added benefit to doing these exercises is that they work more than one muscle group in your body at once, providing you with greater payoff for your effort. Given these benefits, lets take a look at some of the top muscle building exercises that you should consider incorporating into your daily workout routine.
The Details - Let These Exercises Take Your Muscle Development To New Levels:

• Squats: Often referred to as the king of strength and muscle building movements, the effectiveness of squats is unrivaled in terms of building mass and strength in the hamstrings, quadriceps, glutes, muscles of the lower back and spinal column, and your core. Assuming you back will allow it, this exercise should be a staple of your regular workout routine.


• Lunges: This is a great movement for building muscle in your thighs and hips. They can be done with a set of dumbbells or a barbell across your back. If you are new to lunges, you will quickly discover their effectiveness as your legs will feel incredibly worked within just a few repetitions.


• Deadlifts: This power-lifting movement will strengthen and build the muscle in your upper legs, glutes, and lower back very effectively. Along with squats, they are proven effective at significantly increasing muscle mass.


• Bench Press: Another power-lifting exercise, the bench press has long been lauded for building thick muscle mass in the chest, shoulders, and triceps. The strength gains that can be achieved are unrivaled as well. There also are several variations of this exercise that can be performed to enhance results. Close grip, wide grip, and incline bench press exercises are all very effective. Given its incredible muscle and strength building benefits, the bench press should also be a staple in your workout routine.


• Dips: A professional body builder was once asked what exercises he would do if he could only choose three, and dips was one of the exercises he selected! Little wonder, because dips are exceptionally effective at working the chest, shoulders, and triceps. To super-charge your dip routine, once you can do a high number of repetitions without stopping, you can begin to increase the weight using a dumbbell attached to your lifting belt.


• Overhead shoulder press: Nothing beats this movement for increasing muscle mass in the shoulders. It also provides a significant workout for the triceps. Shoulder presses can be done seated or standing, with a barbell or using dumbbells. Two huge favorites are seated dumbbell presses and seated behind the neck barbell presses. Any of these variations is a highly effective workout for your deltoid muscles.


• Push-ups: One of the things that makes push-ups such a great option is that you can basically do them anytime, anywhere. They can be done in combination with other upper body exercises, or as a stand-alone upper body exercise if you are away on vacation or can't get to a gym. Push-ups are great for building lean muscle in the chest, shoulders, triceps, and upper back.


• Rows: The ultimate exercise for working the lat muscles of the upper back, there is no substitute for rows. Bent-over dumbbell rows are immensely popular for building mass and strength. T-bar rows and seated cable rows are also an excellent option.


• Pull-ups: This is a hard one, but very effective! While you may only be able to do a couple of them if you are just starting out, pull-ups are an excellent way to work the upper back and the biceps.

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How To Make A Healthy And Tasty Muscle-Building Protein Shake

One of the main challenges for a lean muscle building regiment and to lose fat is to get sufficient protein in the diet and only the good fats. Sometimes the volume of food needed can leave a person feeling bloated and it can be cumbersome to eat all the required food making the process significantly harder. As a result, people often miss the calorie and protein intake mark leading to subpar results and discouragement.
To alleviate that problem a protein shake is recommended. It is simple a drink full of protein, healthy nutrients, good fats and a pleasant taste that helps to meet the daily requirements and significantly helps to build muscle. However, the proper ingredients are important to ensure the protein shake does provide the necessary benefits. Here is a list of some of the best ingredients for a proper protein shake:

• Milk or Fruit Juice- As a base for the shake, milk is strongly recommended due to Calcium, protein and a low sugar content. This also makes the shake more easily drinkable and less thick. Some people may use fruit juice but that is too high in simple sugars and empty calories and as such something to avoid.


• Whey Protein Powder- This is the core of the shake and will provide the bulk of the protein for the muscle building. Buying a large wholesale-sized container would not be a bad decision for this particular ingredient. This will go into every shake. Fortunately, this itself comes in a large variety of flavors so that alone helps to vary up the flavor of the shakes.


• Greek Yogurt or Cottage Cheese- For adding a creamier texture to the shake either Greek Yogurt or Cottage Cheese can be used. They both have low sugar and high protein. Avoid regular yogurt as that has a much higher sugar content which is as mentioned above something to avoid.


• Fruits- Bananas and Berries are a great addition to the shake. Both provide a lot of texture and flavor to the shake making more than just a drink one has to drink. Beyond that the Bananas provide a lot of potassium which helps to build muscles, while the berries are full of many different vitamins and antioxidants. For the berries simply use a frozen bag of berries from a local supermarket to reduce the amount of unnecessary extra work.


• Dry Ground-up Oats- To prep for the next work out add some dry ground-up oats to the shake for the carbohydrate content. They will work well in the blend and not really be noticeable.


• Natural Nut Butter- A quick way to add some healthy fats to the shake is through natural nut butters like peanut butter or almond butter. However, avoid the cheap ones and go of the nut butters that only list ingredients like "peanuts" or "almonds". Avoid anything with "hydrogenated oils" in them, as those are the bad fats.


• Dried Coconut- For some variation in flavor and an extra energy boost dried coconut is an excellent ingredient. It is very calorie dense as well.


• Xantham Gum- To adjust the texture of the shake add Xantham gum which is something also used in ice cream. This is purely to change the thickness of the shake to suit the palette.

Having muscle-building shakes like this post-workout should be looked upon as a reward. Not only do they taste good they are a tremendous benefit as well and a crucial addition on the journey to lose fat, build muscle and feel energetic. Drinking one or two shakes per day is the goal so ensuring the protein shake is both well-balanced and delicious is an important component.

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5 Useful Tips On How To Gain Weight Fast

If you're all skin and bones and want to know how to gain weight fast, then these 5 tips will help you add some flesh and muscle to your frame.
While it may not seem apparent, gaining weight is just as difficult as losing weight. Those who are skinny or thin are that way for a reason. They eat less than normal, or have such a high metabolic rate that they burn off all extra calories, leaving little or nothing to build their body on.
So how to gain weight fast if you're a rapid burner who can't seem to eat your way to more muscle? The standard advice to eat fatty or sugar-rich food isn't effective. The reason is that the extra calories in these diets tend to be deposited on your body in the form of unhealthy fat rather than solid muscle.
The best way to gain weight is to eat food rich in calories as well as protein. That's the right approach to get adequate nutrition while providing your body with the substrate required to build muscle. Your food must be rich in protein and include moderate amounts of carbohydrate and fat.
Here are 5 tips to put on weight the healthy and natural way.
1. Avoid snacking in between meals. Have just 3 large meals daily. Include starchy food like potatoes, pasta and bread in your diet. But don't eat chips, crisps and other fried snacks that only provide empty calories. They not only help you gain weight, but they are also bad for your health.
2. Eat eggs and lean meat. Chicken and turkey are excellent sources of animal protein. Legumes, beans and peas are good sources of plant protein for vegetarians. By combining protein-rich food with carbs and vegetables you can plan a balanced and healthy diet.
3. Take dietary supplements. Protein shakes and whey drinks provide a boost of protein and amino acids in the immediate post-workout period. By taking these building blocks of muscle growth, you will quickly bulk up and become stronger.
4. Exercise lightly. This improves your appetite and you'll be able to eat more calories. Training with weights helps develop muscles while also making you hungrier.
5. Eat multiple meals daily. Some people find that they may have to eat 6 or 8 times in a day in order to gain weight. This is important when you work on strength training. This increases calorie consumption, and you must focus on eating more than you burn off in order to gain weight.

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