2023-11-19 16:00:22
Going to bodybuilding regularly without seeing significant changes can, most often, lead to total demotivation.
Conversely, the more results you obtain, and the more you want to continue, you then enter a virtuous circle of motivation.
Here are nine tips that will allow you to increase your muscle mass quickly and considerably.
#1: listen to your favorite music
Listening to your favorite songs during your workouts helps youincrease your performance athletic.
In fact, these motivate you and allow you to feel less tired and therefore boost your sporting ability.
According to a study (1), it appears that music increases endurance, strength and energy. But you should know that this conclusion is not the result of a single piece of research and that numerous analyzes point in the same direction (2).
So, rhythmic music can increase the pace and intensity of your workout, as well as the speed of your strides and distance covered on a treadmill, more than soft music, without feeling more exhausted.
Finally, the music is excellent distraction from pain, your attention is thus focused on something other than the suffering felt and the desire to give up that generally accompanies it.
Head to the gym with your favorite playlist and headphones, because remember, your neighbor may not have the same musical tastes as you.
Read also: 7 things you should definitely not do before a bodybuilding workout
#2: Hydrate throughout your session
When you do sports, you sweat, drinking then helps you replace fluids lost and preserve your performance.
Don’t make the mistake of having a drink full of sugars, because this will not make you stronger, more motivated or more efficient.
On the other hand, it will simply increase your sugar consumption and therefore your number of calories.
When you work out to improve your physical appearance, a sugary drink is therefore of absolutely no interest.
Read also: 7 things you should definitely not do following a bodybuilding workout
#3: Eliminate Potential Distractions
The main distractions you may find while working out are on your phone.
A call, a message, an email and presto, your mind is no longer on sport.
You take a few minutes to respond, so you do not respect the time limit between your sets, you also break your rhythm and it is more difficult to return to it, you do not achieve that state of well-being that is supposed to bring you your session.
Finally, you are simply not able to give your best because you are no longer focused and your cognitive abilities are reduced (3).
To summarize, there is absolutely no benefit to checking your phone while working out.
Download your playlist in advance, possibly use the stopwatch if necessary, these things can be done perfectly by staying in airplane mode.
#4: go gradually with the weights
When you continually lift the same weights, the muscles get used to it and no longer need to provide real energy.
As a result, your calorie expenditure is lower, the intensity is non-existent and your progress borders on nothing.
Conversely, by gradually increasing the loads, you are constantly challenging your muscles who must provide more strength and energy to meet the challenges you impose on them.
The consequence is then that they become stronger and develop more, you gain muscle mass.
There are various solutions to progress.
This may involve increasing the load, the number of repetitions or sets, or the volume of weekly sessions with longer or more frequent sessions.
We can also consider reducing the rest time between repetitions.
#5: Record your performance
If you don’t record your sessions, duration, leg weights, arm weights, repetitions, etc., you risk simply forgetting and not respecting the principle of progression.
Your workouts then become less effective.
You should also know that visualizing your results and progress constitutes a serious source of motivation which you will need.
Indeed, being motivated is not a linear state of mind.
Sometimes, fatigue, stress, worries, obligations or lack of progress during a period can reduce it to nothing.
Looking at your application or notebook and seeing the path traveled and the progress allows you to reboost when you’re feeling sluggish.
#6: respect your abilities
Don’t try to lift more weight than you are capable of.
In this case, your goals are certainly to show off in front of other athletes and boost your ego, unfortunately, these are unlikely to be achieved.
On the other hand, you are almost sure to collect a injury.
This problem is more masculine.
Indeed, although fitness centers are occupied by more than 50% women, Injuries linked to lifting weights mainly concern men, up to 6 times more than ladies (4).
#7: Prefer exercises with a large range of motion
Research shows that resistance training with a full range of motion is more effective than a partial range of motion because it trains greater strength gain at the level of the biceps (5), but also the legs (see source 6).
In both cases, these studies were carried out in the same way, that is to say by dividing the participants into 2 groups, the first using large movements and the second using reduced movements.
Apart from that, the duration of the training as well as the loads lifted/pushed remained the same, in order to be able to compare in a completely objective way.
#8: listen to your body
You have certainly heard the famous gym mantra “No pain, no gain” ? So, yes, you have to work hard to sculpt your dream body, but that doesn’t mean you have to hurt yourself to achieve this result.
The body sends signals that you need to know how to identify and listen to. For example, during a workout, certain joints become particularly painful, or, despite your mental motivation, you really feel physically weakened.
Your body is trying to tell you something is wrong. If you persevere without changing anything, you risk injuring yourself.
In the event of an injury, you will no longer be able to play sports at all for several weeks (or even months).
You will lose all of your strength and muscle mass that you have worked so hard for so far.
Is it really worth it?
Studies also explain that listening to your body and avoiding pain is an effective way to self-regulate your training when you are injured (7) and even provides long-term results (8).
So, in case of pain, rather than forcing it, simply change the exercise.
In the event of intense muscle fatigue, take a day off to completely recharge your batteries; the next day, you will perform better.
#9: Optimize the order of your exercises
Researchers have understood that the muscles or muscle groups worked at the beginning of training are those that offer the most results, while those worked at the end experience slower progression (9).
So you cannot give the same level of priority to all exercises.
Set up a training program adapted to your muscle development goals.
So if you’re looking to increase the size of your pecs and biceps, don’t start with the legs.
By implementing these 9 tips, you will progress more quickly, you will see noticeable physical results and you will practice safely.
It is therefore a question of the perfect recipe to build your muscles.
Last recommendation for the road, don’t forget to warm up systematically.
Spending 5 to 10 minutes to prepare your body is never a waste of time. You will limit the risk of injuries and will even perform better.
Updated by Emma on: 11/17/2023
Our bodybuilding articles
1700433074
#absolutely #strength #training
