You’re looking to build muscle but it’s just not happening as quickly as you’d like and you’re starting to become disheartened. It’s not as easy to build muscle as it might seem, and if you make a few small mistakes, they can really work against your body and counteract the result you are striving for. Here are some reasons you’re not building muscle as quickly as you would like.
You’re not doing the right exercises
You might think you know what you’re doing, but there’s a chance you’re missing out on some important mass-building exercises that you could be taking advantage of. One example of fantastic muscle-building exercises is squatting. Head to this site to get some kettlebells to add resistance to your squat and take things up a notch. You also want to have deadlifts and bench presses as a minimum in your routine. These are the big three of muscle building. You need to be working out at a minimum of 3 times a week, with time to rest groups of muscles to avoid overtraining and switch up your workout every 8-10 weeks to ensure your body is still working to grow muscle.
You’re doing the right exercises wrong
Maybe you are doing all the right things, but your technique is a little off. It’s so important that your form is spot on when you’re putting so much stress on your muscles, as poor form can lead to devastating injuries. Try to use a mirror to check your positioning and keep your reps slow and controlled – that means not swinging the weights to get momentum, or locking your joints at the top of movements.
You’re not eating the right food
When you’re trying to build muscle, you need more calories than you would consume otherwise, and the plan is to try and add one pound every week to your weight. It’s more beneficial to eat little and often, choosing high protein meals including foods such as eggs and chicken spread throughout the day, to give your body the fuel it needs to repair your muscles. If you’re serious about building muscle, you need to avoid or limit alcohol, added sugars and deep-fried fatty foods. A protein drink containing whey powder will help power you through a gym session, so these are great to have on hand.
Another important thing is to ensure you are getting enough rest and enough sleep. Your body repairs muscle while you are sleeping and resting them, and that’s how you begin to build larger muscles – it physically cannot do that if you are working non-stop. In some cases it’s not about working harder, but about giving your body time to do what it needs to do. Check you’re not making these mistakes and give your routine a shake-up. Remember that results can take a while but you should be seeing some sort of progress after 12 weeks or so.
