Best Way To Gain Weight
Your Guide To Increase Muscle Size
By Bartosz Konarski
Copyright:www.bodybuildingandfitnessblog.com
www.bodybuilderssecretzone.com
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Bartosz Konarski is a gym instructor, specializing in helping hardgainers and
hardlosers build their bodies. He is also the author of several articles that have
appeared at: www.bodybuildingandfitnessblog.com and
www.bodybuilderssecretzone.com.
Introduction
How To Start Bodybuilding?
So you want to begin weight training; but what are you looking to achieve and how
do you go about doing that?
The first and most important aspect is to be sure that this is what you want to do.
Like anything in life, you have to want to do it if you want to succeed. The moment
your weight training becomes a chore and you stop enjoying it is the moment that
you will begin to fail to achieve what you set out to in the first place.
You shouldn't see it as a short term objective to improve your build and physique. It
should be more of a long term lifestyle decision and a way to live your life. Accept
the way you currently look but seek to change your life choices to achieve your
objectives. It will not happen overnight so having a long term outlook will ensure
that you don't get disheartened as all things take time and dedication.
With that thought in mind, it should mean you won't start setting yourself unrealistic
targets and goals. If the objectives you set are attainable then you won't get put off
so easily or lose your focus.
It is also a good idea to get a general overview about weight training and
bodybuilding. No need to get too technical and specific but knowing a little
information before you start planning can never be a bad thing. There are plenty of
magazines and websites that you could peruse just to get an insight into the subject
before plunging in.
One of the most important aspects to look at is your diet and to understand what
foods are good for you and will aid you achieve your targets and which foods are
best avoided.
You should also think about a workout plan. What do you need to concentrate on to
help you achieve the best results? How long should each session last? How often a
week should you train? This plan needs to be something that you can stick to but
also has a little variety to give it balance.
So, lots of thought and lots of planning - what next? The next step, probably the
biggest step, is to visit a gym. Considering this will be a place where you will spend
a few hours in each week, the gym you choose is the one you feel most
comfortable in. To start off with, you should ensure that the members of staff know
what they are doing and what they are talking about. Most gyms nowadays run an
assessment and induction program and the qualified staff will be able to discuss
what you want and sit with you to devise a workout plan and dietary regime that is
designed to help you achieve your goals.
You should also remember that at one stage or another, everyone was new to
bodybuilding and started out in the same way you are considering now. The most
important thing is to enjoy yourself.
Set Up Your Overall Goal When You Start In Bodybuilding
Everyone will have different reasons for taking up bodybuilding. Perhaps some
dream of becoming the next world champion or maybe it is just a case of wanting to
get in shape and lead a healthier, more active lifestyle.
Before starting off on this long journey, the most important thing of all is to come up
with a plan and regime that you want to follow. This should include not only an
exercise plan but also a dietary plan as these two go together hand in hand.
What you should look to do is to set yourself an overall goal of what you want to
achieve out of your training regime. The goals that you eventually set for yourself
will result from the reasons why you decided to take up bodybuilding in the first
place.
Begin by asking yourself a few basic questions. What are my reasons for getting
fit? Why do I want to take up bodybuilding? Do I want to improve myself to please
me or am I looking to impress those around me?
With the answers to those basic questions, you will be better placed to set your
goals and targets. You are also far more likely to succeed in meeting your goals if
you are looking to get into bodybuilding for self improvement.
When you start out, set yourself an overall objective and goal to achieve (perhaps a
target weight). It is important that this goal (and all targets for that matter) is
attainable as this will help keep you motivated through your routine, Within that
overall target, look at setting some intermediate targets as it is always far easier to
move in small steps to a target rather than one giant step.
It's also a good idea to keep a track on your progress so perhaps you could keep a
log book of your improvements. What you will find is that as and when you review
all that you have achieved to date, it will help spur you on further by seeing just how
quickly you have progressed.
There is no quick fix when contemplating changing your habits and body. It will take
a long time, entail a lot of hard work and perhaps making sacrifices. So you must
be sure that you want to make that kind of commitment as there is little point in
making promises that you are not prepared to keep. Getting fit through bodybuilding
will require regular visits to the gym and strenuous exercise routines. You will most
likely learn that no pain, no gain is more than just a slogan but if you are prepared
to put in the hard work then it will pay off.
Exercise is only a part of the weight training regime and you will also have to
consider your diet and making other lifestyle choices. The basics, though, have
more to do with setting yourself realistic goals and working hard to achieve them.
That hard work will almost certainly lead to a successful outcome.
Create Your Gaining Mass Daily Schedules
As you will no doubt have now discovered, to gain weight involves a combination of
training, strict diet and nutrition and cardiovascular exercise.
The key to success, apart from your commitment, is to come up with a strict plan for
your exercise and workouts and your dietary intake. You ought to devise a daily
schedule which you can easily follow. For you to get the necessary nutrients to help
you with your overall routine, you will need to be ready to plan ahead. Your diet
should be a little different depending on whether you are on a workout day or a rest
day. Below is an example of a possible daily schedule that you could follow:
Daily Weight Gain Plan For Workout Days
Upon waking: A medium size banana mixed with a scoop of protein powder and a
quarter of a cup of yoghurt (vanilla flavour).
Breakfast: Two scoops of yoghurt (it must be vanilla flavour) with half a cup of
oatmeal. All this accompanied with five egg whites. You must eat this with two
whole-wheat toasts and an apple. When you finish your breakfast, you must take
one multi vitamin tablet.
Morning snack: A cup and a half of cottage cheese (2%) mixed with half a cup of
peaches (canned, and without water) and slivered almonds (two tablespoons). One
bagel with peanut butter (just one tablespoon).
Lunch: White meat sandwich. You will require four ounces of lean meat (preferably
turkey) and two slices of brown bread, mayonnaise (low fat), baby spinach (two
cups), a tablespoon of pistachio nuts, half a pear and two tablespoons of
vinaigrette.
Snack Pre workout: A cup and a half of skimmed milk mixed with one scoop of
protein powder. Have this with a pear, orange or and apple.
Snack Post workout: one cup and a half of skimmed milk mixed with two scoops
of protein powder. Add honey (two tablespoons), two scoops of yoghurt (vanilla)
and half a cup of juice (orange) to the post workout shake. This way you get all the
carbohydrates and protein your body needs in order to recover from the workout.
Dinner: Sirloin steak (from between 6 oz and 8 oz) with a sweet potato (large) and
steamed broccoli (two cups). You must remember to have only one serving and
forget about the desserts.
Snack Night time: One and a half cup of low fat milk mixed with two scoops of
casein protein powder.
Daily Weight Gain Plan For Non Workout Days
Upon wakening: A medium size banana mixed with a scoop of protein powder well,
and a cup of yoghurt (vanilla flavour).
Breakfast: Vanilla yoghurt (2 scoops) with half a cup of oatmeal together with five
egg whites.
Morning snack: A cup and a half of milk mixed with one scoop of whey protein
powder. Have with one apple or an orange.
Lunch: 6" red meat sub sandwich. You will require 5 oz of lean meat, tomato slices,
some lettuce and low fat mayonnaise. Add some slices of low fat cheddar cheese
and have with one glass of water. Finish off with an apple.
Mid day snack: Half a cup of cottage cheese with a half can of sliced pears with a
tablespoon of slivered almonds.
Dinner: 4 ounce grilled chicken breast with 2 cups of mixed vegetables with cup
of brown, organic rice mixed with 2 tablespoons of raisins.
Night time snack: 2 scoops of casein protein powder with one cups of 1% milk.
Clearly, you will need to work your meal times around the period of the day that you
plan to workout but many small meals are much better for the bodybuilder than the
3 large meals that we are generally brought up on. Your daily schedule is for you
and has to work for you so do some planning and a bit of research for foods you
want to eat and when to eat them.

Create Your Weight Lifting Supplements Plan
Using supplements with your existing weight training and dietary routine can
enhance your physique.
The problem is how do you choose which ones you should take? Nowadays you
will find that there are plenty of supplement companies competing for getting more
and more customers. If you read the first pages of any of the most popular muscles
building magazines in the market you will quickly realize how confusing and fierce
the world of supplements is.
Before going on to look at a few supplements you could try, a word of warning.
There is no point in taking supplements until you have got a weight and dietary
regime in place for a number of weeks. The supplements will not work straight
away as a miracle cure. Once all that is in place, you are in a position to start taking
supplements.
You also must ensure that you give the supplements enough time to make a
difference before you make up your mind on their usefulness. Generally, it should
take you anything up to 8 weeks before making any kind of decision.
You should always do a bit of homework on the supplement you plan on taking.
Many companies will make wild claims about their product so it is important that
you check out any studies that may have taken place and whether the claims have
been accredited. It is also important that you stick to reputable brands. These
companies will be bigger and will likely have more to lose if their products don't
work.
So what supplements should you take and when should you take them? Here are a
few examples:
Glutamine: Take a dose of 10 grams with water when you wake up in the morning.
Vitamin/Mineral Packs: Take one pack daily after you have finished your breakfast.
Creatine: Vital if you wish to bulk up and become stronger. You could expect to see
significant strength gains within a month of regular use. Take this before and after
your training workout.
Weight Gain Powders: Take this twice each day with each serving consisting of 800
grams. You will find that you gain body mass pretty quickly and you will see a
difference in 2 to 3 weeks. Keep a close eye on your body as you could add quite a
bit of fat if you are not vigilant. Drink one serving early in the morning and the
second after you have finished your workout.
Protein powders: These powders will provide for your protein supplemental needs.
Take one serving as soon as you get up, one immediately after you have finished
your training and a final one before you go to bed.
Clearly, there are many other options out there in the marketplace and what works
for one person might not necessarily work for another; so as long as you keep in
mind the tips regarding supplements mentioned earlier, you should be able to find a
mix of supplements and a schedule that suits you and your needs.
Perfect Diet For Bodybuilders: Which Food Is Best?
Whatever your objective for starting weight training and bodybuilding, going to the
gym and exercising each week is only half the battle. For the training to be most
effective, you will also need to concentrate on your diet. Indeed, a proper dietary
regime is equally as important.
We all know about calories and that a high calorie count in your diet with lots of
fatty foods will lead to your body producing more fat cells and gaining fat. For
bodybuilding, we are looking to lose fat and gain muscle so it is crucial to structure
your diet to aid you in this quest.
However, it is not just about what you eat, it is how and when you eat that is also
important. For example, many of us have three straight large meals a day
(breakfast, lunch and dinner) spaced out through the day. During those long
periods where your body is not receiving food, it will begin to create fat deposits.
The best way to avoid this is to "trick" your body and have five or six smaller meals
a day which will prevent your body making fat deposits and it will also increase your
metabolism as you will need energy to help digest your food.
For bodybuilders, you should be looking to eat more than you normally would but
ensuring that it is foods that have the necessary nutrients which, when you train,
will get used and this will enable you to build more muscle.
So what foods should you be eating? Well a weight trainer will need food items
containing all categories of food: proteins, good fats and carbohydrates. The ideal
meal for a bodybuilder would contain 40% carbohydrates, 40% proteins and 20%
fat.
Carbohydrates (such as brown rice, wholemeal bread, fresh fruit and vegetables)
are the best source of fast energy for a long period of time and they are able to be
converted into glucose faster than proteins and fat.
We need proteins just as much as carbohydrates as you will not be able to gain
muscle without proteins. They are the muscles' main component and help the body
to produce cells and hormones. The best proteins to eat include chicken, turkey,
low fat milk, fish and beans. You should try and avoid proteins found in red meat,
and dairy products as they are also rich in fat and cholesterol.
We also require fat however odd that may sound. Fats are useful as they are
concentrated energy and help transport many vital vitamins around the body. Like
proteins though, there are good and bad fats. The good fats can be found in items
such as olive oil, fish oil and nuts. You should look to avoid saturated fats.

You should also factor in a good sleep program into your diet as sleep is the period
when your muscles recover and grow and so without a good sleep, you will not see
any major improvements or results.
It is also important that you drink lots of water though not to excess. Many small
drinks of water, while training and through the day, will ensure that your body
doesn't begin to dehydrate.
So to sum up, many small meals a day of healthy foods while varying the menu
each day, good sleep and plenty of water - all this should form an important part of
your daily routine of exercise and rest periods.
Plan Your Weight Lifting Cardio Program
As part of your weight training regime, you should look to include a cardio program
as well.
Cardiovascular exercise is one of the most important keys in getting a muscular
physique. There is science involved with cardio to heighten the results in that the
amount of body fat lost is directly related to the number of fat burning elements you
concentrate on.
While you are training, you should limit any cardio work to once a week. This will
ensure that as many calories as possible are used to build as much muscle as
possible. If however, you are in a rest phase of your schedule then look to do cardio
work up to 4 times a week to ensure that your body in its quest for energy will eat
into the body fat that it has stored up in these rest periods.
The best time to perform your cardio exercises is first thing in the morning when
you wake up on an empty stomach. At this time, you will not have refueled your
body with food and energy so your body will burn into its fat stores rather than
eating into carbohydrates before burning fat.
How intense should your cardio workout be? Intensity in this case is defined as the
percentage of your maximum heart rate used while performing a particular
exercise. The most effective way to burn fat is to ensure that your exercises use
about two thirds of your maximum heart rate. To work out your maximum heart rate,
take your age away from 220 and multiply the answer that gives you by 0.65.
If you are a bodybuilder, you will clearly not be training for long endurance events.
Bodybuilders use cardio exercise to increase the oxygen flow to muscles and to
burn body fat. You should generally look to increase your cardio session by 5
minutes each week though any cardio sessions should not ideally exceed 30
minutes.
You should also never rush into a cardio exercise as this places unnecessary
stress on your heart. Start slow and stretch before you walk and walk before you
jog and then jog before you run until you hit your optimum heart rate. At the end of
your workout, set aside a 5 minute period to cool down and ease your heart rate
back to its normal rate.
So as an example, a program could be structured like this:
In rest periods: one cardio workout per week for 20-25 minutes at 50% intensity.
Week 1 of training: two cardio workouts for half an hour at 55% intensity.
Week 2 of training: three cardio workouts for half an hour at 60% intensity.
Week 3 of training to end of training period: four cardio workouts for 35 minutes at
65% intensity.
This, coupled with the correct diet and specific training, will give you a good head
start in achieving your goals which you would have set when you first decided to
take up weight training.
Different Types Of Warm Up Exercises For A Power Workout Routine
One of the most important parts of your workout happens before and after you even
think of picking up a dumbbell or other equipment.
Before you start any workout, you should make time to warm up properly before
getting into your intensive training. Like most things, your body needs a little time to
get itself up to its optimum speed and a few warm up exercises will increase the
blood circulation running through your heart, lungs and muscles.
You should aim to do a few minutes of cardiovascular work when you get to the
gym (e.g. treadmill or bicycle riding). It is also important to do some stretching
exercises so that your muscles are supple and primed for the workout ahead. There
are many different types of stretching exercises that you can do and a few
repetitions of each should be all that you need. Many of these stretching exercises
are examined in more detail below.
The final part of your warm up should be a little light training on the equipment you
intend to use for your workouts.
Back to the stretching exercises, what should you be looking to do? Below are a
few examples and you should be looking to do a few repetitions:
Neck Rolls: A simple exercise which reduces the tension in the neck.
Achilles Stretches: This exercise helps to stretch the thighs, lower back muscles
and hamstrings.
Abdominal Stretches: This exercise aims to stretch the oblique abdominal muscles.
Forward Bends: This looks to your hamstrings and lower back muscles. It should
help to alleviate tightness in the hamstrings.
Standing Twists: The aim of this exercise is to stretch the torso mainly against the
resistance of the lower body.
Windmills Exercise: This is an exercise for the back and entire torso.
Back Stretches: Back stretches should be part of your daily warm up routine. There
are many different stretches that you can do which concentrate on different areas of
your back. The most important of these will be those that help alleviate tight hip
flexors as this contributes to lower back curvature and chronic back pain. However,
you should look to do a combination of these stretches in your routine.
Thigh exercises: There are a variety of exercises as each looks to stretch a
different part of the thigh.
Hanging Stretches: These exercises aim to stretch the spine and upper body and
involve using a chin up bar to hang from.
Jumping in Place Stretching: This exercise is excellent for stretching and general
conditioning.
Just as important as warm up exercises are cool down exercises after your
workout. When you have finished your workout, you will find a build up of lactic acid
and blood accumulated in your lower body.
The cool down exercises will help to re-circulate the blood faster to the heart and
lungs and will also reduce any soreness you might feel in your muscles after the
intensive training session.
You should look to do about 10 minutes of light cardio exercise as your cool down
routine.
Warm up and warm down exercises are a very important part of your weight
training schedule and you should look to make time for them as they will help to
avoid a potential build up of injuries.
Weight Training Workout For Beginners
The weight program that you decide on will depend in what you are hoping to
achieve. Do you want to lose fat or gain extra lean muscle? The answer to this will
allow you to prioritize a program to suit your needs.
For fat loss, the more muscle you have will mean that you burn more calories per
hour when your body is resting (50 calories an hour per lb of muscle as opposed to
5 cal an hour per lb of fat). When you are exercising, this increases to a lb of
muscle burning 70 cal an hour while a lb of fat burns just 7 cal an hour so you can
readily see the difference it can make.
It is important to be realistic in setting targets for yourself as a target must be
attainable. Something along the lines of losing 10lbs of fat in a 5 week period whilst
gaining 5lbs of lean muscle would be a good example. Whilst we would all love to
gain more muscle, you should realize that it is more difficult to gain muscle than it is
to lose fat.
Your weight regime needs to be structured from day one and remember it is for the
long term not just a short sharp sprint. It is also important that you do not take short
cuts and try and lift more weight than is comfortable. Your muscles will develop
much quicker if your form is good and there will be much less stress and risk of
injury to your body. As you get stronger, the more weight you will be able to cope
with.
Below is an example of a possible workout regime:
The best workout for beginners bodybuilders is full-body workout. On this program,
you will workout 3 times per week with one days rest between each workout.
Sample Workout Plan
Day 1: Full body (Chest, shoulders, back, biceps, triceps, abs, legs, calves)
Day 2: Rest
Day 3: Full body (Legs, calves, back, abs, shoulders, chest, biceps, triceps)
Day 4: Rest
Day 5: Full body (Back, chest, legs, triceps, biceps, calves, shoulders, abs)
Day 6: Rest
Day 7: Rest
Workout Example:
Choose 1 exercise per body part. Below is a sample:
Stiff-Legged Barbell Deadlift
Barbell Squats
Bent Over Barbell Row
Barbell Bench Press -Medium Grip
Standing Barbell Press Behind Neck
Standing Barbell Curls
Pushdowns
Standing Calf Raises
Hanging Leg Raises
For all muscle groups look at a maximum of 3 sets of each exercise for 12 reps as
a general rule. As you get more comfortable with the weight, then by all means add
some weight but still keeping to those same repetitions. Perform 10 minutes of light
cardio and stretching prior to the routine , also, you can perform one light-weight
warm-up set.
Benefits of full body workout:
-saves time( keep your workout to an 45 minutes or less)
-better core development
-boosts your cardiovascular system
-train once every 3 days
-greater training frequency per muscle group
-increase your testosterone and growth hormone level
-always change the order of your workouts but start from the largest muscle group
-minimize rest time between exercise sets (15-30 seconds)
Just as important as the weight program is rest. Because you are working every
muscle group each workout, full body routines can put additional stress on your
central nervous system and muscles. Resist the temptation to perform this workout
two days in a row. Give yourself at least 48 hours rest and recovery time between
each full body workout. There is always a tendency to over train but this will result
in your body using protein found in muscles meaning that the muscles are not able
to grow and develop as you would hope and perhaps expect. Far better to keep to
the structured plan and allow plenty of time for you to sleep and your body to rest
and recover in between workouts.
Weight Training For Intermediate Bodybuilders
Once you have been weight training for a period of time,( Weight Training
Workout For Beginners-not longer than 6 months) you may well feel that you
want to move up a level in your training programs. It is important to keep plans and
programs varied as with the repetitious nature of training, it is easy for the routines
to get stale and it is vital to keep the interest level high and continue to enjoy the
training that you are doing.
Below is an example of a possible workout regime for intermediate bodybuilders.
Separate you workout into different categories chest, back, triceps, biceps, abs,
legs, calves traps, shoulders.
Look to train each category once a week leaving your body plenty of chance to
recover and rest. A 4 day split could be as follows:
Day 1 Chest, triceps, abs
Day 2 Back, biceps
Day 3 Shoulders, traps
Day 4 Legs, calves
For the large muscle groups (Chest, back, legs), look at a maximum of 9-12 sets for
10-12 reps as
a general rule. For the smaller muscle groups (biceps, triceps, shoulders, abs and
calves), a maximum of 6-8 sets for 8-10 reps would be ideal.
So how do you keep things fresh and change up your routines? Rather than just
doing one set of exercises, you could look at several different options and some
possible examples include:
Supersets This includes grouping together two differing exercises for opposing
muscle groups such as back and chest. Do two back to back exercises, one for
each group. These supersets will not only help speed up your workout but will also
increase your recovery time.
Tri-sets This involves doing three sets for the same muscle group with little rest in
between each set. Tri sets are a good technique for shaping the muscles and will
also increase vascularity (having prominent and visible veins).
Compound Sets These are supersets except it involves two exercises for the
same muscle group. These compound sets will really help to pump the muscles.
Holistic training With a little knowledge of muscle physiology, you will learn that
different parts of muscle cells respond in different ways to various types of exercise.
For example, muscular fibre proteins respond well to a heavy load whereas a cell's
energy system will respond better to high endurance training. Therefore, mixing the
repetitions (high weight with low reps and low weight with high reps) will enhance
the whole muscle cell.
Quality training With this type of training look to reduce your rest time in between
sets. You should still look to do the same volume of training and this method of
training will enhance your muscle definition and vascularity.
Split System Using a split system of training will see you increase the intensity of
your workout. You do this by dividing your workout schedule into concentrating on
one half of your body each session. So on your first workout day, you should do
exercises on your upper body and the next session would concentrate on the lower
part of your body. Thus, you are able to work both halves of your body harder and
for longer periods.
Another option that you could consider is using a pyramid type program. This is a
technique to keep your muscles using more weight each week. The more weight
you use, the stronger you will become and the stronger you become, the more
weight you can bear.
The system is based on the maximum weight you can use for one repetition. You
then use a percentage of that weight for each set with the percentage increasing
per set. Each week, you then increase the weight you being with and so on for a
few weeks when you would need to recalculate your maximum one repetition
weight.
There are however plenty of other examples and options for weight training
programs for intermediates should those mentioned above not appeal.
Weight Training For Advanced Weight Lifters
As you progress through and gain more weight training experience over a number
of years, there are several more advanced techniques that are available and can be
used in conjunction with other planned regimes.
Many of the techniques, which are outlined below, should only be used sparingly
during planned periods whereas a few other techniques, such as periodization can
be implemented all year round.
One such technique is Rest Pause. This is performing as many repetitions as
possible, resting for several seconds and then performing additional repetitions.
Stripping is one of the Rest Pause methods. In stripping, weight is decreased when
no further repetitions can be performed. The exerciser pauses only long enough for
the resistance and weight to be decreased.
Similarly, Down the Rack (using dumbbells and barbells) involves performing as
many reps as possible before immediately using a lighter resistance weight and
doing as many reps as possible again. This process is repeated if further drops in
weight are required.
The Partials technique is as the name suggests you perform only part of the
range of motion for a given exercise. By concentrating on a specific range of
motion, strength can be increased. Isometric training works in a very similar
manner.
For example, a power lifter might perform a specific part of a lift where he may feel
he has a weakness (e.g. locking out the arms). A bodybuilder might want to target a
weak muscle so a limited range of motion (e.g. half squats) might emphasize quad
development).
Another technique is 21's. This relates to the number of repetitions and typically
concerns arm curls. 7 reps are performed for the lower range of motion (arms
straight to 90 degrees) followed by 7 reps on the higher range of motion before
completing a further 7 reps for the full range of motion.
Super slow training, where repetitions are performed in a slow controlled manner,
can enhance tension muscular endurance. By introducing variation to the workout,
it may help to stimulate progress. You should however be aware that slowly
performed exercises can also impair development of power.
Periodization is the practice of varying training stimuli to enhance long term fitness
and gains in performance. For advanced trainers and lifters, this method is more
effective than training at a fixed intensity and performing a similar number of reps.
Modern programs implement variations between undulating daily schedules and
have appeared to be more effective than the previous forms of periodization which
varied over a longer cycle.
On a similar vein, varying between light and heavy training with alternating workout
intensity seem to enhance the progress for the trainer as compared to single
repetition range workouts.
There are other variations on these themes such as enhanced super sets, cheating
(similar to partials) and forced repetitions where a spotter helps you concentrate on
breaking specific breaking points you might encounter.
There is plenty of information readily available in magazines and on various
websites should you wish to find out more on these techniques.
How To Keep Track Of My Progress On Exercises
So you have now looked into what you want to get out of your weight training and
bodybuilding. You have set your overall objective for what you want to achieve and
what you have to do to help you get there in terms of exercise and diet.
Having made a serious commitment to your weight training, you owe it to yourself
to ensure that you keep track of how your training progresses as knowing what has
worked and what hasn't will help you understand how to develop your regimes
more easily to improve your results in the future.
So how is the best way for you to go about keeping these records? What kind of
records do you need to keep?
With your diet being a key component to your overall schedule and objective, it is a
very good idea to keep a food diary. This should comprise your overall targets of
what you are looking to eat in terms of carbs, proteins and/or fat products and
quantities.
What I would also suggest is that you make a note of what you eat at each meal
time. Do not try and remember what you have eaten at a later date; much better to
note it down as soon as possible. You should note down the type of food and
quantity eaten and if it is a mixed meal then try and write down what was in the
meal. In your food diary, also note down any supplements you may have taken.
You can keep a close eye on your calorie intake with a free online food tracker.
One of the better ones can be found at www.fitday.com. This programme allows
you to enter quantities and foods and the programme will update and break the
foods down into the different food categories.
The next thing you should look to do is to weight and measure yourself. You must
have a starting point so you can gauge your success over the weeks and months
ahead. Make measurements of your neck, waist, thighs, biceps, chest and hips.
It is also important to measure you body fat, otherwise known as your body mass
index (BMI). There are a number of online calculators; an example of one can be
found here http://www.nhlbisupport.com/bmi/,
Thirdly, keep a log book of the exercises you do. This needs to include the type,
weight, repetitions and length of the exercises. You should look to do this each time
you work out.
This log-book could also include your weekly training schedule and your overall
objective. As well as your one overall objective, you should set yourself smaller
targets to meet along the way so that you can progress in short steps. Make a note
of these targets and also when you meet them and perhaps even highlight them so
they are easy to spot. This will serve as an encouragement.
Keep these records updated on a regular basis and you will be amazed at the
progress you make and if you stick to your regime strictly, then that progress might
be quicker than you ever thought you could possibly achieve.
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