Over the years as a young boy in high school, I embraced bodybuilding, I was very tall and slim but decided to engage in lifting weights as leisure during games times and the joy and enthusiasm that came with it was overwhelming.
The hustle for the muscle continued and became a lifestyle with the hard gainer body type and ever low body fat. I have come to realize through the years that one can actually lose body fat and gain a lean mass at the same time. Throughout my training, I have got involved in resistance training, many high-intensity interval training (HIIT) because of Kabaddi and Karate which gave me the foundation.
Consuming a diet that is high in protein is also very fundamental for gaining lean mass. However, our bodies tend to make it easy to store fat than to build muscle, in this way, it takes time, discipline, and patience to get leaner while building muscles.
Small Caloric Surplus
What most people do not know is that the muscle tissue is manufactured at a very slow rate, science reveals that just an average man can gain from just a quarter pound to around 5 pounds of muscles per week while women can gain from 12-25 Lbs. per week. There is no need for all those excess calories hence we should always stay in a very small caloric surplus of about 200-400 per day. What we need to do as bodybuilders is to get enough protein intake to feed the muscles that will help you get leaner while still gaining muscles. Any excess calories will make the body have more fat than you want hence the goal of getting leaner will be a problem.
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Follow What Fits Your Macros
Many people have flexible dieting programs but are not disciplined in their diets because they tend to eat junk every time citing they fit their macros. In as much as “if it fits your macros” (IIFYM) is overrated, IIFYM can be very useful since a large part of your diet will consist of over 75% whole foods sources that are rich in micronutrients. However, this will help many people to be flexible with the choices of their food while still maximizing their gains.
Lift Heavy and Never Skip Cardio
Putting cardio in your program is very critical for growth and for keeping one’s metabolic pathways active. As an active bodybuilder, cardio has helped increase my appetite since I always get hungry and need to be eating after training.
All those excess calories have always been burnt off by cardiovascular exercise which helps to give one a dream physique and leaner muscles. Lifting heavy will challenge your muscle fibers by tearing them and they regenerate stronger and bigger. When one lifts heavy, the body is signaled that there is a demand to build and maintain more lean mass.
If you can handle every rep then you need to add one more rep or set for the way to progression. However, never allow your body to reach a plateau.
Compound Lifts and Increased Volume of Training
Compound lifting is important since it will stimulate all muscle groups at the same time. People who do compound lifts regularly to gain more strength since all muscle fibers are stimulated and the boosting of testosterone hormones is hi-tech.
When growth hormones are released naturally, the growth of muscles is guaranteed to every bodybuilder. The overall muscle built is directly proportionate to the workout volume. To keep progressing, one has to track their volume of workouts and add where they seem to be lagging behind. It is a steady and slow progression where one will increase sets, weight, reps, and the frequency of performing their workout programs.
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Carbs, Creatine, Protein Shakes, Break Records
Bodybuilders should keep carbs around their workouts since consuming carbs before a workout will provide energy during the sessions. Carbs and protein shake help provide more calories to keep one anabolic during the workouts as well as repair muscles 30 minutes after a workout. Shakes will also supplement the protein intake since it is always hard to find nutrients in the right proportions for many guys. Force your body to remain lean and muscular by making it adapt to building muscles and breaking records while aiming higher.
Using creatine will increase your muscle size and strength since it increases the intracellular water retention in the muscles. One will grow and increase strength with the use of all these supplements. Of course one has to do reverse dieting, avoid binge eating and also reduce alcohol intake.
