Optimal Muscle Building: Training, Diet, Sleep, and Supplementation Tips
Muscle Building: Training, Diet, Sleep, and Supplementation Guide
In order to build muscle consistently there are a few things to consider:
Training : hypertrophy, progressive overload and correct muscle stimulus (tempo and form)
Diet : eating enough food to gain lean mass, high protein intake
Sleep for muscle growth and recovery
Optional supplementation
Training for Optimal Muscle Growth
Make sure you are training at anywhere between 6-12 reps for optimal muscle growth. Once comfortable with the exercise the goal is to be working as close to failure as possible. This will stimulate the most growth. For example it is better to fail at 10 reps rather than crime through 12 reps knowing you could easily perform another 10 or so.
The next step is to make sure you are training at the correct tempo. Time under tension for the muscles is important so ‘rushing reps’ is not beneficial for muscle growth. Although it may allow you to lift heavier by bouncing off of your chest, it will actually negate muscle stimulus and therefore growth. Good tempo to train at is 2:1:2 or 4:2:2. This means 2 seconds on the downward phase, 1 second in a hold (where the muscles are under most stress) and 2 seconds in the upward phase. The ‘hold’ is crucial to prevent any use of unwanted momentum which will negate our gains.
Remember that a slower downward phase of the movement does NOT mean a fast/ explosive upward phase when it comes to muscle growth. Fo athletes completing plyometric training, this is beneficial to increase power and speed of contractions.
Finally, it is important that we implement progressive overload in terms of the weight that we are moving. This means consistently increasing the weights with our exercises, making sure that our form and tempo are not suffering as a consequence of progressing too quickly. If you cannot maintain the form and tempo, then do not increased the load. Stay at the same rep range and increase the weights slightly every few weeks or month.
Muscle-Building Diet: Nutrition and Protein Intake
In terms of your diet, it is important that you understand how many calories you are burning in a day. Calculate this with the free calorie calculator on the Jack’s Gym website. Make sure that you are consuming slightly more calories than you burn each day. Anything between 200-500 kcal/ day would be beneficial.
Make sure that you are having as close to 2g protein per kg of bodyweight. If you are not hitting your daily protein goals then it is important to supplement this with protein powder.
2g of protein per kg of bodyweight is enough to enhance protein synthesis within the body and encourage muscle growth. Studies have shown that anything above 2g per kg of bodyweight shows extremely minimal if any extra benefit in terms of muscle building. From there, aim to plan carbohydrate intake around training times, as fuel before hand and to enhance recovery after. Carbs with every meal is good, but especially important before training to enhance your performance. Avoid visiting fast food places or foods with low nutrient density. Although you are aiming to put on weight, consuming more whole foods will not only assist your training performance but also your muscle recovery and growth.
The Crucial Role of Sleep in Muscle Recovery
Sleep is another vital part of muscle growth. During sleep your body releases essential amino acids into the bloodstream to enhance protein synthesis which is essentially the process of producing new muscle. Aim to consistently get between 7-9 hours each night for optimal muscle recovery and growth.
Optional Supplements for Enhanced Muscle Growth
Optional supplementation to encourage and assist muscle growth is:
Protein powder
Creatine monohydrate
Magnesium complex (for sleep assistance)
Turkesterone (naturally enhances protein synthesis & testosterone - men)