Confused about building muscle? You've come to the right place.

BEWARE: wall of text incoming (Fav for later)

Muscle building is a controversial topic at best and a confusing one to most. With so many different companies claiming their supplements or specific style of workout builds the most muscle, it's easy to become confused among it all. So I'll attempt to explain how to train optimally and eat right to set you on your way to that beach body you've always dreamed of. First though, some sciencey stuff.

Muscle hypertrophy (growth) is split into two main types. Sarcoplasmic hypertrophy which means growth by increased glycogen storage within cells (actual muscle size) and Myofibril hypertrophy which means increased number of proteins (actin & myosin) within the muscle fibers (strength of the muscles). These two types of growth never occur by themselves, but a majority can be stimulated by certain training rep ranges. It is generally agreed among scientists and bodybuilding gurus that the rep range of 1-6 induces myofibril hypertrophy with a reduced amount of sarcoplasmic hypertrophy and the rep range of 8-12 induces sarcoplasmic hypertrophy with a reduced amount of myofibril hypertrophy. It is important to note though, neither types occur independent of the other so the myth that bodybuilders aren't strong is just that, a myth. Arnold Schwarzenegger, perhaps the most famous bodybuilder of all time, is noted to have deadlifted over 700 lbs. And its easy to see that powerlifters and strongmen also carry a fair bit of muscle mass.

So how about implementing this protocol? Well if you've asked any gym bro how they work out they'll often tell you that they have a day for arms, chest, shoulders, back etc but In fact this is a very inefficient way to train for most people. To progress as efficiently as possible a workout split such as lower body, upper body then an off day and repeat is much better as this can in turn increase total training volume with increased time of protein synthesis. This can be confusing which is why personal trainers or coaches like myself are your best bet for planning out your workouts unless you feel confident in your own ability to organize a schedule.

So we know how to train but how do we eat? To build muscle the most efficient way we need to eat in a surplus of calories (more than we need) and to have a sufficient intake of proteins (amino acids). It is commonly accepted that 1.5-2 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight is a good range for optimal protein synthesis to be induced within muscle. Fats are important in order to regulate cholesterol and hormone production with carbs being the preferred energy source for workouts. In order to calculate these targets we can use the calculators in my two previous posts (links at bottom) and apply a 10-20% increase of calories per day. This will allow our bodies to use the extra energy to start increased protein synthesis within our muscles to repair and grow. It is also important to get adequate sleep if your goal is to build muscle, during sleep our bodies recover and build new tissue as well as release many hormones affecting growth, so on average 7 or more hours is ideal.

Now to the penultimate factor that will decide how much muscle you can build and how fast you can build it. Hormones. Testosterone, insulin and growth hormone are the main hormones responsible for deciding how easily you build muscle and these hormones dictate everything in terms of growth. Each individual has differing amounts of each which causes different rates of growth between people, males peak in these hormones levels between ages 18 and 30 but every year after 30 there is usually a 1% decrease in circulating levels. Males have an advantage when is comes to muscle growth as they have significantly more testosterone than females, which explains why it is generally a slower process for woman to build muscle than men, but not impossible.

A final word of advice, gaining strength and building muscle is a very very slow process. Starting from a baseline it could take 5-10 years of consistent training week in week out to reach a cover model standard. But for many of you who just want a lean physique with noticeable muscle mass this can be achieved in 1-2 years if you're willing to put in the work. For men, given proper training and nutrition you could add 1-2 pounds of muscle per month (20-25 pounds per year) and then gradually less and less after that as you begin to reach your genetic limit. For women: around half that. So as you can see this is very achievable, the only thing left to do is get in the gym and start moving some iron!

Thanks for reading! If anyone needs any additional help or advice in regards to diet or training then feel free to message me on this (not available on mobile app) and I'll be happy to help!

Looking to lose weight instead? Redirect here:
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