Three exercises you should do on a regular basis are bench presses, squats, and dead lifts. They are the cornerstones of bodybuilding for good reason. They are the exercises that will improve your strength and muscle mass. Find a way to include some form of these exercises in every workout.

The men and women that grace the cover of fitness and health magazines look great; can you ever look the way they do? This may not be so, but don’t let this discourage you, you can still look great! You just need the right information to start you off, and this article contains that kind of information and more.

Making goals for the short-term, and giving yourself rewards when you reach those goals, is a great way to motivate yourself. Motivation plays a key role in any long-term commitment. Try making some of the rewards things that will help you to build more muscle. One good idea of a healthy reward is getting a massage.

Meat products are a good source of protein and help add muscle mass. A good daily goal is to eat a gram of meat for each pound you weigh. That way, you will be able to stockpile protein, and if you have more protein, you will be better able to develop the type of muscles you desire.

You must consume enough protein to build muscle. A simple way to make sure you consume the proper amount of protein is to drink protein shakes and consume other protein supplements. They are best when taken right after you work out, or before going to bed. To replace fat with muscle faster, consume at least one protein shake a day. Try having three a day when you want to get bigger while building muscle.

Keep the “big three” in mind and incorporate them in your exercise routine. These bulk-building exercises include squats, bench presses and dead lifts. These exercises will condition your body, build strength, and add muscle mass. You should aim to include these exercises in some manner regularly.

Since you will be burning more calories than normal, it is important that you eat well on days you lift. To ensure your body has enough calories and protein to build muscle, have a snack an hour before your workout begins. That is not to say that you should overindulge on exercise days, only that you ought to eat a bit more than usual, if you intend to go to the gym for a workout.

Protein is the foundation of any bodybuilding diet. Protein is the building block that muscles are made of. If you do not eat enough of it, your body cannot create new muscle tissue. Try to eat healthy, lean proteins in two of the three major meals and one or two of your snacks every day.

You need good hydration if you are going to build muscle properly. If you’re not staying hydrated, there is a greater risk of injury to your muscles. Also, hydration is vital to boosting and keeping muscle mass, so it’s crucial that you drink enough water.

Don’t forget about carbohydrates when trying to build muscle. Carbs are vital because they will help you to get the energy that you need so that you can have a great weight training session. If you do not consume enough carbohydrates, your body will begin to break down protein to use as energy. Consume enough carbs so that your body is able to function, and you find that you will have an easier time completing your workouts.

A problem that can hamper muscle building is that some muscle groups grow slower than others. Fill sets are wise in order to focus on the slower muscles. A fill set is a short set targeting the problem muscle groups a few days after they were last worked out hard.

Continually change your exercise routine. Like anything else, if your routine becomes boring, you will be less likely to make time for it. Make sure that you do different exercises and workout different muscles each time you exercise. Keeping your workout routine fresh will maximize your results and increase the likelihood that you will continue.

Although you might want to blast through your workouts at full-speed, it is advisable you do not do this. To get the best results, perform each movement slowly and methodically. Each repetition should take 20 seconds, divided into 10 seconds for each half of the movement.

Though creatine is safe for use when trying to build muscle mass, there are precautions you must be aware of. If you have any kidney conditions, do NOT use creatine! There are other side effects from creatine, including heart arrhythmias and muscle disorders like cramping. Creatine should be especially avoided by the young. Adhere to the recommended quantities for your safety when using these supplements.

When starting a muscle building regimen, it is important to make sure you have a proper form before trying for power. As you grow in strength the weight will increase; however, your form will be more off later, if not corrected in the beginning. It basically means that you will power up impending injuries, which is not what you want to do at all.

Don’t combine intense cardio exercise with weight training routines. Cardio is helpful to keep in shape, but a lot of it can slow down your efforts to improve muscle mass. If adding muscle is your primary goal, focus on strength training and reduce the amount of cardio your perform.

When building muscle, ensure that you’re keeping track of the amount of body fat you have. Don’t judge your results by weight alone, or you won’t know what percentage is fat and what is muscle. You may get discouraged when you see your weight has not changed; however, this is not an accurate test of your progress with your muscles, and this is even more true if you are just starting out.

Compound exercises may be the key to maximizing your muscle-building results and getting the most out of your workouts. Working out many muscles in one lift is more efficient. For example, bench presses exercise your triceps, chest and shoulders all at once.

Listen to the advice of experts when you want to create a muscle-building routine. Learning from the professionals can give you an edge on the competition, and it can help you develop the proper foundation that you need for success. Use their success to reassure yourself that their proven advice can and will also work for you.

Look “bigger” than you really are. This is accomplished by focusing your attention on developing your upper chest, shoulders and upper back. Building these muscle groups will also make your waist appear smaller.

Supplements such as creatine can add to mass quickly. Creatine could add strength and muscle size by approximately five pounds in your first several weeks because it can give you the energy you need to pump out additional reps when working out. Prior to working out, take about 3 to 5 grams and when you are done working out, take the same amount. You will find the best results this way.

Muscle Groups

Don’t rely on supplements alone. Supplements can help with many muscle building routines. However, supplements are not supposed to take the place of eating a balanced diet. As their name states, they supplement a proper diet. In fact, you should aim to take as few supplements as possible.

Exercises that pair up opposing muscle groups, such as the chest and the back or the quads and the hamstrings, can be highly effective. Alternating like this will allow the tired muscle groups to rest while you work on the other groups. You can increase the intensity of your workout to make up for spending less time in the gym.

Journal about your training experience. It will help you if you can keep track of how much progress you have made while you are building your muscles. Keeping a fitness log is the most efficient way to achieve this. Write down they type of exercise you performed and how many reps completed. This will help you track your progress, as well as showing you how far you’ve come.

Remember that you need lots of extra calories to build muscles. There are a number of online calculators that you can use to determine caloric needs dependent on your goals. When you know this number, increase the protein and carbs in your diet to reach your daily caloric intake goal.

One problem with muscle building is that some groups take longer to develop than others. Fill sets are necessary to pay attention to each muscle group necessary. A fill set is a short set focusing on your weak groups of muscles you can do a few days after working hard on this same group.

Pre-exhausting muscles is a great way to build the most stubborn groups. When you do rows, for example, your biceps could give out before your lats do. This can be remedied by doing an isolation exercise, such as pull-downs, that work your lats without emphasizing your biceps. Your lats will already be exhausted, which means that when you perform the rowing exercise, your biceps will no longer be the limiting factor.

Just because your body isn’t perfect, that doesn’t mean you’re not already amazing. By reading this article, you’ve put yourself on the path to stronger muscles. Now that you’ve taken this important first step, build on it by applying what you’ve learned so that you can get the muscles you want.