One thing many people in Houston, both men and women, is to gain lean muscle mass. Lean muscle mass gives you those wash board abs and that sculpted look everyone strives to achieve. Achieving it means losing weight and building muscles. That takes a special program that’s more than just a workout or a healthy diet, it’s both. No one will be able to see the results of all the work you’ve done if it’s covered in a layer of fat. Not only will building more muscle tissue make you look toned and fabulous, it also helps you keep weight off permanently.
Lean muscle mass starts with what you eat.
One of the fitness greats once said that building muscle mass starts in the kitchen not in the gym. He was absolutely right. You have to eat healthy and focus on specific foods to build the muscles you want. If you’re building more muscles, it’s a fine balance between eating enough to ensure you’ll have all the nutrients and energy to do the workout and build muscle tissue and not overeating, so you put on fat not muscle. Protein is a top priority when you’re building. It should be about 15 to 33 percent of your diet. Salmon, chicken breast, lean beef and Greek yogurt are good sources. Approximately 20 percent should be healthy fat that’s necessary for building muscle and the rest made up of carbs for energy.
Get the most from your workout with compound exercises.
Strength-building exercises definitely builds muscle tissue and burns massive amounts of calories at the same time. The best type of strength-building workouts are those with compound exercises. Compound exercises use several muscle groups and joints at one time, so they’re also more efficient. Barbell deadlifts, bench step-ups and barbell squats are a few compound exercises that help.
Go easy on the cardio.
When you do cardio workouts, you’ll definitely burn calories, but unfortunately, they come from both fat and muscle tissue being used as fuel. That can set back your muscle building program quickly. Another error is to workout too often or too long. After about 75 minutes, maximum muscle growth is reached and more can only make you move backward. Working more than four times a week can also be detrimental. It doesn’t give your body time to heal those micro fractures and develop the scar tissue that creates larger muscles.
- When you’re building lean muscle mass, eat carbs earlier in the day. It not only boosts your energy throughout the day, there’s less chance it will be stored as fat that can occur if you eat it before bedtime.
- You’ll boost your recovery time if you have adequate healthy fat in your diet. Make sure you include avocados, nuts, olive oil and flaxseed, for example, to help you workout harder. People often fail to build muscle tissue because they burn the candle at both ends. You need adequate sleep to boost your muscle growth. Sleep is necessary for the body to heal the microtears that become bigger muscles.
- Go bigger and push yourself. While working out more often is counterproductive, lifting heavier weights and challenging yourself actually boosts your muscle development.