The process involved with building muscle is not as complicated as it might seem. Tiny fibers of muscle get damaged each time a contraction takes place. They then rebuild themselves, and the muscle group gets bigger and stronger. With every workout, increasing demands or resistance once again damage the muscle fibers and promote new growth. This is called the overload principle. If you want to build muscle fast, you can expect to see results within four weeks.
Eat More Food and Eat More Often
If you are a hard gainer, the only way you are going to build muscle is by increasing your intake of calories. That being said, you should also keep these calories healthy. Eat foods like eggs, chicken breasts, fish, whole grains, beans, fruits, vegetables and low-fat dairy products, and increase your daily intake by 500 calories.
To make it easier to get your extra calories, consume small meals throughout the day. This will also keep your muscles constantly supplied with nutrients. Create meals that contain protein and complex carbs. Broiled salmon with a baked yam and steamed broccoli is a meal example.
Perform Compound Exercises
Isolation exercises work a single muscle. Compound exercises work multiple muscles at the same time. The more muscle fibers you recruit, the faster you will build size and strength. With this being the case, perform mainly compound exercises with your workouts. Bench presses, shoulder presses, pull-ups, deadlifts and squats are examples.
Lower Weights Slowly
The lowering portion of a lift is called the eccentric or negative phase. The lifting portion is called the concentric phase. During the negative motion, your muscles are able to handle the load more easily than with the concentric phase. Take advantage of this by lifting weights that are higher than your max and lowering them really slowly. To do this, have a spotter on hand to lift the weight up for you. Take the bench press, for example. Have your spotter help you get the weight in position above you. Now take a full five to six seconds to lower it to your chest and have your spotter help your lift it back up.
Perform Supersets
Supersets are sets performed back to back. By including these into your workouts, you will maximally recruit muscle fibers and promote growth. Alternate between a compound and isolation exercise when doing supersets. Using the bench press as an example, immediately after doing a set, grab a pair of dumbbells and perform flys.
Time Your Sets
The amount of time a muscle needs to be worked adequately is called time under tension. When you are finishing your workout, perform sets for time instead of repetitions. Aim for 30 to 45 seconds. This will fully stimulate your muscle fibers.
Hydrate Your Muscles
Muscles are highly composed of water. Dehydrated muscles cannot perform optimally and they are also subject to injury. Prevent this from happening by drinking plenty of water on a daily basis. Also avoid high amounts of dehydrating beverages like coffee, cola, energy drinks and alcohol. The Institute of Medicine recommends that women get approximately 2.7 liters of water a day and men get approximately 3.7 liters. This comes out to about 11 and 16 cups.
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