Regular weight training can help you build lean muscle mass; increase the strength of your muscles, bones and connective tissues; reduce your risk of injury; and improve your overall quality of life. For strength athletes, putting on muscle mass without gaining fat requires consuming extra calories while adequately stressing muscles to stimulate growth, says the University of Wisconsin weight training program. With proper nutrition and training, build new muscle while improving your strength.
Nutrition
Step 1
Calculate your caloric needs by multiplying your body weight times 11 for men or 10 for women to get an estimate of your resting metabolic rate--or RMR. Multiply your RMR by your activity factor by referencing an activity factor chart online. If you are strength training with high intensity most days of the week, your activity factor should be 2.1. If you spend most of the day sitting or standing without much exercise, your activity factor would be 1.3.
Step 2
Increase your caloric consumption daily to create an excess of 250 to 500 calories per day over your base caloric needs, suggests the University of California, Los Angeles Student Nutrition Action Committee. Without these extra calories, your body won't have enough fuel to build new muscle. Try to get a majority of the extra calories from lean proteins and complex carbohydrates.
Step 3
Increase your protein consumption to 1.5 g of protein per kg of body weight per day, suggests Bonnie J. Brehm, Ph.D., R.D., professor at the University of Cincinnati College of Nursing. The amino acids in protein make up the building blocks for new muscle growth, but too much protein my not help in gaining muscle and could put unnecessary stress on your kidneys.
Step 4
Stay hydrated throughout the day, especially directly before, during and after your workout sessions, says Brehm.
Workouts
Step 1
Plan a workout routine that targets all the major muscle groups. To maximize your time in the gym, focus on one to two muscle groups each day, working each group twice during the week. The American Council on Exercise--or ACE--recommends using both free weights and machines in your program.
Step 2
Perform each exercise with enough resistance to fatigue your muscles in a single set of eight to 12 repetitions. Once you can perform 12 repetitions while maintaining proper form, increase the amount of resistance by 5 to 10 percent, suggests the ACE.
Step 3
Vary your routine regularly by changing the order of your exercises or swapping out exercises in your current routine with others that focus on the same joint movement and muscle group. Regularly changing your workout forces your muscles to continually adapt to the changes, resulting in greater strength gains.
Tips and Warnings
- Allow each muscle group to rest for a full two days between workouts. Make your muscles work harder instead of longer.
- Always learn proper technique to avoid injury, and only lift with weight you can handle without compromising proper form.
Things You'll Need
- Free weights
- Machine weights
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