10 Reasons Why You're Not Building Muscle
If you're not getting the results you really want from the gym, or you're frustrated because you think you could (and should) be doing better, I’ve put together a simple muscle-building “troubleshooter” you can use to find out what's holding you back.
Reason #1. You don't have a goal that motivates you. Before you even set foot in the gym, you need to know why you’re doing it and what you want to achieve. It helps to have your goals in writing, so before you go to bed tonight, pick up a pen and a piece of paper and write down exactly how you want your body to change. Even better, tear out a picture of the way you want to look from a magazine and keep it on your bathroom mirror so you see it every day.
Reason #2. You're training too often. While some people get good results with split routines that involve training different muscle groups 5-6 days per week, they're in the minority. For most people, lifting weights 3-4 days per week is about right. If you're pushed for time, you can get results with a program that involves hitting the weights just twice a week (see Maximum Muscle Turbo for an example of a highly effective 2-day-per-week muscle-building program).
Reason #3. You're doing too many sets. You can't take a high volume (20-30 sets per muscle group) workout used by a heavily drug-assisted champion bodybuilder and assume that someone who trains without the same level of pharmaceutical assistance will get the same results simply by following the same program. It just doesn't happen.
"Pro bodybuilders do workouts that could kill the average guy,"
says Jason Ferruggia, author of Muscle Gaining Secrets. "The amount of sets and reps they do and the number of days per week that they train amounts to far more volume than most of us could ever hope to recover from. That's because steroids drastically enhance your ability to recover from training and when you're using them by the boatload you can do everything wrong and still gain muscle."
Reason #4. You're not getting stronger. There are two main factors that stimulate muscle growth – progressive tension overload and metabolic fatigue. Progressive tension overload involves adding more weight to the bar over a given period of time. Let's say that you start out lifting 100 pounds for 3 sets of 6 repetitions. Every month, you add 5 pounds to the bar. In 12 months time, you'll be lifting 150 pounds. And your muscles will have become bigger and stronger to accommodate the extra weight. If you're not getting stronger, you're probably not getting bigger either.
Reason #5. You don't train hard enough. The second stimulus for muscle growth is metabolic fatigue. This is all about "going for the burn" and training in a way that makes your muscles feel like they're on fire. In other words, you need to push yourself when you’re in the gym. If you're the type who likes to sit on the leg press while sending a text (and I have seen someone do this on more than one occasion), or you give up when your muscles start to hurt, then you’re not going to see much in the way of results.
Reason #6. You don't give your body a break. Although it’s important to push yourself when you’re in the gym, your body isn’t a machine and will benefit from a rest now and again. Without it, your progress will eventually stall and you might even end up going backwards. The simple way to do this is to take a week off for every 4-6 weeks of hard training. An "off" week (sometimes called a deload or unload) doesn't mean doing no exercise at all. Rather, reduce the number of sets by 50% while maintaining the weight and number of repetitions used in the previous week.
Reason #7. You don't keep a training diary. If you're still lifting the same weights in 12 months time as you’re lifting now, chances are you won't have gained much muscle either. With a training diary, you can see instantly if the time you're investing in the gym is delivering results. It will also make it very clear if you're doing nothing more than simply repeating the same workout over and over again and going nowhere slowly. See The Greatest Muscle Building Exercise... Ever for more about how a training diary will help you get better, faster results.
Reason #8. You're not eating enough. When it comes to gaining muscle mass, what you do in the gym is only half the story. You also need to eat enough of the right foods. And the mistake almost everyone makes when they’re trying to bulk up is that they don’t eat enough.
If you're very lean (below 10% bodyfat for a man or 15% for a woman) or very active, aim for 21-25 calories per pound of bodyweight daily. Using the lower figure as an example, a man weighing 150 pounds would consume 3150 calories per day (150 x 21 = 3150).
If you have slightly more bodyfat (10-15% for a man or 15-20% for a woman) or you're not very active outside of the time you spend in the gym, then aim for a calorie intake of 15-20 calories per pound of bodyweight daily. Using the higher figure as an example, a man weighing 180 pounds would consume 3600 calories per day (180 x 20 = 3600).
In both cases, start with the lower figure, and assess your progress on a weekly basis. If you're not gaining weight, increase your daily calorie intake by 250 calories for one week. Keep making small increases until you see a change on the scale.
Reason #9. You don't eat enough protein. To gain muscle at a decent rate, you also need enough protein. Based on the studies I've reviewed in The New Rules on Protein and Muscle Growth, the optimal protein intake for muscle growth lies somewhere between 0.8 and 1.4 grams of protein per pound (roughly 1.7 to 3 grams per kilogram) of bodyweight, with several studies showing greater gains in lean mass at the higher end of that range.
Reason #10. You don't take advantage of pre-, intra- and post-workout nutrition. Most people are aware of the importance of post-exercise nutrition — that so-called "golden window" of opportunity where protein and carbohydrate aid muscle growth to a greater extent than if they're consumed at other times. But there's a growing body of research to show that both pre-exercise (before a workout) and intra-exercise (to sip on during a workout) nutrition are just as important.
BONUS Reason #11. You make things more complicated than they need to be. Once you have a decent training and nutrition program set up, the key to long-term success is to stick with it. Don’t let yourself get distracted by every new "wonder" program or exercise device that you read about. Wobble boards, vibration plates, Swiss balls and the like do have their uses. But it's a lot more important to work hard on the basic exercises than to spend your time (and money) on the latest fad that the magazines are getting excited about. Train hard, be consistent and the size will come.
About The Author
 Christian Finn holds a master's degree in exercise science, is a certified personal trainer and has been featured on BBC TV and radio, as well as in Men's Health, Men's Fitness, Muscle & Fitness, Fit Pro, Zest and other popular fitness magazines.
If you're stuck
in a rut with your current exercise and diet plan... fed up with
only losing a pound here and there... or still skinny after months
(or even years) of trying to build muscle and gain weight... click here now for instant access to his step-by-step muscle-building and fat-burning workout routines.
Related Articles
|
