Build Muscle Mass

1. Take care of yourself. In order for you to increase muscle mass, you must get the right kind of nutrition, sleep, and workout routine. If you are missing any one of these you will never increase muscle mass. If you are trying to lose weight but at the same time also build muscle, you should not follow this guideline. In order to lose weight you must intake fewer calories which is the opposite of increasing muscle mass because you are required to consume more calories.
2. Workout 3-4 times a week and stay dedicated. Never skip a workout no matter the circumstances. It takes months to increase muscle mass, so even if you don't see significant results after the first month, you must continue to work at it.
3. Never exceed 45 minutes during your workout. Take 1-2 minute breaks between your sets. And always push your muscle to the point of failure. Work out each body part on separate days, once a week. Find the right amount of weight that will allow you to stay in the 8-12 repetitions per set for best results. Gradually increase weights as you get stronger.
4. Never work out on back to back days because your muscles need at least 48 hours to recover from your work out. You should take one week off after about two months so your body has time to recover. You should never do cardio or play sports before your workout because this will eat away the muscles that you have worked so hard for.
5. Along with working out, you must eat more because your body needs extra calories in order to increase the size of your muscles.
   • Eat 5-6 times a day with 2-3 hours in between your meals. Make sure you are eating healthy foods. You cannot increase muscle by eating junk food. These are empty calories and they turn into fat and not muscle. You should have three small, two medium (breakfast, lunch), and one large meal (dinner) a day.
   • For 2-3 days in a row every week, overload your body with more food than it is used to. Because your metabolism will not be familiar with this much amount of calories, you will pack on nothing but muscle.
   • You need 1 gram of protein per body pound in order to effectively pack on muscle. Whey protein is the best source of protein for working out because it helps expedite development and recovery of muscles after workouts. Whey protein can increase your results dramatically.
6. Get at least 8 hours of sleep each night because it is while you sleep that your muscles actually grow. Eat within 15 minutes of waking up and avoid eating 90 minutes before bed.
7. You will see very fast results within the first month of working out, but after the first few months you will start to hit a plateau where you will see little to no results. That is because your body has become adjusted to your routine and will no longer grow. In order to blast past this plateau you must change up your routine. Keep the body guessing. Always push yourself to increase the amount of weight and number of sets during each work out. Keep a journal to keep track of your results and also to keep you motivated.
8. Achieving your goal. After you have achieved the body that suits your interest than you no longer have to work as hard if you are only trying to maintain your physique. You only need to work out 1-2 times a week but it is important that you still stick to your diet. You don't have to continue to increase your calorie intake but you must still eat 5-6 times daily to maintain a fast metabolism. Muscle Mass is not permanent and if you happen to lose it due to lack of exercise, rest, and nutrition than the good news is that you can regain your muscle mass much quicker because your body has already been at that state of fitness before.

TIPS:

• It is very difficult to eat 5-6 times a day. You can buy whey protein shakes as a replacement for one of your meals.
• Creatine can help you during your workouts and also give you quicker results. It is completely safe and I strongly recommend that you buy some.
• Drink lots of water. which helps maintain a healthy metabolism, and keeps you and your muscles hydrated, muscles won't grow with out proper hydration.
• Look into taking some fish oil, containing DHA and EPA which have been shown to increase the absorption of protein, among other health benefits.