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We’ve all been there – in that moment where we feel like we’ve been working out like Rambo for weeks, but the results don’t merely add up to all the effort that we’ve been putting in. When I first started training, I had no outside guidance and decided to throw myself into a fitness routine at full-blast. I trained every day, except Sunday, and after each workout I was exhausted. I thought maaaaan, I’m going to get so ripped, it’s not even funny!
And yet the weeks started to go by and I was not seeing the results I envisioned. My muscles were not getting bigger or at least not as much as I had hoped for – I was so puzzled! How could it be that I was putting in so much sweat time but was not gaining muscle mass? To add to my confusion, I also stopped getting soar! Wtf?! When I worked out I felt like I was pushing my limits and working to exhaustion and yet the next day, no soreness…whaaaaaat?!
What was I doing wrong? I became obsessed – my constant thought became “why am I not building muscle??!”At first, I thought it was maybe a dietary issue, maybe I needed to increase my protein intake or maybe I had some kind of hormone imbalance. But all my tests were normal and I was achieving my daily protein requirement (which is higher if you’re trying to build muscle).
Talking to various trainers I realized that my errors were simply in the way I worked out. With just 5 corrections, my workouts became exponentially more effective, without having to work harder or longer (they actually became shorter!). If you’ve been having difficulty building muscle I am certain that these following tips can be of help.
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Why are you not gaining muscle mass?
1. You Are Resting Too Much in Between Sets
When I first started working out, I would rest in between my sets until I felt restored. I never timed my rests, so I don’t know exactly how long I was resting but I was definitely resting more than two minutes. In my mind, it didn’t make sense to start a set again if I was too tired. I thought that maybe I wouldn’t be able to perform the set the same way as before- or maybe that I couldn’t even complete the set from how tired I was.
Talking to a trainer, I realized that you shouldn’t expect your muscles to perform the same way as they did during the first set. Duhhhh! If you are able to complete each additional set with the same energy and intensity, then you are probably not working or tiring the muscle enough. And helloooo, isn’t that the point?? It only makes sense that each set should get harder- but instead of being moderately spent after each set, you should be okay after the first one but basically dying by the last one!
What is the ideal rest time and why?
For hypertrophic training (in other words when your goal is to build muscle), the ideal rest time is 1-2 min, even though I would sway more closely to the 1 minute rather than the 2 minutes.
There are many reasons why this is. Number one, shorter rest periods cause a greater release of anabolic hormones, the hormones responsible for muscle growth. Second, the increased lactate production caused by a lack of oxygen in anaerobic exercising also releases greater amounts of anabolic hormones. Lastly, the increased blood flow to the muscle caused by shorter rest intervals, not only makes your muscles look bigger at the moment of training (the so-called pump-effect) but allow for protein to reach the muscles quicker (Jamez, 2016). So guys it’s super simple- just time your rest intervals!
NOTE: this post concerns hypertrophy training, meaning it lists the following corrections with respect to achieving greater muscle mass or, in other words, getting bigger guns. If you have other training goals concerning strength or endurance, you can visit my post on training structures according to goals.
2. You Are Not Doing Enough Exercises Per Muscle Group
I had no idea when I first started that all muscles could be worked out in different ways. Dumb huh? The reason I thought this was because I confused muscles with muscle groups and didn’t know my basic anatomy. What do I mean? It is somewhat common knowledge that glutes are made up of multiple muscles— to be exact three. So it is no surprise that each one requires a different exercise to be properly stimulated. But what about smaller muscles like biceps?? For me, I just picked the exercise I liked most and thought that my work for the day was done… wrong!! The bicep to my surprise is a muscle group and it comprises two muscles: the bicep brachii (which is a two headed muscle) and the bicep brachialis. Because these muscles are positioned differently, they are also stimulated differently.
So bottom-line is if you really want to develop muscles, you have to work on them 360 degrees- meaning you have to train each component of a muscle group. Exercises from one muscle to the other don’t necessarily change much, at times simply the grip can change the muscle you work. This sounds dumb, but it makes a huuuge difference. When I started incorporating multiple exercises for my biceps I finally started to show an “inner” bicep and an “outer” bicep. Finally, my muscle was visible! It makes total sense— think about it… It’s like I was only working my calf, expecting my whole leg to develop, and that’s just impossible!
How many exercises should I do per muscle group?
There is no rule of thumb, but it definitely depends on the size of the muscle group. For smaller muscle groups like biceps, triceps, and calves: 2-3, for larger muscle groups like glutes, quads, and abs: 3+.
3. You Are Not Doing Your Exercises in the Right Order
Why in the world should there be an order to my training program? I didn’t get it. Why can’t I do calf raises first and then do squats? Is there some kind of hierarchy of movement that I didn’t know about?? The answer really was much simpler. You should be starting your weight lifting routine with the more strenuous exercises, followed by the least strenuous ones in order to properly store energy.
General guidelines
1. Work larger muscle groups first, followed by smaller muscle groups
2. Do your compound exercises before your isolation exercises (a compound exercise works more than one joint and muscle group)
3. Do free weight exercises before machine exercises (you expend more energy using free weights)
By keeping your workouts in a logical order, you will be able to give each exercise the sufficient amount of power it needs in order to have an efficient workout. No wonder I had no muscle growth, I was all over the place with my exercises!
4. You Are Not Switching Up Your Workouts
Remember when I said that I got to a point where my weight lifting routine was no longer causing soreness? Well in reality that was my body telling me I needed to change up my workout. Our bodies naturally get used to certain movements over time- they learn to expect the same motions. Eventually, if we just keep doing the same exercises every day, our muscles won’t grow anymore. In a way we get to a point where our strength plateaus and in order to keep our muscles responsive we must constantly strive to stimulate them in different ways. Weight lifting routines can change in a variety of ways, from simply changing exercises, to changing reps and weight-loads, to changing rest intervals. By switching up your workouts you will have guaranteed soreness, I promise. Check out this post for tips on muscle recovery.
5. You Are Not Resting Enough in Between Workouts
As I mentioned, when I first started out training I was so enthusiastic I decided to train every day. It was my idea of getting results faster. Unfortunately, this could not have been further from the truth. It is fundamental to integrate proper rest between your workouts to give your muscles the opportunity to regenerate and grow. And I’m not talking about not working out sore muscles- I’m talking about genuinely taking a break to get general rest so that your whole body can recover.
When I switched to working out from 6 days a week to 3 days a week I wasn’t convinced. But I had been working out for 2 months already with no real results and needed to make a change. Sure enough, I noticed a change. I had waaaay more energy in the gym. My strength improved dramatically, and I was increasing weight-loads at a faster pace. I was in awe. I was devoting less time, but having double the results… LESS really is MORE! (Amount of sleep is also vital – read more on how sleep effects muscle growth here).
So do not dismay! I was a walking disaster when I started, and I was making all 5 of these mistakes simultaneously. But with patience I got to know my body and figured out what I needed to correct and what I responded better to. So try working with these 5 tips and I guarantee you’ll see an improvement!
Happy Training!
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