Muscle Building Workouts

Muscle building workouts are beneficial for many reasons and for all people. Every activity requires some form of muscle involvement--some more than others. For example, getting up out of a chair is rather easy, but shoveling heavy, wet snow is not. Either way, a good muscle building routine can make the body run a lot smother for these daily functions.

Function

Muscle building workouts play different roles for different people. First of all, as people age, their muscle mass naturally decreases. This is a condition known as sarcopenia. When it comes to power sports, such as football, athletes need to build muscle to perform optimally in the face of competition. Some people are rehabbing form injuries, such as broken bones, and they need to regain their strength through weight training. Then there are just the every day gym warriors who are trying to pack on some muscle.

Types

When it comes to muscle building, there are generally two types of workouts. They revolve around gaining lean muscle mass or bulk. Normally lean muscle mass is sought after by people who might be training for distance events or who play sports like volleyball, basketball and soccer. Gaining mass or bulk, is more for people who are power lifters and play sports like football where a significant amount of total strength is needed.

Time Frame

Regardless of what kind of muscle gain is wanted, timing is a big issue. For a muscle to fully recover, it can take anywhere from two to 10 days depending on the intensity of the workout. The general rule of thumb is to wait at least 48 hours to work the same muscle group. Sleep is also a major factor. It is during sleep that growth hormone is released by the body. This is actually when the maximal amount of muscle is being built. Getting eight hours of sleep a night will reap the best benefits.

Features

Workouts to promote lean muscle mass are characterized by high reps, lighter weights and short rest periods. These workouts generally incorporate a circuit style format. An example of this workout would be doing four circuits of 15 reps for each of the six main muscle groups with 30 to 45 second rest periods in between.

Workouts used to bulk up and gain mass are altogether different. They are characterized by high weight, low reps, high sets and multiple joint routines. Examples of multi-joint routines are bench presses, dead lifts, clean and presses, squats and snatches. These workouts generally incorporate the maximal amount of muscle fiber recruitment with long rest periods. An example of this workout would be doing 10 sets of three to five reps with two- to four-minute rest periods.

Considerations

A big consideration to take is the theory of progressive overload. This quite simply means that in order for a muscle to see continuous growth, it must be progressively overloaded through a duration of time. A good rule of thumb would be to increase maximal poundage by 5 to 10 percent every week. Another consideration to take would be to keep cardio to a minimum. If long amounts of cardio are done, this can start to burn muscle for energy.

Expert Insight

Diet is also an important factor for muscle building. It is important not to skimp on calories and to get them from good sources. The best way to go about it is by eating small, frequent, balanced meals throughout the day that have a good balance of complex carbs and protein. Protein is important because it is the building block of muscle. Good sources include eggs, legumes, tofu, low fat dairy, fish and lean meats. Fruits and vegetables are good carbohydrate sources because they also offer high amounts of fiber, vitamins and phytonutrients.