How to safely and effectively build muscle, whether for looks or for strength. Also, how muscles work physiologically.
4
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5answers
615 views
What is the cheapest, quickest way to gain some basic muscle?
I am a 26 year old male. I weigh about 80 kilograms (180 pounds) and stand at 183cm tall (slightly over 6 feet).
I seem to have a very fast metabolism based on my lack of exercise and high fat/sugar ...
4
votes
2answers
5k views
What muscles are targeted by these different variations of pull-ups: standard, chin-ups, and the neutral or parallel close grip pull-up?
What muscles or muscle groups are targeted by these different variations of pull-ups: 1.) standard (overhanded), 2.) chin-ups (underhanded), and 3.) the neutral or parallel close grip pull-out (thumb ...
4
votes
3answers
2k views
How is it possible to use a higher percentage of our theoretical strength?
I've read somewhere ( Why is muscle size not proportional to strength?) that under normal circumstances, even when we try our hardest, we can use only 20-30% of our strength.
Under what circumstances ...
4
votes
3answers
1k views
Do I lose muscle or fat if I don't eat for 5 days?
Due to an injury followed by a stomach virus, I drank a lot (coke, iced tea, and water) but hardly ate anything for 5 days. Now, my weight has dropped by 3 lbs.
I feel like I lost muscle mass. ...
4
votes
1answer
213 views
Should I add more protein to my diet to avoid muscle loss?
I've read several places you should try to at least get .5 g of protein per pound of weight. Note that I don't know my lean weight. Now I'm a 186 cm(~6 feet) tall male weighing 111.8 kg(~246 lbs), ...
4
votes
2answers
202 views
Is it physically possible to have a calorie deficit for a month and gain 5 kilos of weight while being on diet and training?
Is it physically possible to have a calorie deficit for a month and gain 5 kilos of weight while being on diet?
I am eating around 1500-2000 calories a day and I should be taking around 3500 minimum ...
4
votes
1answer
75 views
What is the best way to integrate brief sessions in my workplace gym into my strength and body building practices?
My job as a software developer requires me to spend nine hours a day in an office. The building has a gym, but it is not so well equipped that I use it as my primary facility. I work out at another ...
4
votes
2answers
235 views
Is recovery time required to increase muscle after gym workouts
While reading this post How does muscle build up when we exercise?. I read there that recovery time (rest before your next workout) is important to increase muscle. Now there are 2 questions I want to ...
4
votes
2answers
168 views
I am skinny, would joining a gym make me skinnier?
I am 17 and I am skinny according to BMI. I am thinking to join a gym to gain muscle and strength.
Some people contradict me saying that I will get even more skinner if I do so. Should I join gym?
4
votes
1answer
212 views
Building up Lat muscles without Chin ups, rowing or lat pull down
I have recovered from a back strain/injury. It was a pinched nerve. As part of my exercises I need to build my back muscles. The lateral muscles I am having trouble finding an excersise for. It seems ...
4
votes
1answer
1k views
Do people who lift weights twice per week need less protein than people who lift three times per week?
Several exercise programs I've seen suggest lifting weights 3 times per week, but also say that progress can me made by only lifting twice per week (although it will be slower).
These sorts of ...
4
votes
1answer
54 views
Does the body process food and supplements the same way?
I am currently progressing through 'Mad Cow' system and I have upped my calorie intake over the past 1 to 2 months. I have a question that I wondered if anyone could shed some light on.
I take about ...
4
votes
4answers
289 views
Burn fat and gain muscles at same time
I am doing weights for a few months now, but I find it hard to gain muscles and burn fat at the same time. It seems like one goes at the expense of the other. I think I have a balanced diet, with more ...
4
votes
1answer
106 views
Caloric intake for fatty trying to gain muscle
OK, I'm 6 foot tall and I weigh 215 pounds. Based on my weight when I was younger (I'm in my late thirties), I'd say I'm about 25 to 30 pounds overweight (fat) now. I started lifting about three weeks ...
3
votes
4answers
2k views
Are dumbbells alone enough to build strength?
If I do exercises with dumbbells each day, will that be sufficient to build strength and tone muscle? I don't care to large biceps, I am just after some strength and definition.
While doing other ...
3
votes
3answers
249 views
Lost weight and getting fit - where to go from here?
I've maintained a pretty poor diet for most of my adult life, and as a software developer, I've spent most of my time behind a desk with very little exercise.
Since New Year 2011 I've lost nearly 2st ...
3
votes
2answers
571 views
What type of physique is possible without use of steroids?
Let me begin by saying I'm completely against steroids, as everybody should be.
I don't plan to get into fitness model shape, as I know it often involves extremely strict diets and starvation prior ...
3
votes
4answers
13k views
What can cause severe muscle fatigue and even pain at wake-up? [closed]
When I wake-up (i.e. hear the alarm clock and open my eyes) I experience severe muscle fatigue, that I am hardly able to force myself to move my arms and legs to get-up. I feel like my muscles were ...
3
votes
4answers
402 views
How many sets per muscle?
My current program consists of a 5 day workout. Each muscle group (say chest for example) has 3 different exercises divided in 4 sets of 12 repetitions. Tempo is 2 seconds down and 1 up.
...
3
votes
2answers
8k views
Foods for gaining muscle for a new gym guy [duplicate]
I am going to gym and doing weight lift and other exercise for last three months,my target is to gain weight and muscle.Unfortunately I didnt gain weight and my muscle didnt increase(bicep and tricep ...
3
votes
1answer
184 views
How does wiggling your fingers activate your fast twitch muscle fibers?
You may remember hurdler Michelle Jenneke's famous dance where she wiggles her fingers to warm up before the race. In this interview (at 01:11), she reveals that wiggling her fingers activates her ...
3
votes
2answers
155 views
Use lighter or heavier weight in higher or lower reps for building muscle size?
When training to build up muscle size, should I use lighter weight in higher reps and sets or use heavier weight in lower reps and sets?
3
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2answers
95 views
is it beneficial to stay warm throughout the day(or most of the time) after workout to support gain muscle
I workout for 1 hour daily morning. My trainer told me to stay warm i.e. keep the muscles warm, throughout the day or at least most of the time because it helps muscle gain.
That is he wanted to say ...
3
votes
2answers
165 views
What other changes should I make to my weightraining plan and diet to continue losing belly fat?
I was once over 181 pounds and for my body type I was tipping on the scale of very fat to obese. I started to do lots of cardo and watched what I ate(but never dieted as I knew if I diet I won't be ...
3
votes
2answers
299 views
Where does protein come from if muscles are built and repaired at night?
I've been wondering for a while where protein to build muscle comes from?
If I consume protein throughout the day and that protein is pretty much digested and processed within an hour or two of ...
3
votes
2answers
1k views
How do I build my obliques?
I've tried for a couple of months now and I just can't seem to build on my obliques.. I have minimal trouble getting and keeping my 6 pack, but I just can't get those darn obliques. It looks really ...
3
votes
1answer
246 views
If I build up my muscles and then don't use them for a while, then will the “build-up” regress after a while?
And if so, is regression more powerful if I build up my muscles from, say, the 90th percentile to the 99th percentile as compared to from the 30th percentile to the 50th percentile? As in, is the ...
3
votes
1answer
252 views
Weights + Conditioning circuit + Mixed martial arts
I'm thinking of starting a regime, where I hit my local gym 3 hours a day 6 days a week. I am 5'7" with a moderate build and I weigh 65kg. I'm wanting to build muscle and lose fat.
The first 1hr ...
3
votes
1answer
422 views
How does doing more repetitions improve muscle definition?
I always heard people saying lifting heavier weights helps build muscle mass while doing more repetitions helps improve muscle definition. I have no trouble understanding the former. But how does one ...
3
votes
2answers
185 views
Are there any harmful side effects to working out just your arms?
I'm 15 years old and during the summer I've been working out with some dumbbells, and I've only been working out my arms for right now. Lately I have been feeling pain in my lower back and neck (which ...
3
votes
2answers
192 views
Learning form without weights
One thing I like a lot about the Starting Strength program is its focus on squats. Why? Because I could practice and practice them, getting my form right, without weights.
Now that I can squat well, ...
3
votes
1answer
56 views
The importance of fitness and cancer [closed]
I am a thirty year-old living with a brain tumor. I have made it my every effort to keep myself fit. I do this because I understand it to be beneficial for me should I require ongoing surgery in the ...
3
votes
2answers
303 views
Basic anatomy for weight lifting and starting strength?
Reading the Starting Strength book, he throws around a lot of anatomical terms. Yet, surprisingly, there's no diagram or chart or glossary explaining what all these are.
What's the best way to learn ...
3
votes
1answer
300 views
Best stretching and strengthening exercise for Gluteal muscle
When I play games (3-4 hours) like Cricket or Basketball, my Gluteal muscles ache a lot. I've heard that swimming can help them stretch, but I can't swim (though I plan to learn)
What other exercises ...
3
votes
1answer
475 views
neck pain vs. head orientation
I'm wondering if looking slightly down and to the left puts more strain on the left or right side of my neck.
For a little background, I use two enormous monitors and I think I use the on on the left ...
3
votes
1answer
812 views
What's the benefit of a long tendon and short muscle belly in the forearm?
In bodybuilding the benefits of long muscle bellies are fairly self evident, just look at Ronnie Coleman's out of place biceps and compare them to Sergio Oliva. For any sport requiring strength there ...
2
votes
4answers
1k views
What are good books on muscle building heavily based on science?
Please suggest few books on the topic of muscle building, that are heavily backed by scientific research.
I prefer them to be light on concrete training programs, but heavy on facts and research ...
2
votes
4answers
516 views
Help to add muscle for a skinny guy with fast metabolism
I'm 20 year old, 5ft8 (1.72m) and weight about 120lbs (54kg).
I've recently joined the gym and plan to add muscle (like most people). I'm completely new to this and I have been browsing for research ...
2
votes
4answers
793 views
Skinny wrists - will this change as the rest of me does?
I know it's vain - but I'm not blessed in this department. As I progress down the road towards the body I want instead of the current body I have can I expect my wrists to gain in proportion also?
I ...
2
votes
3answers
473 views
How often to take measurements?
How often should someone trying to gain muscle mass take measurements? The only answer I could find was for weight loss, which from experience shouldn't be more than once a month.
Can that ...
2
votes
1answer
143 views
Muscle hurts after HiiT session
3 Days ago i did an HiiT Session with dumbbells. I did different excercises in 3 Sets with 12 Repetitions.
After I finished excercising i didn't do any streching exercises. On the next day I had ...
2
votes
1answer
98 views
What are the outcomes of training unevenly on various body muscles?
While most of the trainers train all of their body muscles, it is possible to skip a few muscles and focus on the rest. The best example is all of the guys who don't care about the legs and can end ...
2
votes
1answer
665 views
Legs sore 1st day of rest after workout, even more sore the second day
I did a pretty intensive leg workout and decided to take the next day off for rest. I definitely had some lactic build-up the next day and my legs were slightly sore. However, when I woke up on the ...
2
votes
1answer
55 views
Should standard, non-rehabilitation exercise routines target smaller individual muscles?
Looking at the list of exercises on exrx.net, I see a good deal of them recommending exercises to target muscles that most fitness sites seem to completely overlook. For example, there are pages with ...
2
votes
2answers
191 views
Calorie consumption dilemma: strength vs fat loss
I am a 77 kg guy. I used to be a scrawny 52 kg guy before I began 5x5 workout.
During the weight gain process, I didn't care much about the associated fat gain. I was getting stronger and looking ...
2
votes
2answers
538 views
How to focus at the gym?
Lately i am having trouble focusing on my weight exercises.
I don't really know how to explain it, but i have the feeling that the exercises i do are not having their effect, because i am not ...
2
votes
1answer
115 views
Loose more or gain weight?
I need some advice to choose my next targets.
I started a low carbish diet (as in a not so strict low carb diet) last January together with a 20 min work out 3 times a week consisting mostly of ...
2
votes
1answer
69 views
Does boxing interfere with gaining muscle?
I would like to gain muscle, weight and at the same time be flexible, in good condition, and do competitions in near future in boxing. For that, after the recommendations, I bought the proteins and ...
2
votes
1answer
373 views
What are superficial muscles?
Articles like the wikipedia entry for the Forearm distinguish between superficial, intermediate, and deep muscles. What is the difference between these muscle levels? What are some readily ...
2
votes
2answers
235 views
Is supplementation counter productive when your goal is getting a six pack/lean mass?
I try hit the gym about 3-5 times a week (using a 3 day split program), and take something similar to Supplements SA Ganic-F Insane
as pre-workout, and I've got protein shake that i use as a snack ...
