I'm 65, where should I start bodybuilding? Bodybuilding at home: pros and cons

Doing bodybuilding is not just doing strength training, but also devoting a lot of time to intensive training, showing great willpower. For a beginner who decides to become a bodybuilder, it is not enough to just go to the gym. It is necessary to have a sufficient supply of knowledge and basic principles of bodybuilding. Otherwise, it will be simply impossible to create a rational training program. A solid foundation allows the beginning bodybuilder to adapt to regular strength-training exercise. The main thing is to approach the training process wisely and not overload yourself right away. There should be no rush. The main thing in bodybuilding is the correct distribution between loads and recovery.

To monitor your own progress and adjust the program in a timely manner, if the need arises, the first thing any novice bodybuilder should do is keep a training diary. The following items should be written down in your personal notebook:

• results;
• workout;
• outlines of training programs.

Thanks to the diary, the athlete has the opportunity to monitor his progress and set new goals. In addition, achieving certain results recorded in a notebook is a motivating factor.

Proper nutrition is the basis for success in bodybuilding

Bodybuilding is not only a rational approach to training and recovery, but also a thorough approach to the choice of products included in the daily menu. Food for a bodybuilder is a source of energy and material for building muscle fibers. A balanced diet for a bodybuilder requires compliance with certain rules, which boil down to the following points:

• separating carbohydrate sources rather than mixing several foods at once;
• drinking large amounts of water during the day;
• careful portion control through weighing;
• lack of foods with a high concentration of fats and carbohydrates in the diet;
• using olive oil for salad dressing;
• excluding “empty” calories from the menu - carbonated water, chips, factory-made juices and other drinks with additives, as well as snacks;
• eating no earlier than two to three hours before the start of training.

Important! If you really want to eat, you can have a snack, but an apple or something similar. The main thing is to eat the fruit half an hour before class, and not later.

Permitted and prohibited products

There are foods that are healthy and unhealthy for your figure. One is an obligatory part of the diet, while the other, on the contrary, is extremely undesirable and harmful. The latter can minimize all the effort and effort that a bodybuilder puts into training.

Healthy food

To build good muscle mass, your diet must include foods high in protein:

• veal and chicken fillet (you can choose one of two);
• cottage cheese and eggs (chicken);
• seafood;
• legumes

The food listed above helps the athlete obtain building material for building bulky muscles, since it contains a lot of protein.

For effective training, an athlete needs energy, which enters the body along with food containing carbohydrates:

• various cereals, but mainly buckwheat;
• apples, cucumbers, greens, tomatoes;
• pasta.

The latter must be prepared from durum varieties.

What foods are bad for a bodybuilder?

It is impossible to achieve good results without giving up some foods. Be sure to exclude from your usual menu:

• smoked meats;
• soda;
• pickles;
• baked goods (buns, pies);
• semi-finished products;
• confectionery.

Adhering to strict nutritional standards is half the success. Beginners need to immediately review their diet and make appropriate adjustments. Otherwise, you won’t be able to gain good muscle mass. Carbohydrates and proteins provide the greatest benefit after you finish training. They should be consumed within the first 20-40 minutes after the end of class.

Normalization of the graph

Bodybuilding is not just a workout, but a lifestyle. If you want to benefit from exercise in the gym, you need to give up bad habits. No smoking, alcoholic beverages or lack of sleep. You need to sleep at least eight hours a day. Daily routine is of utmost importance. It allows the body to adapt to upcoming stress and feel alert and full of energy.

Full supercompensation, that is, the absence of fatigue, makes the training effective and most effective. In other words, you should only come to the gym if you are well rested. This does not mean that you need to give yourself a long recovery period. The main thing is not to bring yourself to a state of overtraining and not to exercise when you feel unwell.

The concept of load progression

From the first lessons you cannot load yourself to the point of complete failure. Results should be improved gradually. Progressivity of loads varies. It involves either reducing the speed of performing an exercise or increasing the intensity of the training. Both options are more suitable for experienced athletes. For a beginner, it is better to focus on working weights, which are gradually increased. This approach is due to the fact that beginners cannot yet clearly sense the signals sent by the body.

Forced repetitions will only cause many mistakes and can cause a slowdown in progress. To prevent this, you should increase the working weights and master the technique, rather than chasing an increase in the number of approaches performed. This approach should be followed in the first year of training. After 12 months of intensive and regular training, it will be possible to focus on complicating the training program itself.

To learn to understand the signals that the body sends and listen to your own body, you should not immediately start with complex exercises. Experts recommend focusing on basic movements first. Honing your technique in basic exercises allows you to move on to more complex ones without any problems with correct execution.

Training program

Competent selection is the most critical stage on which the athlete’s further success depends. A properly designed program is the key to establishing a neuromuscular connection that allows the body to respond to the movements being performed, and also makes it possible to prepare for heavy loads, that is, progression. This allows you to not only lay a good foundation for more intense training, but also reduce the likelihood of injury. And if experienced athletes can already create their own program, a beginner should definitely listen to the advice of an experienced coach.

The first sessions should be devoted to circuit training. They consist of basic elements, which allows you to quickly master the technique, as well as improve your physical fitness and move on to more complex exercises without any serious problems. If you listen to this advice, then increasing the load will not become a problem.

Circuit training is great for absolutely all beginners, but only in the first stages. The further program is drawn up taking into account the individual characteristics of the bodybuilder, as well as the goals that he sets for himself. If the training plan is generic or nonexistent, real progress simply cannot be achieved.

Every novice bodybuilder must master the technique of performing three basic exercises - deadlift, bench press, squats. Of course, these movements alone cannot constitute a program. It must be complemented by other elements. The main thing is not to forget that excessive loads and the addition of other complex exercises can lead to overtraining, as well as to a decrease in efficiency in mastering the correct technique.

The first thing a beginner should take care of when entering the gym is to determine their working weights. It's not very difficult to do this. A suitable weight is the one with which the athlete can perform ten repetitions for each exercise. The last repetition should be such that the next one is simply impossible to do. If the set is easy, it means the weight is light. When you can’t do ten repetitions, giving it your all, therefore, the load is too heavy.

First cycle -1-4 weeks

After determining the starting weight with which to start working, they begin training. The main thing to remember is that the load must be gradually increased. Each subsequent week, 5 kg are added. For the bench press, the weight increase is 2.5 kg. This allows you to increase the load, but without overvoltage. Beginners should do even those exercises that in the future, when an individual program is drawn up, will become optional.

Second cycle - 5-8 weeks

There are no fundamental differences in the approach. The weights continue to be increased in each warm-up set. When the moment comes that the sets begin to be given with maximum difficulty, the weight gain is reduced by half, that is, by 2.5 and 1.25 kg, and not by 5 and 2.5 kg. You need to rest for at least one and a half minutes between individual sets.

Experienced and professional bodybuilders need a longer recovery period than beginners, who may train more often. This difference is due to physical aspects. Experienced bodybuilders strain their muscles much more. Beginners can afford to visit the gym more regularly, but it should be noted that the results will become noticeable for some after six months, and for others by the end of the first year of training.

Recovery is also required for those who have recently joined the gym. It helps damaged muscle fibers return to normal. In this context, damage refers to “microtraumas”, which force the body to direct its forces to restore muscles, and, therefore, prepare for the next exercise. In other words, the athlete takes one step back, but at the same time takes two steps forward.

For training to be of great benefit, you need to constantly monitor your exercises. In the diary you should definitely note the number of repetitions performed, working weights and other important nuances. These notes become the basis for drawing up the next program.

How long does it take to pump up?

Don't expect instant results. Bodybuilding takes time and regularity. To get a beautiful and sculpted body, you need to devote two or three years to training. Such a long period of time is required for the body to undergo restructuring, which implies a stable neuromuscular connection and the establishment of metabolism.

There are many methods by which a bodybuilder can train, but the most optimal is considered to be the one that involves increasing the working weight. In addition, the age of the athlete also matters. Not everyone joins the gym at 20 or 30. There are men over 40 who decide to take care of their bodies. At this age, it is already difficult to withstand the loads that younger people can do.

To achieve your goals, everyone who comes to the gym with the goal of pumping up their body must remember the following important nuances:

1. Planning your training program should not be neglected. Records should be kept regularly as they will help monitor the entire process.
2. You definitely need to adjust your diet and rest time. No sports supplements can replace foods rich in protein and carbohydrates. It is recommended to recover exactly as much time as the body requires, but no more or less.
3. Give your all in training, but in the first months only with the goal of creating a good base for real intense strength training. In other words, they first prepare their body and learn to listen to it, and only then begin heavy training.
4. Do not abuse heavy weights. The load should be increased gradually, and it is necessary to start with the one that is suitable for a particular athlete.
5. If you don’t always have time to go to the gym, you can work out at home with dumbbells, a barbell, or a kettlebell. The main thing is that there are no breaks. Otherwise, all achieved results will be lost.

When starting training, you should be patient and systematically move towards your goal.

I was intimidated, bullied and ridiculed. Bodybuilding changed everything. Do you want to clear the clouds over your head and overcome a sad mood? Find the key to success and strength with this beginner's workout guide!

I am 26 years old now, but I remember my teenage years very clearly. I was intimidated, bullied and ridiculed. I had low self-esteem and no self-respect.

At some point, I decided it was time to do something about it, rather than spend the rest of my high school years beating myself up. Luckily, I started lifting weights and later took up bodybuilding.

Over time, it has improved my life in many ways, giving me more confidence and self-belief. I also remember how awkward I was when I started bodybuilding as a teenager.

Over time, bodybuilding has improved my life in many ways.

When I first opened a bodybuilding magazine, I was immediately met with a sea of ​​articles, advertisements, etc.

But the problem was that they all gave different information! Use more and less. No, no, no. More carbohydrates and moderate amounts of protein! Do only light loads. No, no, use a more intense load!

I'm sure many teenagers have faced the same problem! Who to believe? Which sources of information are reliable and which are not?

Well, I won't arrogantly claim that I know everything and can't be wrong, but I have spent most of the last ten years of my life studying training and nutrition. I am currently writing a PhD in nutrition on the topic of muscle protein metabolism. So, I want to try to analyze everything that we know from the existing research and how you can apply it to get the maximum result.

I am also a professional bodybuilder with 7 years of competitive experience, so I have experienced many ups and downs with bodybuilding that I would like to discuss. We will also talk about how to make practicing this sport interesting and fulfilling.

Where did I start training?

This question is both simple and relevant. I started lifting weights using sandbags in my parents basement. Of course, there was a limit to my capabilities, but still I got a pretty good result for the first 6 months using.

My parents eventually bought me a weight bench and some barbells and dumbbells, so my options expanded, but I soon outgrew those as well. I became a member of the local bodybuilding team and trained there for the last 3 years of high school.

If you can afford to go to a gym or your parents want you to work out and you can afford a membership, then I tell you from experience, it's worth it. The gym allows you to do more exercises and usually has a better atmosphere for exercising.

Some people prefer to workout alone in their garage or basement. And there is nothing wrong with this, but it will not be possible to perform as many exercises as in the gym.

Some gyms offer family discounts, so if you can convince your parents to buy a membership too, you may well save some money. Many parents (but not all) would appreciate the opportunity to give a gift that will keep their child in good physical shape rather than buying an XBOX 360 gaming console.

How did I start?

This question is really hard to answer. Honestly, someone who has no training experience will get results from any set of exercises.

In general, when you train with weights and put a load on a muscle that hasn't been put on it before, it will try to support that weight. This means an increase in the muscle fibers used in the exercise, as well as an increase in muscle size. However, it is always better to start with a structured set of exercises.

It's always better to start with a structured set of exercises

It has already been scientifically proven that the paramount importance is not single, but repeated training of each part of the body throughout the week. I was convinced of this from my own experience. Many would argue that training one part of the body several times a week leads to muscle overload, but this is far from the case.

The first time you try to train each body part repeatedly, you will experience severe muscle pain and may feel mentally exhausted. Many people will call these symptoms signs of overload, but this is not true.

There may be a feeling of slight overload for a while, but after a few weeks of training each body part several times a week, your muscles will get used to it and you will find that muscle strength increases incredibly quickly and there is no pain after doing the exercises.

This phenomenon is called the repeated exercise effect (REE) and is described in detail in the scientific literature. Training each body part once a week can be effective for beginners, but I believe that over time, training twice a week will increase muscle strength and size much more.

When you pump a muscle with weight, it enlarges to support the load. Muscle grows by increasing protein synthesis.

Due to the increase in protein synthesis, the muscle produces contractile proteins and embeds them into muscle tissue, gradually making it stronger and larger.

I believe that training each body part twice a week gives the best results.

After one workout, protein synthesis remains elevated in skeletal muscle for approximately 48-72 hours maximum. If you train a muscle only once a week, it will produce new muscle tissue within 2-3 days after training. And for the rest of the week (4-5 days) no growth will be observed. But you can put stress on the muscle again to support its growth!

What split should I use?

The best way to start training, in my opinion, is a top/bottom split. It's simple and effective. Even after 5 years of training in my early 20s, I was getting really good results using a 4-day top/bottom split. They can be used in several ways. Here is one of them:

• Monday: top
• Tuesday: bottom
• Wednesday: rest
• Thursday: top
• Friday: bottom
• Saturday and Sunday: rest

This way, the weekends remain free, and if you work on Saturday and Sunday, you won't have to think about working out.

But if you don’t have much time during the week (for example, you play some kind of sport after school), then you can choose Saturday and Sunday and two less busy weekdays for training.

This split allows you to train each body part 2 times a week and leaves a full 3 days for physical and psychological recovery after training.

What exercises to use?

It is best to start training with “basic” weight-bearing exercises using barbells and dumbbells and mastering the correct technique for performing them.

Not only are these exercises important, but they also require good technical skills, and mastering the correct technique from the very beginning is essential, otherwise incorrectly learned movements can harm you in the future. While you are learning the technique of performing exercises with free weights, you can also work on a machine and a low block, which does not require special training.

While you are mastering the technique of performing exercises with free weights, you can work on a machine or low block

Below are a few exercises for each body part that I recommend learning to do correctly. Don't forget that there are many videos and photos explaining in detail how to do the exercises correctly, so if you look around you will find a lot of useful information:

Legs

Back

Breast

Shoulders

Hands

Don't be afraid to use machines as they can be very effective, but don't use them as a substitute for free weight exercises to learn how to do them properly.

What volume of loads to apply?

“Load volume” refers to the number of approaches you perform in one workout. You can use light loads at first and still get very good results. For beginners, I strongly recommend starting with smaller volumes.

When the muscle stops growing, you will need to gradually increase the load to keep it under tension. Don't forget that the point of muscle growth is so that it can adapt to the load and cope better with it.

Once a muscle gets used to the load, it will no longer respond to it with the same growth. And so you will need to continue to “load” the muscle to ensure further growth. This can be done in several ways. The most common method people find to “overload” a muscle is to apply more weight, and this makes sense.

As you continue to exercise, your body becomes stronger. And as you continue to add load, you will initiate muscle growth. However, there is a certain point to which muscle strength can increase. And when it stops growing, so will muscle growth if you focus only on the strength aspect of the overload.

What many people forget is that volume is actually another way to overload a muscle. By using additional sets of exercises with the same weight that you may have already used, it will still be significantly different from what the muscle is used to and will try to adapt by increasing in size.

For example, if you were doing 85-pound dumbbell presses for 3 sets of 8 reps, but found that your muscle strength hadn't increased in a few weeks, you could try adding 2 sets of the same exercise...or a few sets of a different one, or even add a completely new exercise.

This is a new load and the muscle will try to adapt in response to it. Therefore, beginners usually make do with a small volume of loads, but after six months or a year, when muscle strength sharply stops increasing, the time comes to add loads and, possibly, use strength techniques such as, and.

I don't think there is a specific type of set or volume that needs to be strictly followed, but in terms of helpful tips, perhaps the following sets of exercises are a good place to start:

Program for beginners (less than 1 year of regular training)

• Quadriceps: 3-5 sets per workout
• Biceps muscles: 2-3 sets per workout
• Calf muscles: 3-4 sets per workout
• Back: 4-6 approaches per workout
• Breast: 3-5 sets per workout
• Shoulders: 2-4 sets per workout
• Biceps: 2-3 sets per workout
• Triceps: 2-3 sets per workout

Program for athletes with little experience (1-3 years of regular training)

• Quadriceps: 5-7 approaches per workout
• Biceps muscles: 3-4 sets per workout
• Calf muscles: 4-6 approaches per workout
• Back: 5-8 sets per workout
• Breast: 5-6 approaches per workout
• Shoulders: 4-6 approaches per workout
• Biceps: sets per workout
• Triceps: 3-5 sets per workout

Program for experienced (3-5 years of regular training)

• Quadriceps: 7-9 approaches per workout
• Biceps muscles: 4-6 approaches per workout
• Calf muscles: 5-7 approaches per workout
• Back: 7-9 approaches per workout
• Breast: 6-8 sets per workout
• Shoulders: 5-7 approaches per workout
• Biceps: 5-6 approaches per workout
• Triceps: 5-6 approaches per workout

Keep in mind that these are just general programs and may need to be adjusted based on each individual's experience. If you have a weak spot, you can increase the recommended number of approaches.

And if a certain part of your body is more developed than others, you may want to reduce the number of sets. You can also change the volume of loads, as I did in my program called “Adaptive Training Program for Achieving Muscle Hypertrophy,” which is described in the video collection “The Life of a Professional Bodybuilder.”

How many reps should I use?

Each range from 2 to 20 (in some cases even more) has its own advantages and benefits. Fewer repetitions develop overall muscle strength and contractile tissue, while higher repetitions hydrate the muscle and help it store glycogen.

What is glycogen? Glycogen is the main form of storage of carbohydrate energy (glucose), which accumulates in muscles. When muscles have a lot of glycogen, they look full.

Average reps include a little bit of the first and second, so it's important to use the full range of reps and get the benefit out of each one. For a more detailed description of the purpose of using different rep ranges and how to implement them into exercise routines, you can find my article, Rep Presentation - The Truth About Rep Schemes!

Nutrition

What diet plan should you follow?

As a general rule, I don't believe that any diet is right for every person. Each of us has a unique metabolism and reacts differently depending on various factors. I want to talk about each macronutrient and the dosage I recommend.

Protein

I'm sure many have heard more than once that it is recommended to follow a high-protein diet to build muscle mass. And not without reason. High protein foods are necessary to stimulate skeletal muscle protein synthesis and gradually lead to an increase in muscle size. However, today many trainers recommend consuming protein in quantities that will help achieve maximum muscle development.

Many diet gurus already recommend consuming more than 3.5 grams per kilogram of body weight, although there is no evidence that this amount is healthier than 2 grams per kilogram. Moreover, there is some evidence that consuming too much protein can actually cause a decrease in protein synthesis!

In addition, teenagers are always more susceptible to the anabolic effects of consumed protein and do not need as much protein as adults or older people to obtain these effects. Therefore, I believe that for beginner bodybuilders, the optimal amount of protein would be 1.5-2.5 grams per kilogram of body weight. 2.5 g per kilogram of body weight will provide maximum anabolic effect and may even be overkill, but it is always better to take a little more than less.

People with higher metabolisms (ectomorphs) need to eat a little more protein just to meet their daily calorie needs, while mesomorphs need less protein.

Teenagers with slow metabolisms (endomorphs) may also need more protein, not because they burn calories faster, but because protein has a thermogenic effect, and higher levels of it in the body can help avoid unwanted weight gain

Those who are on a diet to lose excess body fat also need to consume more protein, since the need for it increases during caloric fasting. On the other hand, if you consume more calories to gain weight, you will need less protein, since the extra calories will protect the proteins you consume from being oxidized (“burned” for energy).

Protein sources

• Protein powder (, egg white, etc.)
• Protein bars

Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates have gotten a pretty bad rap in recent years. Low-carb diet gurus cursed them and claimed that carbohydrates caused insulin resistance, type II diabetes, and were the main cause of weight gain.

While excessive consumption of carbohydrates does contribute to the development of type II diabetes and can cause weight gain, they can be successfully used in diets if consumed in the right quantities. Moreover, the study showed that proteins have an even greater anabolic effect when combined with carbohydrates.

In addition, the growing body of a teenager is more sensitive to insulin and therefore tolerates larger amounts of carbohydrates than adults or older people. For those who don’t know what insulin is, it is a hormone that is released in response to the release of sugar into the blood.

When carbohydrates are consumed, they enter the bloodstream in the form of glucose, which causes the pancreas to secrete insulin. Insulin then lowers glucose in the blood, delivering it to various tissues such as muscle and fat.

The goal of consuming carbohydrates should be to consume enough of them to maximize their transfer to muscle and minimize their transfer to fat tissue. This is another reason why you need to combine proteins with carbohydrates; A study from the University of Illinois showed that consuming proteins along with carbohydrates helps the latter penetrate predominantly into muscle tissue rather than fat tissue!

Thus, not only carbohydrates enhance the anabolic effect of proteins, but proteins, in turn, prevent carbohydrates from accumulating as fat! The recommended carbohydrate intake is 1.5-3 g/lb.

Ectomorphs should focus their carbohydrate intake on their maximum doses, which are recommended, mesomorphs on average doses, and endomorphs on minimum doses.

If your goal is to lose weight, you'll probably want to reduce this amount by about half. Make sure that your daily diet contains 30-50 g of fiber. Along with maintaining normal digestion, fiber monitors the condition of the digestive tract, increases thermogenesis and thanks to it you get more pleasure after eating.

Sources of carbohydrates

• Fruits
• Vegetables
• made from whole grain wheat flour
• Cereals
• Noodles
• Other grains and legumes

Fats

Use fats are necessary to maintain the integrity of the cell membrane, healthy skin and hair, as well as for the synthesis of various hormones, including the muscle-building hormone testosterone.

Eating a very low-fat diet can cause a lack of essential fatty acids (EFAs) and lower testosterone levels. To maintain normal testosterone levels, you need to include enough fat in your diet.

I'm sure at this point a lot of people are thinking, "So why not just eat a ton of fat and increase your testosterone levels even more!" I'm afraid this won't help.

It is important to include enough fat in your diet to maintain normal testosterone levels.

Eating too little fat will certainly lower your testosterone levels, but consuming too much fat will NOT make your testosterone levels higher than normal. In fact, one study found that very high-fat foods actually suppress testosterone production!

Thus, the most important point in consuming fats is moderation! I recommend eating 0.25-0.45 g/lb of fat. Fat sources such as flaxseed oil, fish oil, and various types of nuts can provide healthy amounts of EFAs, but don't be afraid to include lean beef (>90% lean) in your diet.

Sources of fats:

• Nuts
• Nut butter
• Linseed oil
• Canola oil
• Other oils

Remember that different types of meat and dairy products also contain high amounts of fat.

Experiments with doses of macronutrients:
Keep in mind that it is important to experiment with the dosage of each macronutrient. If you're trying to gain weight and you're eating 175g protein/325g carbs/60g fat per day and you're not seeing results, try increasing your carb intake by 15-20g per week until you see results.

If that doesn't work, add a little more fat or protein. Bodybuilding has a lot to do with experimentation, and I want to reiterate that I am only giving general guidelines.

Bodybuilding is closely related to experimentation

How often should you eat and how should you distribute your macronutrient intake?

You will hear people say that the more you eat, the “higher your metabolism gets.” This is, by and large, a myth. Contrary to popular belief, eating 8 meals a day instead of 3-4 times a day, according to scientific research, does not increase the metabolic rate. But more frequent meals (4-6 times a day) may be preferable, since if you take shorter breaks between meals of protein products, you will be able to stimulate protein synthesis more often.

However, eating too often can only cause harm! A study conducted in a laboratory at the University of Illinois found that eating too frequently interferes with the anabolic response to protein foods. Thus, again the importance of knowing the measure comes to light.

Eating 4-6 times a day should allow you to reap all the benefits of eating more frequently without causing any problems. Remember that diet is also important.

The 3 most important daily meals are breakfast, pre-workout and post-workout meals. Research has shown that eating the right breakfast will help you avoid hunger pangs during the day and will move you from a catabolic state (from overnight fasting) to an anabolic state.

Eating properly before and after exercise enhances the anabolic effects of resistance exercise and speeds up recovery after a set of exercises. You'll want to split your protein intake evenly between most meals, but the bulk of your carbs should be consumed at breakfast/pre-workout/post-workout.

Proper meals before and after training enhance anabolic effects

These are the hours during which your body is most sensitive to insulin and will be able to maximally assimilate carbohydrates into muscle. I would recommend eating about 10-20% of your total carbohydrates for breakfast, about 25% of your daily carbohydrate intake before your workout, and 25% after your workout. The remaining 30-40% should be distributed relatively equally between the remaining meals.

I advise you to consume the least amount of fat (<8 г) во время максимального дозирования углеводов (завтрак, до и после тренировки) и затем распределять оставшуюся часть жиров равномерно между наименее насыщенными углеводами приемами пищи.

Supplements

What supplements should I take?

You really don't need any supplements. Keep in mind that most of them will not help much, and a proper workout and diet will give you much more impressive results than any supplements. However, there are several worthwhile ones that will be useful for teenagers.

Whey protein

This is a high-quality source of protein, which includes a huge list of amino acids. It generally tastes good and is quickly digested to get to your muscles as quickly as possible!

Drinking a shake after a workout can enhance its anabolic effects. They can also replace regular food when there is no time to prepare lunch or there are no products on hand that could be sources of protein.

Branched Chain Amino Acids (BCAAs)

Increases the intensity of protein synthesis and also prevents muscle mass loss during dieting. The recommended dose for adolescents is 10-20 g.

Creatine monohydrate

This supplement has demonstrated its value like no other in the entire history of their existence. It increases muscle strength and size, and in some cases reduces fatigue during training. But you don’t need to be too swayed by the hype of new generation creatine. Monohydrate has stood the test of time and is as good, if not better, than any of the more expensive, advertised alternative products.

Beta-alanine

Reduces fatigue, increases strength and action! This is a relatively new supplement, but very promising.

Citrulline malate

Citrulline malate reduces fatigue and there is some evidence that it also increases protein synthesis! is another relatively new supplement, but quite promising.

Multivitamins

Provide the body with the amount necessary for full growth and recovery. However, you should not abuse them, since many of them have harmful effects in large quantities.

Fish oil and flaxseed oil

Fish oil and flaxseed oil are excellent sources of essential fatty acids, support normal hormone levels and prevent unwanted weight gain.

This is by no means an exhaustive list of healthy supplements out there, but since teenagers are on a budget, I thought it would be appropriate to narrow it down to what I believe are the most effective products on the market.

Why does it take so long

Why does it take so long to build muscle?
Why doesn't this happen faster!?

I will speak honestly and frankly. Building muscle is a long and rather difficult process. Any article that claims that a certain training program will increase your arm size by 2 cm or add 10 kg of muscle mass in 6 weeks is lying. It takes a lot more time.

Building muscle is a slow and very difficult process.

Building muscle takes time. According to research, the maximum amount of amino acids that can accumulate in muscles per day is approximately 5-10 g.

Let's assume that your muscles accumulate the maximum amount of amino acids daily, then per year - 3650 g (365 X 10g). This is approximately 3.6 kg of pure contractile tissue. And the muscle consists of only 1/3 of contractile tissue and 2/3 of fluid. Then about 7.2 kg of fluid will account for 3.6 kg of contractile tissue. This means that somewhere around 11 kg of muscle tissue per year is practically the maximum possible for a bodybuilder.

There will be those people whose genetics will allow them to exceed this figure, but for the majority this will be the maximum point, and the rest will not be able to reach this level. 11 kg per year is just under 1 kg per month, 0.25 kg per week and about 30 g per day! So yes, it will take a long time!

If you are impatient by nature and want to see results immediately, then I'm sorry, but bodybuilding is not for you. You may not have the willpower to overcome your desire for immediate results. You have to be persistent, persistent and work hard to build muscle.

You have to be persistent, persistent and work hard to build muscle mass

Don't despair. Even if you gain 5 kg of muscle mass, it will already be very good. I know it doesn't seem like a lot, but next time you go to the supermarket, look at the 5kg piece of meat...OOH THAT'S QUITE A LOT! Try it on yourself...such muscle mass will completely change your appearance! If you increase muscle mass by 5 kg per year, then in 10 years it will be 50 kg!

Teens should not focus on immediate results. If you dwell on this, I'm afraid you can become despondent or fall down the path of using productivity enhancing products.

I won't start a debate about the benefits or harms of steroids and performance enhancers, but NO TEENAGER should take exogenous hormones if they already have normal hormonal production. This will only cause problems in the future.

Steroids have positive effects for the 4-6 weeks that you take them. But once you stop taking them, you will start to lose a lot of the muscle mass and strength you have gained, which will force you to go back to taking them. Ultimately, this could set you on the path to chronic steroid use at a young age, which is clearly not what you want, especially since you can achieve fantastic results as a young person without them.

It takes years of training to become as disciplined as a bodybuilder.

Another problem that I have encountered with many teenagers is rapid self-exhaustion. They train extremely intensely for several months without rest, adhere to a strict diet and do not allow themselves to go out with friends and enjoy life. Ultimately, young athletes push themselves so hard that they quit training or go off their diet completely.

It takes years of training your mind and body to become as disciplined as a professional bodybuilder. And you shouldn’t go out of your way trying to achieve this at the beginning of your sports career. Pampering yourself with small pleasures and breaks will help you stay on track and allow you to enjoy new sensations and experiences. Bodybuilding SHOULD BE FUN!

Every day you need to do something that you can enjoy. I enjoy trying to get the most out of myself every day, but I only spend part of my time doing it, not my whole life. Understand that there are many more interesting things about you as a person, besides your appearance. And if you judge yourself only by how you see yourself in the reflection, you will not be happy with even the biggest muscles in the world.

Conclusion

It is my sincere hope that this article will help you youngsters enter the world of weightlifting and bodybuilding more easily than you otherwise would have. I remember what it was like to be a teenager and start training without anyone around to answer a series of questions.

Leonid Ostapenko, member of the International Association of Sports Sciences, head of the research department of Sport Service

Program for Beginners

The question in the title may seem simply stupid. I am sure that a lot of people who have touched iron at least once will take it upon themselves to say that they already know thoroughly how to start training. To an outsider, bodybuilding seems like a very simple matter: you go to the gym, lift heavy barbells, dumbbells, or pull the handles of pulleys until you are stupefied, and after some time you become big, muscular and ripped; All you have to do is apply makeup, go on stage, and the champion title is in your pocket. Oddly enough, this opinion is sometimes formed not only by ordinary mortals, but also by a number of so-called “specialists” in strength training, who make illiterate recommendations for organizing training. It is not surprising that given this state of affairs, our market is flooded with all kinds of domestically produced brochures describing various training systems, and for those who believe in the power of Western bodybuilding schools, professionally published books by champions are offered, glossy with beautiful photographs. They certainly know how to start practicing!
Yes, that's for sure - they probably know how... they themselves started. Unfortunately, in most cases this is where it all ends. All books of champions, unfortunately, although they represent a certain kind of textbook of life, suffer from at least one common defect: they are copied from this champion to the last letter, and no more. And if so, then everything that helped him become such is presented as general laws. Unfortunately, this doesn't work in the vast majority of cases. Proof? Okay, where did you see the second one? Schwarzenegger, second Zeina, second Colombo, second Haney and so on (the list could be continued, but why?). One of the pleasant exceptions that I know is the book Bill Pearl(Bill Pearl) "Keys to the Inner Universe", in which this greatest champion, perhaps only equaled John Carl Grimek(John C. Grimek), carefully describes not his personal experience, but makes certain methodological generalizations. The second pleasant exception is books Robert Kennedy(Robert Kennedy) and books co-authored by others. This great publisher, having started as a journalist in the field of bodybuilding in the 60s, trained himself and greedily absorbed the experience of others, so that later, leaving champion ambitions alone, he generously passed it on to bodybuilders of any level of fitness.
Next, where have you seen many great champions raise many like themselves? Vincent Gironda(Vince Gironda) John Parillo(John Parillo) Charles Glass(Charles Glass) and a couple of other names appear in Western magazines as “champion trainers” in bodybuilding. Lou Simmons(Lou Simmons) Bill Seno(Bill Seno) and Greg Rachel(Greg Reshel) in powerlifting... Don't stress, you won't remember anything else unless you've been reading all the English language lifting and bodybuilding literature for the last 30 years. Moreover, remember that a good athlete is not necessarily capable of becoming an equally good coach or methodologist.
Another criticism for Western “schools”: they were all born on the basis of a financially and politically calm social system, a prosperous and organized life, and a nutritious and balanced diet. Is it possible to characterize our state of being in this way? Yes to completeness!
And finally, I personally have a hard time hating the word “school” (Canadian hockey school, Russian chess school, American or Lithuanian bodybuilding school, and so on). Remember, friends, everything related to physical education and sports cannot be assessed according to the criteria of political fights. All this is subject to strict and unshakable laws of anatomy, physiology, biochemistry, theory and methods of sports training, which are universal. Another thing is who earlier began to creatively and intelligently use these laws and other people's experience in order to build their body. Here, thanks to the diligent efforts of our sports establishment, until 1988 (that is, before the first official championships of the USSR), we fell far behind, but now, due to the openness of ideological borders, we can use the experience of others.
However, do not believe that there are no prophets in our fatherland. There are excellent, thoughtful trainers and good methodologists, but not all of them are eager to pass on their experience to others in printed form, unfortunately. So on this basis a self-proclaimed “champion” and “Mr. Universe” is born, a young man flawed in the sense of psyche and poorly educated in terms of theoretical and practical training, declaring to all of Russia in the presence of a familiar and obsequiously smiling TV journalist that “in Russia there is no theoretical basis for bodybuilding,” “sports competitions are judged by people who have only seen dumbbells on TV,” and so on. Our magnificent coaches and methodologists, as well as the judges on whom this creature craps, sit in their clubs, pretend that they are not talking about them, and think only about their own shirt, allowing them to desecrate this sport, all its representatives and take away their laurels. and well-deserved glory among true champions... Remember that this will continue as long as you keep silent. It's a pity!
But let's get back to our main topic. Let's avoid all the above mentioned evils of bodybuilding publications. Let's agree to use generally accepted scientific, rather than vulgar and amateurish, terminology, rely on basic laws about the human body and... think a little about what they will tell you. For my part, I promise you that, as a person who has devoted more than 30 years to collecting and analyzing information about strength training, and has been working in the field of bodybuilding for about 20 years, I will convey to you my personal experience and the experience of the best specialists in the world, and not in " naked" form, but adapted to the conditions of our existence. I hope you have already agreed that we live in slightly different conditions and under slightly different laws. Consequently, our methods should be somewhat different.
On this hopeful note, we will begin to develop the topic that interests us.

In order to successfully start classes, you need to have at least desire and real possibilities do it. This desire must be firm and confirmed by real efforts. Forget all the fairy tales that bodybuilding is very simple - like “take a heavier dumbbell and do more repetitions.” This will only cause you to get high blood pressure. Your desire should also be based on as realistic an assessment of your genetic potential as possible. I already talked about this in the introductory article, but here we allow ourselves to dwell on it again.
If, for example, the distance between the extreme (acromial) processes of the shoulder blades is less than 40-42 centimeters, then you will never be able to develop the expressive taper of your torso necessary for a competitive bodybuilder. Equally disadvantageous for success in this field is a pelvic width equal to or greater than the acromial width. You will never correct the curvature of the shin bones, although it can be somewhat masked by increased development of the inner heads of the calf muscles. You will never exceed your genetically determined body length (that is, your height) after the epiphyses of the tubular bones ossify (this happens in men around 19-20 years of age). You will never be able to build sufficient muscle mass if your muscular system is characterized by a predominance of slow-twitch muscle fibers.
However, the latter can be determined either through a muscle biopsy (examining a small extracted piece of muscle under a microscope) or through various restraint training programs and then analyzing the effect they have on your muscular system. By the way, a good coach can almost always draw fairly accurate conclusions about your prospects based on a visual examination.
Second condition, or step, if you want - to have normal health. Weight training involves pushing yourself beyond your current physical limit. Every time you do this, whether you use weights or not, you are running some risk of injury and testing your adaptive capacity.
If you are over 25 years old and have spent the last five years doing exercises that consist solely of pressing buttons on your TV remote control, first make sure you are healthy. You've heard this advice many times, and it's usually thought of as a warning to smokers on a cigarette pack; however, find a physician who is familiar with athletic training. Ask him to do your electrocardiogram under stress and listen to your heart under the same conditions. Personally, I use a simple and powerful rapid testing computer program that I wrote that can help determine the health of major functional systems, so don't hesitate to get in touch.
If the doctor gives you guarantees of your complete health, then you can be sure that there are no hidden conditions that can create real problems when you start training.
Third step to the beginning - find a good trainer with a good gym. It is not as difficult now as in the old days; gyms are multiplying like mushrooms after a warm rain, but many of them, being well equipped, amaze with the dullness of the coaching staff, who care primarily not about the growth of their own professional level, but about the commercial well-being of their establishments. My advice to you: when getting acquainted with such a gym, ask whether the coaches create training programs for their students, or rely on wall posters describing the programs of champions. If such programs are compiled, compare two such programs for trainees with different types of build. If these programs turn out to be very similar, leave this club without regret.
If you decide that a commercial space is too much for your budget, then your next step- buy a small barbell weighing up to 100 kg and two collapsible dumbbells, allowing you to gain up to 50 kg. Provide yourself with as many plates as possible, especially lighter weights to use for building weights, adding as your strength progresses. You will also need squat racks and a good strong bench about 28 cm wide and one and a half meters long, 42 cm high. It would be nice if this bench was adapted for bench press. The above is the minimum for successful entry-level home workouts.
You don't necessarily need to start lifting weights right away, especially if you haven't exercised on any periodic basis for more than 2-3 years. The inherent risk of overexertion here can be avoided if you are willing to spend a few weeks building your physical foundation before lifting weights. Here's a short program to help you with this.
The best time to exercise for most people is about two hours after their lunch meal, which means for most of us starting to exercise around 6 or 7 o'clock in the evening. Shift workers or those who have to work or study during other hours can find their own patterns through experimentation, seeing when they feel most refreshed and energetic.
If you've been really sedentary, try walking at a brisk pace for 15 to 30 minutes every day for one to two weeks. The pace of your step should gradually increase and at the end of these two weeks reach 140-150 steps per minute - and this is almost running.
After this, go to light jogging for 1-2 weeks, starting with 100 meters and extending the distance by another 100 meters at each session; if this turns out to be difficult, do your runs every other day, but systematically. Of course, this is not enough to develop your cardiovascular and respiratory systems, but for now we are trying to make you at least relatively ready for weight training. Walking and jogging will “energize” you and begin the process of preparing your body for more strenuous loads - weight training.
At the same time when you start jogging, prepare dumbbells weighing 3-6 kg at home, and do the following at the end of each session (that is, every other day). exercises:
- curls with dumbbells, 1 set of 20 repetitions (1x20);
- curls with dumbbells with a reverse grip, 1x20;
- standing dumbbell presses from the shoulders, 1x20;
- lateral raises with dumbbells, 1x20;
- arm raises with dumbbells forward, 1x20;
- straightening the arm with a dumbbell back, standing at an angle, 1x20;
- push-ups from the floor, 1-2x20.
We need to explain at this point another pair of basics, that is, that one repetition, or one repetition, is one completed movement in an exercise. The general rule for how many repetitions (or reps) should be performed comes from your goal. Low reps, 4 to 6, are typically used when you're training for strength; Medium repetitions, from 6 to 12, have been shown to be best for stimulating muscle growth, and finally, high repetitions, from 15 to 30 or more, are commonly used in training regimens for improving overall fitness or weight loss.
A selected number of repetitions performed in a row is known as one set (one series, one set).
The meticulous reader may immediately notice that in our dumbbell circuit we recommended only 1 set of 20 repetitions. This was done intentionally. For a beginner, any load will be beyond the limits of his physical fitness and, therefore, will have a training effect. At the same time, by performing a high number of repetitions, you open the capillary network, improving the trophism (nutrition) of your muscle tissue and, to a certain extent, developing local muscle endurance, which prepares your muscles for more severe loads in the subsequent period.
You should exercise according to the regimen recommended above for at least 6 weeks, regardless of your body type and fitness level. If this condition is met, at the end of this introductory period you should experience a certain increase in your energy, improved appetite and sleep, perhaps even a slight increase in muscle volume or loss of excess fat deposits. Subsequent training plans will take into account your genetics, primarily your body type.
Before this, there are a few more general methodological postulates.
Beginners only need basic, comprehensive circuits, regardless of their fitness or size. You must resist the initial urge to train isolated body parts or try out advanced training regimens. The best program for a beginner is composed of approximately 8-10 exercises, using exercises that work the major muscle groups, i.e. upper arms, shoulders, chest, back and legs. Smaller groups such as the neck, forearms and even shins are worked out quite sufficiently at first due to inclusion in the work in these basic movements. Only later, when you become more advanced, will you need to target specialized muscle groups.
A beginner's training scheme should never take more than one hour to complete. If it takes longer, you are either doing too much or you are resting too long between exercises or sets. It is smarter and more beneficial to move from one exercise to another without long pauses, rather than taking long breaks and allowing your muscles to cool down. At this stage, it is more important to avoid injury and get the blood circulation working more actively. Don't forget about warming up - you need to spend a few minutes bending, stretching (stretching exercises) and doing various free exercises or movements like morning exercises in order to prepare for the more rigorous exercises that will form the core of your class.
Basic Workout Example, which will allow you to train all major muscle groups two to three times a week over the next 5-6 weeks, is as follows (it is suitable for both home and gym training):
1. Hips- back squat: warm up, then 2 working sets of 8-10 reps (2x8-10). Be sure to perform this exercise in a super series with a pullover, that is, abducting your arms with a dumbbell back while lying with your upper back across the bench, inhaling deeply as you abduct and exhaling as you return your arms to their original position at your hips. This combination increases the capacity of your chest, thereby increasing the vital capacity of your lungs. A super series means that when you finish squatting, you immediately grab a dumbbell and do pullovers; Of course, the number of approaches in pullovers will be equal to the number of approaches in squats, and the number of repetitions will be 14-16.
2. Shins- standing calf raises: warm-up, 2x8-10.
3. Chest- bench press: warm-up, 2x8-10.
4. Back- Bent-over barbell row: warm-up, 2x8-10.
5. Shoulders- strict standing barbell press: warm-up, 2x8-10.
6. Biceps- barbell curls: warm-up, 2x8-10.
7. Triceps- lying triceps extensions (straightening arms with a barbell, elbows fixed upward): warm-up, 2x8-10.
Here you will meet a warm-up for each movement; This does not mean that you should neglect the general warm-up at the beginning of the workout, but in relation to each exercise, the warm-up will not be general, but specific.
It is done with a weight that is approximately 60% of your “working” weight. Of course, try to ensure that the weight used for the "working sets" is heavy enough that some effort is required to complete those eight to ten repetitions: remember, however, that a "heavy" weight is a relatively heavy weight for you, at this time. case, the one that allows you to finish exactly this recommended number of repetitions and no more.
Important points, which should be taken as guidelines:
1) Don't put extreme effort into your warm-up sets. Save yourself on working approaches;
2) The above program should be performed every other day only three times a week. Remember, training only stimulates the process of muscle growth - you grow when your body has recovered from the load;
3) you will only grow if your diet is adequate - you cannot build muscle without supplying it with enough building materials from your diet;
4) Since each person has a different exercise tolerance, the above workout, if done correctly, may be too much for one session. This workout is just an example and you should ultimately find the volume that works best for you;
5) do not let yourself be tempted even by the thought of doing more approaches; if you overtrain, you won't grow, sending your body into a catabolic state (tissue breakdown); this means that your muscles will actually become smaller and weaker. "More" is definitely not "better" here;
6) As you get stronger and find that you are able to perform more reps with strict form, you must increase the weight on the barbell or dumbbells to continue to progress. Increase it just enough until you are again able to complete only your target number of repetitions;
7) After you've been training for some time, say two months, you may notice that some areas progress in size and strength more than others. This is the point where you need to change your training on lagging body parts to bring them into parity with the rest of your physique;
8) In this program, start during the first three weeks with one warm-up and one working set; Dedicate the remaining three weeks to completing the program in full.
After two months, it makes sense to adjust the program depending on your type of addition. Let's look at these corrections in turn:
1) if you are thin-boned and thin (ectomorphic type), add 1 set to exercises 1, 2, 3 and 4, and reduce the number of repetitions in all exercises to 6-8; stop doing exercise 2 for a while;
2) if you suffer from excess fat deposits (endomorphic type), then maintain the number of approaches in each of the exercises, but increase the number of repetitions in each to 12-15, and introduce two more exercises into the complex (one at the beginning of the lesson, the other at the end):
Abdominal press: - leg raises lying on the floor, 3xMax;
- torso lifts from a lying position, knees bent, feet fixed, 3xMax.
“Max,” as you probably guessed, is the maximum number of repetitions.
3) if it is difficult for you to classify yourself as the above types of addition, then simply increase the number of approaches to three in all exercises, and reduce the number of repetitions in them to 7-9; Of course, this will require some increase in your weights in the “working” sets, and you should consciously strive for this.
In general, try to do everything consciously, with maximum concentration on each approach and each repetition. By an effort of will, consciously tense your muscles when the weight being overcome forces them to contract; do all exercises carefully, not just throwing the weight up and down. This will be useful to you later when you need to “adjust” lagging parts of a muscle or group.
Do not go beyond the limits of this program, no matter what temptations arise in front of you. All these “pumpings”, “flushings”, “trisets” and the like will come in handy when you feel and see your readiness to join the ranks of more experienced and advanced bodybuilders. Don’t try to test your strength by going to the extreme and working, as they say, “on time.” You will not grow by getting involved in various speculations. Later we will teach you how to overcome stagnation in strength performance, mass, and relief. But about everything in due time.
But another reason for our concern is this: to resemble a bodybuilder, you must train like a bodybuilder. Simply "lifting weights" without understanding what program you need to achieve your goals simply doesn't work. If lifting heavy weights and hard work were all that was required, then a digger or a butcher shop loader could easily compete for the title of Mr. Olympia. Intensity and hard work are definitely important. But you must learn to train intelligently and also intensely. While intensity of effort is absolutely necessary, your ultimate goal should actually be intensity of effect—that is, getting the results you want.
This important principle of any type of physical training fits especially into the ideas of scientifically organized bodybuilding. It fleshes out the idea regarding the specificity of the training. The body reacts and adapts very specifically to the type of training you expose it to. Much more specific than you think. That's why different sports—from marathon running to gymnastics to shot put—all require very different types of training and conditioning. This is why it is so difficult to excel in multi-event sports like the Decathlon or Heptathlon, and why there are so few great athletes who compete successfully in more than one sport at the highest levels.
Over the past decades, bodybuilding practitioners and theorists have developed a number of training techniques that are essential to maximizing your bodybuilding progress.
Some of these principles are too advanced for beginners, but several of them vital to your training right from the start:
a) full range of motion; in each exercise, go from the point of full extension (stretching) of the muscle to full contraction and back. Do not set yourself up to work in a partial range of motion. At the top of the movement, immediately tighten the muscle a little more intensely to get a full, peak contraction;
b) general control over weights; never push the weight. Don't become careless by trying to impress others with heavy weights, but learn to concentrate and maintain overall control of the weight in each repetition of each set;
c) no cheating;"cheating" in resistance training refers to the use of additional muscles or technical tricks like accelerating the weight and using momentum to help you complete the movement. Instead, lift and lower the weight using the specific muscles involved in the movement, without assistance from other muscles or inertia;
d) keep “thinking in the muscle”; Remember that you are training muscles, not lifting weights. Don't think about the weight, think about the muscle and what it does;
e) train “to failure”; failure in the bodybuilding approach is not the same as exhaustion. This means that you have reached the point where you cannot do another rep with that particular weight. But you could do more reps with lighter weights, and also with the original weight after a short rest.
The program offered to you constitutes, as it were, “production work blocks” for building the body; We're sure you'll be tempted to get too sophisticated too soon, but remember that a good foundation is the most important aspect of creating a solid foundation to move forward with.
Remember the specificity of the training we mentioned. From the experience of some of my students, I was repeatedly convinced that, having started to use advanced bodybuilding methods too hastily, they were indeed slightly ahead of their training partners, but then, when this advanced technique was actually timely for them, they did not respond to it, since the body had already exhausted its reserves of adaptation to them at an earlier stage. If you avoid this very common mistake, you will be on your way to stable, sustainable gains in muscle mass and strength.
Remember also that the most realistic path to progress in bodybuilding is personalized programs and methodological support from a qualified personal trainer. If you can afford such pleasure, we are at your service.
Remember that your insightful questions will serve as the basis for future recommendations, and that your positive and negative experiences will help others avoid mistakes.

I wish you success!

Today, many people are in an intermediate state when they want to somehow change their life, their physical form, but do not know exactly how to do it. Most of those who decide to take up bodybuilding do not know how to start correctly, what needs to be done, how to make a plan for nutrition, training, rest, etc. All this will be discussed in this article; it will be most useful for beginners, but we are confident that more experienced athletes will be able to take away something important for themselves.

The first thing you need to do is identify a goal. Do you want to stay in shape or lose weight, or maybe, on the contrary, gain weight so that you don’t look too skinny? Let's take a quick look at all these options:

• Keeping fit– for this, only two normal workouts per week are enough, and you also need a well-thought-out balanced diet with a constantly equal calorie content. However, only a few people want to stay in shape, while the majority are determined to move forward and not mark time.
• Gaining muscle mass– for muscle growth you will need to train a little more, although for beginners two full-length workouts are quite enough. For more experienced athletes, we advise increasing the number of sessions to 3-4. The diet should also be balanced and give you more calories than you burn in a day. Your main food should be animal proteins, complex carbohydrates and healthy fats (), by the way, if you are not prone to gaining excess fat, you can sometimes treat yourself to something sweet.
• Weight loss– in this case, you need to give up all sweets, starchy foods and generally all fast carbohydrates. The emphasis should be on complex carbohydrates, fast proteins and healthy fats. The caloric content should be such that you spend more calories than you get from food. You need to calculate calories individually, and if you don’t know how to do this at all, then we advise you to contact an experienced trainer who would create a weekly nutrition plan for you. You should also not forget about training; 3-4 strength training sessions per week will be enough + it is advisable to add a few more cardio sessions.

How to train correctly for a beginner

Since you are just embarking on the path of bodybuilding, you need a special approach. In the first 6 months, you need to follow the fullbadi training program, that is, you need to train all large muscle groups in one workout. Also, all exercises performed during training should be basic, that is, those that involve several muscle groups at once, for example, squats (leg muscles + back stabilizers), bench press (chest + triceps + deltoids), pull-ups (back + biceps) and etc. In the beginning, you also shouldn’t try too hard; after each workout you need to recover - eat a lot of proteins and complex carbohydrates, sleep at least 8 hours. Two classes a week will be enough for beginners.

If you have never held a barbell in your hands before, then at first you do not need to immediately start lifting maximum weights and show your superhuman strength; the emphasis should be on the execution technique. Without the correct technique, within a month you will injure your shoulder, arm, knee or something else. It is advisable to work out with a coach or an experienced friend for the first two weeks. Videos of equipment on the Internet or in pictures, as practice shows, help few.

Proper bodybuilding exercises - results

Only experienced trainers know how to do bodybuilding correctly. Even those athletes who train for 2-3 years make many mistakes, either in technique or in nutrition. Here's what we can advise all aspiring bodybuilders:

We hope we have answered the question - how to properly engage in bodybuilding. However, this is too broad a topic to cover completely in one article. Follow all our recommendations and you will transform much faster than you think. Don't give up halfway, if you lose motivation, rest for a few days and progress further if your dream is so important to you.

Denis Semenikhin - where to start for beginners?

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The article describes tips and recommendations for novice athletes, bodybuilders, bodybuilders, and athletes. Interesting facts about how to start bodybuilding from scratch, how to choose a gym, training program, sportswear and plan […]

The article describes tips and recommendations for novice athletes, bodybuilders, bodybuilders, and athletes. Interesting facts about how to start bodybuilding from scratch, how to choose a gym, training program, sportswear and nutrition plan.

Bodybuilding Basics for Beginners

More and more people of all ages and different walks of life are signing up for their nearest gym and making time for workouts. In their imagination, they paint the image of a Greek demigod, into whom they will one day turn. But there are obstacles along the way that can become insurmountable. So how to reach your cherished goal? Here is a list of recommendations on how to become a bodybuilder.

First of all, a novice athlete must soberly and honestly assess his own health and physical fitness. Remember and find the slightest sores that have ever bothered you. After training, mild pain can turn into a serious injury. It is not always possible to identify the problem on your own. In this case, you need to contact a specialist. Medical diagnosis will help you avoid serious injuries during training.

The next step is for the athlete to evaluate his or her skills. Before training with iron, you should learn to do pull-ups 8-12 times. If the athlete is not able to fulfill this standard, then the first set of exercises should be composed of pull-ups and push-ups. It’s easy to find a ready-made workout program without weights on the Internet. Working with your own weight will strengthen and prepare your muscles and ligaments for further work with weights. Having experience in complex training, such as boxing or wrestling, will be a plus. In this case, the body responds much better to strength training.

Choosing a gym for beginner bodybuilders

Business in the country is developing and offers a wide selection of gyms within walking distance. Each has its own pros and cons. How can a beginner make a choice? There are some tricks here too. Pay attention to the location of the hall. Not only the distance, ease of access by car or the availability of a stop nearby. The room must be heated and ventilated. Air conditioning will make the training process much more enjoyable. Pay attention to the number of people in the room. Heavy workload can have a negative impact on classes. Long queues for the simulator take up a lot of time. The variety of exercise equipment and equipment characterizes the hall on the positive side.

All that remains is to choose a form for classes. There are no strict rules here. Clothing should be loose and comfortable, not restrict movement. A tank top, sweatpants or shorts work great. Some people prefer to exercise in a sweater. Warm clothing helps the body warm up better during exercise. Shoes should be non-slippery and have hard soles.

It is worth noting that there is a variety of clothing for athletes on the market, for example, rash guards or wrestling shoes. They are designed for specific sports, but with a detailed study of the functions, you can choose the thing for yourself.

A wise step would be an individual consultation with a trainer or experienced bodybuilder. A specialist will be able to tell you how to start bodybuilding correctly. You need to train taking into account the experience of other people, but it is still worth noting that different athletes’ bodies perceive loads in their own way.

Features of training for beginners in bodybuilding

Proper work on strength, endurance and increasing muscle mass is where experts recommend to start bodybuilding. Training plays a significant role in the life of every bodybuilder. Bodybuilding does not like liberties in training. You need to come to classes with a clear work plan. There are many different training programs on the Internet. Which one should you choose? A personal trainer or an experienced friend can help you create a training plan. There is no need to despair if you have no one to turn to. You can really figure it out on your own - today on the Internet you can find a lot of good literature and videos on the topic of building an athletic body.

The most practical option is to find a book that describes a long-term training plan and tips for performing the exercises. Immediately tune in to the idea that you shouldn’t expect instant results. Each program lasts 2-3 months. After the muscles stop responding to loads, progress is reduced to a minimum. This is where the following program comes into play.

At the initial stage, the priority task is to develop the technique of performing exercises. Weights should be selected in proportion to strength so that movements are performed under control. Too little weight will not stimulate muscle growth, too much will lead to injury, so when choosing equipment and exercises you should focus on your capabilities.

Bodybuilding Nutrition for Beginners

The topic of nutrition is tightly woven into the world of bodybuilding and bodybuilding. To build the body of your dreams, you must understand the basic principles of sports nutrition. There is a lot of information available on the Internet about proper nutrition. It remains to highlight the essence.

Decide on a list of products. What foods can be eaten and what should be limited or excluded from the diet. All athletes need protein to build muscle. It is obtained from chicken, beef, fish, eggs and dairy products. It is better to keep pork to a minimum and eliminate sausages altogether. Carbohydrates provide energy to our body. These are rice, buckwheat, oatmeal, pasta and potatoes. Many foods contain fats. It makes no sense to search for a source separately. For better absorption of food and easier functioning of the gastrointestinal tract, consume fiber. It is found in vegetables.

The number of meals should not be less than four times a day. The size of portions varies depending on the degree of hunger. Severe hunger does not mean that you have to overeat until your stomach hurts. Breakfast is a must. Many people find it difficult to eat meat and rice in the morning. In this case, easily digestible foods will help out. Scrambled eggs, a glass of milk and a cup of oatmeal are ideal for breakfast. Sweets and flour products should be minimized or not consumed. These products have a positive effect on the accumulation of subcutaneous fat.

A bodybuilder's diet should include sources of protein. Cottage cheese, chicken, cheese, eggs and protein powder help build muscle mass

Motivation for beginners in bodybuilding

Understanding the basics of nutrition, burning fat, and building muscle is the best way to get started in bodybuilding. The main factors for achieving success in building your own dream body are productive training, proper nutrition and good rest. Don't despair if you don't look like professional bodybuilders, models or actors. Their physical fitness is the result of grueling training, strict diets, and the joint work of personal trainers, nutritionists and doctors. Your body is unique. Any progress in training deserves respect. You can be proud of yourself if you are better today than you were yesterday!

Glossy magazines are full of photographs of slender men. On cinema screens, muscular guys save the world, and broad-shouldered villains try to stop them. In the twenty-first century, the media tells us that we need to be pumped up, ripped and a big guy. Where to start building your dream body in order to get the best effect without harming your health: you need to follow the recommendations of experts, take information from authoritative sources, study your own body, love and take care of yourself.