4

Bodybuilding for Beginners

Bodybuilding for beginners is where you start your muscle-building future. You’ll want to start out with the right exercises, the right diet, and the right recovery programs.

Muscles grow as a result of overloading them, feeding them, and letting them recuperate, so that they grow stronger and bigger over time. You need all three components (exercise, nutrition, and rest) to make any gains. Two out of three is not good enough.

It is at this stage where you learn the basics of bodybuilding.

Bodybuilding Basics

First things first! You want to hit the weights, and I don’t blame you. Just don’t forget about the other two pillars (and don’t forget about mindset – which won’t be a problem when you’re starting out but it will when you hit your first sticking point).

Exercises

In your first month, these are the exercises you want to do (just watch, don’t necessarily listen to the recommendations):

• Squat (1 set of 20, abbreviated 1×20)
• Bench Press (1×10)
• Chin-ups (1×10)
• Shoulder Press (1×10)

Lift on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, or every other day. This gives your muscles time to recover, adapt, and grow.

On your rest days, do your normal thing. If you like to run, run. If you ride a bike, ride a bike. On your workout days, try to just lift weights.

Of course, this may be a bit impractical. If you’re on a high school football team, you will practice every day. There’s no getting around that.

However, this makes it all the more important to really do nothing on your off days (like Saturday and Sunday).

Your body and mind need the rest. There is a strong central nervous system (CNS) response to weight training.

After one month, add one set to each exercise and stick with that for 3 months. Add weight when you can, in the smallest increments possible.

In many cases, beginning bodybuilders find that they can add weight every single workout to almost every exercise. If you can – great. If you can’t, that’s great, too.

Everybody gains strength at different rates. Consistency at this point is king.

Diet

My experience tells me that eating a “normal” diet is best, supplemented as needed with in-between meal snacks. Stick to wholesome, whole foods. Organic when possible.

Eat a variety of foods, like beef, chicken, eggs, milk, and fish for your protein sources. Grains, vegetables, and fruits for your carbs. You needn’t worry much about fats, as if you cover the protein category, you most likely won’t be lacking in fat intake.

Do not, however, try to go on a low- or no-fat diet, even if you’re overweight. That’s a really bad idea. Once you begin limiting your fat intake, your body goes into survival mode and begins hoarding the fat you do eat. Worse yet, it begins conserving your body fat.

The results are often counter to your objective – you gain fat.

To summarize: Eat 3 meals a day with 2 or 3 snacks in between. If you feel hungry, eat more often. If you can’t eat that often, do the best you can. If time isn’t on your side, mix up a meal replacement shake (MetRx is great) in the morning and carry it without you throughout the day.

At this point, supplements aren’t really necessary, outside of a good protein supplement (like the aforementioned MetRx – pick it up at Trader Joe’s) and multi-vitamin/mineral tablet.

Rest & Recovery

This is one of those very “iffy” areas. Everybody – and every body – has different needs when it comes to rest and recovery.

So these are general guidelines:

• Get 7-9 hours of sleep
• Rest as much as you can when you’re not working out, unless you’re overweight
  • In that case, do some steady-state cardio on off days
• Don’t do any “extra” weight training – stick to the guidelines above
• If you feel like you’re tired all the time, get more rest – you will find a way (take a nap)

 

0

Budget Stretching for the Bodybuilder

Many people bust their butts in the gym but when it comes to making the right food choices or getting enough of the good stuff, they simply fail.

FACT: The average grocery bill has risen 5.7% in just 2 years since 2007.

I’m going to give you some budget stretcher tips and tricks so you can shop like a pro when you are bodybuilding on a budget. You’ll save money and get more food for your dollar. This is even more important for you skinny guys and gals that need to eat and just can’t seem to keep the cupboards stocked with enough food.

Sit tight and take notes.

Budget Stretcher Foods to Buy

Meats:

Chicken:

Bulk frozen individual packs, or just get them with the skin and bone. Skin them yourself. It doesn’t take too much time and you save quite a bit on the whole package. A whole chicken is a good option as you can BBQ it and carve it up for the rest of the week. Grilling all your chicken in advance is a super simple way to to have 1-2 chicken breasts a day without adding to your cooking time.

Tuna:

In water.

Turkey:

Turkey burger or lean ground turkey. Adds well to pasta dishes.

Lean Red Cuts of Meat:

Get to know your local butcher if you can. Sometimes they can package a smaller cut if you’d like or run the cheaper, tougher cuts thru a tenderizer at your request. Some stores do markdowns to get rid of meats that are closer to expiration. It might be possible to ask them when they time is so you can schedule your shopping at the markdown times. You can check the “sell by date” and if it’s today, ask if they will mark it down for you.

Dairy:

Eggs (Omega 3 if possible)

Milk

Yogurt

Cheese

Breads/Grains:

Bagels

100% Whole Wheat bread

Oatmeal (not the quick oats)

Cream of Wheat

Brown Rice

Whole Grain Pasta (watch out for mixed sources, you want the whole grain version)

Vegetables:

Broccoli

Asparagus

Kale

Spinach

Potatoes

Yams

Sweet Potato

Salad Fixings (lettuce, peppers, cucumbers, hickima, etc)

Fruits:

Bananas

Apples

Blueberries

Pear

Grapefruit

Before You Go On The Budget Stretcher Trip:

* Take a list. Don’t start your grocery shopping trip off without a clear cut idea of what it is you want to purchase. Far too many times I’ve gone to the store and loaded up on chicken only to discover I had plenty of frozen breasts and I was completely out of brown rice and oats. Developing a list of foods you need to replenish weekly will aid in saving money on excess foods and keep you from buying impulse items you didn’t need.

I’m going to say this is probably the MOST IMPORTANT tip on this list. Going to the gym with a plan is the surefire way to make progress. It is the same with grocery shopping. Knowing what you need for the week will save you gasoline in terms of multiple trips and you’ll know exactly what types of food you need for your stated goals.

When I was bulking and trying to gain weight, having a list before I went shopping ensured that I got all the food I needed in order to gain healthy weight. And I saved money because I didn’t end up buying impulse items.

* Spend 20 minutes a week and save 20% off your grocery bill! Clip coupons, watch for sales and pay attention to your local grocery store. Many people just “shop.” But you’ll save quite a pretty penny if you save some of those ads and watch for sale items. If you are looking to bulk up, a 2-for-1 offer is hard to pass up. A little here and there can add up to $1000’s of dollars in a year with savings.

* Don’t discount those high end stores. I love my local Safeway and Costco. They have bulk items and their deals are super. Whole Foods (Whole PayCheck as I call it) sometimes has deals on particular items that are even cheaper than the regular discounts at those bigger chain stores. My point is… Don’t stick to a single store and ignore the other savings that might be happening in your area. Just keep an open mind.

What To Do While You’re There:

* Shop on the border first. Many of the items I’ve listed above are found on the borders of the store and not up and down the aisles. Usually higher priced items are in the middle. If you start off your shopping around the borders of the store, you’ll fill up your cart quickly with the most healthy items and the ones you need to have and spend less time on the higher priced stuff. Almost always, the pre-packed, high priced, more unhealthy stuff is in the middle. Tackle those aisles for the remainder of the stuff on your list.

* Look Up and Then Down. You won’t notice this as much unless you are into advertising or have somebody point it out but many times, the best priced items are NOT at eye level! More often than not, the higher priced items are right where you can quickly stop them. If you take a second to glance up and then down, you’ll find alternatives, smaller sizes and discounts that aren’t quite as visible. Take a second to look around before you just grab what you think you need.

For example, in most stores I’ve shopped at the very best cereal item you can purchase in that particular aisle is whole oats. Are the oats right at eye level? Of course not. They are most likely on the very bottom shelf, where you have to look and bend down to grab. One of the BEST things in the morning for breakfast is not at eye level and you must look for it in order to find it.

* Sign up for the Program. I’m a Safeway shopper. Naturally I’ve got the Club Card. I save money every time I shop. I signed up for any other program the stores around me offer not because I want to be spammed with their ads (although coupons are nice) I simply want all the savings that I can possibly get without having to do a thing. Some stores will match competitor’s offers. You’ll only know this is you get those type of notifications.

* Look for discounted vegetables and fruits. Sometimes at the last minute, the grocery store needs to get rid of some items, maybe tomatoes, because they are going soft and will spoil in a few days. You might stumble across a good sale if you snag those items quickly before a new shipment comes in and you pay full price. Instead of buying bagged salads, you can pick up all the veggies yourself and make your own! In fact, you’ll probably make enough salad to last a week and at half the price of most packaged salads.

* Avoid too many frozen foods. They are usually pricey. I keep a few on hand for emergencies. When I don’t want to cook a darn thing, I’ve got nothing in bulk ready to go and I’m not about to drop money on eating out, having some healthy frozen dinner sure can be handy. Just keep them to a minimum as they can be expensive. They can actually save you money if you are just too tired to cook and don’t want to spend money on eating out.

* Match em’ Up! Remember the coupon lecture a bit ago? Take that coupon and combined with a great sale, you are really going to save a bundle. Not always but many times, the store will let you use a coupon in addition to an item that is already on sale. Even if you don’t need it and it’s something you can use later, you’ll save money buying it now vs. waiting until it’s at regular price and you lost that coupon or it expired. Combinations, just like in video games, can pack some amazing punch if used in a timely fashion.

Additional Budget Stretcher Tips:

* Tupperware is your friend. It will extend the life of some items like salads and chicken if you are able to vacuum seal the item. Storing it will be easier. Taking it for lunches will be simple.

* Check the expiration or sell by dates. It does happen that you can purchase meat items and they are best used by the very next day. If you don’t ask for a discount in this case, you just paid for items that are not going to last all that long. Check the dates if possible and make sure the food you are buying isn’t about to go bad tomorrow.

* Freeze the meats. When I purchase chicken, if they are not individually wrapped already as in the case of some Costco items, I’ll unpack them immediately. Then I’ll wrap them up and freeze them. This way they will last much longer and I can pull out however many chicken breasts or other meat items I need and cook them quickly.

If you follow these tips, you’ll almost guaranteed to save money on your grocery bills. This is especially important for those of us who are trying to gain weight and food is a premium. If there’s only one thing you remember, please shop with a list and know before you go.

Fed Up With Confusion Over What Foods To Eat?

Put An End To Dieting Plateaus And Meal Planning Madness Forever Using This Simple Little Time-saver…

Marc David is a bodybuilder, writer, and author of the e-book “The NoBull Bodybuilding Program.” He also has experience in sports nutrition and supplementation.

He created The NoBull Bodybuilding Program that makes creating meal plans a snap. Armed with the shopping tips above and a budget stretcher meal plan guide to create these approved meal plans, you can be assured your nutrition will be set. It’s so much better than guessing at what to eat, or trying to figure out at the last minute what to cook. Planning meals is essential if you want to make progress. Using such a meal plan can take that difficulty right out of having to figure out “What’s for dinner?”

I suggest you take a look at The NoBull Bodybuilding Program and take the frustration of what to eat out of the equation.

Here’s to you saving a bundle on your grocery bill…

Article Source: EzineArticles

0

Bill Pearl

Bill Pearl ushered in the modern era of bodybuilding, in my humble yet accurate opinion. He was the first really massive bodybuilder to experience a whole lot of success in the ’50s and ’60s.

Pearl won the pro Mr. Universe 4 times and would likely have won the Mr. Olympia; however, that contest didn’t exist during his heyday so he never entered it. In fact, by the time the first Mr. O was held, in 1965, Pearl had already amassed 3 of his Mr. Universe titles.

Not many remember but Pearl was in his forties when he won his fourth and final pro Mr. U in 1971.

Even fewer remember that he won his first major contest in 1953, beating out Sean Connery in the amateur Mr. Universe.

Many know him to be a vegetarian bodybuilder. But he only converted from being an omnivore to a vegetarian after he’d built all his mass and experienced much of his success. In fact, he was 39 when he became a lacto-ovo vegetarian (meaning he includes dairy and eggs in his daily diet).

Bill Pearl has authored several bodybuilding books. Two of his most popular are Keys to the INNER Universe and Getting Stronger.

0

Best Ways of Rowing

by Terry
(Ennice, NC)

Question: I have been sitting on the floor and rowing with my heavy bands. Would I benefit from doing the rowing on a bench that I could straddle sitting down?

I have the Terrell Owens exercise bands (excellent).

Answer: I think you can do both! I’d caution you to keep a little bend in the knees while doing your rows (I assume you’re pulling from a door way with the bands roughly parallel to the floor); keeping the legs stiff is an invitation to lower back strains.

You can vary the angle quite a bit by using the same anchor point but by adjusting your stance:

Seated on the floor, you’re getting the lats and middle back.

Sitting on a bench, you can pull to the chin and get a good delt, upper back, and trap workout.

Standing, you can almost exclusively target your traps and hit the side and rear delts a little, too.

---

Image credit: Licensed for re-use – https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a6/US_Navy_070329-N-8923M-029_Lt._Shaun_Estep_of_Strike_Fighter_Squadron_(VFA)_37,_the_Raging_Bulls,_prepares_for_the_physical_readiness_test_(PRT)_on_a_rowing_machine.jpg

0

Building Big Lats — Wider, Thicker, and Longer

Want To Build Big Lats? Here’s How

Big lats are a necessity on a well-rounded, symmetrical physique. Building the latissimus dorsi muscles, rhomboids, trapezius, and other supporting muscles of the back. There are only a few movements that you need to perform to build the muscles of the back.

The king of all lat work is the bent-over barbell row. Using an overhand grip, hands shoulder-width apart, bend slightly at the knees and bend at the waist with your torso slightly above parallel. Pull the bar to your lower ribcage, trying to use your hands and arms as “hooks” only, to maximize the effect on the lats. If you pull the bar higher up on the torso, like to the chest, you’ll involve the upper lats, rhomboids, and trapezius more. Pull to the waist, and you’re building primarily the lower lats as they taper into the waistline.

Follow the bent-over rows with lat pull-downs. Again, you can influence which area of the latissimus that you effect simply by pulling the par to that area. For example, if you’re trying to develop the lower lats, pull the bar down to your belly button. These are great for building thickness in the upper- to mid-back.

The trick to doing this exercise most effectively, is to lean back a bit so that your body is about 30-40 degrees from vertical. In effect, you’re doing a variation on the bent-over row you just performed, but you’re putting your lower back in a more advantageous position. Plus, you can use a lot more weight, especially if you use the part of the exercise machine that secures your knees, disallowing the weight to pull up your body.

You can also vary your hand position to effect a different part of the back. A wider grip will work on width, whereas a narrower grip will work on thickness.

A variation of the bent-over row is the dumbbell row. Doing these one arm at a time, you can really focus on feeling the muscles work, rather than focusing on getting the weight up. Let your shoulders drop as you extend your arm, and really pull back on the shoulder blades as you raise your arm.

An auxillary exercise you do, most often when trying to build the chest, is the bent-arm pullover. You may not realize this, but the muscles worked with this movement are the lats!

Couple the bent-arm pullover with the bent-over rows in a pre-exhaust superset. The pullovers fatigue the lats, and the rows blast them into oblivion! Repeat this superset 3-5 times, and you’ve gone a long way to building big lats.