Maintaining a physically fit physique and keeping hard-earned and toned muscle on your body is not easy to do. But what’s even more difficult is the process of building new muscle, which takes significant commitment and determination to stay loyal to a nutritious diet and training routine. You can be working hard on a regular basis by training, getting enough rest every night and taking supplements to support and boost your efforts, but there are certain muscle building mistakes that are very common and can easily throw you off the track to success. Here are 7 muscle building mistakes for you to avoid as you continue your weight loss program.
- You Don’t Eat Enough
While supplements and protein shakes are a wonderful addition to a diet that is already balanced, you can’t rely on these food sources alone when you are working towards building new muscle. Supplements and shakes are helpful in making up for lost calories or adding in important amino acids for building muscles, but they only help if your real food diet is already strong. Eating healthy, whole foods should be a priority when creating a meal plan for your fitness and health goals. Once that is established then you can look into supplements and other options to fill in any holes in your diet, not as a way to replace necessary nutrients and vitamins.
- You Avoid Fat & Carbs
Fats and carbs are not evil, and if you are trying to build muscle you will need both. Make sure that you are including whole milk, eggs, healthy oils, avocados and plenty of complex carbs into your diet. Carbohydrates protect against the breakdown of protein as fuel and they provide you with the energy you need for your workouts. Building muscle requires a consistent surplus of complex calories so that your body stays energized and in muscle building mode.
- Your Routine is Always the Same
If you are doing the exact same exercises every day or if you stay within the same rep range, you are not doing enough to challenge your body and build muscle. When determining your rep range change up your routine to include training in both lower and higher rep ranges. When you implement different ranges, you maximize muscular gains and will see greater results. Also, while it’s ok to have favorite exercises it’s important to change up your routine so that you don’t find yourself in a fitness plateau. Muscles get accustomed to the same movements so after a while you’ll stop seeing results. Variety in your exercises will give your body and muscles what they need for optimal growth.
- Too Much Cardio
Cardio will help with weight and fat loss, but if you overdo it then it can affect your muscle building efforts. Including aerobic training is good for your cardiovascular system, but make sure to primarily focus on lifting and muscle building exercises.
- You’re Not Using Proper Form
Being safe and maintaining proper form is vital to your success, and it’s extremely important for your overall health and wellbeing. If you get hurt then you won’t be able to continue exercising, which means all of your efforts will be lost. Make sure to follow proper form when lifting so that your muscles groups are being targeted effectively, so you get the most out of your workout and so that you avoid any risk of injury.
- You’re Not Lifting Heavy Enough
In order to challenge your body and your muscles you need to lift weights that are heavy. This also means that when a certain weight no longer leaves you breathless it’s time to move up and add more weight. When you lift heavier you create demand in your body for more muscle mass and this is what will help you build lean muscle.
- You Expect Instant Results
Building lean muscle and getting into shape is a marathon, not a sprint and it can take months, even years to achieve your fitness goals. If you are starting from nothing you will likely see quick gains at first, but once your body and your muscles adjust to your new routine you will have to be more consistent and work harder to continue seeing results. If you are expecting overnight results you are setting yourself up for failure and disappointment, which can completely derail you from your goals. Try to make diet and fitness a lifestyle rather than a necessity or a burden.
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