| It's easy to see why people become so frustrated so | | | | the next. This is the best way to build muscle mass |
| quickly with the time they spend lifting weights or | | | | without injuring yourself. |
| struggling with resistance machines at their local gyms. | | | | Our third tip is another important one: Remember that |
| They spend long hours only to find that their muscle | | | | not all exercises are created equal when it comes to |
| mass isn't increasing. All they have to show for their | | | | building muscle mass. The best exercises focus on |
| hard work are sore bodies. | | | | more than one muscle group at a time. These are |
| The problem isn't that these people aren't dedicated to | | | | known as compound exercises, and they provide |
| improving their fitness. It's that they're not maximizing | | | | more muscle-building benefits than do isolation |
| their workouts. | | | | exercise, which, as their name suggests only build one |
| You don't want to follow this path. Fortunately, you | | | | set of muscles at a time. |
| don't have to. There are five tips you can follow to | | | | Some of the best muscle-building compound exercises |
| build your muscle faster and more efficiently. | | | | include the military press, lunges, dips, push-ups and |
| Trainers will tell you that free weights are the best tool | | | | chin-ups. |
| for building muscle mass quickly. This is true. But your | | | | Next, resist the temptation to train too often. This may |
| first step to building muscle efficiently is to always | | | | sound counterintuitive, but muscles actually need |
| keep your fitness level in mind when you begin lifting | | | | adequate rest to grow. If you're lifting free weights |
| these weights. If you haven't lifted a free weight in | | | | every day, they don't get this needed rest. Training too |
| months, don't immediately grab that 100 pound barbell. | | | | often leads to tired muscles. And this can eventually |
| Instead, start slowly. If you don't, you run the risk of | | | | lead to serious injury, which will prevent you from |
| injuring yourself, and you certainly can't build your | | | | making it to the gym at all. |
| muscles if you're too hurt to exercise. | | | | Finally, eat a healthy diet. Your muscles won't grow if |
| The key to building muscle mass is to do it steadily but | | | | you hit the local fast-food restaurant on the way |
| gradually. When you're first working on muscle-building | | | | home from your weight-lifting session. Good nutrition is |
| exercises, it's best to start with lighter weights. As you | | | | just as important as is establishing a regular workout |
| get stronger, you can gradually increase both the size | | | | routine. Your diet should be high in fruits, vegetables |
| of the weights and the number of repetitions you | | | | and protein. It's best to eat several smaller meals, say |
| perform of each exercise. | | | | five to seven, daily. This prevents hunger pains from |
| This leads directly to the second important step; to | | | | leading you to unhealthy eating choices. |
| build muscle mass, work constantly toward increasing | | | | There are no shortcuts to building muscle mass. But |
| both the frequency and intensity of your routines. If | | | | you can do it more quickly by following these five |
| you perform three sets of 12 hammer curls with | | | | suggestions. By sticking to a common-sense exercise |
| 15-pound free weights one week, try to up that to | | | | routine, and by eating a healthy diet, you'll see positive |
| three sets of 15 hammer curls with 20-pound weights | | | | results a surprisingly fast rate. |