Bodybuilding Articles: Gaining Mass

    Mass gain overview.

    In this article I will provide a brief overview of the basic mass gain principles involved in bodybuilding

First up: exercise is nothing without nutrition. You cannot expect to change your body without changing what you feed it. You will need to run a calorie surplus if you are to put on weight of any kind. By this I mean, to increase body mass, you will need to eat more, and I mean substantially more. This may seem a little obvious, but I am constantly amazed at the number of young guys training and wanting to ‘get big’ who think that they can just go to the gym and magically grow. It does not work that way, guys!

Nutrition includes WATER. Muscle is 70% water. How will it increase in mass without the very thing it is made of ? Aim to drink at least 5 litres a day (over a gallon). If this seems impossible, ease yourself into it - 2 litres the first day, 2.5 the second and so on. Your body will begin to crave the water. Never let youself get thirsty - it's already too late by that time.
 

Secondly, in order to put on muscle mass, it is inevitable that you will put on some fat as well. Anyone who tells you that you can simultaneously put on muscle and lose fat is kidding you. It is physiologically impossible: muscle gain requires a calorie surplus, fat loss requires a calorie deficit – which is it to be?

When I was on a mass gain program, I was unconcerned about the minimal extra fat of the protein concentrate, plus it was much cheaper (I bought it in 20 Kg bags) and I could mix it in with everything: breakfast, meal 2 , post workout, and bedtime shakes.

Thirdly, growing muscle as opposed to fat is the body’s last priority, after storing fat for emergency energy. The trick to minimising the amount of fat stored and the amount of muscle added is to not starve the body of fat: that way the body ‘knows’ that it will be receiving its daily hit of fat and does not need to ‘stash it away’ (under your skin !)  for the lean times. Good fats play the essential role here: avocadoes, nuts, flax seed (linseed) and other monounsaturated fats. These fats have the added benefit of aiding testosterone production. So don't be afraid of (good) fat !

Fourthly, exercise !

To grow muscle, the body must first need the muscle for some reason. Heavy training is the key to stimulating muscle growth. Muscle is a ‘use it or lose it’ item – if there is no need for it, the body will simply eat it up in order to conserve energy. Muscle is high maintenance tissue – it needs energy every second of the day. This is why weight training is good for metabolism; muscle is active tissue and burns calories even while you sleep. The best exercised for mass gain are compound exercises involving multiple muscle groups. The obvious ones here are chest press (preferably dumbbell) and squats. 

And .... Rest !

Rest is the only time your body will GROW. You don't grow in the gym, you grow when you sleep - so get plenty of sleep, at least 8 full hours a night.   

That's it ! Building muscle is not complex, but it can be difficult, that is to say, demanding. In order to make substantial gains, you will need to stick to a program for several months at least, but initial results should be seen within a couple of weeks. 

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