To start building muscle the right way, forget most of what you’ve seen in books and on TV from professional bodybuilders. Their routines won’t work for you because their bodies are much different from yours–physically, and probably genetically too. Obviously you shouldn’t start out with as much weight as the #1 international strongman, so why would you try his same diet or the same exercises?
The number one difference in terms of physical training is that you should be concentrating on compound exercises. Pro-level bodybuilders use isolation techniques to work on single muscles or muscle groups one at a time because their support muscles can handle it, and they’re truly sculpting their bodies to be exactly how they want. They’re fine-tuning. But they laid the groundwork first, and you need to too: this means focusing on compound exercises to target multiple muscles or muscle groups at once.
For example: Do pull-ups instead of bicep curls; Dips instead of tricep kickbacks; Squats instead of leg extensions. These compound exercises are more time-efficient because they exercise more muscles at once, they’re safer because they engage and build up support muscles, and they’re more effective for these reasons and because they trigger higher output of testosterone each time.
It’s important to also train your legs for all of these reasons, and don’t be afraid of calisthenic (body-weight) exercises! You need to take it slow at first to avoid injuring your joints and smaller muscle groups, and calisthenics are a great way to avoid pushing yourself too hard too soon. Rather than seeing an Olympic weight set that tempts you to push yourself as far as your joints can handle, you’ll just be working with your own body mass. This also means you won’t have to invest in a lot of expensive equipment right out of the gate.
Finally, be sure to maintain a proper diet with enough protein (but not too much), and carbohydrates at the right time. The properly-timed intake of protein shakes and/or protein bars right after your workouts is key to turbo-charging your muscle growth, and carbohydrates in the 45-minute “magic window” right after a workout can help pump nutrients to your muscles as well. Nutrition is a key part of building muscle, and you shouldn’t overlook it! If you don’t already have a favorite protein supplement, or if you haven’t tried them in a while, have a look around. There are many more brands, varieties, and flavors than there used to be, and you’re sure to find one that fits your tastes.
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