How to Build Muscle
If you’re trying to get in shape, you can’t neglect the importance of building muscle! This is one of the most important components of staying fit and healthy.
As our bodies age, we naturally lose muscle mass in a process called sarcopenia. When this happens, our metabolism, energy levels, mobility, and coordination decline. This puts us at higher risk of injury, weight gain, and associated illnesses like heart disease, stroke, Type 2 Diabetes, and bone disease. This happens even faster in people who spend most of their days seated or standing still.[1]
The best way to combat muscle loss is to live an active lifestyle, practice resistance training regularly, and properly manage your nutrition & wellness. Continue reading below for more information on how to keep your muscles strong and healthy.
Stay active
Staying active on most days will help keep your muscles healthy. Get in the habit of going for a daily walk and getting up and moving every 2 hours that you’re seated or standing still. As a rule of thumb, aim to get active for at least 30 minutes every day.
I recommend taking up an active hobby like hiking, rock climbing, recreational sports, or gardening. Look for activities that allow you to stay moving for an extended period of time (at least 20 minutes) and that use many muscles at the same time.
Having a variety of active hobbies will help you to avoid getting bored and losing motivation.
It may also help to schedule your activity as a recurring event in your calendar to help solidify the habit.
If you’re interested in fat loss, staying active is also a great way to keep your body burning calories! Remember that for fat loss, you need your body to burn more calories than what you eat and drink. We burn calories by using our muscles and moving.
Different activities burn various amounts of calories. In general, you can burn more calories by doing things that use big muscles (i.e., the muscles in your legs) or that are vigorous and get your heart rate up into its moderate-intensity zone. Check out this list of activities and their average calorie burn.
Resistance training > 3x per week
You can combat muscle loss even more effectively by doing resistance training as part of your weekly exercise routine. This style of exercise involves challenging your muscles to fatigue against some form of resistance—you can train with weights, resistance bands, machines, or even your own body weight.
To get the most out of your resistance training workouts, keep these tips in mind:
Warm Up Properly
Before each resistance training session, make sure to take the time to properly warm up and prime your muscles. This will help you to avoid injury and get the most out of your workout.
I suggest using a foam roller before you work out to loosen up tight muscles. Spend a minute or so on the muscles that you’ll be training as well as any other muscles that might be tight.
Begin with some light- to moderate-intensity cardio for 5-10 minutes at the beginning of each training session. The goal of your warmup is to get blood and oxygen flowing to the muscles, increase your joint fluid viscosity, and raise your core temperature. You can go for a brisk walk or hop on a stationary bike, elliptical, or some other cardio machine.
After your cardio warm-up, take some time to dynamically stretch and prime your muscles. This will help you to better connect with your body for greater control and mobility.
Once you’re warm and primed, you’ll be ready to challenge your muscles!
Work At Your Level
How you train during the challenge portion of your workout depends largely on your level of experience and the equipment you have available. However in general, you can follow the guidelines below for selecting the right exercises.
Beginner Training
If you are new to resistance training or if you’ve been training consistently for less than 6 months, your primary objectives in the challenge portion of your workout are to:
master the technique of basic exercises
build a foundation of mind-muscle connection and strength
improve your overall mobility, coordination, and flexibility
Beginner-level resistance training programs usually involve 2-3 days per week of total body workouts—meaning each workout includes exercises for the legs, arms, and core.
At the beginner level, work with light or no resistance while you learn exercise technique. For each muscle group, do 1 or 2 exercises, with 3 sets of between 8 and 12 repetitions for each exercise. Resting for 30-60 seconds between each set.
During your sets, perform each repetition at a controlled pace, spending 2-3 seconds in the eccentric phase (extending the working muscles) and 2-3 seconds in the concentric phase (contracting the working muscles). Avoid going to muscle failure (i.e., your muscles give out completely), and try to leave 1 or 2 reps in reserve (RiR).
Your workouts should last no longer than an hour (including your warmup exercises and stretching).
Try to keep a consistent routine every week, working on a variety of exercises in each workout. Choose a routine that allows you to hit each major muscle group in 8-10 sets total per week.
Change up your routine every 4 to 8 weeks to learn new exercises and keep your muscles challenged. Over time, you can begin to challenge your muscles even more by using more resistance or by doing more challenging variations of the exercises at the intermediate level.[2]
Intermediate/Advanced Training
At the intermediate level, you can continue to train with total body workouts 2-4 times per week, or you can split your workouts into focus sessions according to muscle groups or movement families (e.g., 3 Day Upper/Lower/Total Split).
Bodybuilding and hypertrophy programs are best for muscle-building. These programs usually feature high-volume training, with sets of between 6 and 12 repetitions for each exercise using moderate- to moderately-heavy resistance (60% to 80% of 1RM).[3]
The goal of this style of training is to fatigue the target muscles to the point that they form microscopic tears along the muscle fibers. While you’re recovering after the workout, your body will repair these tears and fortify the tissue—given that you have enough good quality rest and nutrition (more on that below).
At this level, you should use an amount of resistance that is challenging, but not so much that your muscles give out or your technique slips. By the last two or three repetitions of each set, you should feel some burning in your target muscle group—but you should still be able to perform each rep with good technique. Try to leave 1 to 3 reps in reserve (RiR) at the end of each set—meaning, you should feel like you still could do 1, 2, or 3 more reps before your muscles give out or your technique begins to suffer.
Only go to muscle failure if your training program specifically recommends it. As a general rule of thumb, effective training plans only call for muscle failure (leaving 0 RiR, no reps in reserve) when you are testing your maxes or for an AMRAP set (“as many reps as possible”). Avoiding muscle failure in most of your sets will make it easier for your body to recover effectively from your workouts.
Also, make sure to take your rest periods between each set (between 30 seconds and 2 minutes between each set). This will allow your muscles to recover so you can continue using the moderate to moderately heavy resistance that your muscles need to grow.
Keep in mind that each person’s body is unique, and ideal muscle-building can happen in a variety of rep ranges and loads. Current studies in exercise science and physiology have yet to confirm exact numbers of rep ranges and loads for ideal muscle-building, so you have to experiment on your own body to find what works for you.[4]
There isn’t much difference between the structure of intermediate and advanced-level resistance routines for building muscle. As you progress, you’ll need to add more of something to your routine to keep your muscles growing—that could be more sets for each muscle group, more resistance (weight) for each exercise, or add another training day for more frequent training.
Your workouts aren’t the only important factor for building muscle. The quality and quantity of your rest and nutrition also play a key role.
Get plenty of rest
Contrary to what it may seem, we actually don’t build any muscle in the gym. In fact, your workouts cause damage to your muscles. This acts as a trigger, signaling to your body that it needs to get stronger and make the muscles bigger. But the actual muscle-building happens afterward when we are at rest—so getting plenty of good-quality rest is essential for building muscle.
Experts recommend getting between 8 and 10 hours of good-quality sleep per night. During sleep, your body repairs damaged tissue and produces growth hormone. If you’ve eaten plenty of protein before you rest, your body is able to build even more muscle while at rest.[5]
After training a muscle group, it’s a good idea to let that muscle group recover for 1 or 2 days. During this time, you can still work out, but focus on training other muscle groups. Give your body a full rest day (avoid working out) every 1-3 training days to reduce risk of overuse injurty or overtraining syndrome. You can still be active on your rest days, but try not to stress your body, opting instead for more gentle activities (like stretching or low-impact cardio).[6]
Fuel your gains
When you’re resting, your body turns the food that you eat into gains. So it’s important to give it the right fuel if you want to make the most of your workouts!
Our muscles are primarily made up of protein—so to build more muscle we need to eat plenty of protein. The USDA recommends that between 10% and 35% of daily calories should come from protein—but you should eat on the higher end if you are trying to build muscle.[7] Experts recommend eating between 0.7 and 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight (or 1.5 - 2.2 grams per kilogram of body weight) to build muscle.[8, 9, 10]
Building and maintaining new muscle is a calorie-expensive process for your body—so to maximize your gains it’s best to eat a surplus of calories. Experts recommend eating 10–20% above your maintenance calories every day for an average weight gain of 0.25–0.5% of your body weight per week.[11, 12]
If you are in a fat loss phase (eating below your maintenance level of calories), it will be very hard for your body to build more muscle. That’s because you will have more catabolic hormones (hormones that tell the body to break tissue down) than anabolic hormones (hormones that tell the body to build tissue) in your body. Many athletes see their strength and muscle mass decline while they’re in a fat loss phase. However, you can combat this loss of muscle by eating a high amount of protein intake per day (0.8 - 1 gram per pound, 1.8-2.0 grams per kilogram) and continuing to do muscle-building hypertrophy or bodybuilding workouts 2-3 times per week.[10]
To keep your body healthy, fuel your gains with plenty of nutrient-dense foods like vegetables, fruits, whole grains, low-fat dairy, and lean sources of protein. Supplements like protein powder and protein bars are okay here and there, but the majority of your calories and protein should come from real food.
Manage your hormonal health
Our hormones also play a key role in our ability to build and maintain muscle. Anabolic hormones like testosterone, growth hormone (GH), and insulin-like growth factor (IGF-1) are all involved in increasing strength and stimulating muscle growth. Insulin (another anabolic hormone) facilitates the storage of glucose in muscles for use during your workouts. Catabolic hormones like cortisol, epinephrine, norepinephrine, cortisol, and glucagon increase the availability of glucose—your body's main source of fuel.
For optimal muscle growth, you need higher amounts of anabolic hormones than catabolic hormones.
However certain health conditions can affect your body’s hormone balance and have a negative impact on your gains. For example, many men suffer from male hypogonadism, which causes low testosterone levels. This condition has a detrimental effect not only on the body’s ability to build muscle, but it can also negatively impact your overall physical and mental health. Key symptoms of male hypogonadism include:
Sexual and reproductive dysfunction, such as low sex drive & erectile dysfunction
Decreased emotional and mental health, including depression, moodiness, irritability, and a reduced sense of well-being
Decreased cognitive function, such as difficulties with concentration and memory
Increased fatigue and loss of muscular strength
This fairly common condition can be diagnosed with a simple blood test and is often easily treated with testosterone replacement therapy. Check with your health care provider if you suspect that you may be experiencing low testosterone.[13]
Barring any underlying health conditions, your body naturally produces the hormones needed to make muscle gains. It isn’t necessary or recommended for healthy individuals to take additional hormones or anabolic steroids—especially given the negative impact that these substances can have on your overall health.
Misuse of anabolic steroids can lead to serious physical problems—like kidney problems or kidney failure, liver damage and tumors, and heart problems—as well as mental health issues (such as extreme irritability and aggression, paranoia, mania, and impaired judgment).[14] For these reasons, most responsible coaches and personal trainers do not recommend the use of performance-enhancing drugs or steroids. Training effectively, getting plenty of rest, and eating a healthy diet can help keep your hormones well regulated and maximize your gains naturally.[15, 16]
Work with a coach
It can be pretty overwhelming to start your muscle-building journey with all the information out there, but having a great coach can keep you on track!
There’s a lot of variety in what services different coaches offer, but to most effectively build muscle you’ll want to work with someone who provides training programs to follow. A good coach will write an individualized training plan to fit your experience level, goals, and equipment. You may meet with your coach every week for personal training sessions, or you might work out on your own following their programming. Either way—make sure that there is a plan in place!
Check out my training programs for beginners and intermediate exercisers, and feel free to reach out if you’re interested in working with me for 1-on-1 coaching. Also, don’t forget to join the discord community to share your progress and connect with others who are on a fitness journey of their own:
Also feel free to ask questions or leave comments below this post or in the discord.
Have a great week! I look forward to seeing your progress! :)
-Jayd
———————
[1] Patel A, Maliniak M, Rees-Punia E, Matthews C, Gapstur S. Prolonged leisure time spent sitting in relation to cause-specific mortality in a large US cohort. Am. J. Epidemiol. October 2018; 187(10): 2151–2158 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/aje/kwy125
[2] ACSM Position Stand. Progression models in resistance training for healthy adults. Medicine & Science in Sport & Exercise. 2009; 41(3): 687-708. DOI: 10.1249/MSS.0b013e3181915670
[3] National Strength & Conditioning Association. Trainer tips for hypertrophy.
[5] Robson D. The importance of sleep. Bodybuilding.com
[6] Bubnis D. Are rest days important for exercise? Healthline.com
[7] USDA Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2020-2025
[8] Gunnars K. Protein intake — how much protein should you eat per day? Healthline.com 2020
[11] Van de Walle G. What Is bulking? Steps, diet, and more. Healthline.com 2020
[12] Iraki J, Fitschen P, Espinar S, Helms E. Nutrition recommendations for bodybuilders in the off-season: a narrative review. Sports (Basel) 2019 Jul; 7(7): 154. DOI: 10.3390/sports7070154
[13] Low testosterone (male hypogonadism). ClevelandClinic.org. 2018
[14] Anabolic steroids DrugFacts. National Institute on Drug Abuse; National Institutes of Health; U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. 2018
[15] Rogers P. How to stimulate hormones for bodybuilding: diet and workout strategies to build muscles naturally. Verywellfit.com. 2020
[16] Jones M. Are your hormones affecting your muscle gain? Medichecks.com 2020
Jayd Harrison (Jaydigains)
Jayd Harrison (Jaydigains) is a personal trainer and affiliate streamer on Twitch. She has been an active trainer since 2014 and now specializes in comprehensive weight loss coaching. Check out some of Jayd’s coaching videos on Youtube, or join Jayd live on Twitch on Tuesdays & Thursdays 11am EST for a Fit Q&A session.
Follow Jayd on social media by clicking on the icons below: