04-15-2011, 03:28 PM
To this day I see people, both in real life and online, who either outright don't know, or even worse, have been misinformed about the science behind working out and why it works.
Hopefully this basic overview will give you guys some knowledge to save you from falling into that category.
Section 1: Understanding what working out does to your muscles.
Lifting weights creates small tears in the fibers of your muscle, provided your body is getting enough rest, water, protein and calories, these tears will heal.
Now, it isn't so simple as that though, there is 2 types of muscle growth, also known as hypertrophy, sarcoplasmic and myofibrillar.
Sarcoplasmic hypertrophy is basically an increase in the fluid in your muscle tissue (sarcoplasm), while this will make your muscles look bigger it will not actually increase your strength. Sarcoplasmic hypertrophy is the reason why you see big muscular people lifting relatively low amounts of weight, most people assume, falsely, that this is caused by steroid and or creatine usage. The 10-12 rep range is generally considered to be the range that encourages sarcoplasmic hypertrophy.
Myofibrillar hypertrophy is the enlarging of your muscle fibers, this type of hypertrophy provides significant gains in strength and by extension, lifting capacity. This type of growth is encouraged by high weight, low rep sets, in the 1-5 rep range.
Section 2: Dieting to meet your goals.
Any experienced athlete, bodybuilder or anything in between will tell you working out is mostly diet, you won't gain muscle if you don't eat properly and you won't lose fat either if you don't eat properly.
a) Eating to encourage muscle growth.
To gain muscle it is generally agreed that you need not only enough protein but an excess of calories above and beyond what your body burns in a day. Usually an excess of 300+ calories is recommended but try not go more than 700 over what your body uses in a day, also known as "maintenance". You also will need approximately 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight, per day when trying to gain muscle (bulk). Now, last but not least, fat, believe it or not it is also a needed component of building muscle, around 30% of your calories for the day when bulking should come from fat, fat contains 9 calories per gram so calculate accordingly.
b) Eating to lose fat.
To lose weight, properly anyways, you need to consume an amount of calories that is below your maintenance level, somewhere between 200-400 less, any more and you risk burning muscle tissue as well. When trying to lose weight, also referred to as cutting, you should avoid carbohydrates such as bread or rice except for after an intense workout. Instead eat plenty of green vegetables (fiber), make sure you are getting just as much protein as when bulking to ensure you aren't losing muscle tissue and last but not least, drink at least a gallon (4 liters) of water a day, you should be doing that anyways but it is even more crucial when losing weight. You do NOT need to cut fat out of your diet, this is a myth, instead ensure you get healthy fats from foods such as fish, steak, flax oil, olive oil and peanuts. Some people swear by "fat burner" supplements, I personally say you should steer clear of those, most reduce your appetite and you won't eat as frequently as you should. Taking fish oil pills and multivitamins containing 30-50 milligrams of zinc is also beneficial when trying to lose weight.
I may add some more on the basics of what to do in the gym but that's an even bigger wall of text.
Source: My head.
Hopefully this basic overview will give you guys some knowledge to save you from falling into that category.
Section 1: Understanding what working out does to your muscles.
Lifting weights creates small tears in the fibers of your muscle, provided your body is getting enough rest, water, protein and calories, these tears will heal.
Now, it isn't so simple as that though, there is 2 types of muscle growth, also known as hypertrophy, sarcoplasmic and myofibrillar.
Sarcoplasmic hypertrophy is basically an increase in the fluid in your muscle tissue (sarcoplasm), while this will make your muscles look bigger it will not actually increase your strength. Sarcoplasmic hypertrophy is the reason why you see big muscular people lifting relatively low amounts of weight, most people assume, falsely, that this is caused by steroid and or creatine usage. The 10-12 rep range is generally considered to be the range that encourages sarcoplasmic hypertrophy.
Myofibrillar hypertrophy is the enlarging of your muscle fibers, this type of hypertrophy provides significant gains in strength and by extension, lifting capacity. This type of growth is encouraged by high weight, low rep sets, in the 1-5 rep range.
Section 2: Dieting to meet your goals.
Any experienced athlete, bodybuilder or anything in between will tell you working out is mostly diet, you won't gain muscle if you don't eat properly and you won't lose fat either if you don't eat properly.
a) Eating to encourage muscle growth.
To gain muscle it is generally agreed that you need not only enough protein but an excess of calories above and beyond what your body burns in a day. Usually an excess of 300+ calories is recommended but try not go more than 700 over what your body uses in a day, also known as "maintenance". You also will need approximately 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight, per day when trying to gain muscle (bulk). Now, last but not least, fat, believe it or not it is also a needed component of building muscle, around 30% of your calories for the day when bulking should come from fat, fat contains 9 calories per gram so calculate accordingly.
b) Eating to lose fat.
To lose weight, properly anyways, you need to consume an amount of calories that is below your maintenance level, somewhere between 200-400 less, any more and you risk burning muscle tissue as well. When trying to lose weight, also referred to as cutting, you should avoid carbohydrates such as bread or rice except for after an intense workout. Instead eat plenty of green vegetables (fiber), make sure you are getting just as much protein as when bulking to ensure you aren't losing muscle tissue and last but not least, drink at least a gallon (4 liters) of water a day, you should be doing that anyways but it is even more crucial when losing weight. You do NOT need to cut fat out of your diet, this is a myth, instead ensure you get healthy fats from foods such as fish, steak, flax oil, olive oil and peanuts. Some people swear by "fat burner" supplements, I personally say you should steer clear of those, most reduce your appetite and you won't eat as frequently as you should. Taking fish oil pills and multivitamins containing 30-50 milligrams of zinc is also beneficial when trying to lose weight.
I may add some more on the basics of what to do in the gym but that's an even bigger wall of text.
Source: My head.