body has not got used to yet. Our bodies get used
to the routines and workouts that we perform most often. Actually, the more
advanced our workouts are, the faster the body gets used to this particular
workout. This is exactly why you should vary your training routine in order to
achieve the best results. The best thing to do, then, is to use the 'cycles,'
varying the routines, the number of reps for the sets performed and to vary the
rest periods as much as possible. All of these will help you accomplish the
best results when it comes to both the strength and build the muscles.
1) The top workouts
to get ripped are those to which the
2) Keep the
workout time short - thinking that
spending three or four hours at the gym working on your muscles will produce
the best results is false and it differs from what happens in reality. Some
studies suggest that more than 45 minutes of workout decreases levels of testosterone
but increases the levels of cortisol. In short, testosterone is responsible for
muscle building in our bodies and burning of the fat cells while cortisol's
actions are the opposite: it burns the muscle and keeps the fat in our bodies.
That's why the situation in which the levels of testosterone are low and the
levels of cortisol are elevated creates the opposite effect of what we
originally intended for our bodies.
3) Use many
reps and increase intensity - the fight
over the Internet as to what type of training is the best has been going on for
quite a few years now. In reality, the best results are achieved by combining
two types of training: high number of reps and high intensity. The first one,
the large number of reps will cause the body to increase its limit of endurance
and thus will increase the number of muscle cells and the high intensity with
lowered number of reps will let the body get the necessary rest, which in turn,
will allow the muscles to gain necessary strength and mass increase.
4) Vary the
rest time between the
reps. Believe it or not but varying the time between the reps is another way to
postpone the body's adaptation to exercise routine. If you used to take 2-3
minutes breaks between the sets but now you limit this time to just one minute,
you will soon notice the increased muscle mass even though you strength seems
to have deteriorated. Well planned changes in the number or reps as well as the
rest time between the reps will lead you to get the best results in you overall
plan of gaining muscles and increasing your strength.
5) Top workouts to get ripped often use the workouts
where you predominantly rely on free
weights and dumbbells and where your
body moves freely. If you base your workout routines mainly on the machines -
do not expect any extraordinary results. Your body is designed to move in all
three dimensions so if your limit your workout routines to the machines, the
number of muscles remain unutilized, since the majority of work gets done by
the machine instead. That's why, as the end result, we often achieve
unsatisfactory results when it comes to muscle gain. However, if you workout
plan includes the free weights and dumbbells, your body will be forced to use
all the muscles, ligaments and tendons in order to preserve the balance and
control over the weight.
6) Use only as much cardio workout as you have to
- regular aerobic exercises are good but if you want to focus on increasing
your muscle mass, you should limit your cardio workout to about 3-4 times a
week and each session should run approximately 20-30 minutes. You can use the
bicycle (either stationary or regular outdoor one), running, swimming etc. and
you should try to keep your heart rate at the 130-150 level. Increasing the
time and intensity of the aerobic exercise will often decrease your ability to
increase the muscle mass because the body will naturally try to protect itself
by making sure it's getting enough energy and thus using up the energy stored
which will otherwise be used to build the muscles.
7) Focus on a good form and muscle building -
despite the fact that it seems obvious many people ignore this advice!
Remember, this is a body building concept and each set, each repetition, each
routine should be perfect, so that your muscles and not your ligaments and
tendons perform all the work. Never sacrifice good form only to lift bigger
weights! It is not going to bring the desired results! The main point remains
to build muscle and muscle mass. Moving weight from point A to point be is just
not enough. You have to have a proper form, you have to work your muscles and
then and only then you will build your muscles. Even if you cannot lift the
weight you want or initially intended to, your final outcome will be that you
achieve your planned goal and the satisfaction will come not from the number
you pressed but the muscles you have built.
8) Your body
type is a
predetermined factor when it comes to the frequency of your workout routines.
Seldom anyone touches on this subject in articles devoted to the muscle building
training. If you want to achieve great results you have to adjust the frequency
of your workouts to the type of body you have. For example a man with a
naturally low metabolism rate can exercise 5-6 days a week while a slim person
with a naturally high metabolism might achieve better results working out only
3-4 times a week. Individual predisposition, genes and natural abilities should
always be taken into account while implementing an exercise program.
9) Even though it might seem trivial and of no importance
the plan of training you create is of outmost importance since that is
something that you will either follow or you will give up very quickly. It is
one of the 'secrets' that is often omitted and neglected in developing
long-term plan but which is crucial at achieving a success. Even though some of
the training routines look fantastic on paper and promise revolutionary
results, if you have other family obligations that you have to meet or a work
schedule that would not allow for a proposed training routine - you have to
change or adjust your plan(s) accordingly. If you know you can devote 3-4 times
a week to your workouts, plan exactly that number of days in a gym and do not
try to go there 5-6 times a week because most likely either your work, family
or training will suffer. Should you try doing it nevertheless, would cause
frustration and less than desired or satisfactory results. Make sure, than,
that the program you chose for yourself will be the one you could follow
because that's the key to a long term success.
10) Put your sessions and progress in the notebook. Notes of your workouts and the progress you're achieving are
fantastic tools that are going to help you get to your goals. Making notes is
not only a great tool to help you develop a systematic plan and gain motivation
but can also provide you with an insight on where you are now as opposed to
where you were in the past - meaning what progress you have made. It can also
help you understand what helped you get where you are and which exercises
worked for you the best. In addition, were you for any reason to lose all of
that for whatever reason, the written record would help you follow your notes
to get back to the results that you have achieved in the past. In the present
it helps you see the progress you're making, to help you determine if you are
on track, if you are losing the fat you desired so much to lose, if you are
gaining muscles, getting leaner, more ripped. It can also help you verify and
modify your program when necessary. When you make notes and see that all of the
sudden you start losing strength, for example, you come back to your notes and
see that in the last few days you started to cut down on two of your routine
meals each day; now you know where the problem is.