Ten Secret Steps to Build Body Mass

By: Geoff Morris

Copyright 2006 Geoff Morris

How many times have you considered your alter ego, your ultimate
body shape, you know, the body you think you really ought to
have, and just wished.....

Well, wishing will never achieve anything - as you well know.

But, whilst you are busy 'wishing' considers this: gaining mass
may not be as difficult as you think. Getting it is quite simple
and straightforward, as long as you are willing to put in some
considerable effort, bust a gut, stick to a good training and
eating plan and follow these 10 basic rules.

1. Use free weights for all heavy sets. As heavy as some
machines might feel, they do not involve as much of the
ancillary muscle areas as do free weights, and therefore do not
build as much compound mass. Where the machine guides the
movement of the weights for you, with free weights you are using
your back, stomach, shoulders and so forth in a more
co-ordinated manner to achieve the same effect. However you
really achieve you also need to make sure that you are doing the
free weight exercises correctly, otherwise you could be missing
the target muscle you want to build

2. Utilise 'Compound Movement'. How you perform an exercise is
perhaps the most important component in building mass. If you
want to have full, hard bulk, do not isolate specific actions.
Instead, use 'body thrust' to compound the involvement of all
the muscles in that area. Also, don't fall for the theory that
cheating robs you of separation (unlike machine work, where you
can only use the appropriate muscle group). On the contrary, it
augments the compound benefit and builds even greater size so
that there's more muscle in which to carve separation.

3. Find areas of improvement. Assess your physique to determine
which muscle groups need to be brought up in size, then go to
the gym with that in mind, concentrate on working those areas
first. Begin your workout with a barbell movement and follow
with dumbbells. If you use cables, do so at the end of your
workout. Never count cable sets as muscle building sets.

4. Experiment to find your best mass building exercises. I used
to perform lots of squats, and I became incredibly strong with
them, going as high as 40 reps with 315 pounds. But there came a
point where, even at that level of intensity, my legs weren't
growing to my satisfaction. I discovered that my lower back and
hips were taking too much of the stress; the solution lay in
working my quads more exclusively. I therefore stopped doing
squats and switched to leg presses and hack squats instead. My
legs are now bulkier than ever.

5. Avoid Injuries. Be wary of dangerous exercises. Squats and
flat bench presses, for example, present the most injury
potential, so I stay away from them. I can't count the number of
individuals whose bodybuilding careers were ended by torn pecs,
slipped discs or strained erectors. With proper knowledge and
execution, you can get commensurate or even better growth from
exercises that work those muscle groups thoroughly without
placing undue stress on tendons and ligaments. This is
particularly true if you are new to bodybuilding - if you try
such exercises then the first time you do them make sure that
you get the proper guidance from a qualified trainer to do them
correctly - if you've been doing them for some time it's still
advisable to check out your stance, posture and lift position
with a professional.

6. Utilise optimum sets. Use a range of 16 - 20 total sets per
body part - and STICK to them!

7. Don't count exercise. There is no optimum number of
exercises. Most bodybuilders prescribe four sets each of four or
five different exercises per bodypart, but for some muscle
groups, there might be only one or two movements that work them
effectively. In those cases, you should do 16 - 20 sets of one
exercise, or 8 - 10 sets each of two exercises.

8. Perform Optimum reps. I like to train heavy, but I also like
to use lots of reps. I recently performed incline barbell curls
with 405 pounds for 10 reps, but I consider that to be medium to
light weight, and, therefore, not mass training. My favorite
number of mass reps on a regular basis is 10, to failure(when
you just can not do even 1 more...) of course. However, that
doesn't mean you should avoid going as heavy as possible now and
then.

9. Flirt with maximums. Check out your strength levels every so
often by maxing out with one or two reps. Remember, though, that
any time you play around with benchpress poundages above 405,
you flirt with danger. The body cannot consistently take that
type of training. When you want to test your max, do not take
big jumps. Rather, work up gradually to keep your body
accustomed to the changing forces and their deflections at each
level. For example, I go up to 500 pounds for two reps on the
incline barbell press, but I do not jump directly from 405 to
500. Instead, I make sure I can do 465 for at least four reps
before I go to my max.

10. Eat your meat! The more protein you eat, the better, and the
best form of protein for mass is meat, especially red meat.
That's where you get your muscle building nutrients, your
strength reserves and the necessary fats for joint protection.
There is loads of advice freely available on what you should eat
so use it - you need to control calorie intake but you also need
to get the right mix of carbs and protein, so use a proper
eating plan.

Make all of these principles second nature to your bodybuilding
lifestyle and you will gain good solid mass.

About the author:
Geoff Morris has been involved in keeping fit for several years,
and has now turned his attention in more detail to personal
fitness by taking over the site made famous by Ryan Joyce. This
site cuts through a lot of the confusion surrounding natural
bodybuilders and fitness models.
http://www.adtrackz.net/hdsl/go.php?c=wlr1&s=wl6 .