Best way to build muscle?

Im curious if I can gain muscle by using 20lb dumbbells because thats all I have. Let's say for biceps, how many reps and sets should I do with those? By now Im pretty sure my muscles have gotten used to that weight so they're not growing. But getting to rep 12 still isn't that easy. Arnold Schwartznegger spent about 5 hours in the gym everyday. Does he work the same muscle group in those 5 hours?

from Bodybuilding News Updates https://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=177294611&goto=newpost
via IFTTT

Enlarged TFL muscle

Hi im 22years old and from nearly i noticed little enlarging in tensor fasciae latae muscles, what you guys think what i can do. Thanks and sorry i dont know where im posting this https://i.ibb.co/qRps0sZ/20190627-223537-1-1.jpg

from Bodybuilding News Updates https://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=177292091&goto=newpost
via IFTTT

I want to start cutting but i don't have much muscle mass.

I've been bulking for around 5 months now and went from around 143lbs to 160lbs. I'm 5'9 and i want to cut down to around 150. I'd put myself at around 16% bodyfat. I have built some muscle mass along the way and i know if i cut down i'm going to be skinny but i think i need to because i hate how i look at the moment. How long do you think it will take to cut 10 lbs if i eat around 500 under maintenance? Once i cut down i will then start doing a really slow bulk.

from Bodybuilding News Updates https://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=177288211&goto=newpost
via IFTTT

High body fat percentage but I want to gain muscle mass, especially on the glutes?

I've been weightlifting for about 6 months now. I am 128 lbs with 30% body fat. I believe this is relatively high because of my breast size (they're on the large spectrum). My current measurements in inches are 36.5 - 27 - 33 after going back to a caloric surplus. My body type is like a rectangle. I want to gain mass on my legs / glutes. Most of my fat storage goes towards my upper body sadly such as my chubby arms, stomach and breast. I want to fix my chicken leg problem. For awhile, I attempted body re-composition, but I saw opposite results of what I actually wanted. So now, I know I need to be in a caloric surplus to gain bigger glutes / legs. But since my body fat percentage is quite high, I'm wondering should I just shed instead? I just hate how lean my legs become, since they're basically all muscle due to the fact of myself training on maintenance / deficit for a little while. Any suggestions on my diet to achieve my body goals? Should I go on a deficit, maintenance, or surplus?

from Bodybuilding News Updates https://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=177276091&goto=newpost
via IFTTT

Does natural maximum lifetime muscle growth include regrowth?

Wasn’t sure the best place to post this and pardon my ignorance as I assume this maybe common knowledge for most.

Say a person has never worked out. Then they workout constantly for as long as necessary and reach their maximum lifetime muscle potential which I hear is 40-50 for men. Say they gained 50lbs if muscle. Then they take off a year or x amount of time and lose all that new muscle.

My question is, since they already met their max growth amount can that person simply no longer grow muscle for the rest of their life? That wouldn’t seem to make much sense, so is that the person can regrow that 50lbs of muscle but can’t grow muscle that they hadn’t previously or is it just that can’t ever grow past that 50lbs. The lifetime part which is throwing me. Can someone clarify?

from Bodybuilding News Updates https://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=177274281&goto=newpost
via IFTTT

My Unique (Maybe?) Muscle Group/Bro Split

Hi, I (29 M, 72kg, 5.5") came up with this muscle group split last week and would like your opinion on it. I am fairly new to lifting and have been working out for the past 6 months on a PPL 5 -day split. My goal is to build lean muscle mass at 72kg (I bulked from 66kg). Through this 6 month phase, I made considerable progress and learned quite a lot about my body's strengths and weakness.

As per my understanding, the reason the traditional bro split is not considered optimal is due to the following reasons

The muscle group is not hit frequently (or atleast twice a week)

There seems to be an overlap between the muscles being targeted each day with no proper recovery (eg on chest day if you do bench press, you are hitting triceps, anterior delts and chest). So you have to be careful to not do shoulders or triceps the following day

So I came up with this split to minimize any overlaps between muscle targeted and to increase frequency. It has worked amazingly well for me and I can physically see the differences in my body. Can someone critique my split and provide any points for improvement? Or is it garbage?

An eg below. I sometimes swap with equivalent exercises to keep things interesting. The sets and reps are not rigid and changes depending on the weight and exercise. Abs workout is 5 days and cardio is one day (if i feel like it)

Mon- Chest & Bi (with Tris as synergist)
Bicep Dominant Chin Up| 3 x 6-8

Machine Preacher Curls| 3 x 8-10

Bench Press/Machine Chest Press| 4 x 5

Hi to Low/Low to Hi Cable Crossover| 4 x 8-12

Incline DB Curls| 3 x 8-10

Inclined Bench Press| 3 x 5

Hammer Curls| 3 x 8-10

TUE-Quads & Glutes (with Ham-Erector Spinae as synergist)

BB Hip Thrust w/Hip Abduction| 3 x 8-12

BB Squat| 4 x 5

Leg Crossover Abduction or Lateral Band Walk| 2 x 8-12

Leg Press| 3 x 10-12

Cable Glute Kickback| 2 x 8-12

Bulgarian Split Squat| 2 x 8-12

WED-Tri & Calves (with Chest as synergist)

Decline Diamond Push-up |3 x 10-12

Close Grip Pin/Bench Press|3 x 5

Standing Calf Raise| 3 x 12-15

Dips| 3 x 6-8

Overhead Cable Triceps Extension or Tricep Kickback| 3 x 8-12

Seated Calf Raise| 3 x 12-15

Straight Bar Triceps Pushdown or Skull Crushers| 3 x 8-12

THU-Back & Bi

Bicep Dominant Chin Up|3 x 6-8

Deadlift|3 x 5

Meadows Rows or BB Bent Over Row|3 x 10-12

One-Arm Preacher Curl|2 x 10-12

Wide Grip Lat Pulldown or One Arm Hi-Cable Row|3 x 8-12

BB/DB Shrugs or Cable Face Pull and Raise|3 x 10-12

FRI-OFF

SAT-Shoulders & Ham (Back)

OHP|3 x 5

Romanian Deadlift|3 x 5

Incline Prone Lateral Raise|3 x 8-10

Leg/Ham Curl|3 x 8-10

Seated Straight Bar Rows|3 x 10-12

3-Way DB RDL|2 x 8-12

SUN-OFF

from Bodybuilding News Updates https://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=177273581&goto=newpost
via IFTTT

Benchpress not targeting proper muscle group.

I'm 14 years old. I've been working out seriously for about one week, and I can only benchpress 70ish lbs 10 reps 3 sets for not even that great form. When I do the bench press, it doesn't hurt my chest at all and only feels little to no pain in my arms. Don't get me wrong, it's still very difficult to perform the repetitions. How much weight should I be expecting to add on in my journey (a couple of weeks, months, years), and why do yall think the bench press is hurting my biceps, but not my chest? Is the weight too small or do I just not have the proper form? Thanks.

from Bodybuilding News Updates https://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=177272421&goto=newpost
via IFTTT

Can I lose weight while building muscle?

Hi, I'm a 21 year old female. I recently went on keto for 6 weeks, then shifted to a normal healthy/clean diet, and lost 17-18 pounds total. I am now down to 130 lbs and am 5' 9. I feel like I dont have that much body fat that I would like to lose, except maybe a little bit of belly fat. I have just gotten into working out more and doing weight training, and would really like to gain a little more muscle mass and look toned/ muscular (but not trying to get really big or anything). Usually, when i go to the gym i do cardio for about 10 minutes to warm up, then do weight machines and exercises with free weights for the remainder of the time. My heart rate normally stays up for the whole exercise and I am pretty beat afterwards.
What kind of diet should I follow in order to lose weight (or at least keep the fat off) while also achieving my goal of gaining some muscle? At the time being, I probably eat around 1,300-1,600 of calories on a non-workout day, and 1,800-2,100 calories on days that I work out. I don't try to do this on purpose, I just eat when I feel hungry and I'm always so much more hungry after working out. I also try to eat more protein on days I work out. I'm afraid of putting fat back on, but I am also afraid I'm not feeding my body enough to build muscle.
Does anyone have any suggestions?

from Bodybuilding News Updates https://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=177268271&goto=newpost
via IFTTT

Is it ok to do 2 exercises per muscle

First of all English is not my first language so I hope y’all understand me .
I’m 16 i recently i started working out on my muscles , and I got a question about it .
Every time I lift i do 4 exercises , 2 on the muscle (3 sets 3 times I do 8 lifting and then rest in total 24 per set ) I do on this day and 2 on the abs ( I exercise on the abs on the end of every workout i do)
And my question is will I see any benefit from it ?
My dad says I should do 3 exercises per muscles a day but I get too tired .
I have school break now (70 days) and I i want to come on the first day looking good , so should I do 3 exercises per muscle or 2 ? Thanks y’all.

from Bodybuilding News Updates https://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=177262421&goto=newpost
via IFTTT

Pain in Chest whilst doing tricep dips as well as weird muscle

I usually do weighted tricep dips twice a week with a parallel bar, as pointed out by someone I seem to have some odd going on, on my chest only during the exercise and no other time. If anyone else has experienced this or knows what this is please let me know. I also have pain in this area during dips.

from Bodybuilding News Updates https://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=177257501&goto=newpost
via IFTTT

how to work this muscle

so my friend took a photo after we're doing cross country run , i just realized i've got a small waist compare to my upper bodies . i want to make it more wider , what's the best exercise for this ????

Attached Images

• small waist.jpg‎ (73.8 KB)

from Bodybuilding News Updates https://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=177256921&goto=newpost
via IFTTT

how to work this muscle

so my friend took a photo after we're doing cross country run , i just realized i've got a small waist compare to my upper bodies . i want to make it more wider , what's the best workout for this ????

Attached Images

• small waist.jpg‎ (73.8 KB)

from Bodybuilding News Updates https://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=177256881&goto=newpost
via IFTTT

Trying to bulk but losing weight/muscle so fast

Ok, so I've been going to the gym since December because I was sick of looking like a stick. My main goal back then was to increase stamina and have more energy, whilst trying to do a bit of strength training as well. Whilst that's all well and good, I didn't actually notice any changes in my body, except increased energy. So starting March time, I started eating a lot more, starting going to a lot of HIIT classes and other strength classes whilst also working out on the machines too. I cut down on cardio to just a 5 minute run to warm up whenever I went too.

So it confuses me as to why I'm still gaining/losing weight and muscle mass so unpredictably. I went on the composition machine earlier today and in the space of 16 days, I've supposedly lost 3kg of muscle mass and put on almost 3kg of fat when I've made almost no changes to my routine at all. I've essentially lost all the muscle I put on since the end of February even though I've been lifting heavier and heavier weights with plenty of reps. And to top it all of, the worst part is that when I put on fat, it goes straight to my lower stomach/hips, so I end up looking well out of proportion with skinny arms lmao.

I've attached graphs of progress (displayed in %) - Any help would be greatly appreciated, I'm no expert.

Just turned 18
6'2
74.4kg

P.S - I'm definitely more hydrated than it says I am. I have to drink plenty because I have one kidney

Attached Images

• Body Comp. 16062019.jpg‎ (43.5 KB)

from Bodybuilding News Updates https://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=177255091&goto=newpost
via IFTTT

how many muscles are used when you squat?

what title asks

from Bodybuilding News Updates https://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=177252961&goto=newpost
via IFTTT

[Discussion] Losing weight is easy, Building muscle is easy, Self control is difficul

Hi all,

I kind of started to changed my mind about the whole body building philosophy. There are so many ways, ideas, programs and supplements which help you to either Build Muscle or Lose Fat, however those are just a tools to make you feel better when you "reach your goal" what is not mentioned is that everything start from your personal idea of self discipline.

Over time after reaching your goal you will either keep on perfecting every aspect of your diet, exercise, supplement selection or you will feel settled that your reach your goal and go to the back old you.

I believe that we should spend more time on our self control while we try to reach our goals than we spend reviewing our diets, workout plans and focus mainly on the root cause of our problems which is Self Control and self determination to have a long term health mentality regarding our bodies.

What do you guys think of such approach to the gains?

from Bodybuilding News Updates https://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=177251001&goto=newpost
via IFTTT

Muscle Tenseness

Should I try to keep my muscles as loose as possible when working out? As in letting go of all tension.

from Bodybuilding News Updates https://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=177239761&goto=newpost
via IFTTT

Sore Muscles - Should I take a break or no?

So yesterday was my first time at the gym, I haven't been active that much before, so today I wake up and I feel like my biceps hurt, shoulders as well, that area basically biceps to shoulders.



I guess that's normal as I know because I felt no pain during my workout.



So my question is, should I go today to the gym or take a 1-day break to let the pain go and my muscles recover? Will it be helpful for my muscles If I go today with this pain? I'm sure it won't be comfortable to lift weights with this pain but if it helps my muscles I will try my best.

from Bodybuilding News Updates https://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=177232631&goto=newpost
via IFTTT

Popped lower back muscle, is cardio okay?

Hey guys, I popped my lower back for the first time, literally hurt or felt a "pop," I don't think it's that bad though because I injured my lower back a year ago and THAT was bad to the point where I couldn't even move, bend, or take a ****. But this injury is like I can walk around, I can take a ****, it just feels really sore.

Would cardio be okay? I heard it's good to get the body moving. Instead of just sitting down and resting.

from Bodybuilding News Updates https://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=177228181&goto=newpost
via IFTTT

4 Reasons You're Not Adding Muscle

Slow-to-no gains got you down? Here are four tips to reverse that trend and kick-start the muscle-building process.

from Bodybuilding News Updates https://www.bodybuilding.com/content/4-reasons-youre-not-adding-muscle.html
via IFTTT

Ask the Muscle Doc: Is Bodybuilding-Style Training Functional?

Don't get caught up in the craze for "functional fitness." All exercise can improve your functional capacity and increase your zest for life!

from Bodybuilding News Updates https://www.bodybuilding.com/content/ask-the-muscle-doc-is-bodybuilding-style-training-functional.html
via IFTTT

First post, review my plan for fat loss / muscle gain.

First post here! I want to give someone a rundown and get some feedback on what I been doing.

Last year, I weighed 255 pounds. I got a gym membership and started throwing around weights 3 days a week, and running for about 40 minutes the other three days a week. I wasn’t “dieting” but I was just making better decisions on food. Cut out fast food, soda, and actually went pescatarian.

One year later I gained a significant amount of strength and lost 25 pounds. And weighed in at 230.

At first I could barely lift a 10 pound Dumbbell, now I lift 20-25 pounds (3 sets of 8)

I started benching 30 pounds (not including the bar)

Now I’m benching a plate on each end.

Today I deadlifted 205 pounds.

Okay you get the idea.

I was a little happy, but I started seeing all these transformation articles that people lost over 100 plus pounds and gained lots of muscle in a year.

When I look in the mirror I still have a huge gut and huge love handles and I’m unhappy about it. If i flex i have a little bicep bump and tiny tricep cut. So I decided to up my game plan this week to try to really cut down on the body fat that plagues me.


My current plan:
Monday - leg day + 30 minutes of cardio
(The way I do cardio is weird so let me break it down here. I step on the treadmill for 3 minutes at 3.5 mph, then I bump it to 6.5 mph and jog for 3 minutes, by which time I’m tired so I go back down to 3.8 mph. After a minute I’ll up the incline to 4, and briskly walk until I’m ready to go again, I’ll usually sprint at 8.5 mph for 1 minute, then go back down to that walk, then incline, then jog. I’m basically just doing all that I can for 30 minutes and I usually burn about 300 calories from the session, and ALWAYS after weightlifting.

Tuesday - chest, triceps, shoulders + 30 minutes of cardio

Wednesday - back and bi’s + 30 minutes of cardio

Thursday - legs + 30 minutes of cardio

Friday - chest + 30 minutes of cardio

Saturday - back and Bi + 30 minutes of cardio

Sunday - a short Ab workout, and if I’m feeling it, cardio, either only 15 minutes, the full 30, or not at all and use this as a rest day.

Diet:

I intermittent fast 3 days a week.
16:8 method, I’m up early at 530am for work so my first meal is at 1030am, work ends and I hit the gym, and have my post workout/ dinner immediately after and my 8 hour eating window ends at 6pm. I also incorporate ACV in the morning and at night on these days.

The other days a week my meals will usually be something like:

Breakfast - protein powder with soy milk (300 calories 30g protein)

Lunch - 1 can of 24g of protein tuna on 1 slice of 100 percent whole grain whole wheat toast, and 23 cashews.

Snack, pure protein bar (200 calories 21g protein)

Dinner - 4oz salmon, 10 asparagus spears, 1 cup of broccoli florets and 1 cup of bone broth.

So I only did this new plan for 1 week so far, and I went from 230-220 pounds.

Now I’m worried I might be losing too much or doing too much. Note: I’m never starving (even when I intermittent fast bc I ingest a dumb amount of protein to keep me full.)

Thoughts? Holes? Warnings?
Btw 28 yr old male.

from Bodybuilding News Updates https://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=177217651&goto=newpost
via IFTTT

The Science of Muscle Recovery: The Role of Active Recovery

Here's the ultimate guide to active recovery: what it is, why you need it, how to put together a program, and even some sample workouts.

from Bodybuilding News Updates https://www.bodybuilding.com/content/the-science-of-muscle-recovery-the-role-of-active-recovery.html
via IFTTT

http://worldmuscleking.com/viva-thrive-keto/

On the website of viva thrive keto it's going to then be delivered at your doorsteps in a few days without inflicting any inconvenience to you The charge is low priced so that everybody can make use of it folks who are looking ahead to reducing their excess weight they are trying to find an effective and fast technique because of a busy life-style no person desires to spend lots of time in dieting and workout furthermore this stuff additionally require a variety of endurance and watch for long periods aside from dieting and exercising you can usually require a supporting hand for lowering greater fat to shop each cash as well as time viva thrive keto weight-reduction plan complement can be your greatest companion in eliminating your tummy tyres as quickly as feasible Thsi supplement is a natural weight reduction complement .

from Bodybuilding News Updates https://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=177206611&goto=newpost
via IFTTT