Vitamin C - Increase Your Muscle Mass Gains

By Sasa James

Do you sometimes feel your intensity and/or energy levels are going down? Your diet is good, you drink enough water, all other things seams to be perfect but for some reason you lack energy you had just recently. Symptoms of weakness and tiredness are very disturbing but worse of all, very much destructive for all building muscle mass attempts we may have. Good news here! Vitamin C is the answer. Muscle weakness is a common symptom of vitamin C deficiency.

Research showed valuable data. Functions of ascorbic acid indicate that any strength athlete needs to be consuming more than the RDA (recommended dietary allowance) because it has several functions that are important for building strength and muscle mass. Vitamin C is needed for maintaining the strength of tendons and ligaments but also it is essential for the adrenaline synthesis (the hormone crucial for intense training).

Physical training increases oxidative damage to cells in muscle tissue in our body. Vitamin C is an antioxidant that reduces the amount of oxidative damage caused by exercise. Proper amount of vitamin C ensures a lower release of cortisol. Why this cortisol thing is important? Being a catabolic hormone it does serve in other ways but its presence in the muscles promote excessive breakdown of muscle tissue. Therefore, lower secretion of this hormone should provide faster recovery and better performance. But here is a problem: vitamin C is not of the stable structure and it can not be stored it in our bodies. Therefore we need sufficient amounts of vitamin C everyday. You may know that RDA for vitamin C is 60mg/day. However, recent studies in people that are not athletes suggest that a good intake is more likely to be around 200mg/day.
And if you saw ours (or any other good) nutrition calculator you already know it is not too difficult to arrange. 8-ounce glass of orange juice will provide you with around 100mgs of vitamin C.

But it is very difficult to know the right amount your body will need. I must say it wouldn't hurt to supplement with an additional 250-500mgs a couple of times a day particularly if you are already feeling the "down phase" symptoms. I always take an extra 500mg dose with breakfast and before I train just to be sure. To conclude, vitamin C isn't advertised and glorified as so many "big" supplement labels. But despite that, it so important for building new muscle tissue. Fresh sources of the vitamin C like orange juice or lemonade are best in the sense. Adding extra vitamin C by supplementing your diet for most of us is necessary.

You can build up Massive and Strong Body fast, without risking your health. Sasa's advices saved time, money and good health to many Athletes. His dedication, profound experience and personal example are causing the difference. Feel free to visit his web page , claim your Free e-Book's and Video's and learn more on Fast Massive Muscle Building.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Sasa_James

7 Adrenaline-Boosting Workouts

Boost your strength and endurance with these fast-paced workouts from Men's Health experts
By the Editors of Men's Health

1. 3-Mile Challenge

Boost your strength and endurance with this fast-paced workout from Craig Ballantyne, C.S.C.S.

How it works: Crank out as many pushups as you can. Then, resting a minute between exercises, do one set each of chinups and dips, completing your maximum number of repetitions for each exercise. Now go for a 3-mile run. Record the number of reps you were able to perform and your run time. Retest yourself each month.

2. Hoops Fat Blaster

Sculpt your body on the court, says Alan Stein, C.S.C.S.

1. Sit at one baseline and hold a basketball in front of your chest. Stand up and sit down without letting your arms, hands, or the ball touch the floor. Repeat 10 times, then sprint to the other baseline.

2. Assume a pushup position, but with one hand on the ball. Perform a pushup, then roll the ball to the other hand and repeat. That's 1 rep. Aim for 10, and then sprint back to the other baseline.

3. Hold the top of a pushup on the ball for 1 minute. Rest 30 seconds. Repeat the entire sequence 4 to 6 times.

3. Muscle Express

Use your bicycle as a barbell to build your upper body. Pedal hard for 2 minutes in a high gear.
Then hop off the bike, flip it, and grab it by the frame. From this position, you can train your back, arms, and shoulders, using the bike as resistance. For example, perform 10 reps of single-arm bent-over rows, arm curls, or front raises. Then ride for another 2 minutes. Continue this pattern of lifting and riding until you've completed each exercise 3 to 5 times.

4. High-Speed Rope Circuit

Alternate between jumping rope and doing strength exercises to build a leaner body.

1. Skip rope 20 seconds.
2. Do 8 walking lunges forward, then turn around and lunge back to the starting position.
3. Skip rope 20 seconds.
4. Do as many pushups as you can (to failure).
5. Skip rope 20 seconds.
6. Do pullups to failure.

That's one round. Complete 4 to 6 rounds, adding 10 seconds to your rope-skipping time each round.

5. Rock-Hard Abs

This 3-day-a-week plan is fast yet brutal, says trainer Juan Carlos Santana, C.S.C.S.

Lie faceup on the floor with your arms and legs straight, in an X. Lift your arms and legs 8 inches off the floor, toes pointed out. This is the starting position.

1. With your right arm, reach up toward the ceiling, then lower to the starting position. Repeat with your left arm. Do 5 reps.

2. Raise your left leg above your hip and reach toward the ceiling with your foot, then lower back down. Repeat with your right leg. Do 5 reps.

3. Do 1 and 2 simultaneously with opposite limbs. Perform 5 reps.

6. High-Power Muscle

Add air to classic body-weight exercises for an athletic challenge, says Nate Green, a certified personal trainer.

Alternate between two movements, such as squats and pushups, but make them explosive by pushing yourself up with enough force so your feet and hands leave the floor on squats and pushups, respectively. Do 10 reps of each move and rest 10 seconds. Then do 9 reps of each exercise and rest 10 seconds. Continue with this pattern down to 1 rep. Repeat the sequence up to 5 times.

7. Leaner in 5

Perform this lower-body strength workout before you pound the pavement. Transition from one exercise to the next without resting.

1. Do 24 body-weight squats.
2. Perform 24 body-weight lunges, alternating legs.
3. Complete 24 jump lunges, alternating legs.
4. Do 24 jump squats.
5. Hold a plank for 2 minutes.

Rest for 5 minutes before running sprints.

Source: MSN

The Best Form of Cardio to Eliminate Fat and Maintain Muscle

By Ty Ferrell

As a frequent gym patron, I am many times shocked at the amount of time people (especially women) will spend on an aerobic machine. The sad part is many of them do not change much at all for the better.

After spending two hours on an elliptical for a month you expect to see something amazing happen, right? Hopefully you know that is absolutely wrong. The only thing amazing is just how "rundown" a person can look after that torture. Unlike aerobic loving patrons of the gym, I hate long duration aerobics. I hate it so much I have researched and experimented with other modes of training to see if fat loss can become less "mind-numbing" and more efficient. Also, it needs to ensure that precious metabolism-raising muscle will not be burned away in the process. After some serious research and trial and error, I have found that undulating interval training is the most superior way of taking off fat pounds, maintaining muscle and keeping the joints safe.

For the sake of this article remaining as simple as possible, I will not dwell on the long research and complex results, but rather provide you with a "cliff note" version. Let's first look at the major benefits and downsides of both long duration aerobics and undulating interval training.

Long Duration Aerobics:

1. Uses calories for energy at a low rate, but calories come from muscle, consumed food, and fat
2. Increases endurance, but does not do much for increasing strength nor speed
3. Increases the efficiency of the body's aerobic system, which means if you are running a marathon then this is great, but if you are simply trying to burn fat, not good at all.
4. Increases chances of joint connective tissue deterioration.
5. Is plain out boring.

Undulating Interval training:

1. Uses calories for energy at a high rate, and the calories come from fat stores and food consumed.

2. Increases endurance, reaction time, speed, maximal potential strength.

3. Keeps the aerobic system from becoming efficient, but increases efficiency of body to use fat and lactic acid as fuel. Maximal amount of fat will be oxidized (burned).

4. Promotes tendon adaptation along with muscle adaptation, allowing for the body and joints to become healthier and better.

5. Heart increases in strength and EPOC (excessive post exercise oxygen consumption) is set off (which means you will burn fat even after you leave the gym and go on about your life).

6. Studies have shown that people have better workout sessions and higher performance when the training is frequent and efficient.

I'm sure I have your attention now. Now let me briefly go over what undulating interval training is and how to use it. First off, undulating simply means the intensity (speed and difficulty) and volume (duration and amount of rounds) fluctuate constantly throughout the training. In lay mans terms, each interval will fluctuate, whether the fluctuating deals with speed, amount of rounds and sets, or duration. Second, undulating interval training should never last more than ten minutes. If it does you are not pushing yourself near hard enough. UIT (undulating interval training) needs to be done with high quality and with a strong push to go as fast and as safely as possible. Finally, before trying this, check with your doctor and make sure you are up to the challenge, health-wise.

Here is an example of UIT for a beginner. If you are more advance, then adjust the training to your abilities.

1. Jumping Jacks - at a speed that you can maintain for two minutes Do for one minute
2. Sprint Jog - jogging with full range of motion in legs (feet should nearly kick your butt when brought back)Do for one minute
3. Walk - nice pace with good form
Do for three minutes

Now repeat the UIT, but change the amount of time to look like this:

1. Jumping Jacks - Faster Pace Do for twenty seconds
2. Full Sprint
Do for forty-five seconds
3. Walking in good Form
Do for one minute

Last round would look something like this:

1. Jumping Jacks - at a speed that you can maintain for three minutes Do for ninety seconds
2. Full Sprint
Do for twenty seconds
3. Walk
Do for three minutes

That's it my friend. Be creative with the exercises you use for the intervals. Make sure they are exercises you are familiar enough with to really push yourself. Now is not the time to try something exotic.

Ty Ferrell is a NASM certified personal trainer, PN nutrition practitioner, and a constant student of the vast field of fitness. He is the founder of http://thefitnessroad.com and can be reached there.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Ty_Ferrell

Diet Plans For Muscle Building

By Peter Tremayne

Diet plans for muscle building are crucial to your success. Exercise and weight training can only do so much for you. If you are not implementing the right diet into your muscle building journey, you are essentially not doing yourself much good at all. Knowing what to eat and how to eat are critical elements in it.

Remember when you were younger, your parents told you that every growing child has to eat the right foods to become big and strong? Well, the same applies now, even as an adult. In order to grow, you have to eat, but in order to grow in the desired way, you have to eat right. Eating the wrong foods will lead to fat. In body building, there is nothing worse than fat.

There are many different types of diet plans for muscle building. These include protein, anabolic, and low carb diets. The protein diet is one diet that many body builders use and maintain. It is a known fact in the world of bodybuilding that protein is necessary to gain the muscle mass you are looking for. There are many ways you can get your protein, but with a protein diet, it consists of animal meats and other such forms of protein.

Another one of the many diet plans for it is the anabolic diet. This diet is not as popular because it takes more discipline and careful planning. In this diet, all you eat is protein, that is it - nothing more. Carbs are kept to a minimum during the week. When the weekend comes, carbs are allowed and you try to eat as many as you possibly can. However, this really takes some discipline.

If you are not careful and watchful, the anabolic diet can actually increase your body fat instead of your muscles. It is important to stick to the diet during the weekdays, in order to refrain from gaining the fat.

The low carb diet is another of the diet plans for muscle building. Again, in this diet, you are limiting the amount of carbs you are eating. However, as with the anabolic diet, it is not the preferred diet for bodybuilders. It is difficult to stick with and tends to wear out the bodybuilder quickly, increasing fatigue and weakness.

The reason for this is that your body loves carbs. It turns the carbs into fuel for the body.
However, with this diet, the body is tricked into using fat for its fuel instead of carbs. Depending on who you talk to, this diet may also cause you to lose muscles as well.

For more articles like this and to download an awesome FREE Report - '8 Things You MUST Do To Build Maximum Muscle' visit my website -

http://www.BodyBuildersGuide.com/Diet-Plans-For-Muscle-Building

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Peter_Tremayne

3 Easy Steps To Real Muscle Gains

By Chris Taeni

How Do You Build Muscle?

Muscle is a fabric in the human body which allows the body to hold itself together and move in many different ways. When forces are 'put through' muscle fibres the muscles are thought to suffer micro-tears (a precursor to DOMS) which causes the muscle tissue to break after which the body then repairs the muscle with some extra re-enforcements ready to handle the next load. This process is known as hypertrophy and if it is repeated over several weeks, the muscle will begin to grow larger to handle the ever-increasing demands it is facing.

The only way to build muscle quickly is to bring the muscle to fatigue and then to allow adequate rest and recovery for the muscle to repair itself.

What Are The Best Exercises To Build Muscle?

Building muscle can be achieved with just about any exercise imaginable. The 'best' exercise is simply an exercise that works, which can be easily performed and which does not place the body at risk of injury. Many exercises which are commonly performed at the gym are in fact quite hazerdous, a lot of them are unnecessary and many of them can cause muscle impingement.

The most effective and efficient exercises you can do to build muscle are functional exercises.

Functional exercises are exercises that compliment the human body's natural form and ability. These include exercises such as the simple push exercises, squat-type exercises and pull exercises. What makes them the best exercises? Your body was designed to move in certain ways to handle the challenges of everyday life. Functional exercises utilize the body's natural design to enhance the quality of your workout. Not only this, but functional exercises are just as good, if not better than non-functional ones. This is because it is possible to fatigue many different muscles through repeating one simple exercise, giving you an effective and efficient workout so you don't have to spend hours at the gym. A complete strength training session should only take 10 - 15 minutes (excluding warmup and warm-down).

This way you can achieve maximum benefit with minimum time.

Do I Have To Warm Up And Warm Down When Lifting Weights?

It is extremely important to make sure you warm up before lifting weights with 5 - 10 minutes of medium intensity cardio exercise. It is also important to do a warmup set of weight, approximately half of your maximum weight and half the reps. Warming down is also very important. Usually a 15 - 30 minute stretch is adequate to clear the lactic acid build up in the blood.

The 3 Steps To Building Muscle Fast

1. Functional Strength Exercises
2. Adequate Protein Intake
3. 5 Days Rest And Recovery Between Each Full-Fatigue Strength Training Session.

http://www.ultimate-well-being.com Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Chris_Taeni

Want to Burn More Fat? Try Increasing Your Lean Muscle Mass

By James C.

Everybody talks about going on diets to lose weight, but what we really mean when we say this is that we want to lose fat. Nobody wants to just lose water weight or lose their muscle tone, right? That means that instead of focusing on just losing weight you should concentrate on losing fat. One of the best ways to lose fat is by adding lean muscle to your body.

The more lean muscle you have in your body the faster your metabolism will run, and a faster metabolism means that it will be quicker and easier to get the body that you have been wanting. As the fat melts away off your body you will be left with lean, toned muscle which is a great look for both men and women. In fact, building muscle can help you lose fat much more quickly than just doing cardio exercises alone.

If you are a woman you may be concerned that adding muscle to your body is going to cause you to get bigger. The truth is that it takes a lot of effort for a woman to bulk up and it isn't going to happen unless you want it to. Instead of bulking up when you build muscle you will find that as the fat starts to disappear you are left with a sleek, sexy toned body much like you see on many of today's actresses and models.

To start building muscle you should incorporate strength training into your workout several times a week. Try to do your strength training before you do any cardio exercises so that your muscles are still fresh. This will help you get a better strength workout and build muscle more quickly. Also focus a lot of your effort on the largest muscle groups in your body like your legs and glutes (rear end). Lunges and squats are a both great exercises to target these muscle groups. Building the larger muscle groups will really boost your metabolism quickly and turn your body into a fat burning machine in no time.

Instead of weighing yourself to track your progress take your body measurements when you begin and then track how many inches you have lost. Because muscle is denser than fat just weighing yourself won't give you an accurate reflection of how well you are doing. Instead, taking measurements will help you to stay motivated as you see the inches dropping off your body.

Be sure to eat a healthy, balanced diet that gives your body enough calories, vitamins and nutrients along with your workouts. Before you know it any extra fat you may have been packing around will melt away and you will be left with the body you have been dreaming of.
For lots more weight loss, diet and fitness tips, tricks, tools and information check out the Diet Buzz Blog. Learn common diet myths, see what really works to lose weight, get reviews of the latest diets and a lot more at http://www.dietbuzz.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=James_C.

Build Muscle From Home

By Jonathan Potkins

Is it possible to build real muscle from home? I get that question a lot and the answer is yes!
You don't have to join a gym to build muscle or get stronger. With the right equipment and planning you can have an effective bodybuilding program from the comfort of your home.
Maybe you can't afford a gym membership due to your financial situation. You lead a busy lifestyle and would prefer to save time by training at home. Maybe you're simply too embarrassed or uncomfortable to train in a regular gym setting at the moment.

What ever the reason there are many benefits from working out at home. You don't have to wait forever to use the equipment. You don't have to smell everybody.

You get to listen to what ever music you like and feel more confident because you don't have a group of people around you. I could grunt, yelp and scream through my sets if I was in the mood without disturbing anyone (hey, squatting to failure isn't easy okay?) or train shirtless if I felt like it. When the workout was over, I could sprawl out on the floor in exhaustion and know that my post workout shakes were just a few steps away, and that I wouldn't have to hobble to my car and spend anymore time driving home.

The only real disadvantage is that your exercise selection will decrease because you won't have access to certain pieces of machinery such as a leg press or calf machine. You can purchase certain machines if you have the money to spend and plan on training at home over the long term, but for the majority of people this simply won't be possible.

The good news is that planning out a proper bodybuilding routine does not require the use of any fancy equipment, and all of the machine exercises that you would regularly perform can be swapped for free weight substitutions. Build muscle from home required equipment.

Here is the basic equipment that your home gym should contain:

1) An adjustable barbell with free weight plates - A cast iron set is probably a good idea, and you must also make sure that you purchase enough weight so that you can continually progress from week to week.

2) Adjustable dumbbells - This is much more efficient and cost-effective than purchasing an entire set of dumbbells. You should be able to buy the barbell and dumbbells together in a single set.

3) A bench with incline adjustments - A good sturdy bench is a must-have for performing bench presses and other seated movements. If possible you should purchase a bench that can be set on an incline and that also contains safety catches if you plan on training alone.

4) A chin-up bar - These can usually be purchased for 15-20 dollars and can be placed inside of a door frame.

5) A squat rack - This is usually the trickiest piece of equipment to purchase, as a full squat rack can be pricey. Squats are an irreplaceable movement and should always be a part of your workout routine, especially if you don't have a leg press machine handy.

If you can't afford a squat rack then you'll have to be creative. The bottom line is that you must have some sort of apparatus that will allow you to safely unrack a loaded bar and drop the bar onto a safety catch (or the floor) if your strength gives out during the lift. Don't ever squat without a safe place to drop the bar! Most full squat racks will also provide a chin-up bar on top, so you can kill 2 birds with one stone if you decide to purchase one.

There you go the best top five pieces of equipment for you home. Try using a fitness ball, no it's not girlish you actually get a really good workout. Do push ups on it and it works you pecs and your abs because your abs have to keep you center. Do sit ups and your abs get stretched while being work which increases your gains.

With the right equipment and information you can absolutely Build muscle from home.
This is Jon Potkins answering all your fitness questions.

For more information join me at http://freeyourabs.com - plus free report when you subscribe!

How To Build Up Muscle Using Steroids - What Are The Risks Involved?

By Lawrence Tan Sh

If you ever wonder: How do steroids work? And why are athletes especially bodybuilders abusing it? Then this article would answer your questions.

Steroid use increases testosterone levels in the body by bypassing the normal pathway for testosterone synthesis and it directly adds testosterone to the bloodstream. The specific benefits and side effects felt depend on the type of steroid used. An increase in the hormone testosterone in the body does not cause chemical reactions, but simply magnifies the reactions that already exist.

Basically anabolic steroids are altered versions of testosterone that have been engineered to maximize anabolic (muscle building) effects with as minimal side effects as possible. However, there is no perfect anabolic steroid.

Even the "cleanest" steroids have associated side effects.

What are the common known benefits?

Bodybuilders take steroids for four known reasons.

- To increase muscle mass and strength.
- To speed up recuperation time.
- To increase energy levels during workouts.
- To decrease fat.

What are the scary side effects of using anabolic steroids?

The list goes on and these are the most common side effects known:

- sodium retention

- acne

- gynecomastia

- aggression

- hypertension

- cardiovascular disease

- palpitations

- enlarged heart

- virilization

- cancer

- decreased blood clotting ability

- headaches

- anxiety

- depression

- impotence

- stomach aches

- jaundice

- muscle tears

- enlarged prostate

- premature hair loss

- stunted growth

- immune system suppression

- insomnia

- sterility

- anaphylactic shock

- and much more….

Some Steroid Facts You Should Know Before Abusing It:

- Steroids are illegal in the United States and in many countries throughout the world.

- According to recent stats, over 3 million bodybuilders and athletes in the USA alone have used anabolic steroids.

As a results of abusing steroids, a significant number of bodybuilders are getting serious health problem as they age which include those I mentioned above. The high price associated with steroids use are really not worth it after all.

This is especially true when in truth,you can gain BIG, ROCK-HARD AND DENSE MUSCLE fast and naturally without having to use steroids as long as you willing to learn the right “fundamentals” on how to build up muscle!

Want to learn simple yet effective techniques to build up muscle fast and naturally?

Simply visit the author's muscle building blog to learn FREE tips on how to build up muscle as well as building mass muscle workout programs you shouldn't miss out on.

Muscle Building Blog: http://www.effective-fat-burn.com/howtobuildupmuscle/