It's possible that everything you thought you knew about how much weight you should lift and how many reps you should do to build muscle might be wrong. But if it is, it's nothing to be upset about. For many people, the recent discovery that you can build as much muscle lifting light weights for high reps as you can lifting moderate weights or heavy weights is great news. Read on to learn why and how you can gain muscle with light weights.
Almost everyone still believes in at least a few protein myths. I admit, I believed some of these myths myself years ago. But the science of optimal protein intake has advanced a lot since then. Also, protein prescription can be very nuanced. "How much protein" can vary based on your goal, current body fat level, training status, age, whether you're in a deficit or surplus, and many other factors. Click to learn more
Everyone knows that the minute you finish lifting you need to slam a post-workout shake with fast acting whey protein and high glycemic index carbs with low fat so that you don’t miss out on the window of opportunity for muscle gains, right? Wrong.
Many top scientists and bodybuilding coaches have suggested that you should eat both after and before you train to maximize muscle-building results. Yet many people don't have time to prepare a full breakfast or sit around waiting for a big meal to digest before being able to train comfortably without nausea. For some, training in the early morning is the only time they can do it. If you're in the same boat, what should you do? Should you force yourself to eat at least something? Will you lose all your gains if you lift fasted? Or is there another solution?
I'd like to introduce a new type of "hybrid" split routine designed for building both muscle and strength at the same time. You'll get a lot stronger on this schedule, but because you don't train heavy every day of the week, it's fairly easy on your joints. It also rotates some of the exercises through the week so you don't get bored, and it uses triple progression so you can keep making gains on the same routine for 12 weeks straight.
Weight training systems that save you time without compromising your gains are the most valuable kind for busy people. When the same training method helps you easily achieve progressive overload as well, that takes it to a whole other level. The rest pause training method is one of the few that achieves both. It's not a new technique - it's been used by pro bodybuilders for at least 60 years, but outside of physique sports, most people don't even know what rest pause is. Now, decades later, scientists have confirmed how effective and efficient it is so if you're not using it, you're missing out... |image1|
In previous Burn the Fat Blog posts, I've discussed the most crucial muscle-building program design principles like the ideal number of sets (volume), the perfect number of reps and the magic of progressive overload. Today I'll briefly share another key principle of muscle growth - it's the ultimate #1 key to gaining muscle. Or if we flipped it in reverse... NOT applying this muscle-building principle is THE biggest mistake that stops your muscle gains. This ultimate principle for building muscle is...
The last 10 years have been an exciting time in the muscle building science world. There have been so many discoveries – even major breakthroughs – that there has never been more certainty about how to train to build muscle than today. That is, if you’ve been following the science. If you pay no attention to science, you might still be using training ideas that were outdated decades ago.
How long should your weight training workouts last if you want to build muscle? 30 minutes? 45 minutes (that’s a common “rule” you hear). An hour? Or does it take even longer to build any real muscle?
A lot of people do cardio first thing in the morning on an empty stomach before eating breakfast, hoping that this will increase fat loss. For sure, fasted cardio can help with fat loss, [...]
