Strength training, how to start building your muscles

Mass diet, described in detail in one of the previous posts, gives us a solid basis to start working on your muscles. It would be difficult to find a man who would not want to turn accumulated body fat, especially in the form of a tire on the abdomen, into impressively outlined, rock-hard muscles. This is certainly not an easy task, but with a little self-denial, regularity and sticking to a few rules recommended by professionals, you can achieve the desired results. Of course we shouldn’t jump into the fray right away, but start with properly planned strength training, thanks to which in a relatively short period of time we will achieve the slim, muscular figure we dream of.

Muscles in human body – types and functions they have to perform

One of the essential elements of the human body is undoubtedly muscle tissue, which occurs in our body in several types. The first are smooth muscles forming many important internal organs, building among others the walls of blood vessels, arteries and veins, or walls of the gastrointestinal tract. A completely different function is fulfilled by the muscles forming the heart, the most important organ next to the brain, with a specific structure allowing spontaneous and regular contractions. However for us, from the point of view of strength training planning, the most important are striated muscles, otherwise known as skeletal muscles, and it is them that we will try to develop.

Skeletal muscles, as their name suggests, are connected with the skeletal system by tendons, and thanks to their ability to contract, which we can control ourselves, they enable us to move freely. They are also different in structure from smooth or cardiac muscles, and consist of two different types of fibers:

• slowly contracting, or red fibers, with a longer duration of contraction, less strength and endurance, but more resistant to fatigue;
• rapidly contracting, so-called white fibers, with a relatively short shrinkage process accompanied by a high strength potential, allowing you to lift heavy weights, for example. The disadvantage of this type of fiber is, in turn, high susceptibility to fatigue.

We can take care of smooth muscles and cardiac muscle by leading a healthy lifestyle, eating a well-balanced diet. We have more influence on the skeletal muscles and we can practically freely develop them, achieving the desired results, that is simply an impressively outlined musculature. Unfortunately muscles will not grow on their own and apart from the basis which creates the mass for their development, properly planned strength training will be necessary. Before we start it, we should also know how the muscle tissue grows, and contrary to popular belief, it does not happen during training. Exercises, regardless of the load they are performed with, cause smaller or greater damage to the fibres of muscle tissue that are subjected to the effort, which we usually do not pay attention to, and we explain any pain that may occur by fatigue. After the workout, however, the body begins the process of regeneration, including muscles, and rebuilds the damaged fibres, which become harder and gradually increase their volume.

Strength training – what it is and what we can achieve with its help

Now that we know what function individual muscles play in our body and what group of them we are able to develop, we should learn what strength training really is. This concept can be explained in many ways, but the generally accepted and accepted definition says that strength training allows you to achieve three most important goals:

• muscle building;
• increasing strength;
• strengthening endurance and physical performance of the body.

We can safely say that it is one of the best forms of training, allowing you to achieve full results in a relatively short time. One of the most frequently emphasised advantages, both by professionals and amateurs, is that it effectively helps to get rid of excess fat tissue and replace it with muscles. Depending on the chosen exercise method, fat is burned more efficiently, which results in a slim and beautifully shaped body. We have virtually any influence on which part of the muscles we want to shape, engaging at any given time, for example, the muscles of the arms, abdomen or the whole body, and it all depends only on the implemented exercise plan. To sum up, the benefits of properly conducted strength training are many and we could talk about them for hours, so it is worth mentioning at least the most important ones.

Strength training – benefits for our body:

• development of muscle mass, its effective “sculpting” allowing to achieve exactly the silhouette we have dreamed and planned. Properly selected sets of exercises can also be considered an important element of an effective weight loss treatment, thanks to which burning fat tissue will enter a whole new, previously unknown level;
• a significant increase in strength and endurance. This type of training is called “resistance” in the environment of athletes, the best way to strengthen muscles is through intense exercise, often at the limit of physical endurance. On the one hand, this may carry a certain risk of injury, but if safety rules are followed, nothing should happen, and the stronger and more resistant muscles themselves will protect us from injury;
• prevention of many diseases, especially cardiovascular diseases and diabetes. Regular, large physical exercise combined with weight lifting, increases our immunity, contributes to reducing the level of “bad” cholesterol LDL in the blood, while increasing the beneficial one HDL. Good form promotes the maintenance of proper blood pressure, the heart muscle is also strengthened, which minimizes the risk of heart attack. Because this strength training is inextricably linked to a change in diet, the possibility of developing Type I or the particularly dangerous Type II diabetes is also reduced;
• increasing bone density protecting against osteoporosis;
• reducing the symptoms of stress, a dangerous disease of civilization, and intense exercise contributes to increasing the secretion of many hormones, including endorphin, not without reason called the hormone of happiness, which significantly improves our mental well-being
• delaying the natural aging of the body, stopping first of all the so-called senile muscular atrophy, or sarcopenia, the aging process of muscle tissue coming with age, and with time even its significant loss. It is also manifested by a general weakening of strength and physical fitness, sometimes to such an extent that it makes it impossible to perform many seemingly uncomplicated everyday activities;
• stabilising posture, helping to maintain a correct figure by developing the skeletal muscles responsible for this, especially those along the spine;
• improving sports performance, that is why strength training is indispensable in the case of professional athletes practicing various sports disciplines;
• the possibility of performing exercises not only in a professionally equipped gym, but also at home, of course observing, for your own safety, all the rules described below.

However, before we ask a familiar trainer to prepare a plan of exercises that we will want to perform, we must also learn about the disadvantages of strength training, which may influence our decision on starting it.

Strength training – the most important disadvantages that we have to take into account:

• the above mentioned risk of injury, most often encountered by people without much experience and not prepared for such an intensive form of physical activity. That is why exercises should always be performed under the supervision of an experienced trainer, who will control all their elements, starting with a proper warm-up, and ending with selection of the load adjusted to our current physical abilities;
• Strong load on the joints, which in extreme cases may even lead to serious diseases, including degeneration. This also results from the way we exercise, the proper selection of loads and maintaining the correct posture while lifting them;
• a decrease in performance, usually caused by too short a period of rest after training, which is necessary for the complete regeneration of tired muscles.

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Strength training – the basic rules that must be followed during exercise

Strength training with positive results must consist of several equally important elements, a diet for mass, which provides a solid foundation and a training plan, the development of which is better left to a person who knows this area very well. It is true that you can be tempted to prepare a set of exercises on your own based on information found on the Internet, but it will not take into account the current physical capabilities and efficiency of our body. This creates a certain risk of injury, but if we know what we are capable of, we should follow a few iron, tested ruleswhen preparing our own training plan:

• accurately define the goal we want to achieve by joining the exercises. It may be for example only weight loss, losing excess kilograms or sculpting our figure;
• strict adherence to the once established training plan, of course you can allow yourself small modifications, usually aimed at adjusting the weight of the lifted weights or the number of repetitions performed per series of exercises to our actual capabilities that we have on a given day. We should also follow the order of exercises, performing first those defined as basic, systematically training alternately larger and smaller muscle groups;
• Begin each workout with a warm-up, which in no case should be neglected. Failure to warm up specific muscle parts that we are going to subject to intensive exercise may even result in a painful and long-term injury. Equally important, but most often neglected, is the controlled cooling of muscles after exercise. Of course, this is done with an appropriate set of exercises, and not by getting into a cold shower;
• taking care of the correct technique of all exercises performed, which includes not only their selection, but above all, taking care of a stable posture minimising the possibility of injury, guaranteeing the correct positioning of muscles. If we exercise at a gym, we should also make sure that we learn how to safely use all the equipment there. When we train at home, it is better not to do it alone, but with company, so that in the case of unexpected situations we have someone to call for possible assistance;
• remembering about proper breathing, and a simple rule says that lifting the weight should be done after getting air into your lungs, and it should be lowered while exhaling;
• adjusting the training plan to the capabilities of the body, and above all, its ability to regenerate. Neglecting to rest and maintain an adequate break between workouts can lead to serious muscle damage, severe pain, and a decrease in performance that can prevent you from performing even basic warm-up exercises. Proper recovery must last at least 24 hours, and professional trainers recommend extending it to 48 hours in many cases. During that time the body gradually regenerates, repairing all the damage to muscle fibres, overbuilding, enlarging and hardening them;
• using nutritional supplements to supplement possible deficiencies of nutrients that have not been supplied with food. They are developed with the participation of professional athletes practicing various sports disciplines, composed of natural ingredients, and the one most often recommended by professionals is Nutrigo Lab Strength.

Nutrigo Lab Strength – safely increases performance and strength

The right supplementation is another but often overlooked element guaranteeing that training will bring all the intended effects. Even the best diet, including those prepared by nutritionists, can sometimes be deficient, and nutrients are also flushed out of the body during intensive exercise. You need to replenish them as quickly as possible, and this is exactly the task for Nutrigo Lab Strength, a new generation supplement, one of the most effective pre-training products available on the market in our country.

A careful selection of natural ingredients allows you to achieve maximum training performance in record time, and the powder, from which a nutritious and tasty cocktail is made, contains such active substances as

• Strong VASCULAR Booster complex, increasing the body’s resistance during training;
• NEURO Stimulant Adaptogenic Blend, which provides an appropriately strong dose of energy and accelerates the regeneration process after training;
• synephrine, a valuable extract obtained from the fruit of bitter orange, regarded as one of the best natural fat tissue reducers, accelerating the processes of thermogenesis aimed at rapid and safe fat burning;
• creatine, also providing a dose of energy allowing for more intensive exercise;
• cocoa bean extract, accelerating regeneration;
• Rhodiola rosea, increasing endurance and performance, which can be called a completely legal doping;
• extracts from the fruit of annual pepper and black pepper – Bioperine®. The former is a source of capsaicin, which increases adrenaline and dopamine production, facilitating fat burning. The latter contains piperine, which has similar effects to capsaicin;
• Vitamins, especially B3, which conditions the proper functioning of the nervous system and brain, and vitamin B6, strengthening our immune system.

Thanks to this selection of ingredients,Nutrigo Lab Strength guarantees effectiveness allowing you to fully realise your training plans, giving you performance and strength you could only dream of before. At the same time all the active ingredients are completely safe, with virtually no side effects, and the only contraindication is the ban on combining the supplement with other products containing caffeine. Nutrigo Lab Strength is used once a day, preferably immediately before exercise, mixing about 15g of the powder with still water. Visit the manufacturer‘s website where you will find more information about the supplement and you can place an order for any number of packs available at the lowest promotional price.