How To Gain Muscle

Eating properly. Instead of two or three large meals in a day, spread your food intake for the day over 5-6 small meals. More than the quantity of food, it is the quality of the food that you eat which matters. Ensure that you get enough protein and carbohydrates in your daily diet, since these are important constituents in building muscle mass. By eating food that is rich in vitamins, protein and carbohydrates, you increase your metabolism - the rate at which digested food is converted into energy, which you then burn while exercising. An increased metabolic rate also means that less fat will be stored by your body. In addition to several small meals spaced throughout the day beginning with breakfast, add extra protein to your diet through protein shakes. The best time to drink these shakes is before, during and after the exercise to give you an energy boost which solid food takes time to create.

Warm-up and stretches. Before you begin exercising, it is important to warm up sufficiently and stretch all body parts to keep your body flexible and to prevent muscle strain or injuries. Also end the exercising period by cooling down and stretching the muscles and body parts which have been used vigorously during the exercise.

Kinds of exercise and work-outs. Choosing the best exercise form is important to achieve your fitness goals. If all you want to do is be fit and lean, then aerobic exercise of any kind - running, walking, jumping, and swimming, playing a sport, aerobics or dancing - will be the ideal way to do it. On the other hand, if you also wish to develop and define various muscles in the body, then some amount of weight training is also required.

Using the correct weights and techniques. Gauge the right amount of weight you need to exercise a particular muscle group by the number of repetitions you can do with the lifting, the weight should be sufficient to allow you to do about eight to twelve repetitions continuously without breathing hard and feeling the strain. Start with smaller weights, keep your movements controlled, posture straight and run through the reps slowly enough to feel the effort, eight reps in the beginning should be sufficient and steadily increase the number of repetitions on a daily basis until you reach twelve. Between each set of reps and exercises, stop rest and stretch the used muscles.

Increasing the weights and varying routines. Once you get used to lifting a particular weight, increase the weight and use that till it gets comfortable and then increase again. This way, your body and muscles will not get used to one weight and stop stretching and growing. Vary your exercise routines by adding other forms of activity and also by targeting a specific muscle group each day. For example, in a week, you can start with some light aerobic activity, then work on your hands, neck and shoulder muscles. The next day work on your abdominals and legs. Or else you can do weight training for a full session on three days of the week and alternate it with other exercise forms. Take the help of a fitness expert to guide you through the changing routines and always have an exercise buddy to help you spot the heavier weights.

Other tips and suggestions. To get the maximum benefits of your workouts, rest between sets and keep your body hydrated by sipping on water throughout the exercise period. Also make sure to get adequate sleep and eat at the proper times. If any muscle of body part feels too sore, stop exercising that part, get a massage or do light stretching to ease the soreness.