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Another important nutrient every body builder needs is plenty of protein.  Amino acids are the building blocks of protein.  Glucose molecules make up carbohydrates just like amino acids make up proteins.

Protein is involved in growing, repairing, and replacing tissues.  That is made possible because proteins are the basis for body structures.

For body builders, nitrogen balance is an important concept to keep in mind when talking about proteins.  Nitrogen balance is the difference between the amount of nitrogen taken in and the amount excreted or lost.

If you lose more nitrogen than you consume, your body will break down muscle tissue to get it.  On the other hand, if you consume more than you lose, you will be in an anabolic, or muscle building, state.

Protein intake exceeds output, and protein is retained in tissue as new muscle is added. Obviously, this is something that you want. Watch out, if your protein output exceeds intake you would have a negative nitrogen balance. This is not good because the opposite is now happening.

Your body is degrading muscle and other body proteins. You usually see this in people who are starving, burned, injured, or have a fever. This puts your body in what is called a catabolic state.

An anabolic state is when your body has a positive nitrogen balance. The term catabolic refers to the state of the body in which body compounds are broken down for energy purposes.  In body building contexts, catabolic means muscle loss.

Ultimately, your body won’t grow when it is in a catabolic state.

The general rule is to consume daily the same amount of grams in protein as your body weight.  A 200 pound body builder, therefore, would need to eat 200 grams of protein every day to put the body in an anabolic state.

When calculating the amount of protein you are eating, concentrate on the complete sources of protein like meat, fish, and eggs.  While there are proteins in other foods, you need to focus on the complete sources rather than those that are incomplete.

If you are dieting while body building, your protein intake should increase to 1 ½ times your bodyweight.  Many diets have you cutting back on fat and carbohydrate intake.  This forces the body to burn more protein for fuel which can put your muscle tissue at risk.  To compensate, you’ll need to eat more protein to counteract this effect.

Here’s a quick guide to the protein content of some foods:

Some people don’t feel that loading up on protein is a good idea for anyone, but if you want to get ripped with your body building program, you’ll need the amino acids in protein to work in your body.  Be aware of the amount of protein you are eating and make them work for you instead of against you.

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Millions of dollars are spent every year in the quest for a perfect body.  Gyms are big business, personal trainers are making a tidy living helping people stay fit, and body building supplements are at an all-time level of performance.

In actuality, the sport of body building has been around for quite some time.  In the late 19th century, the man known as the “father of bodybuilding”, Eugen Sandow was credited with inventing the sport by inviting people to view his body in muscle display performances.

Sandow built a stage performance around displays of strength and agility as well as showing off a “Grecian” physique which was considered the ultimate body.

He became so successful, he created several businesses around his fame and was among the first people to market body building products bearing his name.  As he became more popular, he was credited with the invention of the first exercise equipment marketed to the masses.

Sandow was also credited with beginning the first body building contest called “The Great Competition” held in London.  This competition was the basis for many others to follow including the Mr. Olympia competition that remains the most popular body building contest to date.

When World War II broke out, men in the country were inspired to become bigger in their physique, stronger, and more aggressive in their behavior.  Training techniques were improved, nutrition was focused on more than ever, and body building equipment evolved into effective means for working muscles in ways never thought of before.

It was also around this time that many body building organizations came into being including the Amateur Athletic Union and the International Federation of Body Building.  In 1970, body building was taken to a new level when the film “Pumping Iron” was released starring Austrian newcomer Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Through the years, body building has just grown in popularity becoming almost an obsession for many people.

Women have started to take an interest in honing their bodies, and the sport has evolved into a real competitive arena.

If you’ve always wanted to learn about how to build your body to that “Grecian Ideal” envisioned by Eugen Sandow, there can be a lot to learn.  The information here at this portal will guide you through some of the basics to get you started.  Of course, nothing will compare to actually getting to the gym and lifting those weights, but you’ll need some information first.

That’s why we’re here.  We want to reveal body building secrets to YOU.

WEIGHT TRAINING

Body building is the process of developing muscle fibers through various techniques.  It is achieved through muscle conditioning, weight training, increased caloric intake, and rest.

Workouts are designed to focus on certain muscle categories, and foods are consumed with the intention to build the body’s metabolism and increase mass.

This section will focus on weight training for body builders.  Weight training develops both strength as well as the size of skeletal muscles.  It uses the force of gravity to oppose the force generated by muscles through contraction.  Weight training uses a variety of specialized equipment designed to target specific muscle groups and movements.

Some people refer to weight training as strength training.  While they are not exactly the same, they are both similar to each other.  Strength training focuses on increasing muscular strength and size.  Weight training is one type of strength training using weights as the primary force to build muscle mass.

The basic principles of weight training are pretty much the same as those of strength training.  It involves a manipulation of the numbers of reps, sets, tempo, exercise types, and weight moved to cause desired increases in strength, endurance, size, or shape.

The specific combination of reps, sets, exercises, and weight depends upon the desires of the body builder.  Sets with fewer reps can be performed with heavier weights but have a reduced impact on endurance.

Equipment used in weight training include barbells, dumbbells, pulleys, and stacks in the form of weight machines or the body’s own weight as in push-ups and chin-ups.  Different weights will give different types of resistance.

Weight training also focuses on form performing the movements with the appropriate muscle groups and not transferring the weight to different body parts in order to move great weight.  If you don’t use good form in weight training, you risk muscle injury which could hinder your progress.

Another form of weight training is resistance training.  Resistance training involves the use of elastic or hydraulic resistance to contraction rather than gravity.  When your muscles are resisting a weight, the overall tone of that muscle will grow over time.

If you are a beginner at weight training, you should not just “jump right in”.  You need to build up your strength and over-working your muscles can cause more harm than good.  Some of your muscles might be naturally stronger than others.  Building up slowly allows muscles to develop appropriate strengths relative to each other.

Most gyms offer the services of a personal trainer that comes with the membership fee.  These trainers can suggest specific workouts for you to begin with.  If you want to undertake it yourself, we can make a few suggestions on routines that can help you build muscle and get on the way to a great body.

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