BASICS OF BODYBUILDING

            GETTING STARTED....!       

The basics of bodybuilding for teenagers is the same as for adult bodybuilders: train right, eat right, and rest right. Because teens' bodies are growing and have fast metabolisms, these points are more important for a teen. Before starting on a bodybuilding program, the teen  might want to schedule a doctor's appointment first to go over proper nutrition and the exercise routine.

The first thing a teen needs to do is eat right. Bodybuilders require more calories and more protein than "nonbodybuilders". Figure out how many calories your body will need and what foods you should be eating in a day to give you those calories. Use quality protein sources, whole grains, and a wide variety of fruits and vegetables. You do not have to completely give up fast food and other junk food, but limit those to one day a week. If possible, eat six times a day. Sometimes it will feel that you spend more time eating than any other activity. If so, you're probably doing it right. In addition to eating a lot, be sure to drink a lot of water as well.

There are some supplements that you will want to consider taking to help you get all the nutrition necessary. These include a quality multivitamin, a protein powder such as hemp or whey, essential fatty acids, and glutamine. Although supplements can play an important role, they do not replace proper nutrition. Do not get tempted by steroids. You can have the body you desire without exposing yourself to the danger of steroids. Instead, focus on healthy, natural bodybuilding.

In addition to eating right, you want to train right. This means that you do not over-train. Your muscles need rest in order to grow and over-training can lead to serious injuries. Go to the gym three to four times a week. Focus on a different muscle group each time. Each workout should last under an hour. Be sure to use proper form. Watch yourself in the mirror to make sure you are doing your reps correctly. Be intense with your workout and go heavy instead of doing endless sets.

When it comes to the basics of bodybuilding, the importance of working compound exercises as a beginner must not be underestimated. Compound exercises involve many different muscles and allow you to lift bigger weights than if you were to work your muscles in isolation. It is recommended to include some, or all, of the compound exercises

Finally, you want to rest right. Be sure you are giving your body adequate time to recover between workouts. Without rest, your muscles will not grow. If you become injured, take the time off to recover. You cannot work through an injury. Be sure you get adequate rest at night. Try to get at least eight hours of sleep a night. Anything less than seven hours a night and you are not giving your body time to recover. It can take a while to get into a good sleep pattern, but with time it will become a habit.

                         BASIC STEPS FOR STARTERS

1. Find a full body workout and stick with it for at least 2 - 3 months.  You do not want to 

end up with an awesome chest and biceps with tiny chicken legs.  If you have a full body

 workout routine, your body will be well rounded.  It takes time to see results.  Sometimes

 newbies will be tempted to leave a really great workout routine to find the latest workout

 routine fad.  After 2 -3 months, if you see that your routine isn't giving you the results that

 you are looking for, then by all means, switch it up a bit.  But keep doing what is working. 

 Get advice from experts

2. Use machines over free weights when you are beginning.  I say this because you can

 really hurt yourself if you aren't using proper form.  It's pretty hard not to have proper form

 while using a machine.  This tip is especially true if you don't have a spotter.  In order to tear

 those muscle fibers so you can build them up, you will need to work those muscles to exhaustion.

  It can be scary if you are benching a considerable amount of weight, you are by yourself, and feel

 like you may not be able to get the bar up.

3.  Use lighter weights.  It can be very tempting to want to try to keep up with the other guys

 in the gym.  You might feel like a wimp curling 10 lbs dumbbells while the guy next to you is 

curling 60 lbs.  It is better to work your way up then to hurt yourself.  I gurantee you that the 

guy next to you didn't start curl 60 lbs over night.

4. Start out with straight sets.  I recommend doing 15 - 20 sets of 3 for each exercise that

 you perform.  Use lighter weight.  Your third set should be hard to do  For example if you 

are doing curls you can start out with 3 sets with maybe 15 lbs dumbells.  Go even lighter

 if the weight seems too much.  .  When this becomes too easy you can either increase the

 weight or begin doing a more advanced pryamid technique.  A sample pryamid technique

 would be 1 set of 15 reps with 15 lbs dumbbells.  Then do 1 set of 12 reps with 20 lbs

 dumbbelss

.  Then do 1 set of 10 with 22.5 lbs dumbbells.

  Decrease the reps while you add weight to each set. 

5. Don't forget about cardio.  Be sure to have some cardio involved in your workout routine.  I spend about 25 minutes on the tredmill at least 3 times a week.  Cardio can really help you shedd off the fat so you can have lean muscle mass.  The best time to run is first thing in the morning before you eat.  At night while you are sleeping, your body begins to burn off fat so when you wake up your body is already in fat burning mode.  Cardio is also great because it helps you to have a healthy heart.  Too much cardio can make you a skinny bean pole so be sure to balance it out.

6. Watch what you eat.  You can workout everyday of the week, but if you are eating

 junk your workouts will not give you very good results.  Stay away from fried foods,

 foods high in sugar, and be careful not to take in too many carbs.  This means

 bye bye Snickers, McDonalds, and KFC  It is a good idea to try to get as much 

protien in your diet as possible.  Protein helps build and repair muscle tissue.  

The suggest amount of protein is 1.5 grams per lbs.  I weigh 185 lbs so I should be

 taking in about 277 grams of protein a day.  Carbs aren't 100% bad either.  

They give you energy so you need them to, just keep your carb intake on the lower side. 

7. Take advices from your trainer.  If he is well experienced he should be able

 to give usefull pointers which will enable  you to achive your goals.

8. Don't worry about where you workout.  Some people go around in cirlces 

with should I workout at home, should I go to the gym?  Each have their advantages,

 but just pick which ever one that works best for you.

• 9. The most important of all  train your ass off!!. Nothing can replace  hardwork and 
• sheer determination to succeed . Plan ahead  what you want to be
•  how soon you want it.   And remember these are just the basics  of body building  there
•  a long way to go. 

Deciding on a Training Routine

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Sadly, there is no ‘best fit’, one size fits all programme for training. It is really about spending time finding what works best for you. As we are discussing the basics of bodybuilding, we’ll talk about a few effective training routines that you can use as a foundation, which you can fine tune to suit you. But first, let’s talk about what you shouldn’t do:

There is always someone talking about the latest ‘cutting edge’ training programme, or some magazine/blog claiming to contain the training programme used by the professionals. These are almost always rubbish! These programmes may work for the pros, but please remember that these guys are, more often than not, using steroids/performance enhancing drugs – so what works for them may have little or no effect on us mere mortals.

However, what has been proven to work, is ensuring that you use variety in your training to keep the body guessing whats coming next. One of the key rules of the basics of bodybuilding is: If you perform the same workout routine, week after week, the body will adapt just enough to cope with this and no further. If your workouts are varied, and each gym sessions shocks the body; your workouts will be much more effective.

Varying your workouts doesn’t just mean varying the exercises that you perform. You can also vary any of the following:

• Rest time between sets.
• Number of reps per sets.
• Speed at which you perform each rep.
• Using supersets.

RULES FOR BEGINNERS

 1.Rep rule

Most weight training program include this much repetitions for gaining 
muscle. The truth is this approach places the muscles with not enough 
tension for effective muscle gain. High tension e.g. heavy weights provides 
muscle growth in which the muscle grows much larger, leading to the 
maximum gains in strength. Having longer tension time boosts the muscle
 size by generating the structures around the muscle fibers, 
improving endurance.

The standard prescription of eight to 12 repetitions provides a balance but
 by just using that program all of the time, you do not generate the greater
 tension levels that is provided by the heavier weights and lesser reps, 
and the longer tension achieved with lighter weights and more 
repetitions. Change the number of reps and adjust the weights to 
stimulate all types of muscle growth.

2. Three Set rule

The truth is there’s nothing wrong with three sets but then again there is 
nothing amazing about it either. The number of sets you perform should 
be base on your goals and not on a half-century old rule. The more
 repetitions you do on an exercise, the fewer sets you should do, and 
vice versa. This keeps the total number of repetitions done of an exercise equal.

3. Three to four exercises per group

The truth is this is a waste of time. Combined with twelve reps of three sets,
 the total number of reps amount to 144. If your doing this much reps for a 
muscle group your not doing enough. Instead of doing too many varieties 
of exercises, try doing 30 to 50 reps. That can be anywhere from 2 sets of 
15 reps or 5 sets of 10 reps.

4. My knees, my toes

It is a gym folklore that you “should not let your knees go past your toes.” 
Truth is that leaning forward a little too much is more likely a cause of injury.
 In 2003, Memphis University researchers confirmed that knee stress was 
almost thirty percent higher when the knees are allowed to move beyond the
 toes during a squat.

But hip stress increased nearly 10 times or (1000 percent) when the
 forward movement of the knee was restricted. Because the squatters 
needed to lean their body forward and that forces the strain to transfer
 to the lower back.

Focus on your upper body position and less on the knee. Keep the torso
 in an upright position as much as possible when doing squats and lunges.
 These reduces the stress generated on the hips and back. To stay upright,
 before squatting, squeeze the shoulder blades together and hold them 
in that position; and then as you squat, keep the forearms 90 degree to the
 floor.

There is a lot of information to take on board here, but you don’t have to 

commit it to memory – this page is here as a reference to the basics of bodybuilding. There is stacks more information around the site, and articles 

are regularly posted. Stick to the basics, enjoy your time in the gym and find 

ways to balance this with your existing lifestyle. Bodybuilding is a very 

rewarding sport. It won’t be long before you start noticing some serious results,

and these will just act to motivate you further. Take a look at the other posts for further information regarding  bodybuilding. Good luck!!.