Muscle building
The dream of a muscular body is in the minds of many. This often begins with a trip to the gym. However, signing up is only the first of many steps. A defined and muscular body requires regular training as well as a lot of ambition and discipline. It also requires a balanced diet, sufficient sleep and, last but not least, abstaining from alcohol and drugs.
Understand how the body works
Anyone seriously pursuing the goal of building muscle should understand how the body works. Only with this knowledge is it possible to organise your training effectively and adapt it to your individual needs.
A muscle is a network of nerve fibres and muscle fibres. The latter are the smallest unit of a muscle. Muscle fibres consist of 75 % water, 20 % protein and 5 % fat, glycogen, nitrogenous substances and ions (potassium, sodium, magnesium, calcium, chlorine).
Proteins can be divided into structural proteins (70 %) and dissolved proteins (30 %). The structural proteins contain 50 % contractile proteins (actin and myosin) and 20 % of the so-called stroma, which consists of salt solutions, undissolved protein residues and basic substances.
Both the energy turnover and the actual mechanical work of the muscles take place in the muscle fibres. It is not directly visible from the outside. We refer to its change or expansion as muscle development. Starting from the muscle fibre, bundles of muscle fibres are formed, which are individually and collectively covered by a so-called fascia. This is a thin layer of connective tissue that gives the muscle its shape.
When we talk about muscle development, we mean hypertrophy, i.e. the growth of the cross-section of the individual muscle fibres.
The existing muscle fibres are damaged by the training stimulus. This is necessary so that they can subsequently be stimulated to grow back stronger and thicken. The individual muscle fibres that become thicker as a result naturally also lead to a more voluminous muscle as a whole.
More performance through creatine
Creatine - or creatine phosphate - is a substance produced naturally in the body that is mainly found in muscle cells and is responsible for supplying energy during muscle contraction. It quickly replenishes the empty ATP stores after exercise. ATP (adenosine triphosphate) is an important energy source that provides your muscles with a lot of energy for a short time, but is also used up quickly. Creatine ensures that more ATP is available.
This gives you more power, especially in the first phase of exercise. If additional creatine is supplied to the body, the amount of creatine phosphate in the muscle is increased and maximum muscle performance is maintained for longer without the muscles becoming over-acidified.
In order to optimally utilise the performance-enhancing effect, it makes sense to supplement 3-5 g a day and thus top up the stores.
Formation of muscle proteins
Muscle building primarily requires the formation of muscle protein. Our body handles its resources responsibly and utilises them economically. Muscle protein is therefore only increasingly stored where there is a need for it. However, this only happens when the muscle is used beyond its existing capacity.
Sufficient strain sends molecular signals that are responsible for the correct formation of protein. The messenger substance RNA is produced during strength training. The special genetic RNA code is used to form amino acid chains, from which new proteins are ultimately created. If a muscle is repeatedly stimulated through training, this leads to an accumulation of proteins, resulting in a change in performance and, of course, in appearance.
If you train regularly, you will increase your body's performance in the long term. However, this is only the case if sufficient time is allowed for regeneration after training. It is only during the subsequent breaks that the body adapts to the new load, a process known as supercompensation.
A muscle-building diet provides additional support. In addition to proteins, carbohydrates, fats, fibre, vitamins and minerals form the basis of a muscle-building diet.
What are the benefits of protein shakes for muscle building?
Protein shakes are the most widely used nutritional supplements in the fitness sector. Many athletes find it difficult to consume the recommended daily amount of protein. For this reason, they like to take protein shakes.
These provide the body with the necessary energy that can be used to build muscle tissue. Protein shakes also promote the fat loss process.
An ideal protein shake consists of whey proteins, for example. This can be utilised particularly quickly and optimally supports muscle regeneration after a hard training session in which many nutrients are consumed. In addition, whey proteins have a high biological
This means that it is easy for your body to convert the ingested protein into endogenous protein and utilise it particularly effectively.
If it is important that your muscles are supplied with protein over a longer period of time, casein is the perfect supplement. Casein is absorbed more slowly by the body and is therefore utilised much more slowly. This makes it ideal for ensuring a constant supply of nutrients overnight, for example.
Muscle building with BCAAs
The abbreviation BCAA stands for Branched Chain Amino Acids. Many amino acids are further processed in the liver and then channelled to the muscles via the bloodstream. BCAA, on the other hand, are channelled directly into the muscles. This means that they are quickly available for muscle building and energy supply.
The three essential amino acids leucine, isoleucine and valine have different properties, which makes them a powerful combination.
Leucine is involved in building and maintaining muscle structures.
Valine controls the production of energy from food, thereby contributing to the nutrition of the muscles and
Isoleucine is used to supply energy to the muscle cells.
Leucine, valine and isoleucine all support the formation of new muscle structures.
Building muscle with weight gainers
Weight gainers are a combination product of complex carbohydrates, high-quality proteins and healthy fats, which are specially designed to facilitate weight gain. They are particularly useful for people who can only build up a small amount of muscle mass or fat through a natural diet, as a constant surplus of energy is essential for effective muscle building.
This group of people is technically referred to as hardgainers. The metabolism of a hard gainer burns off any excess energy before muscle growth can really begin.
Optimise the nutrient balance
It makes sense to use supplements to optimise your personal nutrient balance. Every successful athlete uses such supplements and they will also help you to achieve your goals faster. Supplements increase your personal performance during training and maximise the efficiency of your recovery phases.
Whey proteins, weight gainers and creatine are among the most important supplements.
Whey proteins not only contribute to protein synthesis, but are also involved in building up powerful antioxidants such as glutathione.
Weight gainers are nutrient powders with complex carbohydrates and proteins that make it easier for you to gain weight. Creatine increases strength performance during short bursts of exercise.
Accelerate muscle building
Muscle building can be accelerated, but regular training alone is not enough. Many factors influence success.
Tip 1: Adapt your diet.
Regular meals are particularly important to ensure a constant supply of nutrients to the muscles. Vitamins, carbohydrates etc. should not be omitted.
Tip 2: Get enough sleep.
If you train a lot, you also need enough restful sleep. You should not sleep less than 8 hours a day. A fixed sleep rhythm is also recommended.
Tip 3: Intensity of training.
A training session should last around 45 minutes. Each exercise, such as bench pressing or weight lifting, must last between 30 and 40 seconds to ensure that the muscles are sufficiently stressed.
