Bodybuilding 101 on Steroids Rx.com
 | Most men would like a decent body, but the process of building a body requires time and effort. Before one rushes and buys an expensive gym membership, there are a few things one should know. |
| Be realistic and know what your limitations are. It is almost impossible to build a great body in a few months. Most bodybuilders spend at least a few years to gain weight and another few years to shape up different parts of the body. Those gyms who promise you immediate results are full of nonsense. |
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 | Diet:: For anyone who wants to build the body, a diet rich in calories is very important. Without weight gain, muscle mass can not increase. So the first goal should be to increase weight. Once the weight has been put on, you can start to shape each part of your body. Sculpting the body always follows after bulk has developed. |
| Equipment: For most beginners, the sleek and expensive looking machines should be avoided in the first 1-2 years; these machines are generally used to shape and design the body. For all beginners, sticking to a regimen of lifting weights for the first year should be the goal. The fancy machines are usually used by advanced bodybuilders who want to contour their body. |  |
| First Year: The majority of beginners will add the most weight to the body in the first 1-2 years. However, it is during this time period, that many will mistakes and also a number of individuals will also drop out for various reasons. This is the year where there can be a lot of frustration and disappointments. However, patience is the key and one should avoid comparing bodies during this time period. Different individuals respond differently to the exercise regimens and comparisons only bring disappointments. |
 | Foundation: It is very important to build a foundation for your body. Training of the muscles is just as important as building them up. In all cases, the muscles have to be trained with exercises. Once different sets of exercise have been established for each part of the body, one can build on this foundation. To build a foundation, one needs simple exercises like bench presses, squats, bent rows and so on. During the foundation building process, one must learn to perform the exercise the right way and get the most out of the training program. |
| Go and get a physical: Before you go and join a gym you must have a physical to ensure that you are healthy and have no unknown medical problems. It is not unheard of that an athlete suddenly dies while exercising or building his body. The most important part of the physical exam is to make sure that your heart is fine. And this may take a physical exam and probably a few radiological studies. |  |
 | Goals: The major problem with many individuals is that they have no goals about what they want. Everyone wants to build a body but have no idea how to proceed. Some people simply want to build muscles, others want a well contoured body and yet others want to lose weight. Being realistic is the key- bodybuilding is a career and takes years. You may build a muscle here and there but to maintain the great lean look, you will have to continue making an effort. Do not look at your self in the mirror everyday or every week. Muscles generally do not grow in a few weeks but take months to develop. |
| Gym: There are thousands of gyms all over the country. Many are good but just as many are crap. Do not select the first gym you go to. Since you will be paying a fee, be selective. Look for a gym which is clean and has the equipment you are looking for. Since you will be using the gym for a long time, make sure it is a friendly place with good customer service. The other features of the gym that are important are the cost, perks and duration of membership. The last thing you want to do is join a gym which binds you down for 2 years and turns out to be a dump. |  |
 | Hormones: There are a lot of bodybuilders who take hormones, steroids and various pills to gain weight gain. The exact number of bodybuilders who take such chemicals is not known because many do not brag about it. There are also legal implications associated with abuse of steroids. There is no doubt that some of these hormones can help you increase weight but for the beginner, the best advice is to start clean. Remember even though there are many drugs and hormones on the market, the majority are fake or counterfeit. |
| Junk foods: For the serious bodybuilder, eating pizza and McDonalds is something of the past. Bodybuilding is serious venture and requires dedication and exposure to good healthy foods. While you can eat a pizza once in a while, it is not recommended you eat highly processed fatty foods on a daily basis. Nothing beats a well balanced diet. |  |
 | Over do it: Most people who start out with Bodybuilding get obsessed with the sport. They are in rush to build the body and exclude all other forms of activity. This is fine but one should always pay attention to other aspects of life and the health. If you are exhausted and tired, then take a break. Do not exercise everyday (esp. on a Sunday) and give your body time to recover. A small bruise is not a deterrent to exercise but if your body is aching and your joints are stiff, take a day off and rest. Skip the gym if you are sick. |
| Patience: The major reason why many people drop out of Bodybuilding programs is because the results are not immediate. Rest assured, if you eat well, exercise and lift weights, the mass will increase but it takes time. |  |
| Partners: Most people seem to get the best out the gym when they have a training partner. This helps one to remain motivated. However, do not just get any partner. Select someone who is reliable and has the same goals as you. When two people perform exercises, the program can be competitive and both athletes profit from it. |
 | Repetition is essential when you want to contour or shape your muscles. This may include doing the same exercise over and over aging. One should at least repeat the same exercise 8-10 times. For those individuals who can easily do more than 10 repetitions with a single weight, the weight is most likely to be light. For those who can hardly repeat 2-4 repetitions of the same exercise, the weight is too heavy. Each set of exercise should be repeated at least 3-4 times. |
| Rest: No matter how fast you want your body to develop, you need rest to allow your body to recover. Get enough sleep. During rest the muscles will start to utilize all the ingredients and start to grow. |  |
 | Rhythm: The art of Bodybuilding is intricately related to how you breathe and perform the exercises. Breathing allows you to take in oxygen which is required by the muscles. After each lift, take a deep breath and exhale at the end. Take a break to recover from each bout of lifting. |
| Start small and allow time. Bodybuilding is a time dependent process. If you are in a hurry, then the only thing you will build is a great deal of disappointments. |  |
 | Stretch: In any sport, it is necessary to warm up and stretch before jumping into the exercise regimen. Warm up with a jog and then slowly stretch the muscles of the body. The more blood you have circulation, the lesser the chance of damage to the muscles. |
| Supplement: Diet is the single most important factor when it comes to increasing muscle mass. You need to eat a well balanced diet which consists of proteins, carbohydrates and fats. You also need to make sure that you get the necessary vitamins and minerals. While no one athlete has the same dietary requirement, as a general rule, one should eat a high calorie diet in small amounts. Water is essential when exercising. There are a vast number of supplement for the athlete. |  |
| There are milk shakes, vitamins, herbs, potions, lotions and powders. In the long run, these supplements can be expensive. One can make a better diet plan at home which is more nutritious and a lot cheaper. One thing you have to remember about the dietary supplements on the market- the business is unregulated and the quality of the product is never guaranteed. Many of the supplements have been hyped up and have no scientific proof that they do what is claimed. Plus, many of these products contain an unknown number of chemicals and fakes are not uncommon. The hardest part is to find the right supplement which works. | |
| Training sessions should be at least 2-3 times week. If you do train less than twice a week, it is difficult to build any type of muscle mass. |  |
 | Training cycle: There are 100s of training cycles. Doing the same exercise each day can become monotonous. So make a calendar of what you propose to do each day of the week. For example, you may want to develop the upper body on Monday and the lower body on Tuesday, followed by the chest and abdomen. You can even change the frequency of each exercise with time. |
| Training log. For the serious bodybuilder, one needs to keep a log of what and how they are doing. If one has a digital camera, one can take photos of different parts of the body and retake the photos each month just to see how the body is coming along. |  |
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