{"id":2796,"date":"2015-02-13T10:11:48","date_gmt":"2015-02-13T17:11:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bornfitness.com\/?p=2796"},"modified":"2021-01-21T13:55:21","modified_gmt":"2021-01-21T20:55:21","slug":"adding-muscle-at-any-age-defying-genetics-and-designing-muscle-building-workout","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bornfitness.com\/adding-muscle-at-any-age-defying-genetics-and-designing-muscle-building-workout\/","title":{"rendered":"Add Muscle At Any Age: Designing the Muscle Building Workout"},"content":{"rendered":"

The perfect “muscle building workout” is not what you think it is.<\/p>\n

Yes, you understand that resistance builds muscle. And that rest and recovery are essential to growth.<\/p>\n

But in most situations, you’re\u00a0thinking about\u00a0what<\/em> to do to build muscle. That’s only half of the puzzle. The other part–the one where frustration and stalled progress remains locked away–is a matter of\u00a0how<\/em> muscle is built.<\/p>\n

There are three primary mechanisms of muscle growth: Muscle tension, metabolic stress, and muscle damage.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

It’s a process. One that starts fast when you first begin training, and then inevitably slows down for everyone. And yet that slowed progress doesn’t have to be the “no progress” experienced by many.<\/p>\n

Whether you’ve been lifting for 10 days or 10 years, three rules can help make the difference between a “muscle building workout” that turns you into a gainer, as opposed to the one that only makes you a gawker. Do you see progress on your own body, or helplessly look at others and wonder why they have more success?<\/p>\n

While genetics inevitable do make a difference, your genetics are not<\/em> preventing you from adding on pounds of muscle. There are three rules of a muscle building workout that you must respect if you want to transformation your body.<\/p>\n

Rule #1:<\/strong>\u00a0Building muscle is a science. Your best bet is to follow the basic principles of hypertrophy (more on this in a moment) to increase your likelihood of seeing results from your muscle building workout. You can build muscle in many ways, but some approaches will work better than others and make a big different in the long run.<\/p>\n

Rule #2:<\/strong> Every body<\/em> is different. Two people can be on the exact same program<\/em> and experience different results. Some can get jacked on bodyweight movements, other have long, lean defined muscles after some TLC from the dumbbells. This is an important reminder for copycat behaviors. You can choose to follow the practices of the biggest guy or fittest female in the gym, but what works for them might not be the best for your body or could very well violate rule number one. Which leads to\u2026<\/p>\n

Rule #3:<\/strong> Knowledge is not set in stone. Science is an ongoing process, and new studies are guaranteed to do one thing \u2014 provide us with new questions to ask. Use rules one and two to help build the best muscle building workout for your body, but remember we\u2019re always learning and improving our understanding of what works best.<\/p>\n

Now that we\u2019re on the same page and have exhausted any potential excuses, here\u2019s what we know can turn you into a muscle-building machine, even if mom and dad never flexed a moment in their life.<\/p>\n

The Curious Case of Paul T. and Extreme Muscle Growth<\/h2>\n

Paul\u00a0is probably the last guy you’d expect to gain double-take muscle. At 44 years old, he is the farthest thing from a beginner. After more than 20 years in the gym, his solid, lean body would appear to have already pushed its genetic limits.<\/p>\n

Paul was fit by every standard imaginable. Except his own.<\/p>\n

So when we starting working together<\/a>, the goals started with a vision he knew he could achieve: dropping body fat and becoming shredded. Paul\u00a0had tried for years to gain muscle with different muscle building workouts without success. So instead of pushing in the same failed direction, he shifted towards his apparent innate body type.<\/p>\n

After 4 months, success was measured in single digits. Paul worked\u00a0his way down to 8 percent body fat (from a starting point of 14 percent). And yet the question remained:\u00a0what’s next?<\/em><\/p>\n

We decided to build muscle\u00a0for the long haul, despite 20 years of frustration suggesting otherwise.<\/p>\n

And yet, seven months later, Paul achieved the impossible: his weight shot up to 180 pounds, while his body fat only increased to 10 percent body fat.<\/p>\n

More impressive is when you consider what happened with one calendar year. Below you’ll see actual results of his\u00a0DEXA body composition scan (before he hit 180 pounds, topping out at 175).<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n

\"One<\/a>
One year of body fat measurements<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"One<\/a>
One year of lean mass measurements<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Beginning<\/strong><\/p>\n