Losing excess weight, building up muscle mass, getting a “relief” with your body, isn’t this everyone’s dream? At least once in life, any person wonders if they should visit a gym, and the question is not at all about choosing the most attractive “simulator”. It’s not a problem to choose. The question is, is it really going to help you? Will experienced instructors keep you safe from injury? And what is important, will there be a result? Here is the mistakes of novice bodybuilders. So, let’s take a look at a dozen of the most common mistakes beginners make.
Mistake №1: Using the Workout Program of Champions
Most aspiring athletes come to the gym quite prepared … in theory. Having read several books (or even several dozen books) by reputable gurus of bodybuilding or powerlifting experts. Young bodybuilders take the training programs of champions as a “basis”. There is, of course, logic in such reasoning. If the program helped him achieve such heights, then it will surly help you too. This is of course so, but three important factors are usually not taken into account:
First: Professional athletes constantly radically change their training programs and they either gain weight, or vice versa, work on the relief or more simply, “dry” the muscles. What program are you following?
Second: Any bodybuilder is primarily human. All people at the genetic level are divided into several body types; ectomorphic (or hard gainer), which is a thin, tall person who it is extremely difficult for them to gain weight and mesomorphic, which is the best genetic type for bodybuilding, as they have a strong physique, high or medium height, wide shoulder girdle and narrow hips. As endomorphic, is a person prone to gaining weight. Note that training programs for different types of people differ radically, and for a person inclined to be overweight, well, the program of the same Coleman is not suitable.
Third. Let’s turn to world practice and we will speak seriously, without the use of chemistry, it is almost impossible to achieve great heights in bodybuilding. Take for example Schwarzenegger. No matter how the virgin purity of super champions is “promoted” in popular publications to believe this, to put it mildly. The programs of champions are designed in addition to the training itself for sessions of steroid therapy. Everyone of course will remain unconvinced, but it is pointless to engage in such programs and consume natural substances and food.
Mistake №2: Using Very Heavy Weights
In order for the muscles to begin to grow, they need to be pumped right? In order for the muscles to begin to grow even faster, they need to be pumped even more, right? Alas, this is not the case. Here, the principle is completely different. What exactly is training? This is just a motivation for growth. In training, we load the muscles of the body with an unusual weight, this causes fibres to break. We feel this as pain. Breaking the fibres is just one part of proper training. The second component is proper nutrition and rest (and in particular sleep). It is during sleep that the torn muscle fibres gradually recover, grow together and become thicker. Therefore, for proper and constant growth, the body needs time to restore these damaged fibres. If you injure the fibres too often, internal reserves are not enough for recovery and the body will begin to experience stress. The effect of overtraining will appear. Practically, the optimal number of workouts per week for the average person has been established. For hardgenega, this is 2 workouts per week, for the other two types from 2 to 4 per week.
Mistake №3: Beer is a Source of Carbohydrates
There is an opinion that after training, drinking beer has a very beneficial effect on the growth of muscle fibres and on the recovery of the body as a whole. They say it was born in the days of the underground “rocking chairs” of the USSR. The truth is that the body requires a lot of carbohydrates. Yes, indeed in beer they are carbohydrates, but they are “complex” carbohydrates. In contrast to simple ones, the process of breaking down such carbohydrates is very laborious for the body, as it requires a lot of energy consumption and therefore it is quite easy for the body to “overtake” them into the reserve-fat layer. Now you understand where the “beer belly” comes from. Note that for an exhausted body after training, it is even more difficult to distil carbohydrates and if you add to this the load on the heart, then alcohol is your main enemy.
Mistake №4: Priorities
The most important thing is training in the gym. Certainly without a gym anywhere. Muscle won’t grow on its own, but that’s only 1/3 of a successful pump. The other 2/3 is sleep and food. Do not overestimate the role of strength training in the overall muscle growth process.
Mistake №5: Bodybuilding Supplements is the Same as Steroids
Let’s clarify the situation. Any food supplement gives the body material for building and an additional sources of energy. “Anabolics” simply increase the level of testosterone in the blood, thereby provoking abnormal growth of fibres and disrupting the overall hormonal background. Well, the body does not have serious problems with sports nutrition, if the food supplement is not completely absorbed. It simply passes through the “transit” (diarrhoea after a protein pot!). And when taking steroids, hormones go astray. The problems in life are noticeably increasing, ranging from impotence and ending with breast growth.
Mistake №6: Weight is the Key
What can I say? The technique was not invented in vain. It’s important not to lift the maximum weight and load a specific muscle group. With the correct technique for performing the exercise, the risk of injury (sprain or joint injury) is minimal. This is especially true with large weights. I am glad that people with the wrong technique of execution and even the wrong training in general (no warm-up, no trial approaches) rarely get to REALLY large weights.
Mistake №7: You Don’t Need a Partner’s Safety Net
Never seen a barbell removed from a choking athlete? This is just one example. Basic exercises are worked out all the way. The strength to remove the barbell from the neck may not be enough. It is always worth remembering this when training alone with heavy weight.
Mistake №8: Sex is a Hindrance to Training
The amount of testosterone in the body is limited. This is not entirely true. The amount of testosterone in the body is in a strictly defined amount. The body maintains this balance. When it changes (for example, when taking steroids), various anomalies occur. Sex is natural. Without doing it, the testosterone level will drop (as unnecessary).
Mistake №9: You Need to Eat Less to Lose Weight
A typical misconception of people who are overweight. You don’t need to eat less, you need to eat the right low-calorie food.
Mistake №10: Immediate Result
Gaining muscle mass is an exercise for the patient. A set of muscle mass for hard gainers is an activity for the mega-patient. Results will not be visible the next day or by the end of the first week. The main thing is to make progress, maybe not very big progress, but still true progress.
