The Powerful Muscle Gain Program

The Powerful Muscle Gain Program Gain in muscle size & strength is the dream of many thin or underweight persons, looking for a dramatic transformation into muscular & toned bodies. Contrary to popular belief being thin is not being fit. An untrained ectomorph can be underweight yet have high body fat. Due to the general assumption that only overweight persons have health risks alarm bells don’t ring for such a ‘thin but fat’ person and he/she often falls prey to ‘silent killers’ such as diabetes & heart disease.

Just like fat loss brings an overweight person to the ideal body, muscular development shapes an intoned body into an athletic attractive personality. However, unlike fat loss, the aim of a muscle gain program is not an increase in BMR (basal metabolic rate). In fact, these individuals are ‘ectomorph i.e. born with a genetically fast metabolism & pay the price by tending to lose precious muscle.

While others envy them for their ability to eat & yet not put on weight they constantly face an uphill struggle against muscle loss & weakness. While a strict fat-loss diet can yield immediate results even the best muscle-gain regimen may take weeks to reap its rewards. An ectomorph high BMR makes consistency & patience a compulsory pre-requisite of every successful muscle gain program.

Then Muscle Gain Formula:

Simply put the muscle gain formula is widely described as Train, Eat & Rest:

Train:

Intense weight training is the powerful push that tilts the balance from breakdown to growth (i.e.) from muscle loss to gain. For a body used to capitalizing muscle daily the muscle breakdown caused by weight training is so powerful that it forces the body into growth. Just like a wound forces the body to repair & heal breakdown or catabolism forces the body into anabolism.

Eat:

Adequate Carbohydrate & Protein Adequate protein is a must for muscle growth since protein is the only nutrient that can repair muscle. The total requirement of protein must be scientifically calculated based on lean body mass & intensity of the weight training & must be met daily with first-class protein. Sufficient carbohydrate has to accompany the protein to feed & satiate the ectomorph-burning metabolism. Only after the energy needs of the high BMR are met by an adequate quantity of Carbohydrates the Protein in the diet is totally spared for muscle repair & growth.

Rest:

Recovery Rest & recovery an integral part of any fitness program is vital to an ectomorph trying hard to accelerate muscle growth for it to overtake muscle loss. If weight training is breakdown & nutrition is repairing raw material rest & recovery is the third leg of the tripod of fitness (i.e.) the time required for repair & growth. Overzealous overtraining is the enemy of muscle gain & correct exercise scheduling is a must with enough time for recovery in between two intense workouts.

An Ideal Muscle Gain Diet:

Muscle gain is achieved by maximizing muscle growth (anabolism) & minimizing muscle breakdown (catabolism).

Maximum Anabolism: 

A Meal every 3 hours throughout the waking hours (total 5-7 meals a day) to ensure a constant supply of carbohydrates for energy or protein for muscle repair. Adequate first-class protein is calculated as 1.5-2.5 gm/kg lean body mass (depending on intensity) & distributed equally in each meal to keep the body in a continuous anabolic state. Keep carbs higher than protein & maintain the Protein-Carb ratio in the diet & in each meal such as P: C =1:2 or 1:3 to ensure the carbohydrates are always acting to spare protein for muscle repair. The higher the BMR the higher the protein-carb ratio needed.

Minimum Catabolism:

Include anti-carbolic Antioxidants such as 1gm vitamin C & 400IU vitamin E once immediately after a workout to fight muscle breakdown due to free radical attack. These may even be taken twice a day to reduce the high catabolism & also to boost low immunity. Increase intake of water & fluids to 5-6 litres distributed throughout the day. Water also acts as an indirect anti-carbolic. Water is the base that the body builds on & hydration gives the body space and environment for growth. Dehydration is a state of catabolism & accelerated muscle loss.