Developing good habits is crucial to build muscle up on a long term basis. It is essential to be doing the right things to build muscle as a matter of course in order to build muscle up continuously. Unfortunately many bad habits are often picked up by bodybuilders who perhaps do not realise they are restricting their progress or putting their health at risk. Here we have outlined the top 7 worst muscle building habits and included a few build muscles tips too:
1) The worst of all! Taking steroids, this is dangerous for a whole variety of reasons take your pick from any of the following: different coloured spots on the body, acne, swelling of the legs and feet, bad smelling breath and yellowing of the skin, dizziness, trembling, nausea, vomiting, mood swings, premature balding, aching joints, liver damage, high blood pressure, palpitations, cardiovascular disease and reduction of your final adult height. If you want even more reason not to take steroids how about: testicular shrinkage, impotence, pain on urination, breast development and even sterility. I’m sure no more needs to be said about that.
2) Trying to lift excessive amounts of weight. Yes, trying to beat you training partner is great motivation but be really careful. Lifting too much weight can cause you to lose form and increase the chances of injury and won’t help you build muscles quickly. If you cannot lift and lower the weight under complete control of if you have to make use of momentum then you ought to be lowering the amount.
3) Taking on board too much protein. The protein intake of the average person ought to be 0.8-1 gram of protein/kilo of bodyweight/day and a muscle building athlete ought not to take on board more than 1.7 grams per bodyweight kilo. Consuming more than this can cause irreversible problems for your kidneys and increase the likelihood of getting osteoporosis. Also homo-cysteine, a by-product of protein metabolism is a risk factor for heart disease so be careful!
4) Using stimulants like ephedrine has potentially dangerous side effects such as heart attack, heart palpitations, and stroke. Whilst these are not banned you should exercise extreme caution and even better don’t use them. you may wish to give the much less dangerous caffeine pills a try. If you have any doubts at all make sure you ask a health care specialist.
5) Some people think that they will be able to burn off more fat if they work out on an empty stomach. However energy comes from carbohydrate so if you haven’t eaten you will probably have little energy and your workout will not be very effective. You will not be able to lift more than your previous personal best and you will most likely be left jittery, shaking and even dizzy after your training session possibly due to low blood sugar levels. Instead of this it is far better to have a small pre workout meal containing fruits, vegetables and such like.
6) Neglecting to stretch or warm up adequately.Getting your body ready for exercise is essentail in order to prevent injuries like muscle tears and strains, what’s more it enhances your range of motion, flexibility, performance, and posture. It takes only around 10 minutes to do a decent warm up and it is time very well spent.Â
7) Not keeping a training diary. If you don’t have this how can you tell if you are making progress or not? How are you able to monitor your increases in strength. Recording your progress in a training diary is simple, easy and highly motivating. Why are you not using one.
OK, the above are a few pointers but mainly relax be safe and enjoy your workouts most of the time a healthy dose of common sense is enough to ensure your safety.
