4 Harmful Muscle-Building Myths Uncovered:
If you're serious about making a solid commitment
to a muscle-building program, you need to be very
careful of who you take advice from. Bodybuilding
and fitness is literally a multi-billion dollar
industry with new websites popping up every single
day. Many of the so-called "experts" out there really
don't have a clue of what they're talking about
and are only motivated by pushing expensive pills,
powders and "miracle programs" on you that you don't
really need. If you don't watch your step you may
end up falling for some fatal muscle-building pitfalls
that will literally destroy your gains and prevent
you from ever achieving the impressive, muscular
physique you desire. In this article I'm going to
expose 4 very common muscle-building myths in order
to keep you on the proper path to the mind-blowing
muscle and strength gains you deserve.
Myth #1: In order to build muscle, you must
achieve a "pump" during your workout. The greater
the pump you achieve, the more muscle you will build.For
those of you who are just starting out, a "pump"
is the feeling that you get as blood becomes trapped
inside the muscle tissue when you train with weights.
The muscles will swell up and leave your body feeling
bigger, tighter, stronger and more powerful. While
a pump does feel fantastic, it has very little,
if anything to do with properly stimulating your
muscles to grow. A pump is simply the result of
increased bloodflow to the muscle tissue and is
certainly not indicative of a successful workout.
A successful workout should only be gauged by the
concept of progression. If you were able to lift
more weight or perform more reps than you did in
the previous week, then you did your job.
Myth #2: Building muscle will cause you to
become slower and less flexible.This one goes back
to the old days when people described bodybuilders
as being "muscle bound" and "bulky". Contrary to
what you may think, building a significant amount
of lean muscle mass will actually speed you up rather
than slow you down. Muscles are responsible for
every movement that your body makes, from running
to jumping to throwing. The bottom line is that
the stronger a muscle is, the more force it can
apply. Having stronger, more muscular legs means
increased foot speed, just as having stronger and
more muscular shoulders means the ability to throw
farther. Strong muscles are able muscles, not the
other way around.
Myth #3: You must always use perfect, textbook
form on all exercises. While using good form in the
gym is always important, obsessing over perfect
form is an entirely different matter. If you are
always attempting to perform every exercise using
flawless, textbook form, you will actually increase
your chances of injury and simultaneously decrease
the total amount of muscle stimulation you can achieve.
Remember, we are not robots! It's very important
that you always move naturally when you exercise.
This could mean adding a very slight sway in your
back when you perform bicep curls, or using a tiny
bit of body momentum when executing barbell rows.
Loosen yourself up a bit and move the way your body
was meant to be moved. Obsessing over perfect form
will actually work against you rather than for you.
Myth #4: If you want your muscles to grow
you must "feel the burn!"This is another huge misconception
in the gym. The "burning" sensation that results
from intense weight training is simply the result
of lactic acid (a metabolic waste product) that
is secreted inside the muscle tissue as you exercise.
Increased levels of lactic acid have nothing to
do with muscle growth and may actually slow down
your gains rather than speed them up. You can limit
lactic acid production by training in a lower rep
range of 5-7, rather than the traditional range
of 10 and above. |
