Building muscle can make you feel great, look healthy & can massively counteract ageing bone density. The benefits are simply too long to list so I won't even try but drop us a message if this is something you'd like us to cover in future.
This post is about helping you with the HOW not the WHY, as muscle building is a simple thing that can be very hard to master. There are 3 key stages of how the body responds when you start lifting weights:
1. Neurological adaptation - when the body creates stronger neural pathways for weightlifting movements, meaning you can lift more without the need to gain muscle due to your body being more efficient in how to use the tools it already has to lift that weight. This often contributes to the infamous "newbie gains" where we can rapidly add weight within the first few weeks/months of weightlifting.
2. Muscle building - this is the point where the body has fully optimised neural function when weightlifting, & needs to add size in order to increase strength. Gains at this stage can be as fast as 1.5-2lbs of muscle per month but they will decrease this rapid rate the longer you have been lifting.
3. Plateau - believed to be around the 4-6 week mark of each program, muscles will adapt to the exercises & no longer grow as quick as they could. This is the stage when programs should be refreshed in order to make the most of body adaptation, which will result in maintaining as high a rate of growth as possible.
So what about how much to do? It truly depends on your lifestyle, DNA, bodytype & experience (which is why getting a PT with an understanding of this can work wonders). However as a rough guideline I would suggest newbies aim for around 3 sessions per week in either a 3-way muscle group split or full body (which can be more motivating & easier to fit around active jobs etc.). Intermediate lifters & beyond can be aiming for 5 or even 6 sessions per week but this is almost always using quite specific muscle group splits. I would reccomend weightlifting to EVERYONE, no matter what age or gender, & I've always got time to chat with anyone about why it could help YOU, so drop me a message!
I think ultimately the key to the most efficient results in muscle gain is programs that are consistent & specific, but then change after 4-6 weeks. Oh and DON'T SKIP LEGS!
Elliot Hutchinson // 28.04.2024
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