Build Muscle Women | Body&Fit UK

1. MAINTAIN A POSITIVE ENERGY BALANCE WITH ENOUGH PROTEIN

Try eating roughly every three hours and fuel your muscle build with >20g of protein per meal — or top up your nutrient levels with a high-protein snack.

2. INCREASE EXERCISE PERFORMANCE WITH A PRE-WORKOUT

Push yourself closer to your limit every time you exercise; training multiple muscle sets per exercise workout each group more than once a week.

3. SHAKE UP A NOURISHING POST-WORKOUT DRINK

Supplement your training with a post-workout protein and carbohydrate-rich shake to aid in muscle maintenance — and stay hydrated.

4. GIVE YOUR BODY TIME TO RECOVER

Allow your muscles to repair and strengthen with rest periods and a slow-release protein like Casein taken before bed to augment your muscle protein synthesis rate.

You need to consume more protein than your body naturally needs to build muscle. Make sure you choose the right one by taking into account it’s inclusion of amino acids, absorption rate and your personal dietary requirements.

Pre-workouts are designed to boost your energy and increase performance. For toning and building muscle, key ingredients like Beta-alanine are great for short workouts and BCAA’s help to improve endurance during longer sessions.

While we naturally produce Creatine in our bodies, if you top up those levels with the right product, you’ll be able to perform additional repetitions when training and help to build muscle with faster regeneration.

The right combination of sufficient protein and carb intake is necessary for the synthesis of muscle proteins. Post-workout supplements are designed with this in mind to help support muscle growth after a workout

HOW CAN I OPTIMISE MY PROTEIN INTAKE?

Train each muscle group at least twice a week — multiple sets. Eat healthy and regularly: breakfast, lunch, post-workout protein shake, dinner, pre-sleep meal and try to include 20-40g of protein per meal, and remember to stay hydrated.

HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE TO BUILD MUSCLE?

This is highly dependent on individual factors, building muscle extremely quickly is likely to result in more gains from water retention as well as a rise in body fat. Take your time to see how your body responds to your routine and ensure you’re keeping a positive energy balance and topping up your protein levels.

HOW CAN I AVOID WATER RETENTION WHEN BUILDING MUSCLE?

The body has a natural process for storing water and ions in the body, just as it does for storing excess calories as fat. While everybody stores and disposes of water weight differently, staying hydrated, watching salt intake, taking more fiber and avoiding refined carbs are good ways to start.