Building muscle can be a hard thing to do. It takes hard work, dedication to working out and a commitment to a healthful diet. Failure to achieve your goals can leave you discouraged. The following article offers suggestions you can follow so your efforts are sure to be worthwhile.

If you are trying to build muscle, you are going to have to start eating more over all. You ideally want to consume what it takes to increase your weight by a weekly pound. Investigate ways to raise your caloric intake, and if after two weeks you see no change in your weight, consider taking in even more calories.

You have to make sure that you always warm up if you are trying to build your muscle mass. As your muscle work, heal and expand, they become more prone to injuries. However, if you correctly warm up, injury can be prevented. Exercise lightly for about 5 to 10 minutes and do about 3 or 4 warm-up sets of light to intermediate intensity before starting serious lifting.

When building muscle is important, do not forget about carbohydrates. Carbs provide you with energy that you will need for your workout. By not consuming enough carbohydrates, your body is going to use protein for energy. Consume enough carbs so that your body is able to function, and you find that you will have an easier time completing your workouts.

Hold Stretches

Once your workout is complete, you need to stretch thoroughly, so that your muscles repair themselves and continue to grow. People under the age of 40 should hold stretches for a minimum of 30 seconds. Anyone over the age of forty should hold stretches for sixty seconds at the minimum. This will work to prevent any injuries from happening after you have worked your muscles.

It is possible to create the impression that you are larger than you may actually be. You can achieve this by focusing your strength training on your shoulders, upper back and upper chest. This causes your waist to look smaller and makes you look bigger.

Increase your protein intake to build your muscle mass. Protein is a major building block of muscle, so not eating enough of it may actually lead to your losing muscle, which defeats the whole purpose behind bulking up. Aim to eat about 1 g of protein for every pound that you weigh.

Your caloric intake needs to be high enough to support your weight training regimen. There are many calculators available, some even online. They can help you to determine what your intake should be based on your muscle mass goals. Use one of these calculators, and adjust your diet to include adequate amounts of protein, carbs, and other nutrients to bulk up your muscles.

Work on finding your body’s limit, and keep working out until you hit that limit. With every set that you do, try to push your body until you can not lift even one more pound. It may help to reduce your set lengths in the beginning if you get overtired.

Building muscle is not necessarily an easy thing to do. You must ensure you’re following a proper workout schedule that is very intense. In addition, you have to pay attention to your diet. After working so hard, not reaching your goals can be very discouraging. Follow the tips provided in this guide to ensure that you build up your muscles successfully.