As great as some people look on fitness magazines, is it possible to really look anything like them? Although you likely don’t have a perfect body, you can still increase your muscle size and look great in your own skin. The following article will give you the information you need to get started on building your muscles.

In virtually every case, your muscle-building routine should include the venerable “big three” exercises. Those are bench presses, dead lifts and squats. These particular exercises not only increase your bulk, but they also ensure your body is well conditioned and help improve your overall strength as well. Use these exercise as the cornerstone of your exercise regimen.

Make certain you eat plenty of protein if your goal is to build muscle. Protein is the primary building block from which muscles are made. If you do not consume enough protein, it will be extremely difficult to increase your muscle mass. Make sure that two or more of your larger meals, as well as a couple of your daily snacks, contain protein.

Eating ample amounts of protein is essential to building muscle. A simple way to make sure you consume the proper amount of protein is to drink protein shakes and consume other protein supplements. They work better after working out and before you go to sleep. If you wish to lose weight as you build muscle, consume about one a day. However, gaining mass together with muscle means up to about three shakes per day.

Cool down with a short stretching routine to ensure that your muscles start the repair process from a healthy point. Any individual under forty years of age should strive to hold every stretch for thirty seconds at the least. Anyone over the age of forty should hold stretches for sixty seconds at the minimum. This will help to insure that you do not get injured after doing exercise to build muscle.

Create illusions that you appear to be larger than what you actually are. This is accomplished by focusing your attention on developing your upper chest, shoulders and upper back. Doing so will often create the illusion that your waist is smaller then it really is, giving you an appearance of greater upper body girth.

Protein Intake

Many people start upping their protein intake right after they start a bodybuilding program. By doing this, too many calories are being consumed and if a person is only exercising a small amount, fat can increase. Increase protein intake slowly so your body can transform it into muscle well.

It can be beneficial to train opposite muscles during the same workout. Examples are the muscles in your back and the muscles in your stomach, or the quads and the hamstrings. This setup allows one muscle group to recover while the opposing group is being worked. This will allow you to bump up your workout intensity and you won’t have to be in the gym as long.

You should make sure that the number of calories you consume every day is high enough. There are a number of online calculators that you can use to determine caloric needs dependent on your goals. Let these tools help you to design the ideal muscle building diet.

You aren’t perfect, no one is, but you are very amazing! Now that you have read the advice in this article, you will be able to change your life for the better. Sometimes that first step is the hardest, so with that out of the way, you are ready to hit the gym and put what you just learned into practice!