Ask most guys in the gym what they are looking to achieve and you will more often than not hear ‘build muscle’ in reply! It’s as cliched as women wanting to lose weight and ‘tone up’!

The only problem with this goal is the way most people go about achieving it – the wrong way. Not enough effort, too little weight, rest periods too long. Then there is their life outside of the gym – not enough food, the wrong types of food, too much beer, not enough sleep.

Your body will only respond to exercise properly if you give it the correct conditions to. You can’t live the party lifestyle but expect to look like an Adonis – a shame, I know. The unfortunate truth is that if you want to whip yourself into great shape, you have to make a few necessary sacrifices.

Anyway, enough with the negativity! You can have the body you want, and it doesn’t take forever. You have to abide by a few core principles and work hard. You will get out of training what you put in, so stick to these basic rules and see where you are in 12 weeks time! If you do it right, you will be significantly bigger and closer to the body you aspire to.
So without further ado, the principles you need to stick to¦

1. FUEL UP
Start reading food labels to get a sense of how many calories you’re already eating. Then add 500 to that number and start eating that many calories every day. Aim to take in about one gram of protein per pound of body weight each day. Without the adequate amount of fuel, your body has no physical way of growing – a builder can’t build a house with no bricks!

2. PICK THE RIGHT CARDIO
You can use cardio to aid your calorie burning, but keep it to around 30 minutes per session. To lose fat while sparing muscle, you’d do even better to perform sprint intervals – for instance, running all-out for a minute and then backing off to a light jog for two minutes. Do this for 30 minutes, three times a week.

3. DO LESS
Do no more than 20 sets per muscle group – closer to 12 is even better. Your reps should be between six and 12 per set for the most muscle growth, and your workouts should never last much longer than 45 minutes. In lieu of more volume, use heavier weights and move through each rep at a controlled speed. Your sets should last between 40 and 70 seconds – any less, and you’re not tensing your muscles long enough to shock them into growth.

4. USE FULL- BODY WORKOUTS OR A SPLIT ROUTINE
You’ll get the best results from your workout by either training the whole body in a single workout or concentrating only on the upper body in one session and the lower body in another. There are advantages to each setup, but both are better than trying to isolate one muscle group in a single session. Concentrate on lifts that involve lots of muscles at once, such as squats, deadlifts, presses, rows, and pull-ups.

5. STRETCH
Stretching of any kind (getting into a stretched position and holding it, or moving fluidly in and out of position), using a foam roller and getting massages will all help keep you flexible, prevent injury, and improve recovery between workouts. All of these contribute to the bigger picture – muscle growth! Treat yourself to a good sports massage and your muscles will repay you handsomely!

6. EAT REGULARLY
You should be wolfing down five to six small meals a day. As long as good-quality fuel keeps coming into your body – particularly protein and carbs – you’ll have the calories to build muscle and the metabolism boost to lose fat. Nutrition is massively important to almost every training goal, so get it right and you have given your chances of success an enormous boost.

7. CHANGE EVERYTHING
Every four to six weeks, you need to alter some part of your routine, whether it’s the number of reps you do, the amount of time you rest, the exercises you perform, or any other training variable. Keep a journal of your workouts to record your progress. The human body is lazy and adapts to stimuli quickly. It is important to keep it guessing, shocking it with new weights, exercise and intensity to consistently progress.

8. TRAIN THE WHOLE BODY
The more muscles you involve – either in one exercise or one training session, the greater the hormone release you’ll get from your training and that stimulates muscle growth all day long. Hitting each muscle group with roughly the same volume (such as five sets of rows after five sets of bench presses) will ensure balanced training, allowing you to grow quickly and safely, avoiding injuries and preserving flexibility.  Muscle imbalances keep chiropractors and physiotherapists busy, but that is not your aim!

9. RECOVER

The ideal amount of sleep is seven to eight hours per night. You can let loose a night or two each week, but when you do, try to make up for it ASAP. Train no more than four times a week. As for your job, do whatever you can to avoid excess stress – chronic nervousness elevates cortisol, a hormone that makes your body store fat and burn muscle. Recovery is the best part of training! Just take on board your fuel and relax to your hearts content! If your partner accuses you of being lazy, inform them it is an integral part of your training regimen! Guilt-free relaxation!

Now you have a few tips to help you on your way to achieving the body you want! As long as you stick to the principles you will succeed. Remember exercise needn’t be complicated, just work hard in the gym, recover well and eat good, clean food. It is not about training programmes and diets that you need a Sports Science degree to understand, nor is it difficult; it is just about dedication and not giving up. If you are serious about your goals then achieving them becomes that much simpler.

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