Sunday, February 15, 2009

Safe Bodybuilding Tips For Every Trainee

By Colin Zane

Many bodybuilders love to live by the motto that there is no gain without any pain. The reality cannot be further from the truth. Our bodies always use pain as an indicator to tell us that something is wrong and needs to be fixed. As someone who wishes to become fitter and stronger through weights training, pain can only be embraced as an instrument in avoiding injuries and long term damage to our bodies.

To get the most from bodybuilding, not only must you stick to sound training methods, but safe measures must be undertaken to protect your body. Steering clear of injuries is essential to making consistent progress. What can you do to achieve that?

1. Stick to free weights and exercises that make use of them. While there are some machines that are safe, most of them are not. You do not experience the benefits of a natural and full range of motion unless you rely on exercises that use dumbbells and barbells.

2. Concentrate your efforts on major movements such as the squats, deadlifts, chin ups and bench presses. These exercises utilize all your major muscle groups which are really what your body is built on. They also encourage a more balanced body to be built.

3. The minor muscle groups like biceps and triceps need to be worked on, but not as much. The major exercises will expose them to considerable amount of training. You can include a low number of sets of specialized exercises like bicep curls if required, but not too many so as to avoid overtraining.

4. Working out in the gym is the stimulus your muscles require to grow in response. However, you need adequate amounts of rest and nutrition as a foundation for the muscles to recover and become stronger. After a heavy workout with the major exercise, there should be at least 24 to 48 hours of rest before the next training session, plus the right levels of nutrition. Failing to do so would invariably lead to a tired body and mind, which in turn brings one down the path of injury and overtraining.

5. Do your warm up sets to get your body ready for the tougher sets. This prevents injuries from occurring as a result of cold muscles that might tear or ligaments that could snap if you head straight to a heavy exercise set from the get go.

If you follow the safety tips above, there will be less risk of experiencing pain and unsafe bodybuilding workouts. This in turn translates to better gains and results that not everyone else might enjoy. Thus, the right maxim should be "no pain, most gain", and safe bodybuilding will bring you the most benefits. - 15683

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