If you are new to fitness, especially when it comes to weight training and muscle building, there’s no doubt you’ve heard about muscle milk. Things you’ve heard about it might be confusing when you are new to working out and that’s understandable. In this article my hope is to help you understand more about muscle milk, why it’s used and what the benefits are for those who use it.

Why is Muscle Milk Used?

First off, muscle milk is a high-protein meal replacement supplement. Because it replaces meals quite often, it might not be good for everyone since there could be medical reasons why a person shouldn’t skip real meals for a supplement, so make sure you talk to your doctor first before using any supplement such as muscle milk.

This type of supplement is very popular with moderate to advanced bodybuilders and other athletes because it helps them gain more muscle weight with very little fat gain at the same time. This is one of the main reasons why people who are really into fitness will often turn to muscle milk to help them add muscle during their workouts.

Can Cause Weight Gain

Muscle milk can help a person gain weight, but for those who participate a lot in sports of all types or bodybuilding, they want to gain the right kind of weight through proper training and the right supplements. The reason why muscle milk can add weight is because it is high in calories. One serving can contain 300 calories. This is why it’s recommended that people who want to include it in their diet that they consume it before they work out, after they work out, and then one serving prior to bed. This means that you shouldn’t go past 900 calories total when including muscle milk in your fitness program. Continue reading

If you’re looking for a way to get a great workout without having to deal with all the hassles of going to the gym, then I think you’ll think that this total body workout that you can do at home could be ideal for you. This is the ideal workout that works the entire body with no fuss and no muss. All you’ll need for this home workout are a set of dumbbells and a bench or step. These are great exercises and they can be easily done by beginners.

Tips for This Workout

For beginners start off with lighter dumbbells and do just one set of each exercise with 14 to 16 reps. For those who are intermediate to advanced then use heavier dumbbells and do two to three sets with 8 to 12 reps. It’s also important to warm up with some stretches or flexes before starting this workout. One key thing to remember is that if any of the exercises cause any pain or discomfort you should skip them for a day or two before resuming.

Chest Press

This is one of those exercises that’s one of the best ways to work your chest muscles. The muscles in the chest include some of the biggest muscles in your body. This exercise also works out your shoulders and triceps.

For this exercise you will need to lie down on a step or low bench and hold your dumbbells over your chest. Next, bend your elbows and lower them until your elbows are at a 90 degree angle. Your arms should look like goal posts at the end of this movement. Now, press the weights back up and repeat. Lower and repeat for one to three sets with 8 to 16 reps. Continue reading

I always try my best as a fitness coach and instructor to give as much help as I possibly can to those who are just beginning their bodybuilding workout. It can be really tough and even discouraging to some beginners when they first start out.

The reason why it can be difficult for beginners when it comes to bodybuilding is because they often feel overwhelmed with the amount of information there is out there about what works best for the best results, the list of advice goes on and on. My advice to you is just remember that half of the battle is getting started and do your best to avoid trying to take in far too much information at one time. See, the sooner you get into the gym and actually start using the weights the quicker you’re going to see some results.

Here are a few tips that I feel if you follow closely you should be able to get a good start with your bodybuilding workout. If you follow this advice chances are you will be taking the first step to success when it comes to bodybuilding.

Tip One – Just Focus on Adding More Weight Over Time

The most important tip I can give you about bodybuilding is that you don’t need to start off with heavy weights in the beginning. The biggest difference on your rate of muscle gain is your patience in adding more weight as you progress.

It won’t matter how many of those fancy principles you’ve read about and you try to use in your bodybuilding workout, if you don’t properly add weight over months at a time, not right from the start. Using a lot of weight in the very beginning is not going to help you build muscle.

All the fancy protocols you may have read about will definitely have an advantage for you, but these are for much further down the road in your bodybuilding plans. Things like drop sets, supersets and so on do help increase your body’s potential, but they should only be done intermittently when you simply can’t lift anything heavier. Continue reading

When most people think of workouts most of the time they think of having to go to a gym. For some, just thinking about going to the gym is enough to turn them off. I totally understand this because going to the gym means spending money on a membership, traveling to get there, and maybe working out with people you may feel uncomfortable around. If these are the reasons why you don’t go to the gym, I get it, I really do. However, there’s plenty of ways for you to have a workout that will help you lose weight and get fit and you can do it at home.

In this article I’ll be going over a couple of simple workouts that are easy to do at home and they will not only help you to lose weight but they can also help you to tighten up your entire body at the same time. These workouts focus on strength training and building muscle which in turn will help to boost your metabolism.

Home Workout #1

This is a starter workout that works your abs, legs, and your arms. These exercises will teach you how to work the large muscles with these simple body weight exercises. What’s really great about this workout is that you don’t need any kind of special equipment in order to perform this workout.

Push-Ups – When you do this exercise you need to make sure that you have perfect form otherwise you are wasting your time. Start with your hands and knees on the floor and put your hands on the floor about shoulder width apart and your palms flat. Then extend your legs out straight while you rest on your toes. Make sure that your hands are right under your shoulders. Brace your legs and abs so you can stiffen your torso and keep your neck aligned neutrally so your body is straight. Now, bend our elbows letting them flare naturally out to your sides and then lower your body until your nose touches the floor. Don’t let your middle sag. Push into the floor and then push yourself back to your starting position. Do 10 to 16 reps with one to two sets.

Lunge – For this exercise you will want to use a chair for balance if you feel you need help. The best thing to do however is to try and do 10 front lunges on each leg without using any support. Stand in a split stance and have your right foot forward and your left leg behind you. Your feet should be about two to three feet apart. Make sure your body is straight before you do your first lunge. Now bend your knees and lower your body down until your back knee is a few inches off the floor. At the end of the movement, your front thigh should be completely parallel to the floor and your back knee should point toward the floor. Do ten reps and then switch sides. You can do one or two sets. Continue reading

When it comes to fitness, building muscle, and nutrition, protein is key for all of these things. However, I realize that most people think that they have to eat a bunch of meat in order to get the protein needed. I know there are folks out there that don’t eat meat and then think they can’t get involved in a fitness program that builds muscle. Well, I’m here to let you know that this isn’t the case. There are plenty of non-meat foods that are high in protein and go well on a nutrition plan that focuses on building muscle.

Building Blocks

Protein is incredibly important for your body and it’s one of the basic building blocks for all life. Every single cell in your body uses protein to survive. This is why no matter what kind of protein it is, your body can use it for it’s nutrition needs. You need protein in order to repair and rebuild muscle and that’s why it’s key in any fitness program.

Another important thing to note about protein is that they are made up of chains of amino acids and these are the key to your cells being healthy and having the ability to repair themselves when damaged. The three main amino acids you’ll find in protein include essential amino acids, conditional amino acids, and nonessential amino acids. The conditional ones are needed when you get sick, the nonessentials are made by your body from all of the essential amino acids that are in the protein that you eat. Your body does not make its own essesntial amino acids. This is why you need them in your nutrition plan.

Below you’ll find a list of some of the top non-meat foods that are very high in protein and are ones that you might want to add to your diet if you haven’t already.

Tofu

Many people never think of adding this to their nutrition plan, however, you don’t have to be a vegetarian to be able to use it and enjoy it in your food. Tofu is made from soybeans and is often used as a substitute to meat. It is a huge source of protein an it can be cooked in a variety of different ways and you can use different spices to create a great tasting dish without meat. Tofu is great for building muscle and 100 grams gives you 15% of your daily protein and 35% of your daily calcium requirement.

Oysters

These sea creatures don’t often get added to many menus, but they should be considered because they are packed full of proteins. In fact 100 grams of oysters give you 9 grams of protein and they also are full of vitamin B12 which creates energy and can even lower your cholesterol. Also, some believe that eating oysters can help to protect you against some types of cancer. Continue reading