Compound exercises like squats, deadlifts, presses, and pull-ups will help you gain muscle more efficiently and increase your strength. You'll also maximize your time in the gym by working several muscles at a time. Make compound exercises the core of your workout, and add some isolation training when you can.
Quicker Results: Compound Sets
Compound sets involve two different exercises for the same muscle group without resting in between. A chest-building example: Do a set of dumbbell bench presses and then a set of pec flys. This exhausts the muscle quickly and thoroughly, which helps it grow.
Quickest way to gain muscle is to lift weights. Heavier and less reps is better for mass than more reps and lighter weights.
Typically, the muscles in the lower body, such as the quadriceps and hamstrings, tend to grow faster due to their size and the heavy loads they can handle. Additionally, the chest (pectorals) and back muscles (latissimus dorsi) often show noticeable growth relatively quickly with proper training.
The lats tend to be one of the hardest muscles to develop.
Increase the intensity of your workouts instead of working out for long periods of time. Make sure you're getting enough calories and protein in your diet for muscle growth. Get plenty of sleep and give your muscles time for recovery. Try supplements for more strength, energy, and power, like creatine and HMB.
Full-body workouts work best for most people
Compound movements like deadlifts give you the most bang for your buck (buck = time). There are a few reasons for this, but the main reason most people should do full-body workouts over split workouts is time.
Resistance training promotes muscle growth. Examples of resistance training include the use of free weights, weight machines, your own body weight or resistance bands. Suggestions include: Train just two or three times per week to give your muscles time to recover.
Downtime between workouts (whether you're lifting, doing cardio or training for a sport) is when our bodies have a chance to actually build muscle. Strenuous workouts cause muscle breakdown, while rest allows our bodies to build it back up.
Squats, which work the quadriceps, hamstrings, and glutes, are an excellent example. "They give you the best bang for the buck because they use the most muscle groups at once," says trainer David Petersen of Oldsmar, FL.
The 6-12-25 Protocol is a powerhouse training protocol that harnesses the intensity of giant sets to pack high-volume work into a short period. By targeting one muscle group or body part per set, this method takes you through three different exercises with minimal rest, hitting 6, 12, and 25 reps in quick succession.
Mesomorphs and endomorphs both gain weight quickly, whereas ectomorphs find it more difficult to gain weight. Another factor is muscle gain. Mesomorphs and endomorphs gain muscle quickly, while ectomorphs do not. An endomorph would have a rounder or curvier figure than a mesomorph.
“You can lift lighter weights, and as long as you lift them with a high degree of effort, they're as good as heavier weights in making you bigger,” he says. Using a home gym machine or even just your own body weight, like with push-ups or lunges, works.
HIIT (High-intensity interval training) is ideal for beginners or seasoned athletes alike. The idea is to perform an exercise to your maximum ability for 45 seconds, take a rest and then repeat the process again. HIIT is designed to build more lean muscle mass than traditional workouts and boosts metabolic rate.
Walking. Walking is simple, yet powerful. It can help you stay trim, improve cholesterol levels, strengthen bones, keep blood pressure in check, lift your mood, and lower your risk for a number of diseases (diabetes and heart disease, for example).
The push/pull/legs split is probably the most efficient workout split there is because all related muscle groups are trained together in the same workout. This means that you get the maximum overlap of movements within the same workout, and the muscle groups being trained get an overall benefit from this overlap.
To achieve strength and up your muscle growth, you'll have to lift heavy weights for fewer repetitions (six or fewer reps) and longer rest periods. Powerlifters use this method. Either way, you have to continue to challenge yourself to see continued growth over time.
The solution is to lift weights — often enough, long enough, and heavy enough. "Weight training is the best way to keep the muscle mass you have and even increase muscle mass you may have lost with aging," says Shawn Pedicini, a physical therapist at Harvard-affiliated Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital.
Getting big muscles in 2 weeks might not be possible, but you can see some changes in muscle size within 2 weeks. Some of the best techniques to build muscle fast are: Pushing as hard as you can against a heavy weight for 10-12 reps. Fast concentric phase, slow eccentric phase for 15 reps.