Bodybuilding Dream » Workouts and Diets to build your dream body

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October 22, 2012

Anabolic steroids are synthetic substances that are used to mimic testosterone and promote muscle growth. Although sometimes used for medicinal purposes, most steroids are used illegally by athletes and bodybuilders to increase their performance and/or size. Today, many women bodybuilders are actively embracing the use of anabolic steroids to enhance physical performance, often resulting in devastating effects on their bodies.

Since the 1960s, anabolic steroids have been used to enhance muscle growth by many individuals, particularly those in the fitness/bodybuilding industry. Since that time, women bodybuilders have become increasingly succeptible to using these synthetic hormones, not only to enhance performance and to gain muscle mass, but also to obtain more favorable ratings in the many bodybuilding competitions offered today. Sadly, there are some bodybuilding competitions that do not appropriately regulate the illegal use of anaboliic steroids by their competitors, so individuals are often more freely able to compete with significant advantages over their naturally-enhanced counterparts. Continue reading →

It’s Time To Bulk Up Those Skinny Calves

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October 13, 2012

Come on, admit it. You’ve had skinny calves your whole life, and you just assumed that they’re never going to be a strong point for you.

Think again. It’s time to turn that attitude around and make those calves pop! To really jolt your calves into a new growth spurt, you’re going to have to change up your regular routine for the next 2 or 3 months.

First, I want you to stop doing calves at the end of your leg workout and start doing them on their own 2-3 times per week. You can either do a “Calf Day”, or you can do a double-split where you work calves in the morning and chest and shoulders in the evening (or something like that). This added focus on your calves will shock them out of their complacency and get them growing.

One of the keys to effectively developing the calves is to be sure to use a full range of motion. Don’t rush and bounce through set after set like those guys around you. Take your time and feel every rep of every set. Continue reading →

Five Protein Supplements that Help Build Mass

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October 10, 2012

Protein is the most important consideration for a bodybuilder, when it comes to constructing their diet. After being broken down by an intense lifting session, this macro-nutrient is essential in rebuilding and growing new muscle mass. Ideally, most of the protein a physique athlete consumes should come from quality food sources. However, this can be a challenge, when a bodybuilder is trying to consume at least one gram of protein per pound of bodyweight. This is why protein supplementation is such a fortunate commodity. When choosing a protein supplement, there are several options, which are beneficial at different times and for different reasons. Five of the most common protein supplements include: whey concentrate, whey isolate, casein, soy, and egg proteins. Continue reading →

How Nutrition Relates to Bodybuilding

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October 7, 2012

Nutrition plays a very important role in bodybuilding. In fact, if you do not eat the right types of foods, you may still fail to reach your goals even if you are training every day. That is why you need to make sure that you are following a good nutrition program. Below are some of the characteristics of a good bodybuilding nutrition program:

Small, Frequent Feedings

It is best for bodybuilders to eat small, frequent meals instead of three large ones. Studies have shown that eating frequently helps increase metabolism. When your metabolism increases, your body burns more fat. You should try to eat between four to six meals per day. You should also try to eat every three or four hours.

Every Meal Should Have the Correct Ratio of Carbohydrates, Protein and Fat

You will not get the results that you want if you do not eat balanced meals. Forty percent of the calories in your diet should be derived from carbohydrates, and forty percent of the calories should be derived from protein. The remaining 20 percent of the calories should come from fat. For example, you want to eat a meal that has 600 calories. Two hundred and forty calories should be derived from carbohydrates, 240 calories should be derived from protein and 120 calories should be derived from fat. Carbohydrates and protein have four calories per gram, and fat has nine calories per gram.

Drink Plenty of Water

You also need to make sure that you are drinking plenty of water. Water helps flush toxins and waste out of the body. It can also increase metabolism slightly. You should drink a minimum of eight glasses of water per day.

Can You Bulk up and Cut at The Same Time?

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October 5, 2012

In an ideal world, fitness gurus would love to be able to cut and bulk at the same time. Who wouldn’t want to gain large amounts of muscle while trimming any ounce of fat they have left on their bodies? The reality is that your body couldn’t handle both processes at the same time unless several conditions existed at the same time, and one of them would be using steroids. Steroids are unhealthy and discouraged, so you would have a hard time cutting and bulking at the same time.

Let’s say you wanted to know why you can’t cut and bulk at the same time. The first reason is that these processes are contradictory and they do different things to the body. To cut fat you want you burn more calories than you consume on a daily basis. Bulking calls for intense weightlifting while eating as many calories as you like. You simply can’t do both at the same time from a fundamental perspective. Continue reading →

5 Ways To Get More Massive Legs

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October 2, 2012

If you have ever gone to a gym to work out, chances are you have seen those guys gathered around the Smith machine doing squats with unbelievable amounts of weight. The more time you spend in the gym, the more likely you are to think you need to use the same amount of weight in order to get legs like those guys. This simply isn’t true. Fortunately, there are several ways to get massive legs, without spending hours each day in the gym. Continue reading →

Did Jay Cutler take Steroids?

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September 26, 2012

News flash: Jay Cutler Admits to Taking Anabolic Steroids

The use of anabolic steroids has been a major point of contention in the world of professional bodybuilding. It is widely known that the use of steroids is illegal and causes a slew of health problems. It is also commonly accepted that steroid use is a fact of life for bodybuilders who wish to reach the most elite levels of competition.

Jay Cutler, one of the world’s most successful competitive bodybuilders has admitted to using steroids. In a deleted scene from the popular steroid documentary Bigger Stronger Faster the four-time Mr. Olympia states: “You do what you do to be the best at what you do. You do what you do to win.” It is clear that he is echoing a sentiment that is commonplace in fitness circles. If everybody is using steroids to maintain a competitive edge, then it is necessary for those with championship ambitions to also take steroids to stay in the game.

Cutler is not alone in his acknowledgement of steroid use. Highly decorated bodybuilder Ronnie Coleman has previously admitted to the use of steroids. Dorian Yates has gone so far as to publicly share his exact regimen of steroids for various parts of the bodybuilding season. It is clear that in the minds of those who have reached the upper echelons of competitive bodybuilding, steroids are not just a mere source of a competitive edge. They are a necessity.

Alternatives To Flat Barbell Bench Presses

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September 26, 2012

The Flat Barbell Bench Press is the standard bodybuilding exercise for developing the chest, but many lifters find that years of benching has taken its toll on their shoulder joints. So what options are available when the traditional Bench Press just isn’t practical anymore?

Below are 3 other exercises you can perform to continue developing your chest if shoulder pain is preventing you from performing regular Bench Presses. Also, consider perfoming some rotator cuff movements on a weekly basis to help stabilize the area. Continue reading →

Cancel Arm Day And Get HUGE

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September 24, 2012

If you’ve been working out at the gym for awhile, you’ve probably seen the skinny guys doing hour-long workouts where they do nothing but curls and pressdowns. You know who I’m talking about, right? Not you, though…not you.

The beloved “Arm Day” has been a part of bodybuilding tradition since before most of us were born. Many great bodybuilding champions have dedicated entire workouts to their arms over the years, and since their arms are so huge, many novices will assume that the way to huge arms is by adding “Arm Day” to their calendar. Continue reading →

How Compound Exercises Help Make Your Workout More Efficient

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September 19, 2012

Many people have the preconceived notion that bodybuilders need hours and hours of workout time almost every day to accomplish their goals. While some do indeed put this much work in, you can streamline your workout with proper choice of exercises. Many of the staple exercises you associate with free weights at the gym target specific muscle groups. Your routine can be made significantly more efficient with the addition of compound exercises. These moves work many different muscle groups at the same time. By working on more than one area of your physique, you can get more work done in fewer overall reps. This will save you huge amounts of time. Continue reading →