Learn how to maximize your anabolic window of growth and you'll add pounds of rippled new muscle almost instantly.
To build lean, powerful, rock hard, muscle you must lift weights with intensity. But, you already know that. You also need to provide a constant supply of protein, carbohydrates and good fats to your body throughout each day. Weight training stimulates muscle growth and strength increases, while the combination of proteins, carbs and fats fuels your body with the entry and tools it needs to accelerate the process.
If you've been lifting weights consistently for only a few months or many years, you've no doubt learned that building muscles isn't always as easy as it seems to be for a select few people in your gym. Those are the lucky ones who don't seem to be overly dedicated and yet make consistent progress every year.
While exercise routines may vary, most people train hard enough to bring about significant gains in muscle and strength. So why, then, doesn't everyone progress at the same rate? Of course genetics play a part but that's beyond our control. A more important factor has to do with recuperation and more specifically how fast or slow you recover and rebuild from hard weight training session. The faster you recover from workouts, the faster you will increase your muscle mass and strength levels. Sounds good, right? Speed up your recuperation time and chiseled muscles mass combined with constant strength increase will logically follow.
Think of it this way, the faster you recover from training sessions, the more often you'll be able to train without overtraining. And if you're constantly maximizing your training session, basically turning each one into an anabolic experience, you will gain muscle and strength with each workout. On the other hand, if you don't fully recover from your workouts, each time you go back into the gym it can be counterproductive. It can turn each session into a catabolic experience and its the primary reason, why training on its on own, is not enough to guarantee muscle gains.
Once again genetics play a part in how quickly (or slowly) you'll recover from your workout and unfortunately there is not much you can do about it. However, there is a way to greatly increase your body's ability to recover rapidly and completely from the muscle breakdown that occur during hard training. And that is completely within your control thus placing you in charge of your muscle building destiny.
The most important factor in recovering from intense training is maximizing the anabolic window with specific post workout nutrition. You're probably saying to yourself - "that's nothing new. I eat after my workouts." Well, the secret to faster recovery is understanding exactly what to eat and precisely after training. If you're really serious about building the physique you've been striving for it it's not simply enough to eat haphazardly, at some point after training. You have to be as committed to your post workout nutrition as you are to the workout itself. Despite how obvious that may seem, you'll find very few serious bodybuilders who adhere to that principle so vital to muscle growth. If you want more muscle and strength you have to make the commitment right now, to follow the simple guidelines concerning the anabolic window and post workout nutrition.
How important is the post workout meal. It's at least as important as the workout itself, may be more important. If you don't realize that fact and priorities when and what you eat or drink after training, you can forget about building ripped muscle mass.
So what exactly is the anabolic window? The anabolic window is the time frame immediately following intense weight training. The anabolic window is open for a short period of time lasting only for about 45 minutes after finishing a workout. Ideally you should eat within 10 to 30 minutes after training. And the anabolic window only opens up completely if you train extremely hard. A hardcore workout is like the hulk ripping the window out of the frame that gets job done completely.
When this window opens your body is able to absorb protein more quickly and completely than at any other time. And when your body is able to absorb protein ( when protein synthesis is optimized), you will experience rapid gains in your muscle mass, which will in turn result in strength increases. Your body is capable of using protein for muscle gain and repair throughout each day, so you need to eat a constant supply of protein. But when anabolic window is opened the ability to absorb protein is intensified. Most of the time protein synthesis is like street racing with high octane fuel but when you open the anabolic window, its like switching on the nitrous for supercharged power.
Think about a soccer goal, or a hockey goal, its still possible to score when the goalie is guarding the goal, But because someone is trying to keep the ball or puck out of the net, it's not guaranteed. Some shots get through, others get blocked. But when the goalie is out position or pulled late in the game, its simple to put the shot into an empty net. When you open the anabolic window, your body's protein receptor sites are like an empty net just waiting to be flooded with protein. There's nothing to preventing protein from being maximally absorbed.
Part 2 continued....
