Techniques to Get Lean, Build Muscle Fast, and Get Ripped

There’s a simple fact we all come to accept… building muscle is not the easiest thing to accomplish even with regular workout schedules and using every type of workout and nutritional supplement.

I struggled for years to gain any significant muscle mass, but over time with experimentation in my personal training I have found some important things that have helped make significant muscle gains possible even for those who have found it hard to gain.

And I’d like to share these 3 important tips with you so you can start building lean muscle mass faster and easier.
First, make sure that 95% of the exercises you perform regularly in the gym are big multi-joint compound exercises. Whether your goal is fat loss or building muscle... big multi-joint exercises should comprise 95% of the exercises you do in your workouts if you want to get lean, ripped, and powerful.

It's easiest to think of it in terms of the major movement patterns such as these (focus 95% of your workouts on these):

• upper body horizontal press movements (bench press, pushups, dips),

• upper body horizontal rowing movements (1-arm dumbbell rows, seated cable rows, bent over barbell rows),

• upper body vertical pulling exercises (lat pull downs, pull ups, chin ups),

• upper body vertical press movements (overhead dumbbell and barbell presses, barbell or kettlebell clean & presses)

• lower body squatting routines (front squats, back squats, overhead squats, bodyweight squats, etc)

• lower body deadlifting exercises (regular deadlifts, sumo deadlifts, Romanian deadlifts)

• lower body single leg movements (lunges, step-ups, jump lunges, etc)

• abdominal and core exercises (these are also important, but are still second priority to the major upper body and lower body multi-joint movements listed above... your abs and core will be worked from most major multi-joint exercises anyway)

The other 5% of your exercises can be focused on single joint exercises like bicep curls, tricep presses, shoulder shrugs, shoulder lateral raises, pec flyes, calf presses, etc, etc. These are also called isolation exercises. Keep in mind, however, that these exercises are only accessory exercises to do after the multi-joint drills which should be your main focus.

Second, your training should be hard and intense 3 or 4 days each week for 45 to 60 minutes per weight training workout. Do not exceed 60 minutes for your workouts since training too much beyond this point can trigger excess catabolism. Keep your exercise routine in the anabolic range, but train your body hard and intensely enough to trigger muscle growth.

Maximize the intensity of your training by using a super-set style of workout program. Use movement patterns which don't interfere with each other such as opposing upper and lower body routines. A couple good examples of these opposing routines are squats coupled with pullups as a superset, or bench presses coupled with deadlifts as a superset.

These upper and lower body supersets done with heavy weights and a high intensity are very effective and their benefits should not be underestimated. You will probably find, as I did, that you’ll see significant massive muscle gains from doing these types of workout combos regularly while still mixing up your training variables.

Almost any effective workout program should use these supersets as the mainstays of the program. Then you can adjust your caloric intake according to your goal, whether you’re working to burn fat or build muscle mass.

The third part of building lean muscule is to be aware of the foods you eat, and consume only real, high quality, whole foods. Think of food as fuel, and remember that the engine won’t run well with poor quality fule. Highly processed foods and over-hyped supplement powders and bars should be avoided.

The highest quality nutrients you can consume are those your body can assimilate. Protein, vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants from real whole foods such as eggs, meats, dairy (preferably raw), fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, etc. are more easily assimilated than those from processed protein powders, chemical-laden bars, and meal replacements.

You’re better off skipping the hyped up workouts you see in the muscle magazines. Those work for pro bodybuilders or people on steroids, but not for people who are trying to just build muscle. Remember that the over-hyped supplement "stacks" simply pay the bills for almost every muscle magazine and skip them. Make the tips in this article part of your lifestyle instead, and you'll see real muscle gains and a leaner, ripped body like you've never seen before!

If you want to get a lean, six-pack chiseled body, use these tips to build muscle and get a lean sexy body the right way.