The winning formula for fast gains and getting ripped

I have now realised that it is much easier to create a crazy
ripped body if you follow the right steps from the very beginning when you
first start working out. Following a system whether that system has various
phases or not always works because one, you know that there are specific things
that you are only going to do in that phase and two working in steps allows you
to evaluate your goals and makes it easy to see whether  or not you have achieved the objectives of
that phase.

Thinking and working in phases is sort of like blinders on a
horse, this allows you to block off everything else and concentrate on working
to towards and reaching your goals. This also makes it easier to the see flaws
in your program so that you can make little adjustments that you think will
give you favourable results.

So now I will give you an idea of the kind of systematic
plan I am talking about. I have mentioned it in previous posts but not with
much detail, this is the kind of workout system I would have used in the
beginning had I known any better.

The Formula for Muscle Gains

It is a really basic system; it involves doing compound
exercises, intermittent fasting and doing a 5 day split. I also believe that
even though all workouts work, some work best for certain goals like bulking
and others work best for later when you are no longer looking for big mass
gains but are perfecting your physique, not that one can ever achieve a perfect
physique.

Phase 1: Compound Exercises

To begin with at the early stages you want to gain strength
and as much size as possible and your body pretty much responds to anything if it’s
significant enough to challenge you. It is best not to waste this phase by
doing the wrong exercises that will get you results but not the optimal
results. To gain the most strength you will need to do compound exercises, compound
exercises are great for gaining overall strength because they involve using
most of your bodies’ muscles to lift the weights. They also workout large
body-parts like your back and legs which help you gain both strength and size
because they help to increase secretion of hormones like Human Growth Hormone.

The reason you need to increase you strength in the
beginning is because most people do not have much to begin with, and to lift
big enough weights to gain size you need to first gain strength. Gaining
strength will also make some hard labour around your house more manageable for
you.

I mentioned intermittent fasting, in the early stages it is
good to gain weight but you also want to make sure it is the right kind of
weight gain that is more muscle and as little fat as possible. Intermittent
fasting is great for making lean muscle gains but during this first step you
will be using intermittent fasting geared more towards gaining weight so the
amount of food you eat will be much more than you normally need to eat because
you are looking to get bigger, exercising will burn a lot of calories so some
of that eating is to supplement those lost calories because you need to keep
energy levels high. Eating more will become easier because working out increases
your metabolic rate and you will be hungry all the time.

Workout 3 times per week using compound exercises

Working out 3 times a week is all that is needed to gain
muscle when you first start out, using only the compound exercises, this will
give each of your muscles enough time to recover and grow bigger each week. It
is important that you challenge yourself during this phase or any other phase
for that matter, I mean you have to increase your lifts over time so that your
strength increases and you continue to make gains.

This phase would last for about 3 months, at the end of this
phase you would have gained enough strength and size but you body would not yet
be complete in that it would need some finishing touches, that is where the
second phase comes in.

Phase 2: Mixing Compound & Isolation Exercises

In the second phase you continue to build muscle but at a
slower more detailed pace, now you mix your compound exercises with isolation
exercises with less emphasis on your compound exercises. The aim is to target
specific body parts which you think need the most work; the aim is to add
detail to your body. In this phase you can now break up your workout into a 5
day split where you target different muscle groups per day for 5 days a week
and then have 2 rest days in the week.

During this phase you can do your cardio and abs exercises
on the rest days or you could add abs after your workout every other day and
cardio in the mornings or before your workouts. The intermittent fasting in
this phase should be tweaked according to your current goals, if you want to
get super ripped than you would decrease caloric intake and watch that fat burn
away and reach levels of leanness that you have never achieved before.

This is just one system to get results, there are other
systems that work as well, this is just to say it is better to have a plan or
road map to look at when-ever you embark on a journey, whether in life or in
fitness. Knowing what you are doing and why you are doing it helps you reach
you goals faster and easier than someone who is all over the place, doing
everything under the sun.