Creatine for Bodybuilding

Creatine is a supplement widely used in the bodybuilding circuit as a substance to enhance muscle growth and promote the functions which are involved in creating more muscle mass. In this article I will explain what creatine is, dispel the myths around the supplement and how it can help you achieve your bodybuilding goals.

Creatine is a naturally occurring substance in the human body and it aids your muscles to work at strength for longer - this is its primary function. Since creatine is found in products like meat, people who eat a lot of meat will generally have a higher concentration of creatine in their muscles than say vegetarians or those whom don't eat much meat.

It is also known that taking creatine in the body as an added substance, such as creatine supplements that bodybuilders take, enhances the strength of the muscles and improves recovery time when the muscle actually grows. This is the reason every competitive bodybuilder uses creatine when bulking and adding muscle mass.

When creatine as a supplement first came out there were many myths circulating about the safety of the substance, with stories of weights crashing down on people and alsorts of similar horror stories - while it isn't known why stories like these were spread they have since been proven to be false and creatine is now considered by most to be a safe supplement, just like protein powder or any other common supplement used in bodybuilding.

Creatine will enhance any strength trainers workout session as it allows you to lift for longer, this means instead of burning out at 3 repetitions of a heavy weight, you could in fact lift for a longer period of time, say 10 seconds, along you to complete a full working set of 8 repetitions, which is regards as the best number of reps to promote muscle growth. Due to the fact you lifted heavier for an adequate number of repetitions, the muscles will now repair and grow larger than they would have been able to previously.

Article by Frank Owen, visit his website on creatine for more information on creatine and how it can improve your physique

Avoid Common Bodybuilding|Weightlifting Injuries-Common Mistakes In Gym

Bodybuilding by weightlifting if done wrongly is a sure recipe for injuries. Sometimes even painful and permanent injuries that will derail your bodybuilding program. This article will address the common injury prone mistakes bodybuilders make in their quest to build a fit and muscular body and how to avoid those weightlifting injuries.

Many people who workout in gyms complain about backaches and they blamed it on their desk bound jobs sitting in front of the computer at long stretches of time. Perhaps they are right. Then why is it that more bodybuilders have backaches when compared to their non gym going colleagues?

Aren?t those people who lift weights are supposed to have stronger back muscles to support their musculature and should be less prone to backaches? I think you are getting the drift. Many bodybuilders suffer from common weightlifting injuries that they don?t even know it.

Many people actually think that if they do not suffer any pain when they are lifting weights, they are not injured. I want to debunk this bodybuilding myth right now. You see, many weight lifting injuries are very often sustained over a period of time.

It is because of the wrong weightlifting form being repeated over and over through many training sessions that cause the wear and tear of joints, tendons, cartilages and muscles. Many injuries do not just occur immediately or overnight like the weights dropping on your toes or painful muscle tear during your lifts.

Therefore executing your weightlifting movements in the correct form and techniques not only help your muscles to grow big and fast, it is also crucial to prevent bodybuilding injuries.

Common causes of injuries can also be attributed to lifting weights that are too heavy or that the bodybuilder who may be sick, and yet headed for the gym when his condition is not optimum for handling the weight he usually lift as he is in a physically weakened state.

So when the weights are too heavy or you are too weak to lift the weights you usually do, you are forced to cheat by swinging the weights up using momentum and lowering the weights by using gravity.

These movements not only waste your time in the gym as they are definitely not helpful in helping you build muscles. They will cause injuries.

An example of a common exercise done in the wrong form and a recipe for injuries is the common bar bell curl.

? Barbell Biceps Curl ? This exercise is perhaps the most commonly executed in the wrong form and causing injuries that people don?t even know why they are injured. In every gym, you will see people swinging their barbells with their body rocking thru and fro in the movements.

The rocking movement places tremendous stress on the shoulder joint which is the most unstable joint in the human body and the lower back. Over time, the shoulder joints and lower back will pay a heavy price for the wrong form and technique used during the lift.

Other common bodybuilding exercises which are often wrongly executed are the lat pull down, bench press, leg extension, military press and list goes on.

So the next time when you have backache or joint pain, don?t blame it on other causes if you are a bodybuilder and that you lift weights often. Just reflect on the weightlifting exercises you are doing and examined them as to whether they are the cause of your injuries.

Better yet, hire a personal trainer or a bodybuilding book with picture illustration and description to learn how to lift weights in the correct form and technique to prevent common and serious weight lifting injuries.

Chris Chew is a fitness personal trainer of actors, pageant winners, fashion models and other celebrities. More articles on his websites Lose body fat build lean muscles fast and Choose your fitness trainer

Bodybuilding, Weight Loss and Exercise Tips Goal Setting for Long Term Results.

 Goal setting means you have to think ahead, have some faith, and ask for help!

My name is Greg Ryan. I am a fitness expert, professional bodybuilder personal, trainer to movie stars, former employee of Kathy Smith and over 50, 000 hours of paid personal training sessions under my belt. For the last twenty years I have been able to continually make progress, stay consistent and have some fun in my quest to be in better shape.

Not because I am anything special, or know some magic formula, but because I have learned a few goal and program setting techniques that I would like to share with you. Start incorporating them into your plan today and notice the difference tomorrow.

The very first question I ask each new client that comes to me is this, How long have you been on the same workout program? With out fail most if not all say, Over six months. Then they do not understand why they are not progressing.

Rule 1:

Change your routine up every twelve weeks: Your body adapts to exercise like our bodies adapt to taking antibiotics. For some reason after a period of time it gets use to the same routine. 

Rule 2:

Rest period between twelve week segments: Take a few days off between the twelve segments refreshes you and allows your body to recuperate.

Rule 3:

Keep to ball rolling: There is a let down after you have reached your goal. When you realize that you are going to reach your goal start thinking of the next one. This keeps the momentum going, and decreases the chance of having a let down. 

Rule 4:

You need a carrot: You need some tangible reward for your efforts. Something urgent, something you just have to have. Find it and it will motivate you in the down times. 

Rule 5:

Follow an intensity curve: With in the twelve week segment ramp up your intensity levels in your workouts. Start at eighty percent and by week two you should be at 100 percent.

Rule 6:

One main goal a year: Set one big goal a year with seasonal ones leading up to the big one.

Start with these and see how your motivation goes up through out the year.

START LOSING WEIGHT THE RIGHT WAY FOR GOOD TODAY! FREE MINI COURSE click here www.resolutions.bz Discover the common sense way to lose weight with out dieting  Greg Ryan is a best selling author, former employee of Kathy Smith, and high profile fitness expert.

BREAK

Keeping your bodybuilding diet and fat loss goals.

Fall of last year you figured a donut once in an awhile or some other fat and sugar laden nasty food wouldnt hurt. Your excuse it is the muscle-bulking season or you will work it off. The next thing you know your waist measurement is almost the same size of your chest. You look in the mirror and you see your v-taper look like a square block. You say to your self what the heck happen to all my hard work in the gym? Well all of your hard work is still there if you have been training hard, but it is covered in fat. My better half, my wife once asked me when I was expecting? At that moment, I knew it was time to shed the fat.

Well the first thing to do is to make a final goal. For example, the abdominal muscles showing by May. I used to put pictures of ab shots on my refrigerator to help keep me focused. Now I also keep a watchful eye in the mirror.
When I drop an inch or two off my waist I reward myself. And not with eating a whole pie or chocolate cake. Usually I buy some kind of hiking gear, camera equipment or clothing.
I generally drink two liters of water per day. You can read an article I wrote about water and bodybuilding by clicking on this link . http://www.nature-boy-bodybuilding.com/natureboybodybuilding/id9.html.
Make sure you keep a supply of healthy foods around you to help prevent eating some junk food when you do get hungry. Fresh fruit, nuts, non-fat cottage cheese, you get the idea.
When you start your diet dont go crazy eating little to nothing. If you follow this practice you will lose all the muscle you worked so hard to build. I cycle my carbohydrates and protein around my workout days. I eat the carbs during my bodybuilding workout days and carb deplete on non-bodybuilding workout days. I will increase the protein on the nonworkout days.
Here is a summary of the topics above:

·Use pictures to keep focused on your main goal.
·Reward yourself when you meet your in-between goals.
·Drink plenty of water.
·Always keep plenty of healthy foods around to snack on.
·Dont go crazy dieting.

Make sure that you keep on the right path and you will see your goal of abdominal muscles showing when the warm weather returns. Otherwise your spouse may do like mine and start taking measurements for maternity clothes.

Well the first thing to do is to make a final goal. For example, the abdominal muscles showing by May. I used to put pictures of ab shots on my refrigerator to help keep me focused. Now I also keep a watchful eye in the mirror.
When I drop an inch or two off my waist I reward myself. And not with eating a whole pie or chocolate cake. Usually I buy some kind of hiking gear, camera equipment or clothing.
I generally drink two liters of water per day. You can read an article I wrote about water and bodybuilding by clicking on this link . http://www.nature-boy-bodybuilding.com/natureboybodybuilding/id9.html.
Make sure you keep a supply of healthy foods around you to help prevent eating some junk food when you do get hungry. Fresh fruit, nuts, non-fat cottage cheese, you get the idea.
When you start your diet dont go crazy eating little to nothing. If you follow this practice you will lose all the muscle you worked so hard to build. I cycle my carbohydrates and protein around my workout days. I eat the carbs during my bodybuilding workout days and carb deplete on non-bodybuilding workout days. I will increase the protein on the nonworkout days.
Here is a summary of the topics above:

·Use pictures to keep focused on your main goal.
·Reward yourself when you meet your in-between goals.
·Drink plenty of water.
·Always keep plenty of healthy foods around to snack on.
·Dont go crazy dieting.

Make sure that you keep on the right path and you will see your goal of abdominal muscles showing when the warm weather returns. Otherwise your spouse may do like mine and start taking measurements for maternity clothes.

The author, Kevin Doberstein is a writer for www.nature-boy-bodybuilding. The site is dedicated to natural bodybuilding and preserving nature and wildlife. Water, forest, soil and wildlife conservation is paramount to Nature boy. You can contact Nature boy at natureboy_bodybuilding@hotmail.com.

Powerful Bodybuilding Exercises for Ultimate Muscle-Growth

 It's a fact. If you want to catapult your natural testosterone levels and march your metabolism to the next level, make sure that your weight training program, puts into action the magic trio, and that's bench presses, dead lifts & squats.

Most trainees miss out one, or two of those fundamental exercises, with unacceptable excuses, like: "Squats and dead lifts are designated for the
hard core bodybuilders", or "Deadlifts can be detrimental to your skeletal bones".
If you want to reach your optimum genetic capacity, you just can't ignore the "magic trio".
Those are crucial compound movements which recruit the most of your muscular tissues, and as a consecutive effect, trigger muscle optimum growth.
One of your most important hormones, the "testosterone", is excreted successfully each time you perform squats, dead lifts and bench presses, more than any other exercise!
Your system is literally forced to produce even more testosterone,
to correspond to demanding movements that the magic trio imposes.

The benefits of basic/compound exercises are unsurpassed:

-> Your body excretes more testosterone & growth hormones, thus greater muscularity

-> Your metabolism eventually speeds up by transforming your system to a potential "fat burner" and "muscle-builder"

-> Your strength levels are increased dramatically

-> Your system improves its' oxygenation capacity

To reap all the advantages of a dynamic weight training session, keep sets no more than 3-6 per muscle group, while resting 2-4 minutes between sets.


The trick to knowing when you're prepared for the next set,
is to wait until your heart-beat restores its' normal pace.

Ideally, the normal heart-beat is when you are walking in a steady pace, like when going out for a typical walk.

In conclusion, compound exercises like Bench-Press, Squats and Deadlifts, are a "must" for triumphant achievements
in sheer power and ultimate muscle-mass.

Want to take a brief and proven test, to measure your level of success with bodybuilding? Here's a quiz,at:
http://bodybuildingtips.net/quiz

Most trainees miss out one, or two of those fundamental exercises, with unacceptable excuses, like: "Squats and dead lifts are designated for the
hard core bodybuilders", or "Deadlifts can be detrimental to your skeletal bones".



If you want to reach your optimum genetic capacity, you just can't ignore the "magic trio".

Those are crucial compound movements which recruit the most of your muscular tissues, and as a consecutive effect, trigger muscle optimum growth.



One of your most important hormones, the "testosterone", is excreted successfully each time you perform squats, dead lifts and bench presses, more than any other exercise!

Your system is literally forced to produce even more testosterone,
to correspond to demanding movements that the magic trio imposes.

The benefits of basic/compound exercises are unsurpassed:


-> Your body excretes more testosterone & growth hormones, thus greater muscularity

-> Your metabolism eventually speeds up by transforming your system to a potential "fat burner" and "muscle-builder"

-> Your strength levels are increased dramatically

-> Your system improves its' oxygenation capacity

To reap all the advantages of a dynamic weight training session, keep sets no more than 3-6 per muscle group, while resting 2-4 minutes between sets.


The trick to knowing when you're prepared for the next set,
is to wait until your heart-beat restores its' normal pace.

Ideally, the normal heart-beat is when you are walking in a steady pace, like when going out for a typical walk.

In conclusion, compound exercises like Bench-Press, Squats and Deadlifts, are a "must" for triumphant achievements
in sheer power and ultimate muscle-mass.

Want to take a brief and proven test, to measure your level of success with bodybuilding? Here's a quiz,at:
http://bodybuildingtips.net/quiz

Know Your Bodybuilding Supplement - NO Nitric Oxide

Nitric oxide is a free form gas produced by the body in order to communicate with other cells. It is created when enzymes break down the amino acid arginine. The main benefit of nitric oxide is its role in controlling the circulation of blood and regulating activities of the brain, lungs, liver, stomach and other organs. It also helps in the control of blood pressure, dilates blood vessels to cause penile erection and is used by the immune system to fight viral, bacterial and parasitic infections.

It is the ability of nitric oxide to increase blood flow that is of most interest to bodybuilders who can benefit as follows:

1. The increased blood flow delivers more nutrients to the muscle cells thus helping them to grow during the adaptation and recovery phase.

2. Its ability to reduce inflammation helps muscles that have been subjected to extreme stresses.

Given its close relationship with arginine care should be taken in applying small doses and increasing them gradually until an optimum level is reached. Bear in mind that many protein powders and other supplements are fortified with amino acids so check the labels carefully. The manufacturer's instructions should be followed in all instances.

It is the ability of nitric oxide to increase blood flow that is of most interest to bodybuilders who can benefit as follows:

1. The increased blood flow delivers more nutrients to the muscle cells thus helping them to grow during the adaptation and recovery phase.

2. Its ability to reduce inflammation helps muscles that have been subjected to extreme stresses.

Given its close relationship with arginine care should be taken in applying small doses and increasing them gradually until an optimum level is reached. Bear in mind that many protein powders and other supplements are fortified with amino acids so check the labels carefully. The manufacturer's instructions should be followed in all instances.

Rick Mitchell is the creator of the bodybuildingadvisor.com website that provides guidance and information to athletes at all levels of bodybuilding experience. Go to Bodybuilding Advice to learn more about the issues covered in this article.

Know your bodybuilding supplement - tribulus

Tribulus terrestris is a herb that comes from a plant found in Asia. It has been used in the past by many cultures for the treatment of liver, kidney and cardiovascular diseases. It has also been used as a diuretic and to treat infertility. In recent years strength athletes in eastern Europe are reputed to have used it to enhance performance.

It is believed to enhance testosterone levels by encouraging the production of lutenizing hormone. Studies have shown that when lutenizing hormone levels are increased, the natural production of testosterone also increases.

It is difficult to assess the validity of tribulus as a muscle growth enhancer because none of the studies carried out have appeared in peer-reviewed scientific journals. Its proponents do suggest that it can prove useful when stacked with 100 mg of DHEA and 100 mg of androstenedione but this takes us into the equally uncertain territory of prohormones which we have covered in a separate article.

If you do wish to experiment with tribulus you can take 750-1250 mg per day divided between meals. Some people experience stomach upsets but this can be minimized by taking it with food. There's no guarantee that tribulus terrestris will help you grow bigger muscles but many users report a much improved sex drive!

Richard Mitchell is the creator of the bodybuildingadvisor.com website that provides guidance and information to athletes at all levels of bodybuilding experience. Go to Bodybuilding Advice to learn more about the issues covered in this article.


Know your bodybuilding supplement - ZMARichard MitchellZMA is a scientifically designed anabolic mineral formula containing zinc monomethionine aspartate, magnesium aspartate and vitamin B-6. Studies have shown that it has a clinical effect on testosterone levels when taken in a combination containing 30 mg of zinc and 450 mg of magnesium per day. The most famous study conducted by Lorrie Brilla at Western Washington University indicated that this combination could raise testosterone levels by as much as 30%.

Bodybuilders can obviously benefit from taking ZMA, specifically in the following ways:

1. It increases the body's natural production of testosterone thus boosting its capacity for building lean muscle.

2. It increases levels of growth hormone.

3. It helps sleep if taken 30-60 minutes before bed thus enhancing rest and recovery.

ZMA has no known side effects but it must be taken in the proper dosage to the exact proportions used in most studies - that is 11 mg of vitamin B-6, 450 mg of magnesium and 30 mg of zinc.

Richard Mitchell is the creator of the bodybuildingadvisor.com website that provides guidance and information to athletes at all levels of bodybuilding experience. Go to Bodybuilding Advice to learn more about the issues covered in this article.

How To Choose The Best Low Impact Home Gym Equipment

More and more, we are reminded to exercise to get in shape and maintain good health. Unfortunately, many of the exercise options that are offered to help us can hurt us at the same time. High impact exercises burn a lot of calories and offer good cardiovascular benefits. At the same time, they can damage joints and bones. There are now options available that have the same benefits as high impact exercises but also minimize the chance of injury.

There are several great low impact pieces of exercise equipment. Three of these are:

Exercise bikes
Rowing Machines
Elliptical Trainer

Let's examine each of these exercise machines.

Exercise Bikes

Exercise bikes come in two main forms, upright and recumbent. The upright bike is like regular bikes in that you are sitting upright when using it. The benefit of an upright bike is that you can use it sitting down or standing up. Alternating sitting and standing will burn more calories by increasing exertion.

The recumbent bike leans back and your feet are positioned in front of you. These bikes offer more comfort and back support, but burn fewer calories since you have to remain in a seated position. Both styles of bike offer good exercise benefits, but mainly just exercise your legs. The prices range from $300-$600.

Rowing Machines

Rowing machines are built to simulate rowing a boat. They provide a good workout, not just for rowers but also for anyone seeking a good overall form of exercise. They range in price from $100 all the way up to $1500, depending on the quality of the machine and the options available. They offer four forms of resistance:

Air-This works by using a fan. As you pull on the bike, the fan spins and simulates the feel of rowing an actual boat.

Hydraulics-This works through hydraulic cylinders or pistons. While less expensive, they don't work as smoothly as others.

Water-This works by pulling bars through a small water tank and comes closest to simulating actual boat rowing.

Magnetism-As the title suggests these models use magnets. They offer a smooth, quiet ride and are more expensive.

Elliptical Trainers

Elliptical trainers also offer a good workout. The movement of the pedals combines the benefits of both a treadmill and an exercise bike. This works by standing upright on the pedals, which move around a large wheel. Since many have cross training bars that move back and forth, you get both an upper and lower body workout. The prices range from $200 up to $2500 for elliptical machines. Choose one with the following attributes:

Large wheel in front for sturdiness
Magnetic breaks for longer wear
Articulating footpads to keep circulation in your feet
A stride length between 18 and 21 inches.

When determining which piece of equipment is best for you, consider all the facts presented here. This way you can decide which machine is the right one for you.

Gregg Hall is an author living in Navarre Florida. Find more about this as well as other Fitness Equipment

http://www.fitnessequipmentplus.com