With all the hard work and sweat you put into your exercise regimen at your local
iron jungle, the last thing you want to do is short change your gains by making
these 3 common mistakes...
1. Not setting short term, realistic goals
It's easy to get sucked into the supplement company ads promising gains of "20
lbs in the next 3 days!". while posing a steroid-using pro behind a bottle
of "magic pills".
Unrealistic expectations only lead to frustration...which leads to NEVER making
the gains you're after.
Although there are programs that will allow you to make above average gains, average
bodybuilders should shoot for about 2 lbs of lean muscle mass per month.
This may not seem like much, but at the end of a year...you have an extra 24 lbs.
of LEAN MUSCLE on your body! Picture THAT in your bathroom mirror!
2. Not tracking your progress
Are those extra pounds on the scale coming from the muscle you've been working so
hard at developing...or are they added FAT from your increased calories?!
Sure you need to eat more in order to grow, but unless you know precisely the right
balance of what to take in versus the sweat you're putting in at the gym, the "mass"
you put on may be closer to your stomach than your chest.
Calculating your body fat readings and comparing your results with previous readings
will tell you EXACTLY where your gains are coming from.
You can measure your own readings at home or check with your local fitness center
on the services they provide.
3. Sacrificing form for ego
A quick question for you...
Which is more important...impressing the "no-necks" at the gym for 45
minutes a day with the amount of weight you can load up on the bar...or impressing
your friends and coworkers the other 15 hours of the day with a body you can really
show off?
If you chose the latter then make sure you're using a weight that's only enough
to allow you to reach muscular failure at your target reps with the strictest of
form.
Loading too much weight on the bar forces you to "cheat" by depending
on other muscles to do the work your "target" muscles can't.
By using the exercise's full range of motion and focusing on the muscles designed
for the movement, you're guaranteed to stimulate deep growth that will pay off well
after you've left the gym floor.