Information on Loughborough

Big Sleep For Big Muscles

Health Clubs and Fitness Centres

Big Sleep For Big MusclesBy Ryan Kelly

Are you waking up in the middle of the night? Can you not fall asleep at bedtime no matter what? This is not only an inconvenience, it can greatly harm your gains in the gym. Muscle grows during sleep, so if you're not getting enough sleep you're not getting all the muscle you worked for!

How much sleep people need varies widely. Some people might need 7 hours a night, some may need 10 or more. For a weightlifter, however, more is better. Sleep not only builds muscle, however it gives us energy for our daily lives (and workouts!)

If you are not getting enough sleep, it may simply be due to stress. Stress is, of course, a part of daily life, however if you are experiencing more stress than usual it may hurt your sleep. When you are working out in the gym, try to release some of that stress on the weights. It also may be because of major life changes or work hours, however the sleep disruption from these factors should diminish with time.

Hopefully,the cause of the disruption is not physiological. If you have trouble sleeping for more than a few weeks, however, it might be a physiological issue. If this is the case you should probably see a sleep doctor. Among strength athletes who have a very large amount of muscle mass on their body sleep apnea is a fairly common problem, and only a sleep doctor can help you with that. In any case, get 8-10 hours per night for the greatest muscular gains possible!

Ryan is a 275 pound natural bodybuilder from Arizona. He runs the Muscle Building Section of Good E-Books.com, where he lists his favorite books for building muscle mass. Visit http://www.goode-books.com/gainmuscle.html today to see Ryan's picks!

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Squat to Parallel

Health Clubs and Fitness Centres

Squat to ParallelBy Ryan Kelly

How low can you go? How low SHOULD you go?

I'm talking of course about Squats, and the never ending debate about whether it is better to go to parallel, where your legs are at a right angle, or if you should go as low as you can. The advantage of going all the way down, to the point where you buttocks touches your heels, is that you get a wider range of motion and thus more stimulation for the quadriceps and hamstrings. The disadvantage is that this is very hard on the knees. The situation is reversed for squats where you go to parallel, where you get less stimulation on the muscles of the leg however also less knee stress.

Ultimately, it depends on what you want. If you are a bodybuilder who needs to have every angle of every muscle perfectly proportioned, you will probably want to go as low as you can. Sure your knees will suffer, however if you really cared about your joints you would not be a bodybuilder. If you are someone who wants to be in better shape however who is notcompeting in any sports, the stress on the knees is not worth the minor extra muscle gains.

In the final equation, I strongly recommend that most people only go to parallel. The minor extra stimulation to the quadriceps and hamstrings provided by going past parallel is far outweighed by the extra stress on the knees. Fitness is a lifetime endeavor, and we are only slowing ourselves down by harming our joints!

The bottom line: squat to parallel

Ryan is a 275 pound natural bodybuilder from Arizona. He runs the Muscle Building Section of Good E-Books.com, where he lists his favorite books for building muscle mass. Visit http://www.goode-books.com/gainmuscle.html today to see Ryan's picks!

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How to Look Like a Fitness Model

Health Clubs and Fitness Centres

How to Look Like a Fitness ModelBy Ryan Kelly

Women often ask me what they can do to get toned and healthy without looking like a female bodybuilder straight out of ESPN2. Well, the good news is that women cannot gain that much muscle mass naturally. Testosterone is necessary to gain muscle mass, and women simply do not have a lot of it naturally. Those women on ESPN2 are injecting testosterone... or to put it another way, they are using steroids. All steroids do is mimic testosterone, making the body think it has more than it does. If you don't put those substances in your body, you won't look like the women of ESPN2.

Since you cannot gain large amounts of muscle mass as a woman, it makes no sense to do bodybuilder-style low rep workouts with high weight. You would just end up hurting your joints without doing any good for your body. Of course, despite even this you could do them, however they will not do you much good since you simply won't gain the muscle that males do. What you should do is high repetition weight resistance work and a lot of cardio. Thehigh rep weight resistance work will tone your muscles while the cardio will burn away excess body fat, leaving you with the physique of a fitness model!

This "fitness model" look is what the women from the cover of magazines like Muscle and Fitness Hers have, and it is very sexy. These women are not on steroids, and they do not look like men! Instead, they are strong, toned women. Do workouts with high reps and low weight with a lot of cardio to look like this yourself.

Ryan is a 275 pound natural bodybuilder from Arizona. He runs the Muscle Building Section of Good E-Books.com, where he lists his favorite books for building muscle mass. Visit http://www.goode-books.com/gainmuscle.html today to see Ryan's picks!