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Exercises to Build Muscle Fast
For Each Muscle Group


Every time you pick up a fitness magazine or flip on the television, there is an advertisement for the latest and greatest strength-training product or supplement.  Crazy looking, swiveling abdominal chairs promise ripped abs in five minutes a day!  But what is really the best way to build muscle fast? 

The truth is that tried-and-true, proven methods of building muscle fast are the way to go.   Sean Nalewanyj, Natural Bodybuilding Expert & Best-Selling Fitness Author, has broken down the basics for building muscle fast by muscle group.

He has conveniently outlined the most effective exercises and stresses that increasing weight when performing basic exercises is the way to go.  You may be surprised to learn that you don’t need a complex regimen of 25 or more exercises per muscle group to effectively build muscle fast.

Chest

No complicated machinery needed here: to efficiently and quickly develop your chest, there is no need to mess around with flye exercises or cable crossovers.  Nalewanyj explains that good old barbell presses, dumbbell presses and wide-grip dips are the best exercises to build muscle fast for this muscle group.

Back

If you have not already been deadlifting, drop what you’re doing and get yourself a barbell.  The next time you are scheduled to work out your back, Nalewanyj explains that the bent-leg barbell deadlift is absolutely the most effective exercise to build muscle fast for your back. 

He does acknowledge that it’s not necessarily the most comfortable, but that it will give you a complete back, neck and even leg and glute workout with a very simple movement and that you will see amazing results in a short period of time.

Shoulders

You have two options here for building muscle fast in the shoulders. The most effective exercises are surprisingly not lateral raises—though they are a nice complement to any shoulder regimen.  No, the most effective shoulder exercises are military and overhead presses, either standing or seated.

You’ll want to perform military presses with a barbell and overhead presses with dumbbells, and be sure to complete these sets before adding any lateral or front raises to ensure the best results in the shoulders.

Biceps / Triceps

What? Biceps curls are not the best way to build your biceps?  That’s correct.  While biceps curls should be integrated into any muscle building routine, the most effective biceps exercises to build muscle fast are actually chin-ups, rows and pull-downs.  Be careful not to overtrain your biceps with too many direct biceps curls and exercises or this may actually slow down your progress.

The same theory applies to triceps as well. While triceps extensions and kickbacks are a great component to your routine, compound chest presses or overhead presses are more effective and stimulate the muscle more than an isolated kickback, resulting in greater gains more quickly.

Abs

Those fad devices shown on late night television will NOT get you the six-pack you desire, because you cannot spot-reduce or spot-tone a single muscle.  Repeat: you cannot spot reduce!  So, stop right there if you think doing endless crunches and sit-ups are going to get you the flat, washboard abs of your dreams. 

The only way to get those defined and sculpted abs is to combine strength training with decreased body fat.  Whether you choose to reduce body fat through diet, cardio, strength training or all of the above, you must reduce overall body fat percentage to see the abdominals.  Doing a few sets of abdominal work can help you strengthen those muscles, so these should not be completely eliminated.

Quadriceps

Squat, squat, and squat some more.  A barbell squat is the most effective way to build muscle fast in your quads, and you’ll also see benefits in your back, hamstrings, glutes and upper body.  If you are just starting out, try your barbell squats in a Smith machine for added safety.

Hamstrings

Leg curls are not the best way to build hamstring strength.  The best way to build muscle fast in your hamstrings is through a straight leg deadlift using either a barbell or a dumbbell.  Not only will you see remarkable muscle gain in your hamstrings, you’ll see benefits in your upper and lower back as well.

Calves

The principle of working your calves to fatigue applies here.  To build muscle fast in your calves, forget about doing multiple sets with moderate weight. This may take a few tries, but increase your weight load until you can only do 8-12 reps before you fatigue. 

Go slowly, concentrate on activating the muscle and use full range of motion, and make sure you absolutely cannot do one more rep after 11 or 12.

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Chris Alexander is the publisher of http://www.totalfitnessreport.com. TotalFitnessReport.com is a website that helps users research popular programs for building muscle by providing unbiased facts and user experiences.