0 Keys to Muscle Building

If your goal from a weight lifting program is primarily to build muscle there are a few factors that are essential to consider and implement in designing your exercise routines to maximize the amount of muscle you build.

Multi Joint Exercises - A multi-joint exercise is an exercise that utilizes multiple muscle groups; examples of a multi-joint exercise include the bench press, squat, and pull up.
The benefit that multi-joint exercises provide is that they are more likely to result in an increase in the body's level of testosterone. Testosterone is a hormone that is fundamental in muscle development and is often injected by athletes who are illegally trying to bulk up for competition.
Heavy Resistance - Typically to encourage muscle development you will want to have the amount of weight you lift be between 67% to 85% percent of your one repetition maximum for that given exercise. Your one repetition maximum is the amount of weight that you can only complete one repetition of a given exercise with. This amount of resistance has been shown to be most beneficial in increasing muscle size for two reasons. First, heavy weight loads (particularly above 75% percent of your one repetition max) can help contribute to increased levels of testosterone. Second, heavier loads lead to another important factor in muscle-building, muscle fatigue. To effectively build muscle working your muscle until it is fatigued is essential and heavier loads will increase the likelihood of your muscles fatiguing. Muscle fatigue is when your ability to lift decreases due to the strain that you have placed on your muscles. It can often feel like your muscles shaking or just feeling generally weak.
Short Rest Time - Keeping the time of rest between sets down is another key component of muscle development. This is for the two reasons we discussed above, increased fatiguing of muscles and increased release of testosterone. Specifically, rest times of thirty to ninety seconds are ideal in helping to develop muscle.
Incorporating leg lifts - While all lifting will help build muscle, legs are crucial in your pursuit of muscle. Again exercises involving the legs have been found to help contribute to increased levels of testosterone post workout more so than other muscle groupings. Examples of good leg lifts to promote muscle development include squats and deadlifts.
High number of Sets - Sets are how many times you complete a given number of repetitions. To best promote muscle gain completing three to six sets per exercise is ideal as this helps to increase muscle fatigue, which as mentioned is foundational to developing muscle.
Proper form - Form referring to the method which you complete an exercise. In the case of lifting to develop muscle, form is the most important factor to consider. Proper form prevents injuries, challenges muscles in a way that is of greatest benefit in developing muscle, and ensures that the muscles that are intended to be trained are being trained.
Progression - Progression refers to increasing the difficulty of exercise through increasing weight, reps, sets, or a combination of all three. Additionally progression can occur through implementing different exercises that are of greater difficulty for a given muscle group thereby increasing the amount of work that is being done by the given muscle group. Without progression the body will eventually adapt to the stress of your weight training and your muscle gain will stop.
Summarizing it all. To promote muscle growth ensure using proper form. Additionally choose heavy weights, short rest periods, and a high number of sets. Make sure to focus on large muscle groups, especially the legs. Finally continue to increase the difficulty of your exercise by increasing the weight, sets, reps, or exercises being done. By doing this you will have a better chance of growing muscle!

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