Following 10 facts every bodybuilder should know:

1. LIFT PROGRESSIVELY HEAVIER WEIGHTS

A fundamental requirement for anyone wanting to achieve size is to increase the amount of weight lifted from session to session. This increases the intensity of the session and ensures the muscles are subjected to sufficient stress, which will, in turn, elicits results.

The beginner bodybuilder would first aim to achieve a certain number of repetitions, with a certain weight .in next week 2.5 kilograms would be added,and so on as he/she can lift progressively heavier weights.

2. GET ADEQUATE SLEEP

Sleep is crucial for many reasons. For bodybuilders, sleep will assist the protein synthesis and help to mentally recharge the lifter for their next training session.Sleep also assists testosterone and growth hormone manufacture.One thing to remember about sleep is the fact it often means 8+ hours without food. This could spell disaster for the serious lifter as the muscles might eventually begin to break down their structure to supply glycogen to the brain and other organs.

To achieve adequate sleep, the consensus seems to be seven-nine hours per night. To get this amount employ the following:

• Listen to relaxing music.
• Eat a small amount of carbohydrate.
• Retire at the same time each night.
• Don't watch television in bed.
• Avoid alcohol and cigarettes.
• Resist sleep medications.
• Take a warm bath before retiring.

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3. MANAGE STRESS

Negative stress is probably the single most destructive thing one will encounter on their road to superior muscle growth. Everybody, everywhere, encounters a certain amount of stress, on a daily basis. This is natural, and survival is dependant upon it.

The following are effective stress-management techniques:

• Eat well and exercise regularly.
• Practice deep-breathing techniques.
• Try to remain optimistic (eliminate negative self-talk).
• When encountering a problem, focus on a way forward rather than the problem itself.

4. DEVELOP A POSITIVE MENTAL ATTITUDE

Thinking positively will enhance the muscle-building process in a number of ways. Quality of training will improve if one is able to approach each session with confidence and an expectation they will achieve their training goals. If one is experiencing negative feelings, this will have a negative impact on their training. visualizing greatness will, in turn, become a self fulfilling prophecy and goal attainment should stem from this.

To develop and maintain a positive attitude employ the following:

• Associate with positive people.
• Practice positive self-affirmation (repeat positive statements to oneself on a regular basis).
• Visualize success.

5. INCLUDE FATS

Fat consumption is often thought of as counterintuitive when muscle-building and weight loss is the aim. Fat intake is not this clear cut. One must remember there are different types of fats, which serve separate functions.

It is widely recommended that saturated fats (animal fat, solid at room temperature) are avoided as they are known to contribute to various health problems, including heart disease. However, bodybuilders are advised to include a certain amount of saturated fat in their diet as it is thought cholesterol (often found in food which contains saturated fat) and saturated fat, in addition to all other fat sources, boosts testosterone levels, which, in turn, contributes to gains in muscle size (Berardi, 2004).

In fact, one study demonstrated that by decreasing dietary fat (which included the saturated type), both total and free testosterone levels were reduced. Upon resuming the fat inclusive diet, testosterone levels returned to normal. This study underscores the importance of dietary fat as a whole.

Some of these functions include:

• The generating of electrical currents that make our heart beat in an orderly sequence.
• The enhancement of peroxide production thus helping to build the immune system: EFAs make hormone-like eicosanoids. These regulate immune and inflammatory responses. Omega-3s can slow autoimmune damage due to their anti-inflammatory properties.
• Joint maintenance: Together with calcium, Vitamin C, D, K, and boron, EFA`s improve bone mineralization.

It is clear that fats should be included if overall health, and muscle growth, is to be achieved. It is probably best to include essential fatty acids primarily, as their functions are more conducive to overall health, while saturated fats are to be included, but in smaller amounts.

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6. AVOID OVERTRAINING

A major problem affecting many over-enthusiastic lifters is overtraining. The condition of overtraining comprises a number of symptoms, which can destroy motivation and rob the bodybuilder of any possibility of continued growth—regression being the likely outcome.overtraining stems from a continuation of training, despite warning signs suggesting one should cut back on, or cease, their current routine.

Ways to prevent overtraining include:

• Limiting training sessions to 45-minutes or less to lessen the protein degradation that results from pronounced cortisol release.
• Ensuring adequate relaxation and sleep.
• Making gradual increases in training intensity over a period of time rather than working maximally from the outset.
• Occasionally taking lay-offs to help renew enthusiasm and, more importantly, off-set the preliminary stages of overtraining.
• Eating a nutritious diet with sufficient vitamins, and minerals along with the bodybuilders best friend, protein. The body will simply fail to adapt to any training stimulus if diet is inadequate.

7. INCLUDE AEROBICS

aerobics is essential to muscle growth. Aerobics will enhance, not only the metabolisms ability to burn fat, but also the removal of waste products (lactic acid) and the transport of oxygen and nutrients to the muscles where they are used to good effect - to build them bigger and stronger.

8. EAT AT LEAST ONE-GRAM OF PROTEIN PER POUND OF BODYWEIGHT

Most of today's bodybuilders, and indeed athletes in general, know that protein is an important nutritional component.However, what many fail to realize is to achieve to ones physical goals, protein is required in greater amounts than previously thought.

In many quarters it is still thought that 70-80 grams per day is acceptable. This has been proven to be erroneous. Protein is a chemical compound essential to many of our biological processes - most notably for bodybuilders, the building of muscle. Protein synthesis (the converting of amino acids to proteins to repair and rebuild) can only sufficiently occur if an adequate amount of protein is consumed.

9. USE SUPPLEMENTS

The bodybuilding diet (comprised of whole foods) should serve as a solid foundation for ones training program. Many enhance their programs with the inclusion of supplements. Supplements, as their name suggests, should supplement ones diet, not serve as its basis. This is not to say supplements are unimportant, as they are.

Various supplements can be immensely valuable as they supply important nutrients, and other anabolic compounds, in a convenient, concentrated, package. The market is flooded with different types of supplements, and the nutrition industry is growing by the day, so consumer interest is certainly strong. This underscores the efficacy of supplementation - customers continue to come back for more because they are happy with the results they are getting.So supplements do work, and should form a part of ones bodybuilding regime.

MULTI-VITAMINS/MINERAL

A good multi-vitamin/mineral supplement will act as an insurance policy to cover any nutritional gaps. If one becomes deficient in a particular nutrient (say one of the B-vitamins) their body will not perform optimally.

CREATINE

Since 1992,creatine monohydrate has taken the bodybuilding world by storm. Creatine assists energy production and, as a result, leads to more intense workouts. It also super-hydrates muscle cells with water and causes muscle fibres to grow bigger and stronger. Creatine is a compound naturally manufactured in our bodies (in the kidneys, liver and pancreas), which is converted into creatine phosphate upon entering the muscles.

Creatine phosphate helps to produce ATP, our primary energy molecule. Bodybuilders are naturally drawn to the effects of creatine, so much so, it is now a staple part of many of these athletes diets.

L-GLUTAMINE

Around 60% of free-form amino acids circulating in the muscles are l-glutamine. Thus, L-glutamine plays a significant role in protein metabolism. Other tissues also need L-glutamine and will rob the muscles if they are not getting an adequate supply. It is therefore important to supplement with L-glutamine to ensure the muscles receive a continual supply, so as to continue repairing.

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10. BECOME EDUCATED

Achieving success in bodybuilding involves a continual process of learning and experimentation. Reading articles and finding more information about bodybuiding while pursuing sites like bodybuilding.com,will help to arm the aspiring bodybuilder with information to help them on their quest to physical greatness. Books, videos, and expert advice will also assist this aim.