Gaining Muscle From Home
By Sean Nalewanyj
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Sean Nalewanyj is a natural bodybuilding expert and best-selling fitness author committed to providing effective, research-based advice for building muscle, burning fat and gaining strength. Sean is the creator of the "No Fail System" bodybuilding program and president of EliteImpact Labs.
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I get emails from bodybuilders on a daily basis, and the question I get most often is…
“Do I need to join a gym to get a strong and ripped body?"
In my opinion, the answer is an emphatic no. You can quickly start gaining muscle at home with some planning and the proper equipment.
When I started weight training, I spent my first two years working out in my basement using some basic equipment and got impressive gains.
It's a down economy, and maybe you can't fit a gym membership into your current financial situation.
Conversely, maybe you're strapped for time and would have an easier time gaining muscle at home.
Perhaps your body isn't where you want it to be, and you would feel more comfortable to work out at home privately.
Regardless of your motivation for working out at home, there is no need to worry. I had a great time gaining muscle at home, and I valued that time tremendously, even though I now lift weights with a partner at a workout center.
I never had to worry about travelling to and from the gym or worrying about the gym being open when I was ready to train. Anytime I was motivated to lift weights, I could simply go down into my basement where all my equipment was located.
I didn't have to care whether my musical tastes bothered people, or if I played it too loudly.
I could make as much noise as I wanted while I trained without disturbing other people (hey, it's hard to squat to failure) or not wear a shirt when I was in the mood.
Once my routine was completed, I didn't have to drive home to get my post-workout nutrition, so I was free to lie on the floor in satisfied exhaustion realizing there was no driving to be done.
It was a lot of fun.
The only drawback to gaining muscle at home is that you will not be able to have certain equipment at your disposal such as specialized leg training machines. If you want that equipment in your home gym and have the money to afford it, you will certainly benefit, but this is not an option for the average person.
Fortunately, you can design a great bodybuilding routine for gaining muscle without any special equipment. You also have the ability to substitute free-weight exercises for many of the machine exercises.
For gaining muscle at home, you need the following equipment:
It's a smart idea to invest in a good cast iron set but be sure to obtain enough weights so that you can progressively overload your muscles.
Don't get an entire set of dumbbells for gaining muscle, it's far more space- and cost-efficient to invest in the adjustable type. You can usually purchase an entire set of dumbbells or barbells from your local sporting goods store.
You need a solid bench to support bench presses and other seated lifts. As you are likely to be gaining muscle at home without a partner, locate a bench that can be adjusted to an incline and includes safety catches.
You can usually get these for under 20 dollars, and they can be placed in your door frame.
A squat rack is usually pricey, which means that a full squat rack is typically the hardest equipment to get. However, it is vital that your home gym for gaining muscle includes a full squat rack because there is no other exercise that can replace it in your routine. This is doubly important since you likely won't have a leg press machine.
If you can't get a squat rack, you'll have to creatively work around this problem. For gaining muscle at home, you must have some apparatus that allows you to safely unload weights and place them on a safety catch when you approach failure.
When you are gaining muscle at home, you should never perform squats unless you have a safe place to unload the bar. Since many full squat racks include a chin-up bar, you will doubly benefit by purchasing one if you can.
These are the five pieces of equipment that are required for gaining muscle at home. With this equipment available, you will find it easy to work out in the convenience of your own home.
To get your complete, fully structured muscle building program that will help you build a ripped, muscular new body in as little as 12 weeks, click below to watch this free video presentation...
