Starting a muscle fitness programme can often seem like quite an easy prospect. On paper, that may be true; however, if you know very little about building up muscle strength then you will most likely come unstuck pretty quickly. Before starting any type of muscle building programme, there are a few key aspects which need to be considered.

Don’t rush in
Although it may be tempting to let rip with all that enthusiasm, it is vitally important that any new fitness regime is started slowly, especially if you aren’t very fit. If you have concerns or doubts about losing weight or toning up, make sure you talk to your GP first and take heed of any advice which they may give you.

Consider your food
You will need to have a good luck at your diet and adjust it to suit your goals. Protein is essential for muscle building so you will need to make sure you get plenty of it from meats, nuts, beans and pulses. As well as getting enough protein, it is vital that you ensure your diet is well-balanced and supplemented where necessary.

Take muscle supplements
Despite what many novices may think, taking supplements alone doesn’t build big, shapely muscles overnight. However, supplements like protein shakes can be extremely beneficial when they are used in conjunction with regular exercise, effective weight training and a healthy diet.

Browse our pages further to learn more about healthy muscle building and optimum nutrition.

There are a variety of reasons why you may be struggling with your fitness programme. Although these reasons can often be attributed to incorrect technique or lack of know-how; there are also other more visceral factors that can come into play. It must be remembered that even though you may often see your body as being a collection of inter-dependent systems, you are still a human being; and as such, you are liable to be effected by emotions that can be detrimental to your goals.

In short, staying motivated for long periods of time can be tough. Indeed, anybody who believes that they can achieve significant fitness gains simply by taking muscle supplements and sticking to their workout schedule is naive. Without sounding too melodramatic; motivation is the key to everything and when it becomes an issue, little distractions can become big problems and make everything seem twice as hard as it really is.

The only way to deal with de-motivation is to tackle it head on. Remember, this kind of adversity is to be expected; therefore admitting it is an issue is the first step. The next step will depend on your own particular personality and goals; but once you recognise that changes need to made, you can decide what those changes may be. It could be something simple like changing the time of your workouts or substituting protein bars with protein shakes – just make sure you do something rather than nothing; otherwise all your efforts will be in vain.

When it comes to building blocks for muscle, bone, skin and other tissues, few things are more important than protein. Most healthy adults require around 45 to 56g of protein in their daily diet, or around 0.75g for every kilo of body weight.

Endurance and strength athletes, bodybuilders and even general fitness enthusiasts who don’t have their sights set on body building or marathon running can benefit from protein supplements like protein shakes and other protein drinks.

That’s because these drinks can aid the body in recovering from an intense workout. They restore glycogen to the muscles – this is a source of fuel which gets used in exercise.

And, if you are a serious bodybuilder or strength athlete, a protein shake can help mend damage to muscles that serious bodybuilding can cause.

One study also found that taking extra protein in your diet can help reduce levels of infections, heat exhaustion and muscle soreness. While there has also been some suggestion that protein-rich shakes can help with weight management, this is not yet backed up by enough scientific research.

At Monster Supplements, we’re the web-based nutritional superstore, where you can buy all the latest cheap protein supplements and much more. Based in Hull, we offer free UK-wide delivery and can save you up to 50% off standard shop prices, as well as the convenience of receiving your order at home. Check out our website or call our order hotline today.

Glucosamine is a naturally occurring compaound found in the body. It is made from the amino acid glutamine and glucose. Glucosamine is required for the production of a molecule called glycosaminoglycan, which is used in the formation and repair of soft body tissues such as cartilage.

Because the production of glucosamine slows with age, taking glucosamine as a supplement is commonly thought to help repair damaged cartilage by topping up the body’s supply of glucosamine.

As a result many runners and endurance athletes take glucosamine to maintain healthy joints and prevent painful, inelastic or stiff joints, in particular glucosamine is popular with runners who suffer from knee problems.

No concrete medical studies have been conducted on the benefits of glucosamine but a recent Internet poll at runnersworld.com showed that 94.5 percent of respondents said they had tried glucosamine. 79.8 percent reported that their symptoms “somewhat improved” or “greatly improved” after taking glucosamine. Less than one percent reported that “things got worse” with the supplements.

Despite the lack of medical evidence many runners swear by the benefits of taking glucosamine as a supplement.

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Team Monstersupplements.com think L-Carnitine is one of the best supplements you can add to your diet. It bares many qualities which compliment the bodybuilder in and out of the gym. Read on to discover what exactly it can do for you and why you should be taking it.
So what is L-Carnitine? L-Carnitine is an essential Amino Acid which is produced naturally within your body, normally in quantities between 20-25g at any one time. Its job is to transport fatty acids to the mitochondria where they can be converted into energy. This energy is mainly used by large organs such as the heart and skeletal muscle.
You get your L-Carnitine from red meats; however you can always use more. By supplementing on this brilliant Amino Acid you can expect to benefit from the following. L-Carnitine has been shown to aid with fat loss. There is a very simple explanation for this. As it increases your body’s ability to transport more fatty acids to the mitochondria, less of these fats will be stored as body fat. In other words what L-Carnitine does is help turn the fats you consume into energy. It has also proven its ability to increase protein synthesis. This is a side effect anybody looking to add lean muscle mass would wish for, it doesn’t get any better. This will result in your body utilizing your protein intake more efficiently and in turn maximizing results for you. L-Carnitine is also known to improve blood flow. It manages this by preventing the restriction of your blood vessels. Obviously this improves blood flow to the muscles and will increase your ability to train harder due to a larger supply of oxygen in the working muscles. It will also help prevent DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness) by allowing more nutrients to reach the muscle fibres which you have just torn to pieces in the gym. As you can see, anybody serious about their bodybuilding will be sure to have this in their system.
It is important that you know when to take this and for what reasons. The best time is straight in the morning with breakfast. By consuming it with your fats at meal time it will help burn more dietary fats. First thing in the morning will also mean it is helping with protein synthesis levels, in other words making you more anabolic which is very important this time of day. The next time should be at lunch time. This will keep you topped up and again when consumed with your dietary fats will benefit body fat burning. Before training is another great time, with increased blood flow and more efficient energy conversions there are only gains to be had. Finally, right after training is going to be of benefit to you. This is because you need everything you’re taking to reach the muscles.
There you have a brief explanation as to why this Amino Acid which is essential in more than one way should be on order.

Protein is king of muscle growth, without enough of it you can simply not repair the damaged muscle fibres let alone build new ones. In order to take your nutrition and physique to new levels it is vital to understand exactly why you need protein, but more importantly what type of protein and when.
To begin with, protein is an absolute necessity for any human being in order to function correctly. These functions include general muscle and organ repair, hormone regulation, temperature regulation and circulation of information within the body to name a few. In short, protein can be seen as the ‘building bricks’ to our bodies. They say average Joe should take 1g of protein for every kilo of weight, but your not.
As a bodybuilder you want 1.5g of protein per pound of body weight. This will ensure adequate amounts not only for every day functions but to aid muscle Hypertrophy. Without these levels you can forget training as a bodybuilder as the lack of protein will essentially lead to muscle damage. Contrary to what many believe, our bodies do not hold reserves of protein. In other words it takes what it wants from the nutrients you give it, and then passes the rest. This is why it is vital to have large amounts constantly being taken on board. By maintaining high levels of protein your blood sugar levels stay high, therefore you don’t crave a sugar boost and this in turn keeps your body fat low.
Now, there are many different varieties of protein. The ones we are going to focus on are Whey Concentrate, Whey Isolate and Casein. The first two are fast digesting proteins. This means what it says on the tin, as you ingest them they are easily broken down and digested. Casein on the other hand is a slow release protein making it very handy for certain times of the day.
First thing in the morning, throughout the day and right after training you really want to be taking on a fast digesting protein such Whey Concentrate or Whey Isolate. This is because these increase your protein synthesis levels and during these periods your body wants protein readily available. Right before training and right before you go to bed, you want a Casein protein. This is because whilst asleep you are fasting, however by having a protein which releases slowly through the night will keep you more anabolic and keep blood sugar levels more steady.
So now you know what proteins you need and why you need them at what times of day. This really will take your physique to the next level by being focused on what you’re taking during various periods of the day.

Everybody is looking for the perfect solution, one way to add lean muscle without gaining high levels of bodyfat, getting the right cocktail can be quite a job and also can be very expensive. Don’t worry as there is a solution these fall into the all in one category on www.monstersupplements.com

Last year i had managed to pull my bodyfat levels well down into single digits and i was ready to start building lean muscle after dieting on straight whey protein i did not want to jump on a heavy calorie supplement so i thought i would try the PhD Synergy; this was proving very popular with many others and i had received good feedback so i thought that it was worth running.

I knew why this should work but wanted to know if it would live upto the hype. It made sense as it fitted in with the lean muscle growth goal by being

* Moderate in carbohydrate

* High in protein

* Providing Creatine and glutamine to aid recovery and performance

* Methoxyflavone included to give my testosterone levels a boost

* Taurine to help provide me with a boost before training

Thats why it should work now the question is did it actually fulfil what was promised.

I am a big believer in using the mirror to be a judge of physique changes, after a week i felt much fuller this will be due to the creatine and a few extra carbohydrates than i was used to. My strength continued to rise in the first four weeks, i ran this for eight weeks; the first four weeks saw me add 6lbs in weight and i can guarantee that this was not bodyfat i kenw that something was working here.

The second four weeks i actaully upped the servings post training as i had reasonable muscle mass i knew i would be able to handle the extra proteins and carbs i was taking just under 3 scoops after training which provided 50g of muscle building protein anround 25g of carbohydrates and plenty of creatine and glutamine, the goal was to add mass and all i can say is that this worked.

I gained another 4lbs in the second block of four weeks giving me a total gain 10lbs in 8 weeks, throughout this time i was lifting more than previously and still was very lean. The products did exactly what i had hoped for.

I would definately suggest jumping on this if you are looking for lean progressive muscle gains; this is perfect for a beginner also. All in all a top product, tastes fantastic too 5 stars.

Protein Information To Digest

Ok; We all know that protein is plays a major role in improving our physiques but why is protein the most essential supplement when looking to build a physique to be proud of?

Protein basically allows us to recover at an increased rate after strenuous activity, the object of training especially with resistance training is to damage muscle tissue; once this has been achieved thought trauma we need to recover to allow the muscle to repair and most importantly for most allow the muscle to grow. Other advantages of protein are improvements in immune system, improved strength and decreased injuries.

One of the most frequently asked question’s is how much protein do I need per day?

There is no fixed answer for this but a good rule of thumb for anyone who trains regularly with intensity would require at least one gram of protein per pound of bodyweight. The harder and more frequent you train, the more traumas the muscles are exposed too thus meaning that more protein will be required to facilitate growth.

With this information you can now look at your strategy for getting adequate amounts of protein into your diet. Lets say you are a 180lb male looking to gain lean muscle; you will be looking at around 200 grams of protein ingestion per day; this may sound like a lot but really supplements have made this easy. Start by dividing the protein requirement by your food/supplement intakes for the day; it may stack up like below…..

This depicts how easy it is to get the minimum protein into your diet to gain lean muscle. Now it comes the job of choosing the correct protein supplements to use at the right times in order to give your body a consistent supply of nutrients to fully assist growth and recovery.

The table below gives a guide of the digestion rates of proteins…

This information gives you the arsenal to plan your attack on an improved physique, I would advise that a straight Whey Protein that contains both isolate and concentrate would be ideal for first thing in a morning if eggs are not an option; this is definitely a requirement before and after training as Isolate and Concentrate are the fastest digesting proteins available.

JB recommends PhD Pharma Whey as our best selling whey protein with Reflex Instant Whey also being popular.

If you do not have the luxury of being able to ingest protein as regularly as the plan above then don’t worry Monster carries blend proteins; these contain a range of protein sources that will deliver a sustained release of protein to the body; PhD Pharma Blend 6HR is the latest blend protein to hit the market and is proving to be a real hit; this contains Egg, Soy, Whey protein concentrate and Casein to satisfy the protein requirements when ingestion is more sporadic; I would advise this to be added to anyone’s diet as it is ideal for use before bed. Another option is USN IGF-1; this also falls into the blend category.

I hope that this helps you select the right supplements and understand the importance of protein to developing a better body, Thank You

January often sees a deluge of new trainers striving for an improved physique for the upcoming year however the associated cost of supplementation is often off-putting especially with the current economic climate. This is no longer the case; Monster this month is looking to support you both in achieving you fitness objectives and looking to save you some money!

If you are striving for improved performance and that pumped feeling monster had some great products to support you; Six Star Muscle are a popular American company that offers products that deliver results more importantly Monster can off these to you as special discount tiers for the coming month.

JB suggests a Creatine and Nitric oxide stack; this would be fantastic for adding some fresh pounds of lean mass. If fat loss is the aim then Rapid lean by Six Star will have those unwanted lumps and bumps incinerated, to get the best results from this lower the carbohydrate intake and drink lots of water.

The essential for any trainer is to get a good source of Protein, Monster can offer another discount on Universal Whey, this is a quality whey product at that price point that won’t break the bank, this will aid you in either fat loss or Muscle gaining objectives, stack with Rapid Lean for fat loss and Creatine and Nitric oxide for lean muscle.

If mass is the objective or you simply don’t get a chance to eat then take advantage of USN protein bars again Monster offers another special that allows you to get “convenient” muscle building calories at a fraction of the original price.

If you have slightly more disposable income and are a more experienced gym attendee then Muscletech Pump Tech N4 is definitely a product that will give you vein popping muscle bulging pumps.

Now for the unknown essential to healthy living; the Power of the Grape! Grape seed is one thing that most probably don’t associate the world of Fitness however the power of the Grape must not be undermined there are some real benefits in using a grape seed supplement. Users report improved hair eye and skin condition similar to some of the benefits of growth hormone couple this with powerful antioxidant properties and there is a real claim that Grape seed should be a part of anyone’s dietary arsenal.

JB recommends Reflex Grape seed and Pine Bark.

Monster has supported you in fat loss, lean muscle and mass gain as well as healthy living this month, what more can we do….Well another problem is we hear from people is that they have trouble getting to the Gym ; Monster can take the pain away by offering the multi functional Selecttech dumbbells, these are adjustable and allow many gradual increments to be used to develop your physique without leaving the homestead.

Special offer £189.99

Also available for the more serious trainer is the Xtreme Multi  Gym; allowing mind blowing workouts without the arduous trek to the gym.

This month Monster has given you EVERYTHING possible to help you making training convenient as well as offering some great money saving solutions. Train Hard and enjoy the results, until February…JB