Well, in my personal opinion push ups still remain one of THE best upper body exercises you can perform, and certainly the best bodyweight exercise of them all. Here I’m going to answer the question of “do push ups build muscle?”, and show you a few reasons why they are worth performing on a regular basis.

Do Push Ups Build Muscle?

Even though push ups are a calisthenic exercise, they can still be a great exercise for muscle building, since it is said that during a push up you are lifting about 60% of your bodyweight.

The extent to which push ups will help you to build muscle will depend on a number of factors:

• number of repetitions you perform
• frequency (how often you perform them)
• increasing the resistance
• level of fitness

For instance, if you are a beginner and struggle with performing a few push ups, then obviously following a regular push up program will see you achieve faster muscular development than folks who have a higher level of fitness, or can already do a large of number of push ups.

The Reason Most Push Up Programs Fail

As you may know, the secret to building muscle is to continually increase the resistance or load that your muscles have to lift.

For this reason many push up programs fail to produce quality results since it’s not easy to increase the resistance that you have to lift (your body weight stays pretty static).

A way around this is to get yourself a weighted vest, or a backpack with weights in it and use this while doing your press ups. This will “increase” your body weight and make your push up routine more effective for building muscle.

Increasing the number of repetitions and changing up the positions (wide or close grip, or inclined with your feet up) can also help to increase muscular strength and develop your muscles.

Are They The Most Effective Method?

While I’m a massive fan of push ups and perform them almost every day, I do have to say that they are not the most effective method for building muscle.

If you’re looking to gain muscle mass in a shorter time period then you should really be performing some kind of weight training, since the resistance levels can increased far more with weights than with push ups, and it also takes less repetitions to get muscular development with weight training.

Push ups can however, really complement your workout routine and help work the smaller muscle groups that can be difficult with weights. They can also serve as a fabulous warm up and certainly get the blood flowing.

What’s Right For You?

So, should you perform push ups to build muscle or not?

The answer to this question is largely down what situation your are currently in and your level of fitness.

If you’re a beginner who is not currently doing any weight training then I would seriously encourage you to begin using a push up routine straight away. This, if performed regularly can help you to see some good muscle gains, even without weight training.

For those who are more advanced, I’d recommend you add a push up routine to your workout. It will help you to continue to develop muscle, but will also increase your muscular endurance and continue your strength development.

The beauty of the push up is its simplicity and the fact that it requires little or no equipment. In this respect it is perfect for those who don’t have access to a gym, or when you find yourself on holiday and need to get a quick workout in.

Many women are often afraid that working out with weights will cause them to become big and muscular and lose their femininity like those female bodybuilders.

Unfortunately this causes many women to not take action and start sculpting the kind of body they deserve.

By focusing on body sculpting exercises for women you can strengthen and tone your muscles while burning off the excess body fat – this won’t lead to a muscular physique as many women worry, it will just accentuate your natural feminine curves. Most women just do not have the genetics for massive muscles anyway, that’s why the big female bodybuilders are usually loaded up on testosterone supplements.

The key to success in your body sculpting workout is to perform each exercise with intensity to get your heart rate and metabolism up (and thereby burn fat faster), and then make sure you are incorporating a full range of motion too – lunges are great for this. For this reason I recommend that you avoid using weights machines as these tend to limit your range of motion, and stick to free weights instead.

Free weights will allow you to move multiple joints and muscles at the same time, thereby increasing your body’s hormonal response and increasing your cardiovascular activity.

You can find a complete workout routine for women on this page ==> Body Sculpting Exercises For Women

You can also try the video below from Vince Delmonte where he shows you how to perform a female body sculpting workout. If you like the workout, why not check out his entire program here ==> Your Six Pack Quest

Now, don’t get me wrong…lifting heavy weights down the gym is great to bulk up and gain muscle mass quickly…in fact, this site was designed around that purpose.

However, I know that some of you guys don’t just want to build muscle…you want to burn off some of that excess body fat and get ripped at the same time.

So, what’s the solution?

Body sculpting exercises

Basically, body sculpting exercises are the sort of exercises that will help you to build muscle mass and burn fat at the same time (as long as you change your diet accordingly), by increasing your strength and keeping your metabolism running high.

How To Get Chiseled

The key to success in performing body sculpting exercises for men is to ensure you are getting a full range of motion in your exercises – this means that you’ll need to ease on the weights if you’re lifting heavy. Stick to more moderate weights which will enable you to get into a higher rep range (10-15) and permit more flexible movement throughout the exercise.

The best body sculpting exercises for men are effectively double-up exercises – in other words, you perform one exercise and then immediately after perform another exercise, for example a Wide Stance Squat Into Shoulder Press. This will effectively work two completely different body parts in one rep…hence the need for slightly lower weights, since our goal is to increase our metabolism and cardiovascular activity not just gain mass.

Keeping your body sculpting workouts at a high intensity is imperative if you want to see the maximum benefit. For this reason I recommend no more than 1 minute’s rest between exercises.

Read the complete workout here ==> Body Sculpting Exercises For Men

Many protein powders are designed for muscle gain and can sometimes have extra carbs and fats that are great for building muscle mass but not much help when trying to lose weight.

Here I’d like to show you a quick few pointers that you should keep your eye on the next time you go to buy protein powder for weight loss.

How Much Sugar Is In It?

Sugar is a popular ingredient in many protein powders as the manufacturers want to make a great tasting protein. However, high sugar levels will play havoc with your metabolism and make losing weight more difficult, so choosing a protein powder with low sugar levels is a safe bet.

Be mindful though that in some cases the manufacturer will reduce the sugar level but simply replace it with artificial sweeteners and fillers. In a case like this you are better off with a little bit of natural sugar rather than a lot of artificial sweeteners.

Is It High Quality Protein?

The next time you go to choose a protein powder for weight loss, check the details of the protein content and quality.

High quality protein powders will usually be derived primarily from protein isolates instead of concentrates (not that you should completely avoid concentrates…a little is fine…I just think that the more isolates in there the better).

Isolates are a purer form of protein and so better for your body and diet plan.

Do You Want A Complete Meal Replacement?

If you are looking to use a protein powder for weight loss as a meal replacement then consider purchasing one that contains other essential nutrients to keep you in great shape and provide you a complete meal in one easy shake.

This is a great way to fit your extra meals into your day, particularly if you’re a busy person and don’t have time to prepare lots of individual meals every day.

A protein powder that is designed as a meal replacement will therefore have less protein per serving than a traditional protein designed to gain muscle mass. A great meal replacement protein powder is the EAS Myoplex Lite

Can It Speed Up Your Metabolism?

Some protein powders for weight loss contain special phosphate compounds which have been found to enhance the metabolic rate.

This is super news for folks that are looking to lose weight since speeding up your metabolism will seriously help you to burn fat faster and shred those pounds.

The Myoplex protein mentioned above contains these phosphates, making it ideal as a protein powder for weight loss. Read more about it here ==> EAS Myoplex Lite Review

Why is it that gaining weight and packing on pounds of rock hard muscle seems to just come so effortlessly for some folks?

Heck, some of those guys don’t even work out that hard at the gym (if at all), and yet their muscles seem to inflate like balloons…a fact which is not missed by the girls, right?

If you’ve asked yourself many times how to make your muscles bigger, then I’m going to guess that you’ve probably tried a few exercises and routines, but nothing’s really clicked. Yeah, you’ve got the passion and determination to get bigger muscles, but it’s you’re damn genetics standing in the way, right?

Well, not exactly…

Now, while your genetics do play a significant role in the rate at which your muscles grow, it’s not the real reason why you are struggling to gain weight and find yourself with no muscle growth.

Below I’m going to show you the most important factors you’ll need to look at when wondering how to make your muscles bigger.

Finding The Right Routine For Your Body Type

One of the main reasons skinny guys fail in their quest to build bigger muscles is that they are often following a routine that is not designed for their specific body type…or worse, not following a routine at all (i.e. just going to the gym and throwing a few weights around).

The problem with this comes back to your genetics:

If you’re following a routine designed for a genetically-gifted pro-bodybuilder (most of those you’ll find in the big-name magazines), then you’re doing yourself an injustice…and you’re going to struggle.

Therefore, finding the right kind of routine that suits your body type is the first big step in figuring out how to make your muscles bigger.

What body type are you?

If you’re naturally skinny and struggle to put on any kind of weight at all, especially muscle bulk, then you’re probably a hardgainer or ectomorph.

Ok, so what does a hardgainer workout look like?

You can take a look at my free one here ==> Hardgainer Bodybuilding Workout Routine

Typically you’ll want to follow the kind of workout routine that is based around the following factors, as they will give you the most muscle-building bang for your buck as well as get the most from your body type and genetics:

All-Body Workouts – not split (i.e. don’t do biceps one day, shoulders the next, chest the day after, etc. – split workouts don’t allow sufficient rest for certain muscle groups while over-stressing others)

Compound Exercises – not isolation exercises (compound, or multi-joint exercises like Squats, Bench Press, and Deadlifts, incorporate multiple muscle groups in each rep, meaning you can lift heavier weights for longer to increase your testosterone levels, and finish your workouts quicker)

Rest Days In Between – anyone who goes to the gym 6 or 7 days a week is either over-training or doing it wrong. 3-4 full-body workouts per week allow at least one full day’s rest in between…why would you want to go to the gym every day anyway, right?

Lifting Heavy – utilizes the principle of Progressive Overload wherein your muscles get bigger through constantly increasing loads. If you’ve found yourself lifting the same weight every time you hit the gym, then this is one of the reasons why you’ve struggled to make your muscles bigger.

Lower Your Rep Numbers – a lot of folks tend to think the more reps the better. Well, if you’re wondering how to make your muscles bigger then this idea could be standing in your way. You want lower rep numbers on heavy weights…I’m talking between 6-10 reps…any more and the weight is too light, any less and the weight is too heavy.

So you see that building your workout routine around your body type is essential if you want to gain muscle mass and make your muscles bigger.

If you’re like me and don’t want to waste time structuring your own workouts and meal plans, then take a look at this complete program that lays out everything for you…what exercises to do, when to do them, how to get the most out of them, etc:

==> Vince Delmonte Workout

It is designed by a hardgainer for hardgainers, and so incorporates all the important points I talk about above.

It really gets my back up when I see companies using fake testimonials and results to try and get hard-working folks like you and me to part with our cash.

The sales pages look great with all the talk of making it look easy – “Get Ripped In Days!”…”Get Massive Muscles In A Month!”…

Yeah, right!

What a load of BS! (pardon my French)

Finding a reputable bodybuilding training program is therefore not easy. And so it is with this kind of trepidation that folks approach the Vince Delmonte Workout program and wonder whether it is just another scam.

Well, I’ve actually bought the program and took an in-depth look at the whole thing, as well as speaking to Vince himself many times via email, and I can tell you whole-heartedly that neither Vince nor his programs are scams. Read my full review here ==> Vince Delmonte Workout Review

The Vince Delmonte Workout program is a solid, detailed training program that incorporates exercise routines as well as months worth of meal plans, along with dvd and video training modules so that you can easily follow along the whole plan.

Vince is extremely approachable via email and is always ready to help folks that are struggling, particularly if you are a beginner and looking to gain muscle mass quickly.

There’s also a super-helpful forum where everyone can share their successes and get some encouragement and motivation when they go through the tough times.

Read my full post on the question of the “Vince Delmonte Scam”

Over the last few years Vince Delmonte has become one of the premier muscle building coaches on the internet. A former skinny guy himself he knows the sheer frustration that we “hardgainers” go through when trying to gain muscle mass, especially since there is so much so-called “advice” out there that is really designed with the pro-bodybuilder in mind.

What Is The Core Of The Workout Routines?

The Vince Delmonte workout routines found in his No Nonsense Muscle Building Course are designed with the skinny hardgainer and ectomorph in mind.

As such there is a major emphasis on multi-joint compound exercises such as Squats, Deadlifts and Bench Press, which work more muscle tissue per rep and are thus ideal for helping hardgainers gain those pounds of muscle.

You’ll also notice a general absence of high rep numbers and split workouts, which you will typically find most of the big-name bodybuilding magazines.

The reason for this is simple – to build mass you are better off with lower rep numbers on heavier weights. It’s also important to ensure each muscle group gets adequate and equal rest…for this reason the program is designed for full-body workouts 3-4 times per week instead of split workouts every day (i.e. arms Monday, chest Tuesday, legs Wednesday etc.)

Who Will Benefit From The Workout Routines?

The Vince Delmonte workout routine is designed with the hardgainer in mind, but is ideal for anyone who finds themself struggling to gain weight and build muscle, or has seen their muscle building efforts plateau.

Vince gives plenty of advice throughout on not only avoiding plateaus in your workouts, but how to break through them and keep on growing.

The Vince Delmonte workout routines come with 29 weeks of beginner routines as well as 29 weeks of intermediate to advanced routines, in addition to other routines that are used to break up the workout cycle.

For this reason the Vince Delmonte workout routines will benefit those at all levels.

For a full in-depth review of the Vince Delmonte Workout Routines plus a look inside, go here ==> No Nonsense Muscle Building Review

Doesn’t seem to matter what you eat, what exercises you do down the gym or how many bodybuilding magazines you read you just can’t seem to get that burst of muscle growth you desire.

Seeing no muscle gain can sometimes make you think that this is just your lot and you should settle for it…after all, if you’ve got skinny genetics what can you do to change them, right?

Frankly, I don’t go in for all that nonsense that a lot of the magazines like to spout, i.e. that gaining muscle mass is all about genetics…you’ve either got it or you haven’t…

There may be some truth to that it you’re looking to become the next Mr. Olympia, however, the average “hardgainer”, shouldn’t listen to that kind of “advice”.

So today I’m going to show you how you can beat the “No Muscle” curse and refuse to be held captive by your skinny genetics.

The 3 Mass Gaining Pillars For Folks With No Muscle Gain

To keep this simple, I’m going to break it down into the 3 most important factors that you need to focus on if you’re serious about gaining mass and building muscle.

Increase Your Calorie Intake

Yeah, yeah I know you’ve heard it before, but seriously…this is the real key to gaining weight and how to make your muscles bigger. If you’re struggling with no muscle gain  or growth then chances are you simply aren’t putting enough calories into your body on a daily basis.

And when I talk about calories, I mean a BIG increase in your daily intake. If you’re a naturally skinny person then your metabolism is no doubt playing havoc with your ability to gain muscle mass.

By increasing your daily calorie intake and splitting your meals more regularly throughout the day then you make sure your muscles are always being fed  and thus are able to continue growing.

Calorie numbers depend on your individual circumstances but a rough rule of thumb is 24x your body weight (in pounds), i.e. if you weigh 150 poundsyou will need around 3,600 calories per day (24 x 150).

This may seem a lot at first but bear in mind it should be split over 6 meals per day…

Check out my free hardgainer meal plan which lays it all out for you here

Focus On The Big Mass Building Exercises

One of the biggest reasons why most skinny guys and gals fail to gain weight and suffer with no muscle growth is simply that they are doing the wrong kind of exercises. Sadly, it’s not enough to just go through the motions and perform any old exercise routine…no two exercises were created equal. Following a no nonsense muscle building routine is the way to go.

To see serious muscle growth you need to focus on the big muscle building exercises such as Squats, Bench Press, Bent Over Rows, Deadlifts, and Shoulder Press. These should be the foundation of any mass building routine as they are what are known as “compound” or ” multi-joint exercises”, meaning they work multiple muscle groups at the same time instead of isolating the movement to just one group such as biceps.

Perform them using free weights instead of machines to get even more bang for your buck.

Check out my free bodybuilding workout routine that you can start using today here

Rest Properly

Inadequate rest is another of the main reasons why skinny folks see no muscle gain and end up staying skinny.

Why is rest so important? After all, no pain no gain, right? Surely the more we train the bigger we get?

Well, no. That may seem logical in today’s fast-paced 24/7 world, but our bodies work in a different way.

During workout sessions our muscle tissue suffers minute tears from which it needs to recover and repair itself. It is this repair process that actually results in bigger muscles. It therefore makes sense that in order to repair itself the muscle tissue needs rest.

How much rest?

At least a full day’s rest between workouts should be the minimum to aim for. Making sure you get adequate sleep is also essential since natural anabolic growth hormones are released during deep sleep, which accelerates the muscle building process. Likewise too little sleep can result in the production of catabolic hormones which can hamper muscle growth and in some cases even reduce it.

Read these posts for more information on the dangers of overtraining and how much to rest between workouts.

This is a very common question and quite rightly so, as it’s an important one too, since our muscles grow when we are resting…not while we are training.

Training too often can cause all sorts of problems, the least of which will be slow and stunted muscle growth. On the other hand, training too little or infrequently can reduce your potential to build muscle and result in frustration and poor muscle growth.

So exactly how much rest should you be getting between workouts – what is the ideal rest period for maximum muscle growth?

How Much Rest Between Workouts

Ideally I recommend that you allow AT LEAST one full day’s rest period between your workouts (by this I mean an “off-day” – i.e. if you work out on a Monday, then your next session will not be until at least Wednesday – so 48 hours rest effectively). The key is to allow your muscles the time to repair themselves, and they can not do this if they are being pounded with weights every day. By having at least one full day’s rest between your workouts you assist your body’s own natural muscle building mechanisms.

I find the best way to achieve this balance is by performing all-body workouts as opposed to split workouts. Let me explain…

Split workouts are fairly popular, i.e. where you are maybe alternating upper body and lower body exercises on different days, or splitting your muscle groups like this – Monday (back and legs), Wednesday (arms and chest), Friday (back and legs), etc.

The problem with split workouts is that if they are not properly designed you may find yourself overtraining certain muscle groups…for example, even though Monday is your “back day” you are still utilizing your arm muscles in many of the back exercises that you perform. Therefore you are unintentionally compromising your arm rest periods.

Also, you may find yourself undertraining certain muscle groups since they may only be being trained once a week.

I prefer the all-body workout since it minimizes this potential of both overtraining and undertraining. This is because you will work ALL the major muscle groups 3 times per week, and will allow these same muscle groups equal rest time between workouts, helping you to gain muscle mass faster.

Check out my review of this popular muscle building guide designed for skinny hardgainers, and based on 3 to 4 all-body workouts per week ==> No Nonsense Muscle Building Review

Be Consistent

The key to maximizing your muscle growth and managing how much rest you get between workouts is finding a solid plan and timetable and being consistent. This will allow you to build momentum and make the whole process much easier.

It will also prevent you from skipping and missing workouts and feeling that you somehow need to play catch-up. If for whatever reason you do miss a workout, don’t be tempted to try and fit two workouts into two days just so that you can keep up with your schedule for the week. Keep your rest days consistent and then just pick up your next workout from there.

This is made even worse when you see guys that hardly ever work out, yet are pretty buff (and the girls seem to notice that too!)

How is it that some guys seem to know how to get buff quickly and other guys don’t? While your genetics could be part of the source of your frustration, they are not the only reason…after all, your genetics can be beaten by training smarter.

In this article I’d like to show you the 5 rules that you need to follow if you’re looking at how to get buff and beach ready.

So let’s do it!

Rule No. 1 – Follow A Solid Nutrition and Meal Plan
Without good nutrition you can kiss goodbye to any hopes of building serious muscle and getting buff…and without a good meal plan to get you organized you can kiss goodbye to ever keeping your nutrition consistent.

Spending hours down the gym is pointless if you are not refueling your muscles sufficiently and providing them with the building blocks that they need to repair themselves and grow. The biggest mistake skinny guys make when trying to get buff is simply not eating enough…even though most of them THINK they do.

I’m talking about some serious increases in calorie intake – multiply your current bodyweight in pounds by 24 and you’ll see what I mean. A guy weighing 175 pounds would be looking at a required intake of around 4,200 per day, so you see what I mean.

The best way to do this is to eat 6 meals per day to ensure regular calorie intake and a balanced metabolic rate. Try to get as much of your calories and protein from natural sources, only using supplements where necessary – a solid protein shake is really all you need.

Check out this free hardgainer diet plan here ==> Hardgainer Diet Plan

Rule No. 2 – Weight Train For Muscle Growth
While it is possible to see great muscle growth from bodyweight exercises and certain sports (swimming for example), by far the fastest way to see muscle gain is through weight training.

If you want to know how to get buff you’ll have to follow a workout program 3 to 4 times per week. For skinny hardgainers I recommend leaving at least one full day’s rest in between workouts to allow your body time to recover…otherwise you can risk overtraining which will only stunt your muscle growth.

Try this bodybuilding workout to help you in your quest of how to get buff:

You can access the full workout free here ==> bodybuilding workout routine

Rule No. 3 – Train Heavy For Maximum Growth
Once you’ve got your nutrition plan sorted you’ll need to get serious about your workouts. Do you ever find yourself going to the gym and not really knowing what you’re going to do, and then just end up going through the motions in your workouts?

If that’s you then it’s time to get serious. Part of figuring out how to get buff is knowing how best to spend your time in the gym. Much like the nutrition aspect above, if you enter the gym without a plan then you’re likely to fail.

Get yourself a solid workout routine like the one above that focuses on multi-joint compound exercises like Squats and Bench Press, as these will help you build muscle faster.

Lifting heavy weights is and always has been the surest way to build muscle and get buff. I don’t know many guys who packed on pounds of muscle by doing lots of reps with low weights. The reason for this is simple…your body only grows when it has to. Without a constantly increasing resistance there is just no need for your muscles to increase in size.

So keep your weights heavy and your reps low (6-8 is about right) – your final reps should be almost impossible to complete…this will let you know that the weight is about right.

Rule No. 4 – Track Your Progress
A business that doesn’t know its numbers is doomed to failure and ultimately bankruptcy. The same is true of your workouts and nutrition. You need to keep track of your progress if you want to avoid becoming “physically” bankrupt.

Make sure you keep a regular training log showing rep and set numbers, rest time between exercises, as well as the essential body measurements like weight, body fat and muscle size.

While it may seem like yet another hassle it really is the best way to identify where the problems are and be able to take action to resolve them. Also, seeing your progress written on paper is a great motivator and an excellent way to get you fired up for your next session.

Try this program that has a complete online training log to let you keep track of your progress no matter where you are

==> Bodybuilding Workout Log

Rule No. 5 – Rest and Sleep
Getting proper rest and sleep is one of the most overlooked aspects of how to get buff. Why is rest so important?

The reason is that when we sleep our body produces natural anabolic growth hormones that help to repair and rebuild our muscles. Basically the pills and stuff that a lot of folks are forking out hundreds of dollars a month for can be got pretty much for free by getting a disciplined sleep pattern.

7 to 8 hours a night of quality sleep will do wonders for maximizing the level of growth hormones surging through your body, and will help you to increase your muscle and get buff faster.

Bonus Tip: Get A Tan and (Dare I Say) A Wax
This may sound like a bit of an odd one but if you’re looking at how to get buff and beach ready then you should look at this little trick that will help you achieve this easier and with impressive results.

At the end of the day a tanned and waxed body on a guy can make him look more muscular than he actually is. Heck, even the best body in the world is not going to be as impressive if it’s pasty white and covered in body hair…especially not to the chicks on the beach, right?

Thing is, it has become a lot easier for guys these days to walk into a tanning salon and sign up for a few sessions…the stigma has pretty much gone. And anyways, if it makes you look great then who cares what a few jealous folks say.

I would recommend that you get as much of your tanning from natural sun exposure as possible. I suggest that you take precautions when using salons and do only a few short sessions…don’t be bullied into a number of long sessions by the staff there…it’s not healthy for you – so just take it easy and use protection. You have to do what is right for your own body, no one else’s.