Less than 5% of adults in the United States exercise 30 minutes per day. Therein lies one of the primary catalysts behind the nation’s obesity epidemic.
If you’re reading this post, chances are, you’re among those that are in the 5%. You don’t mind breaking a sweat, at least a few times a week. You may, though, be wanting to take things further. You might be interested in learning how to become a bodybuilder.
Exercising recreationally and becoming a bodybuilder are two very different things. Bodybuilding requires extreme attention to detail and rigorous commitment. It is, undoubtedly, a lifestyle.
If that lifestyle sounds like one you’d like to adopt, keep reading to take in foundational bodybuilding tips that’ll get you on your way.
Find a Bodybuilding Gym
Unless you’ve got an excellent home gym, your first step to becoming a bodybuilder will be to find a gym to join. Frankly, even if you do have a home gym, becoming a bodybuilder will be a much easier process if you can surround yourself with like-minded people (more on that in a moment). So, you may want to join a gym anyway.
As you search for a gym to join, avoid joining any ordinary place. Seek out a gym that has a high number of people that are focused on serious muscle building as opposed to recreational cardio.
There are more than a handful of bodybuilding-focused gyms in just about every major city. Run an online search to discover what your options are.
Seek a Support Group
When it comes to learning how to become a bodybuilder, you’ll benefit greatly by meeting other bodybuilders and holding one another accountable.
Finding bodybuilding groups can be done through forums online. To make things more effective, we recommend connecting with in-person support so you can actually exercise with the people that are pushing you towards the body of your dreams.
These in-person supports can be found at your local gym so don’t be afraid to make friends.
Start Studying Your Body
Becoming a bodybuilder differs from being into recreational exercise in many ways. One of the key ways is that bodybuilding asks much more of you when it comes to knowing your body’s science.
What are the various muscle groups in your body? What are the mechanisms that encourage muscle growth? Is learning more about peptides for bodybuilding the key to going harder in the gym?
These are all sample questions among many others you’ll want to explore to optimize your workouts and to be able to speak fluently with other people in the bodybuilding community.
Write Your Goals
Tackling a challenge without an ultimate goal sets you up for failure. The good news is that crafting goals is easy and will only take about 15 minutes of your time.
Grab a journal and write out what you’d like to get from bodybuilding in 6 months, 1 year, and 5 years. Some people will want to get into the best shape of their lives. Others will want to win competitions.
Whatever your goals are, get them jotted down and make them as specific as possible. That way, you’ll know how to pursue them.
Exercise Regularly and Intentionally
The grind is real in the world of bodybuilding. You’ll be at the gym more days during the week than you won’t be. You’ll be putting yourself in uncomfortable positions and always pushing yourself to become less comfortable.
Therein lies the bodybuilding “lifestyle” we alluded to at the beginning of this post.
Make sure you have the discipline required to tackle workout routines with consistency and a willingness to push yourself. If you think you lack that discipline, either surround yourself with people that are more disciplined than you or take up another hobby.
Take Food Seriously
Talk to any bodybuilder and they’ll tell you that what’s more important than working out right is eating right. That’s because in order to get those bodies you see on TV and in magazines, you have to take in a lot of protein while severely limiting fat.
That aim makes it so you’ll have to be very intentional about the food you put in your body which, for many, is a deal-breaker.
If you can force yourself to be disciplined with food during most of the week, you might allow yourself some leniency via “cheat days” to spoil yourself. Know though that for the most part, bodybuilder’s meals are a lot less appetizing than what you’re used to.
Commit to the Long Haul and Share Your Progress
The moment you stop working out and eating right is the moment your body will stop looking the way you want it to. That means that to maintain your excellence, you’ll need to be committed to the bodybuilding lifestyle in perpetuity.
To ensure you don’t lose interest, keep meeting new people in the world of bodybuilding. Share your progress with those that care. Compete in competitions to continue expanding your network.
Bodybuilding is just as much about the social aspects of the hobby as it is about looking and feeling your best. Invest in both of those facets.
You Now Know How to Become a Bodybuilder
Knowing how to become a bodybuilder comes down to knowing how to eat right, exercise intentionally, and meet like-minded people. If you can do those things and keep consistent, you’ll hit your goals in no time.
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