Bodybuilding or muscle-building – Define, benefits, Protein Food sources, Body types.

What is Bodybuilding or muscle-building:

Bodybuilding means growing and developing your body with the help of diet and exercise. Bodybuilding involves improving the quality of your muscles, improving your strength and helping you achieve good mental health.
Muscle building targets only your muscles, but bodybuilding means the overall development of your body.

Benefits of Bodybuilding or muscle-building:

Improving your body health:

It improves your muscle size and protects you from heart diseases because bodybuilding exercises increase blood circulation in the body, which helps your heart get proper nutrition from food, improving its functioning.

Improves bone health:

Weight-bearing activities and intense body movements have long-term effects of stimulating the production of signals that increase your bone mineral density. If you lift heavy weights, your bones get strained, which makes your bones stronger and healthier.

Decrease your cholesterol level:

Engaging in any physical activity and consuming a nutritious diet allows you to reduce and control damaging cholesterol levels (Low-density lipoprotein) and increase good cholesterol levels (High-density lipoprotein) in your body.

Increase your muscle mass:

Your body becomes more robust and leaner when you indulge in bodybuilding exercises for the long term. Usually, people start losing muscle mass at an older age.

Still, we can delay this process by doing compound exercises like deadlifts and squats because it encourages the production of human growth hormone and increases a healthy level of the No.1 male hormone, testosterone.

Increase your strength and flexibility:

Regular workout improves the flexibility of your body. Exercises make your joints more flexible and help you eliminate chronic backaches and joint pains. After lifting heavy weights in the gym, your body gains more strength, and your endurance level is also enhanced.

Weight loss:

Bodybuilding plays a vital role in your weight loss journey. When you do weight training daily and follow a calorie-deficit diet, your body needs more energy at That time, And then your body uses your stored fat as energy, which reduces your fat.

Moreover, bodybuilding leads to improved muscle composition, and heavy lifting in bodybuilding burns your fat even when you are in rest mode.

Gaining a better posture and better-looking body:

Bodybuilding makes your body more athletic. It can prevent any cases of muscle imbalances and fix any disproportion.

If you walk by bending your back, bodybuilding exercises can help you improve your back structure, which improves your body posture.

Making you happier:

It encourages your body to secrete feel-good hormones that reduce pain and makes you feel happier and better.

When you are under stress or having mood swings and suffering from depression, bodybuilding exercises aim to improve your body So that you can get rid of negative thoughts and feel better.

Vegetarian protein food for Bodybuilding or muscle-building:

• Nuts.
• Quinoa.
• Pulses.
• Beans.
• Flaxseeds.
• Chia seeds.
• Protein shakes.
• Milk.
• Paneer.
• Tofu.
• Soybean.
• Fruits.
• Green-leafy vegetables.
• Chickpeas. (chole)
• Kidney beans (rajma).
• Roasted Chana
• Oats.
• Peanut butter.
• Sweet potatoes.
• Yoghurt or curd or Greek yoghurt.
• Edamame.
• Whole wheat bread.

Non-veg protein food for Bodybuilding or muscle-building:

• Eggs.
• Fish.
• Chicken.

These three foods are a great source of protein for non-vegetarians.

Vegan protein food sources for Bodybuilding or muscle-building:

Vegans can not consume animal-based products like milk, meat, eggs, curd etc. They only consume plant-based products like legumes, whole grains, fruits and vegetables etc.

• Nuts.
• Beans.
• Legumes.
• Green leafy vegetables.
• Pea protein powder.
• Flaxseeds.
• Chia seeds.
• Peanut butter.
• Oats.
• Hemp seeds.
• Soy products.
• Chickpeas.
• Kidney beans.
• Whole wheat bread.
• Tofu.

Different body types:

You must know your body type before designing your training program and following any diet.
There are three body types:

• Ectomorph.
• Mesomorph.
• Endomorph.

Ectomorph:

Ectomorphs have a skinny physique. You will likely have lean, thin muscles and small joints as an ectomorph.
Sign of an ectomorph body type:

• Long limbs.
• Thin build with tiny shoulders.
• Flat chest.
• Fast metabolism.
• Slim hips and clavicles.

Essential points for ectomorphs:
Gaining weight for an ectomorph individual is challenging because they have a fast metabolism.

They have to consume higher amounts of calories to gain healthy weight. They don’t need to spend more time in the gym.

Their workout sessions should be short but extreme. They must never forget that they should not follow any diet in which they have to starve for a long time.

Mesomorph:

It is a naturally athletic physique that may develop muscles earlier than ectomorphs and have more muscle mass than fat on their bodies.
They face less difficulty in gaining and losing weight as compared to ectomorphs.

Sign of a mesomorph body type:

• They have a solid, strong, and rectangular-shaped body.
• They have Wide clavicles and a narrow waist.
• Thinner joints.

If you are a beginner and your body type is mesomorph, it’s pretty accessible for you to gain muscle. You must watch your calorie intake and combine your training with cardio exercises.

Endomorphs:

Endomorphs can quickly gain body fat because they have a slow metabolism. Endomorphs have to train their bodies with weights and cardio.
They have powerful upper leg muscles, and because of that, leg exercises such as squats are best for them.

Sign of an endomorph body:

• Thick rib cage and joints.
• Wider hips than clavicles.
• Short body and round physique.
• Undefined muscles.

Best tips for Bodybuilding or muscle-building:

• Muscle building is not an overnight process. It demands a lot of effort from your side to build a healthy and attractive physique.
• Drink 2-3 litres of water daily that helps nutrients to reach every muscle of your body.
• Always follow a training program and diet plan according to your Body type.
• Don’t make sudden changes in your diet, which means you don’t need to eat six to seven meals daily because your body needs time to familiarise itself with these changes. If your body does not get proper time to adapt to these changes, then your body will not show you desired results.
• You don’t need to follow any intense workout program if you are a beginner. So you should start with basics first and then go for heavy lifting.