Are you ready to kick your body into shape? If so, then you’ll want to start a strength-building routine. If you’re new to strength- and muscle-building, however, there are some things you’ll need to know before you get started. By following these strength building tips, in addition to staying motivated and determined, you’ll be well on your way to increased body strength in no time.

1. Watch Your Diet

First of all, understand that strength-building is as much about the workouts you endure as it is about the nutrients you put into your body. Therefore, now is a good time to take a step back and assess your diet. In order to build muscle/strength, you’re going to need to start eating more. After all, your muscles need a caloric surplus in order to grow.

However, this doesn’t mean just eating whatever you please; it means upping the number of calories that you get from protein and healthy fats.

2. Learn the Techniques

One of the biggest mistakes you can make as a beginning strength builder is exercising improper technique. Not only will the wrong lifting technique yield you no results, but it can be downright dangerous and cause injuries. Therefore, you’ll want to be careful to avoid some common mistakes in technique, such as:

• limiting your range of motion
• straining your joints
• flaring elbows while benching
• bending backwards during overhead lifts

3. Don’t Overdo It

When you first start off with your strength-building exercises, you might be a little over-ambitious, thinking you can lift weights that are simply too large for where you’re at right now. You might think that the harder you push yourself, the faster you’ll see results. However, this is far from the reality, in most cases. Lifting more than your body can handle not only puts you at risk of injury, but will stunt your progress as well. Don’t be afraid to start off small and work your way up; everybody has to start somewhere.

4. Build on Your Routine

Furthermore, as you develop a strength-building routine, make sure that it’s adaptable enough to give it a little bit of variety as time wears on. Otherwise, sticking to the same routine week after week will ultimately result in a plateau. Your body will get too used to your routine and will stop being challenged by it. Consider switching up your routine by adding different exercises, such as:

• bench lifting
• squats with weights
• arm flexes

This is where finding the right gym makes all the difference; browse lots of gyms in Mesa before you make your membership decision and ensure that they have all the equipment you need to spruce up your training routines.

5. Get Enough Rest

Finally, getting enough rest in between workouts is just as important as the workouts themselves. The average person needs between 24 and 48 hours for their muscles to heal and re-build after a workout, so make sure you’re giving your body the time it needs. Otherwise, it doesn’t matter how hard you’ve been working; you won’t see results.