And while reaching your full genetic potential for lean body mass is not easy and certainly takes longer than people would like, getting big is not that hard. It's certainly a lot easier than most bodybuilders believe. Even without the use of any drugs.

All it takes are exercise, rest and proper nutrition. The difficult part is getting the right balance of the three. Not too much and not too little of any one factor. The problem is, after bodybuilders and lifters have been training for a while, the right balance seems to be elusive. And of the three, it's the exercise part that's the most controversial, because it's the exercise that causes the growth. Nutrition and rest simply support the body's response to the training.

From Easy to Hard

Growing is generally easy when you start. So easy, in fact, that you can very quickly get the wrong impression about various aspects of exercise (like form, sets, reps, weight and relative effort) and how they stimulate muscle growth. It doesn't take a lot of work when your muscles aren't used to any overload. Sloppy, inefficient form gets you by. The emphasis, mistakenly, is almost always on lifting more weight.

In the beginning you don't know enough to train 5 - 6 days a week, doing 15 - 20 sets per body part. You train fewer days and do fewer sets. You tend to be less inhibited in each set because you're not concerned about how you're going to do the next set or the next exercise. As a result, you put forth a little more of a do-or-die effort in each and every set.

But pretty soon, you begin to get off track. You learn better. You see the vast majority of the big boys doing a lot of sets and a lot of exercises, with a lot of weight. Various stimuli cause muscle fibers to grow, and science has not yet provided the answers about the safest and most effective ways to train for mass. So what makes more sense than doing what you see working for somebody else?

So when your gains begin to plateau, you follow the lead of the big boys, or maybe try to duplicate the champions personal programs published in the magazines, grueling routines they've conditioned themselves for years to handle - to say nothing of their genetic gifts. But you're hungry for results. Starved is more like it. Maybe desperate. You'll do almost anything.

Intensity is the Key to Growth

Everywhere you look, the buzz word for increasing results is intensity. If you want to get bigger, you have to work harder. Like the big boys in your gym, you add sets, maybe even extra exercises to your routine. You try to use heavier weights. You use cheating, forced reps, and every other high intensity technique you can think of. You may even consider resorting to anabolic steroids or other drugs, which significantly alter the effects of exercise on muscle growth.

You may make some progress. But, inevitably, it stops. For long periods if not for good. And long before you reach your genetic potential. If you don't get injured, you'll at least lose your enthusiasm for training. Maybe quit altogether. Meanwhile the solution is right in your face.

It begins with admitting that what you've been doing hasn't been working. Yes, it's been comfortable. You've been part of the group, the majority. The majority who keep slogging along, maybe making excuses about their lack of progress, blaming genetics, their job, their finances, but generally content with the notion that they know what they're doing and eventually they'll reach their goals (though most don't really believe that).

After all, sticking with the group means you haven't had to put up with the inquisitive or amused stares as well as questions and comments from these same people. But once you've made up your mind that you're mentally and emotionally ready to stand out, you've got to make some changes.

Excessive Volume, Inadequate Intensity, Inadequate Rest

The first and most important change is a return to the basics of what it is about exercise that stimulates muscle growth. Hard Work! The biggest problem is too much training and not enough really hard training. You can work long. And you can work hard. But you can't do both. When you train too much, and by that I mean too many exercises, too many sets, too many reps and too many days per week, you simply can't train at the all-out level necessary to jump start the growth process while sparing and supporting the body's recovery ability.

The question of how many sets per exercise or per body part has not yet been answered conclusively. It depends on too many factors that vary from person to person and from day to day. While we know that some volume of work is necessary, too much is far worse than not enough. That is, you can't do just one set of 8 - 12 reps of one exercise and assume that maximum growth stimulation has occurred. But both anecdotal and scientific evidence indicate that one such set performed all out is more effective in stimulating muscular strength and power than two, three or more sets performed at lesser levels of effort.

And that's the key point here. The very first thing you need to do when you've been unable to translate your efforts in the weight room to more lean body mass is to cut your training. Do no more than 4 - 8 sets per body part. Train each body part no more than twice a week. Train no more than four days out of every seven. And, most importantly, train like you mean it. Like you believe it's going to work, that it's going to make you grow.

Change your mental focus. Doing less will make it easier, both physically and mentally, to work harder, to give each rep and set all you've got. Don't even think about the next set. Concentrate and give yourself to each rep as if it was the last one you were ever going to do. As in Zen, become the rep, merge with each one, mentally, physically and emotionally.

Try to feel as much as possible. To contract the muscle as hard as possible. To make the muscle do more than you thought it could. With your will. Don't worry about not getting your reps or your weight on the next set. The weight doesn't matter as much as the effort. Think only about working harder than anyone would think humanly possible. Never let any thought about the next set affect your concentration or performance on the present set. Never stop a set if you can move the weights (without swinging or cheating) even a fraction of an inch. In short, train like your life depended upon it.

If you train that hard, you'll know instinctively that it won't take long for this type of training to stimulate the muscles and nervous system. And if you don't disrupt your recovery ability, you're going to grow (provided you're well nourished). It's as simple as that.

Improper Form

The importance of exercise form can never be overstated. Every champion in the history of bodybuilding will attest to it. Yet wherever I happen to be in the world, the vast majority of people I observe training are not getting all they can from their efforts due to poor form.

The problem originates primarily from two different factors: the desire to use as much resistance as possible (based on the assumption that a stronger muscle will be a larger muscle), and the early training experiences of people who made gains due to the intensity of their efforts rather than their form. People begin early in their training careers doing movements that make the exercises easier: swinging, bouncing, arching, jerking the weights as opposed to smooth, controlled movements.

Regardless of the exercises you are doing, make absolutely sure that the muscles you're trying to train are the ones that are actually doing the work. To ensure this is happening, lighten the weights you've been using and slow down the speed of each repetition. The speed of the rep is less important here than the mindset of wanting to make each rep as hard as possible. Don't change the position of your torso or limbs or do anything else to make any exercise easier. Make each and every exercise and each and every rep as hard as it can be. Improving your exercise form is guaranteed to pay off in growth and strength increases.

Inadequate Nutrition

Although it seems self evident, some bodybuilders don't realize that an excess of calories and nutrients is required to add lean mass to the body. It need not be 2000 extra calories a day, although some individuals do benefit from large increases in daily intake. So if you're consuming 3200 calories a day, simply add 300 - 500 per day for 7 - 14 days. Within that time you should be able to determine whether there is an increase in overall energy, workout strength and/or endurance, improved sleep and, of course, weight gain.

At that point you can either bump the level up some more if you haven't seen any results. More calories will increase the rate and amount of gains, but only you can determine how you respond and how much more you want. If at any point you feel you're beginning to add fat, simply reduce the calories in the same gradual manner you added them. Be patient and realistic. If you've been training for a while, think in terms of perhaps gaining a pound a week over a six week period. And if you doubt your ability to spot check your body fat levels in a mirror, have your skin folds measured every 10 - 14 days by a friend who knows what he/she is doing.

The key to nutrition is multiple, small, balanced, high quality meals. While supplements aren't necessary, they can make things easier, and more convenient. And you don't need to overload your body with protein, although studies have shown increasingly that protein needs of athletes engaged in intense training programs are much higher than previously believed. Doubling protein intake for brief periods has been shown to help increase muscle mass and strength significantly in elite weight lifters. In any case, be sure to drink plenty of water throughout the day.

Explore the Meaning of Intensity

It sounds so simple: train extremely hard, use perfect form, eat well and rest. But one reason a lot more people don't reach their goals is that it's hard to train at maximal intensity. A knowledgeable and equally committed partner is almost a necessity, for safety as well as motivation and support. But training incredibly hard can be incredibly effective.

If you train like that for six weeks, and especially if you add as little as 300 - 500 nutrient dense, quality calories a day, you will see a difference in both your strength and muscle mass. At that point you can up the volume and drop the intensity for a more traditional training cycle. But don't forget the basics of what it takes to grow, and when you once again reach a period of stagnation, don't just follow the crowd. Think for yourself. It's the only way you'll ever be all you can be.