If you’re looking to build strength, few would disagree that looking towards the NFL would be a good move. This is the sport that is full of men in the peak of physical condition and as the title may have given away, Jack Elway is one of these.
Of course, it takes hours of work in the gym, every single day, to get even close to what a lot of professional NFL players look like. That doesn’t mean to say that they don’t have tips that can help you along your way though, as we take a look at some of the best advice that Elway himself has to offer in this regard.
Focus on compound exercises
If you have performed any sort of research into fitness you will have probably heard all about compound exercises. In short, these are the exercises which activate your major muscle groups and ultimately make the biggest difference. If we were to coin some examples, the bench press, shoulder press and squats are some of the most common.
As well as training your big muscles, studies have shown that focussing on these muscles can also increase your levels of testosterone. Clearly, for anyone who is looking to develop their body, this is significant. Higher levels of this hormone mean that your body is better equipped to burn fat, whilst it will grow muscles at a much faster rate.
Make sure your diet matches your exercise regime
It’s all very well having a solid exercise regime, but this will all be for nothing if your diet doesn’t match it. In other words, you can’t eat what you want and hope that the exercise just “covers” everything else.
If you’re looking to transform your body, you need adequate amounts of protein. The general rule is to focus on 2g of protein per kilogram of weight. Of course, your macros are going to differ somewhat depending on your overall goals, but for the purposes of building muscle this is what you should be looking to stick to. You should also keep your fat levels down, but still concentrate on receiving sufficient “good fat”.
Always build in rest days
This final suggestion might raise a few eyebrows, as the general consensus in relation to strength building seems to be that you need to plough in as many hours at the gym as possible. As it turns out, this isn’t actually the case.
In fact, if you don’t give your body enough rest periods, it’s going to go backwards. Firstly, you increase the chances of incurring injury drastically, as you are putting your muscles, joints and everything else under excessive stress.
However, from a development perspective, you’re just not allowing them to rebuild accordingly. It’s the rest days in which cells and muscles start to repair and ultimately, grow bigger. If you don’t give them this rest, they will keep breaking down but never have the time to grow back.