you do not allow for proper sleep, you will be cheating yourself of growth you
would otherwise be getting? (Cardena). Without being fully rested it will be
hard for a person to perform a workout with full intensity. The muscles will not
grow and a person would not be getting maximum results from his or her training
sessions. ?Not getting enough sleep will hinder your chances at maximum growth?
(Costa, Horine, and Platz 116). Even if the body is not being put through an
intense workout it still needs the proper amount of sleep.
Relaxation is an important part of the recovery process in order for the body
to be capable of proper recovery. A person should relax immediately after an
intense workout when recovery is most important. There are many different ways
of relaxing, ?[t]he ability to relax after a workout, and to stay relaxed, is
vital if you want to maximize recovery capabilities? (Costa, Horine, and Platz
116). By relaxing, the muscles are given a chance to grow and develop the way
they are suppose to and ?[y]our body needs an opportunity to respond to the
training stress it has received and time to transport vital nutrients to muscles
for energy and development? (Costa, Horine, and Platz 115). Another thing that
contributes to helping the body recover faster is a good massage. ?Massage can
speed recovery and enhance growth,? relieves stress from a high intensity
workout, and it can also prevent injuries during future workouts (Costa, Horine,
and Platz 118).
Overtraining is what will keep the body from proper recovery and achieving
maximum results from intense training sessions. If a person trains the same
muscle group two days in a row, the body will not recover properly and ?[o]vertraining
occurs when the body is stressed
beyond its ability to recover? (Cardena). It may not seem correct, but more
recovery than training is required for getting strong and staying strong. ?Your
ability to recover will be a big factor in maintaining and increasing growth?
(Costa, Horine, and Platz 115). A person who does not know how to recover
properly will fail to get results from intense training, that is why ?it is
essential that you become familiar with techniques to enhance recovery from your
workouts? (Costa, Horine, and Platz 115).
Building a strong and healthy body is not easy to accomplish. A person must
have the mental toughness to transform his or her body into a body for life.
There is not one individual that can say he or she is not capable of being
physically and mentally tough. Building a strong and healthy body takes more
than just exercise. It starts with a high intensity training program, which will
only be effective with proper nutrition, the use of performance-enhancing
supplements, and the proper amount of rest. All it takes is a commitment and a
little know-how to put these four pieces together for a quality program to build
the best-looking body ever.
5fc
Cardena, Pablo. Personal Interview. 29 Jan 2001.
Costa, Leo, Russ Horine, and Tom Platz. Big Beyond Belief. Serious Growth
III. Visalia:
Optimum Training Systems, 1994.
D?Orso, Michael, and Bill Phillips. Body-For-Life. New York: Harper
Collins, 1999.
Griffith, Meagan. ?Research Update.? Muscle Media Jul. 1999: 164.
Phillips, Bill. ?Q&A with Bill Phillips.? http://BodyForLife.com
December 5, 1999.
Phillips, Bill, et al. Sports Supplement Review. 3rd Issue. Golden: Mile
High, 1997.
Romano, John. ?Muscle Meals.? All Natural Muscular Development Mar. 1998:
190.
Zulak, Greg. ?The Muscle Molecule.? Muscle Mag Dec. 1997: 125.