In other words, natural bodybuilding's iron rules are very simple: zero steroids, zero drugs, and zero muscle enhancers. Natural bodybuilding is all made of plain exercise and a balanced diet.



It is obvious that no self-respecting bodybuilder will start training without some real training program. The natural bodybuilding training program includes three basic elements: weight training, good nutrition, and rest.

As all resistance weight training, also in natural bodybuilding program inadvertently leads to microtrauma of the trained muscles. This, in turn, often causes a condition called Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS).

When the body repairs the damage, it also causes the anabolism (or muscle growth if you want to be simple). However, the fact that microtrauma can easily become a major trauma, you need to follow the rules below:

1. No training sessions should be longer than 60 minutes. After that, the muscle building hormone levels drops.

2. The breaks between sets of exercises have to be minimized (60-90 second maximum), both for cardiovascular purposes and better muscle growth.

3. A single set should have from 6 to 15 cycles of each exercise. This increases growth hormones level and additionally increase the blood circulation.

It is clear that the muscles need something to fuel their growth and that's where the diets comes in. An average bodybuilder usually needs between 500 and 1000 additional calories a day – and many enthusiasts of bodybuilding even exceed this calorie intake.

However, this is not only about calories. Natural bodybuilding gym-goers need to take in more complex carbohydrates rather than simple sugars to increase the bodybuilding value of food eaten. Eating too much simple sugars will usually lead to creating fat rather than quick muscle development.

Large quantities of proteins is another key nutritional element in natural bodybuilding. The reason fort that is simple: proteins help build and develop the muscles.

That's why everyone who follow natural bodybuilding regime should take in about 1 to 2 grams proteins per a pound of his/her bodyweight. This will increase the body development skills are reduce the time needed to recover. Chicken, whey and egg whites are examples of protein-rich food and tey form common meals among all natural bodybuilding buffs.

And, last but not least, there is also the third component of natural bodybuilding. It is rest. The reason for that is simple: the quality and quantity of sleep affect both the success of his natural bodybuilding regimen and the general well-being. Only rest and sleep can give us the opportunity to recover and build up our strength.

As you see, the natural bodybuilding is not a complex science, it is just as simple as counting to three… literally.