Fortunately, not everybody wants a stick-thin figure such as that of many popular celebrities. Not choosing the anorexic look. In fact, a significant number of people (bless them) want muscles, muscles and more hard lean muscles.

However, gaining muscles is not as easy as it seems. It can be a dilemma for some people because for most, there is a thin line between gaining muscles and gaining much dreaded fat. There are people who firmly believe that gorging on several pounds of cheese steaks every week is a surefire way of gaining muscles. Their way of gaining muscles, unfortunately, includes gaining fat.

Gaining muscles only require three things: a proper muscle-building workout, a recommended diet and plenty of rest. In addition, one could choose from the variety of supplements approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) which aids in building muscle mass. The following are the kinds of supplements approved by the USFDA and are generally safe and effective.

• Weight Gain Powders- Increasing the intake of calories is one of the most common approaches to gaining muscles. Athletes and bodybuilders do this by consuming extra food or weight gain powders. However, research show that consuming 500-1,000 calories more than the recommended daily amount will only gain 30 – 50 per cent weight and muscle mass. Majority of the extra calorie intake will only gain fat. Although it has no side effects, consuming weight gain powders is generally not recommended.

• B-hydroxy B-methylbutyrate (HMB)- HMB is a metabolite of leucine, an amino acid. This kind of amino acid and its metabolites can slow down the degradation of protein. Studies indicate that adding HMB to the diet increases and strengthens muscle mass among the elderly and those who are just starting their training. Regular intake of HMB, coupled with regular exercise will likely gain anywhere from 0.5 (1.1 lbs) to 1 kilogram (2.2 lbs) of additional muscle mass in 3 to 6 weeks only. Additional research is needed however if the same effect can be achieved among athletes who have already undergone intense training for a long time.

• Creatine- Numerous studies show that creatine is the most effective supplement available on the market to build up muscles during exercise or training. This is because the consumption of creatine improves the person’s ability or capacity to undergo high intensity workouts. Consumption of creatine also enables a person to train harder, leading to muscle hypertrophy. In addition, consumption of creatine also leads to weight gain. So far, studies report no long term side effects.

• Protein. People undergoing intense activities need to increase their protein intake to improve their training adaptations and recovery. Protein supplements are an effective and convenient way of guaranteeing sufficient quality protein in the body. However, bear in mind that increased protein intake does not necessarily lead to muscle mass development.

In addition to these popular muscle-building supplements, there are a variety of other supplements available on the market. These supplements are possibly effective and more studies are being done to prove their worth.

An example would be the Branched Chain Amino Acids (BCAA) which has been reported to decrease the degradation of proteins in the body thereby leading to muscle gains and the loss of the fat.

Another would be Glutamine that is the most abundant non-essential amino acid. Glutamine has been reported to increase the hydration of cells and the synthesis of proteins during training. Each of the Essential Amino Acids plays a specific role in maintaining a healthy body as well as providing the raw material for the synthesis of non essential amino acids

Other supplements are still being researched for possible effectiveness in muscle gain. These supplements include Ecdysterones, Growth Hormone Releasing Peptides, isoflavones, Sulfo-Polysaccharides, Smilax Officinalis and Magnesium Aspartate.

Make sure to be extra careful in choosing your muscle-building supplements. There are numerous supplements on the market. And a significant number are not only ineffective, but also unsafe. Carelessness could lead to grave results.

Buy from reliable sources only and read the labels. Always check if these supplements are safe by checking if they are approved by the DFA. In addition, consult an exercise physiologist or sports nutritionist to ensure if these supplements are what you need and will not lead to contraindications.

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If you want to burn off fat and keep it off permanently,there are a few things you absolutely must do, and a new study from Wake Forest University has just uncovered another one:

Previous research has concluded without a shred of doubt that high levels of exercise are one of the keys to keeping fat off and maintaining your ideal weight.

In this new study just published in the October 2008 issue of Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, researchers found for the first time, proof that the drop in physical activity that happens automatically during calorie restriction is directly correlated to weight regain.

We’ve known for some time that when you restrict calories, your level of non exercise physical activity (non exercise activity thermogenesis or NEAT), drops spontaneously, even if you don’t realize it’s happening.

Your physical activity energy expenditure (PAEE) also tends to drop when you restrict calories.

Basically, when you cut calories, you get sluggish, you move your body less, you don’t feel like exercising and if you do exercise, you do it with with less “gusto.”

This means that unless you intentionally counter this tendency by pushing yourself to keep active and keep up the intensity, despite your low calorie intake, your weight loss will slow down automatically as you continue with caloric restriction. (can you say, “fat loss plateau?”)

The new twist to this story is that in this latest study the researchers followed up on the subjects through the maintenance period – with 6 month and 12 month checkups.

This is significant, because most fat loss “success stories” are reported immediately after the weight loss phase, but you never know what happened to them afterwards.

Not surprisingly, it wasn’t much of a “maintanence” period… almost everyone regained most of the weight.

The surprise was WHY they regained back the weight and WHO regained the most…

The drop in physical activity during the diet was directly related to the weight regain after the diet!

The researchers wrote,

“The greater the decrease in physical activity energy expenditure (PAEE) during the energy deficit, the greater the weight gain during the follow up.”

“That won’t happen to me,” you say? Think again. That drop in activity usually happens unconsciously. It’s part of the “starvation response.” Your body tricks you in countless ways, in order to restore energy balance and stabilize your weight.

If you believe that diet alone is the answer or that you can skimp on the training, you are shooting yourself in the foot and thinking short-term.

When you extend out your time frame to 2 years, you get a whole new perspective.

For years, I have been imploring my readers and subscribers to “burn the fat” with higher levels of exercise – strength training AND cardio training – while “feeding the muscle” with a higher intake of clean food, instead of simply “starving the fat” with low calorie diets and little or no exercise.

“Eat More, Burn More”… “BURN The fat FEED the muscle.” those are the mottos you want to remember.

can you lose weight without exercise? Of course. Just be sure you have a dietary-induced calorie deficit. Is it the best way? Not by a long shot.

Bottom line: If you want to MAXIMIZE your fat loss, and keep fat off permanentnly, it is imperative not only to keep up a high level of energy expenditure (BURN calories not just cut them), but also to make a conscious effort to make sure your activity level does not drop as you lose weight during the calorie deficit.

If you’d like to learn more about this effective and proven approach to fat loss: “eat more, burn more,” then please visit my “burn The Fat” website at www.BurnTheFat.com

Train hard and expect success,

Tom Venuto
www.BurnTheFat.com