Diet is critical in any bodybuilding or fitness regimen. Muscle gains and performance can be offset by not eating the right foods at the right time of the day. Achieve your objective of building lean muscles or losing body fat and get the most out of your workouts by learning some basic nutritional principles used by professional bodybuilders.

You have to consistently monitor your diet and map out a nutritional plan that would fit your lifestyle, training program and food preference. Be responsible for what you eat everyday to benefit more from your bodybuilding regimen. Here are three essential guidelines to follow if you want to increase muscle mass.

1. Know that some foods are more nutritious than others. It is not enough to monitor your calorie intake; you also have to be conscious about the source of the calories. 200 calories from oatmeal looks the same as 200 calories from sweetened cereals. However, you may not know that oatmeal is the healthier ...

Muscular endurance can only be improved through strength and endurance programs complemented with a sound nutrition plan. You need to add strength and cardiovascular workouts into your routine consistently for several weeks to increase muscle size and mass. The best way to increase strength quickly is to mix different sports into your training routine. Focus on improving your form on each sport and you can expect muscle gains quickly while maintaining a high level of motivation due to the variety of your activities.

Tudor Bompa and Michael Carrera, authors of the book "Periodization Training for Sports" encourage athletes to perform many repetitions against a given resistance for an extended period of time in order to increase muscular endurance. However, if your goal is to increase power and stamina, you will need to focus on explosive movements that push your muscles to their maximum potential and challenge several core muscle groups at ...

A consistent workout regimen and a solid nutrition program are essential for bodybuilding and weight lifting success, but many beginning athletes fail to understand the basic rules of strength training and end up sabotaging their efforts. Muscle training is a science, and based on some simple physiological principles; training at the wrong times, eating the wrong foods before or after the workout, or simply not getting enough rest can result in poor muscle gains and poor performance. Make sure you understand the following basic rules of strength training so you can set yourself up for bodybuilding success - regardless of your fitness level:

Order of your exercises - the order of exercises you undertake is perhaps one of the most misunderstood concepts of bodybuilding and weight lifting training. You will need to warm up your core muscle groups first to increase circulation and get your body warmed up for the ...

When you're designing your bodybuilding or weight training program, understanding the different types of resistance that various machines and equipments provide can help you fine-tune your efforts. Since you want to train different muscle groups during each session of your workout, you'll want to use a variety of free weights, resistance bands, and isolateral machines to develop your core muscle groups and get the most out each workout. Here's a brief overview of the different methods of resistance you can choose from when you're building your weight training program:

Isolateral machines: These machines are designed to isolate certain muscle groups so you're only able to flex and extend an individual muscle at any given time. According to David Sandler, author of the book "Weight Training Fundamentals," these machines allow you to develop weaker muscle groups (e.g. arms, legs or lower back) that you ...