q&a a guide to solving muscle building issues

I. Can you train your abs every day?

To conclude, you can train your abs every day, but practical considerations often prevent daily training.

Abs are among the muscles in the human body that recover relatively quickly. If we consider only the abs, they can withstand daily training. However, ab exercises inevitably stimulate the antagonist muscles, such as the erector spinae, which cannot be trained daily. Overloading these muscles can lead to strain injuries.

The recommended frequency for ab exercises is once every two or three days, depending on the intensity of the training. Additionally, it's crucial to train the erector spinae to maintain muscle balance around the spine, preventing lumbar strain or postural issues.

II. Is it possible to get abs quickly?

First, it's important to understand that having visible abs requires a low body fat percentage.

Therefore, the primary challenge in achieving visible abs is fat reduction, combined with ab sculpting exercises to train the muscles effectively.

From a fat loss perspective, losing fat inevitably leads to some muscle loss. If the fat loss is too rapid (e.g., losing more than 1kg per week), the weight loss may primarily come from muscle and water, resulting in poor body composition and potential skin sagging, with a high likelihood of rebound weight gain.

From an abdominal strength training perspective, overly frequent training can continuously tear muscle fibers before they fully recover, not only failing to sculpt the abs but also increasing the risk of muscle strain.

In summary, while rapid ab development is theoretically possible, it is not recommended in practice.

III. Can you build muscle and lose fat simultaneously?

Before answering this question, let's discuss the main differences between muscle building and fat loss:

Muscle building involves a positive energy balance, where energy intake exceeds expenditure.

It typically focuses on high-intensity resistance training, emphasizing nutritional intake, increasing testosterone levels, and promoting muscle growth.

Fat loss involves a negative energy balance, where energy intake is less than expenditure.

It generally focuses on moderate to low-intensity endurance training, combined with dietary control, which increases cortisol levels and inhibits muscle growth to some extent.

If muscle building and fat loss occur simultaneously, it means that muscle mass is increasing while fat mass is decreasing, which is clearly impossible. Therefore, absolute muscle building and fat loss cannot occur simultaneously.

However, relative muscle building and fat loss can occur simultaneously. Specifically, during a muscle-building phase, you can do some fat-loss training to burn fat, but the intensity and frequency must be controlled. During a fat-loss phase, you can do some strength training to slow muscle loss, ensuring that fat loss outpaces muscle loss.

IV. Do people with abs have a belly when relaxed?

The answer is yes.

The visibility of abs is primarily related to body fat. Even people with very low body fat (around 6%) will have a slight forward protrusion of the belly when relaxed. This is because the abs are relaxed and slightly elongated in this state, so a slight forward protrusion is normal, but this should not be called a "belly."

Generally, people with body fat below 15% can see more defined abs, but this is also when the abs are tensed. Because lower abdominal fat is very difficult to lose, a slight "belly" when relaxed is inevitable.

V. What should people with a lean body type pay attention to when building muscle?

If you have a lean body type, first determine whether your leanness is simple or secondary. Simple leanness has no clear endocrine disease, while secondary leanness is caused by organic lesions in the nervous or endocrine systems. If it is secondary leanness, wait until recovery before training. If it is simple leanness, pay attention to the following:

1. Choose a reasonable amount of exercise, avoiding excessive intensity;

2. Focus on strength training, with minimal aerobic training, not exceeding half an hour per session;

3. Eat more and more frequently (not small meals, but large and frequent meals), ensuring sufficient protein intake and even more carbohydrate intake, and drink plenty of water;

4. Ensure adequate sleep.

VI. Why do some people have six-pack abs while others have eight-pack abs?

The six-pack or eight-pack abs we often refer to are the rectus abdominis. Everyone's rectus abdominis is a single muscle, but the tendinous intersections divide it into segments. The number of these intersections is congenital. People with three intersections on each side visually have six-pack abs, while those with four intersections on each side have eight-pack abs. Some people have two intersections, resulting in four-pack abs. This is congenital and cannot be changed later.

Regardless of whether you have four, six, or eight-pack abs, with diligent training, you can sculpt beautiful ab lines.

VII. Does feeling a tearing sensation in the abs after training indicate effectiveness?

Feeling a tearing sensation in the abs after training indicates that the muscle tissue has been slightly damaged.

Muscle fibers tear and, through post-training nutrition and rest, will repair and heal, becoming stronger and more robust. This is the principle of muscle growth. Therefore, a tearing sensation in the abs can be seen as a sign of effective training. 

However, effective training does not necessarily require a tearing sensation. Delayed onset muscle soreness is mainly related to eccentric contractions. Reducing eccentric contractions during exercise can effectively reduce post-training soreness, but this does not mean the training is less effective. Post-training stretching, nutrition, and rest also affect soreness.

In summary, a tearing sensation in the abs after training is one sign of effective training, but not an absolute one.

VIII. Can you train multiple body parts in one day?

Yes, you can train multiple body parts in one day, but you must ensure adequate recovery time for the muscles. Large muscle groups generally require 48-72 hours to recover, but the specific time depends on individual feelings.

Therefore, with sufficient training intensity, plan your training schedule reasonably and avoid training the same body part again within 48 hours.

IX. Do you need to take protein powder to build muscle?

First, protein powder is just a protein supplement, nothing more. Normal people can consume it, and it should not be demonized. As long as it is produced by a reputable manufacturer, it is safe to consume without side effects.

The significance of protein powder lies in its higher supplementation efficiency. What you consume is what you get. In contrast, food supplementation is different. For example, 100g of meat contains 20g of protein. If you need to supplement 100g of protein, you need to eat 500g of meat, which is a large amount. However, protein powder should only be an auxiliary supplement and not replace food. The primary source of protein should be food, with protein powder as a supplement.

For those looking to build muscle, whether you need protein powder depends on your needs and goals. If you are a regular fitness enthusiast with moderate training intensity and a high-protein diet, the protein from food is sufficient. However, if you are a professional bodybuilder or focus on bodybuilding with high training intensity, protein powder supplementation is necessary.