Do you need weight lifting tips based on logic, facts, and common sense, or do you want to keep reading tips based upon the latest product on the market? Strength athletes, bodybuilders, power lifters, and Olympic weight lifters have made great gains for decades without all the latest hype. They use techniques which work every day, every year, and will work for you, too.

The first of our weight lifting tips has to do with sleep and rest. Yes, you heard it correctly. If you want to make massive gains in power and size you must get plenty of rest. We are not talking about just getting a good nights sleep, but getting plenty of muscle recovery time between workouts. Check out a top bodybuilder’s routine and you will see he splits his body into sections and only hits his major muscle groups about every 3 to 4 days. Your muscles increase in strength and size during the recovery and rebuilding period which requires a minimum of a couple days.

Massive nutrition is the second of our tips. Whether you are competing, or just trying to get big for the sheer enjoyment of it, nutrition is critical. It is not just any nutrition, but massive nutrition. Your muscles need a lot of fuel to rebuild and to fuel your workouts. Give yourself 1 to 1.5 grams of protein for every pound of your weight per day, spread through 6 meals. Make sure to eat plenty of complex carbohydrates to load your muscles with fuel for the workouts. Take a daily vitamin to round out your nutrition, along with plenty of fruits and vegetables. Remember, you are burning massive amounts of calories during your long intense workouts, make sure you have the fuel to get the optimum workout and recovery.

The third common sense tip is stretching. This is often forgotten by many strength athletes, but is a very critical component. You want your range of motion to remain full, or even extended. You want your muscles to stay flexible to take the abuse of the workouts. Stretching conditions the muscles and joints, and keeps them healthy and ready for the work ahead.

The last of our weight lifting tips has nothing to do with your body, it has everything to do with your head. Create goals and picture charts for keeping your mind motivated, and you focused. Study after study has shown the importance of getting your mind engaged in achieving your goals, especially sports related goals. Picture your body as you want it to look and imagine your body already having reached your goal. Do this for several minutes per day. When you combine all of the common sense tips together you will have a great recipe for enhancing your workout program. Leave any one of these out, and your progress will be slowed. Now, get in the gym, load up the bars, and lift heavy. Your body is ready for action.