Many builders who struggle to achieve muscle mass think that if they work harder at the gym, they will make faster gains.
They immediately jump to advanced methods (forced reps, super sets, drop sets, etc) and increase the intensity of their workouts thinking if they push themselves harder they will gain more muscle.
They absolutely do deserve applause for their effort, but pushing beyond muscle failure is not the answer.
Pushing yourself to this extreme will generally result in over-training, burnout or possibly even injury in a standard drug-free lifter.
You are able to see examples of this any day, in any gym, anywhere.
A beginner will eagerly try to bench press as much as possible with his friend spotting him.
He focuses on moving that mass rather than his form, and he may struggle through just a few reps prior to needing his spotter to help him with his final reps.
When you think about the whole situation, the spotter may possibly end up obtaining just as very good of a workout.
Stimulate! Don't Annihilate! This is often a high intensity technique getting abused.
Should you continue to push past muscle failure like this, it not only becomes counterproductive, but it likely could lead to injury.
You have stimulated the muscle when you achieve muscle failure with any exercise, so doing a lot more isn't helpful.
Stopping once the muscles have been stimulated is all you need to do in order to help them grow.
When you do achieve muscle failure (positively), record it in your workout journal.
During your following workout, strive to beat it by adding a modest amount of weight or more repetitions.
Using this sort of progressive overload will lead you towards the results you want: increased muscle mass and strength.
Don't risk burning yourself out through adverse muscle failure.
Pay attention to where you are and make small, consistent changes to your workout.
Doing this will bring you fast results and constant positive changes.
Confidently know you are on your way to success if you continue to progressively overload and stick to your workouts.
As always, remember to check with your doctor or physician prior to starting any weight lifting or strength training program.
It's quite important to start slowly with light weights and gradually progress to more intense workouts and heavier weights in order to avoid injury.
It's also advised to have a spotter or trainer lift with you at least during the starting phases while you are still learning.
I hope you have enjoyed this post titled: "Why Can't I Get Bigger Or Stronger?" and I wish you the best of luck!