How to Get Buff

Co-authored by Alphonso White

Last Updated: June 12, 2024 References

Exercise goals can help you build muscle and lose fat, creating more definition at the surface of your skin. To create a "buff" look, you will need to lift weights regularly and add cardiovascular exercise. Getting buff requires a commitment to working out 5 or more days per week, so read these guidelines to get started today.

Part 1

Part 1 of 5:

Choose Goals

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1
Decide the areas of your body that are the weakest. Getting buff requires you to build weak muscles to even out your physique.
- Sign up for a fitness test with a personal trainer at the gym, if you are unsure where you are weak. They can test your aerobic and strength and give you some areas to work on.
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Set strength and aerobic goals. These will keep your workouts on track and allow you to hit milestones as you change your body's shape.^{[1]
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- For example, your cardio goal may be to run 2 miles (3.2 km) in 15 minutes. Interval training, using sprints and moderate exertion can help you reach your goal, by running 3 or 4 times per week.
- For example, your strength goals may be to do 10 push ups in 2 months.
- These goals will differ greatly between men and women for the most part. Men may want to build more muscle mass, while women may want to build lean muscle mass. The difference is in the execution of your Weightlifting.
- Include weight loss goals, if they apply to you. You can still get buff and gain muscle mass while losing weight. While Weightlifting speeds up your metabolism, you will need to spend an equal amount of time doing aerobic exercise to burn more fat off your body.^{[2]
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Divide the goals up into 4 or 5 smaller touchstones, so that you can monitor your progress.
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Create a gym schedule. Try to fit in Weightlifting 3 or 4 times per week with a day of rest in between, cardio at least 3 times per week for 30 minutes and body weight exercises 3 to 4 times per week. Add in stretching to cool down each day.^{[3]
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- Don't forget to take rest days. If you feel you are doing too much or you are exceptionally tired, take a day for your body to recover. Alternate Weightlifting and cardio days, during the majority of the week. Pay attention to your body so that it can rebuild stronger muscles while you rest.

Part 2

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Body Weight Exercises

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1
Learn how to do the basic body weight exercises that work more than 1 muscle group at once. These include squats, push-ups, and planks.
- Take a barre, core burn, boot camp or TRX band class to learn how to do these exercises with proper form. You should be able to do them on your own, at home or at the gym, after a few classes.
- Stop lifting weights if you are feeling the work in your lower back. Seek the help of a personal trainer so that you can get alternate exercises.
You can mix in this training with either cardio or Weightlifting days.
Shorter rest times will improve the aerobic burn during this type of strength training.
Do these repetitions slowly, pausing at the bottom or top of dynamic movements, so that you can activate different muscles.^{[4]
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You should aim to increase difficulty every 2 to 3 weeks of consistent work.^{[5]
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Part 3

Part 3 of 5:

Weightlifting

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1
Start with weight machines. Learn proper form in this easy to use format first, if you have never lifted weights before.^{[6]
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- Choose an amount of weight that will allow you to do at least 2 sets of 10. People who are aiming to build leaner muscles, rather than muscle mass, may choose to use less weight and do 3 sets of 15 repetitions.
After completing a set of repetitions with full range of motion, do a set of half range of motion more quickly. This will work the fast twitch muscles as well as the longer fibers.^{[7]
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Target muscle groups on different days. For example, do arms and shoulders on Monday, legs and abs on Tuesday and chest and back on Wednesday. Never work the same areas 2 days in a row.
- You might do planks and mountain climbers on one day, for instance, then do a chest-and-shoulders exercise like pull-ups on the next.
- Reader Poll: We asked 618 wikiHow readers and 58% of them agreed that the best exercise for building upper-body mass is a pull-up. [Take Poll]
You should reach muscle exhaustion in those groups when you stop lifting. You will build muscle quickly and get buff faster.^{[8]
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Increase in increments of 5 to 10 lbs. (2.2 to 4.5kg).^{[9]
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Make sure your body does not sway. Lifting weights without the help of machines can build muscle faster, and it can also be combined with work on weight machines.

Part 4

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Cardio Routines

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You will look buffer if you melt off some of the fat on your body. It is difficult to do this with strength training alone.
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Try interval training. Do 1 to 2 minutes of sprinting, followed by 4 to 5 minutes of moderate intensity exercise. Intervals increase the efficiency of your metabolism, burning more fat.^{[10]
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- If you choose to do interval training, you will get the same or more benefit in a 20 or 30 minute period of exercise as you would doing 45 minutes to 1 hour of work at the same moderate intensity.
Do running, swimming, cycling, speed walking, elliptical and rowing, so that you work different muscles and avoid overtraining.

Part 5

Part 5 of 5:

Eat Right

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1
Create a meal plan that adds more protein into your diet. Protein is the building block of muscle, and you should increase your consumption immediately after you work out and in general.^{[11]
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- Lean proteins that help build healthy muscle include non-fat Greek yogurt, fish, chicken, turkey, lean pork, lean beef, beans, eggs and milk.
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Restrict your consumption of refined carbohydrates. As you build muscle and your metabolism increases, these will not fill you up for very long.
- Choose complex carbohydrates like oats, quinoa, whole wheat bread, brown or wild rice and lentils.
You need the vitamins and minerals from fruits and vegetables to remain healthy. Seek a trainer's help if you feel you need nutritional supplements, but try to provide what you need with your regular diet first.
This will serve to curb hunger while your metabolism is running high.

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Question

What exercise burns back fat fast?

Alphonso White
Certified Personal Trainer, CompleteBody NYC
Alphonso White is a Certified Personal Trainer and Fitness Coach at CompleteBody in New York City. With over 20 years of experience in the personal fitness industry, Alphonso specializes in fat loss, toning, and functional training. As an ACE Certified Personal Trainer (ACE-CPT), he creates structured, personal workout plans geared towards short and long-term fitness goals. Alphonso also holds a BS in Nutrition and Exercise Science from Queens College and is a Black Belt in Seido Karate.

Alphonso White

Certified Personal Trainer, CompleteBody NYC

Expert Answer

No single exercise will help with fat loss—it's a team effort that begins with reducing your caloric intake. In terms of back muscles, pull-ups, rows, and pulldown exercises are excellent exercises to try.

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Should I take steroids?

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By no means should you take steroids. They can cause organ failures, sexual dysfunction (impotence), and even cancer. The best way to get buff is to follow a healthy yet high-calorie diet, consume mass-building supplements to put on weight and mass, and exercise every other day.

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I've been working out for a very long time, but I'm not getting buff. Should I start taking supplements?

Community Answer

No. You are probably not maximizing whatever workout you are doing. Be sure to push yourself, do fewer repetitions with heavier weights to add mass, and give your muscles 48 hours to recover. It's not the quantity of workouts so much as the quality of each one that will help you transform.

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Tips

Always drink plenty of water before, during and after a workout. Dehydrating muscles can damage them and prevent you from reaching your goals.

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Be sure to get an average of 7-8 hours of sleep per night, as muscle growth occurs during sleep/recovery.

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Tips from our Readers

The advice in this section is based on the lived experiences of wikiHow readers like you. If you have a helpful tip you’d like to share on wikiHow, please submit it in the field below.

People like to act like all you have to do is lift a lot of weights to get buff, but diet is arguably more important than any of the exercises you do. You need to eat a healthy, calorically-dense diet to build the mass you need to convert it into muscle.
Buffness is not only a physical state but a state of mind. Be confident, love who you are, and carry yourself like you're the strongest person in the room. It will seriously translate to a real change in the way people percieve you.

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