Are you feeling a little confused with all the different training regimes you hear about, if it's not the latest one doing the rounds in the gym or latest and greatest workout being shown in Muscle and Fitness, no wonder you are confused, so which one is really best?

Well if your in a phase were you feel stuck and the gains just aren't happening like they used to maybe you need to look at these 4 simple steps that will catapult your progress to the next level.

Here's the first thing you should do, no matter what happens make sure you workout 3, no make that 4 times a week, your main goal is to stimulate the muscle fibres with resistance, when this is done your body adapts by making your muscles grow, so the stress if it happens again will be taken care of, or so your muscles think, that's when you just use progressively heavier weights to stimulate even more muscle growth, you must leave enough time in between each muscle group worked to allow for growth around 72 hours is usually ideal.

The second step should be is to make sure that you are eating around 5 or 6 well balanced meals a day, which give you an ample supply of the correct carbohydrates, proteins and fats. Carbohydrates should be around 45% of your intake, proteins ideally about 35% and fats only around 20%. Try and make sure that you average your intake around 50 – 50, meaning 50% solid foods and the other supplements like protein drinks etc.

Step 3 , should be, to be aware of your supplemental approach, never just jump on to the latest bandwagon of the next best super supplement that costs a fortune, just because Mr Olympia says he uses it, check for super supplements that have been around for a few years at least, this way you will know that they must have some credence or they wouldn't have stood the test of time. Here's a few I would never be without. A good high quality timed release multi-vitamin, top grade fish oil capsules, some creatine and a high grade whey protein, this should basically cover all your nutritional needs and some. No need to spend your hard earned money on fancy supplements that might not even work.

Step 4. With weight training, an unfortunate side effect is muscle shortening, to overcome this problem you need to do stretching exercises, this should equate to 2 hours a week at least, you will find this very beneficial to your gains if you add this to your regime, so many body-builders unfortunately do not stretch enough, this can eventually if not careful result in muscle injury, so make sure you add it to your workout ...Now

I'm sure if you decide to follow the tips outlined in this article, you will help take yourself to the next level in your quest for body-building greatness.