If you want to rack up lean muscle blocks without using illegal drugs, then this might be the most important article you have read all year.

Because in this article I will show you three proven strategies to build muscle mass without illegal steroids.

First, I want you to imagine a timeline in your head. On the far left, it’s the year 1850. Yes, I realize that was over 150 years ago, but bear with me.

On the right side of the timeline is the year 2000 and beyond.

Now here’s what’s interesting. Steroids were invented in the 1940s, so almost all muscle building advice produced AFTER the 1940s has been influenced in one way or another by steroids.

So when you read a magazine or book on how to build muscle … if that book or magazine was written after 1940, there is a possibility that the author used steroids to build muscle. That is why I prefer to look at routines and strategies created BEFORE 1940. Because you know that anyone who gained muscle before 1940 did so WITHOUT the use of drugs and steroids, as steroids had not yet been invented.

With that in mind, here are 3 strategies for building muscle without steroids. Each of these strategies was created, developed, and implemented long before steroids were invented:

Strategy n. 1: Lift strong and heavy, short and sweet.

Most men who complain about their inability to gain weight are simply doing too much in the gym. You should train only three times a week and each training session should contain only three exercises.

In the 1920s (before steroids were invented), a guy named J. Hise gained 29 pounds in a month by training just three times a week. Also, you did ONLY the following three exercises.

Barbell curls

Bar Presses

Barbell squats

Strategy n. # 2: eat (and drink) more protein

Of course, the real secret to building muscle mass is eating (and drinking) more protein. Muscles are made up of water and protein, so it makes sense that you need extra protein when trying to gain weight.

Focus on eggs, beef, tuna, turkey, chicken, and whatever else you can get hold of. And don’t forget the milk. J. Hise drank more than a gallon of milk per day during his mass-gaining workout.

Strategy n. 3: sleep

It sounds simple enough, but sleeping is the fundamental key to building muscle without drugs. When you sleep, your body releases growth hormones and testosterone. Drug users can get away with less sleep by injecting artificial growth hormones and artificial testosterone.

But drug-free, natural trainers like you and me need to maximize our body’s ability to produce something real. For normal people, 8 hours of sleep is enough. But for the drug-free athlete, try to get 9 or even 10 hours of sleep a night.

Remember: Before the light bulb was invented, our ancestors slept 10-12 hours a night PLUS an extra nap in the afternoon. So to maximize your natural hormones, get as much sleep as you can.

There you have it, three age-old strategies drug-free trainers can use to gain muscle without steroids.