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Researched and Composed by By: Jacob Wilson
Introduction
I will break down the essence of
nutrition for bodybuilding in this article! This
article goes hand and hand with the self assessment sheet that
is in the magazine.
It all boils down to this:
if you have run into a plateau, or are not seeing the gains
you would like to see, then it is probably your diet that is
holding you back! I will break down nutrition into 9 different
categories. And for each category I describe, I want you
to ask yourself this question: " am I doing currently
doing this? " If you are not, then you need to be, that
is, if you want optimal gains!
1. Meal Frequency
You need to understand that the more
frequently you eat, the more muscle you will gain and the leaner
you will be. This is for several reasons, three of which
are:
A. High meal frequency allows you to consume
smaller meals throughout the day, rather than larger meals in
only a few sittings. Your body can absorb smaller meals
with a greater proficiency than it can larger ones. For
example a 600 calorie meal can be digested, and used to build
muscle much easier than a 1200 calorie meal. That being
said, if a person is bulking and eats six, 600 calorie meals,
then he will get a total of 3, 600 calories. If he had
however ate 3, 1200 calorie meals then he would have been more
likely to store fat. You see, the more overloaded our
digestive system becomes, the more fat we will store.
In addition, as I stated, smaller meals will be absorbed and
used with much greater efficiency. The more your body
can use the nutrients you feed it, the more muscle you will
gain. Period!
B. Food is the most
anabolic substance known to man! It is literally more
powerful than the most potent steroid! Anytime you eat
a well balanced, nutritious meal, you place your body into a
state of anabolism. Anytime your body runs out of food,
it turns on itself for energy, this is called catabolism. Which
is why meal frequency is so vital, the more consistent you eat,
the longer you will keep your body in a state in which it can
optimally build muscle!
C. Meal frequency induces
thermogenesis. Every time you eat, your bodies temperature
rises and you burn more calories. In other words, it keeps
your metabolism extremely high, which can benefit you, by keeping
you leaner on a bulk and also burning fat at a much higher rate
on a cut.
rating:
3 meals a day = horrible day!
4-5 meals a day = average
6 meals a day = very good
anything above 6 = fantastic!!
2. Water Consumption:
Water = Anabolic ( Muscle Building )
A little known fact about water consumption
is that the less you drink, the more likely you are to become
over trained. I have literally seen whole bulks ruined
because of a lack of hydration! Without proper hydration,
you can kiss optimal gains goodbye! Water lubricates us,
keeps us from injury, allows our muscles to contract harder,
speeds recovery, and is involved with millions of other actions
in the body.
3. Protein
Intake
In order to stimulate muscle growth, you
have to shock your muscles with weight
resistance. Then, amino acids have to be at hand in order to
aid in the tissue repair. If you don’t
get enough protein, you can train as hard and intensely as you
want, and spend as many days pounding the weights as is possible,
and I guarantee you won’t
see any growth. All you’ll
end up doing is over training! I recommend 1 to 1.5
grams of protein a day per pound of bodyweight. If you
weigh 150 pounds, you should eat 150 to 225 grams a day of this
anabolic macronutrient! And when dieting, lower other macronutrients,
never lower your protein intake! Note:
Look for an upcoming article on nitrogen balance, this will
further explain the significance of protein intake.
4. Carbohydrate
Intake
The important thing to understand
about carbs is that they have a " protein sparring " effect.
Which means when your body has enough carbs to fuel itself,
it will be able to more fully utilize amino acids for the maintenance,
repair and growth of muscle tissues. This is why carbs
are so vital to a bodybuilder who is trying to gain mass.
In edition, eating
too few carbohydrates can leave your muscles feeling and looking flat. Muscle fullness depends, to a
large extent, on the glycogen stores within them.
Likewise, your vascularity also depends on your carbohydrate
intake. A prime example of this can perhaps be traced to your
last cutting or dieting cycle.
When dieting your veins disappear between meals and appear
after meals.
Top bodybuilders note that ingesting some simple sugars
before a competition brings out their vascularity.
Carbohydrates
are also chiefly responsible for inducing the release one of
our bodies most anabolic hormones, Insulin! As I
have stated many times before, insulin literally shuttles amino
acids and other vital nutrients into our muscles for growth.
However, insulin is also the chief hormone responsible for fat
storage. My suggestion is to stay as clean as possible
with your carbohydrate intake. Eat clean starchy carbs
such as sweet potatoes and oatmeal. Also eat fibrous green
carbs such as lettuce, spinach, and any other green veggy.
Stay far away from anything that is bleached or processed such
as white bread, candy, white rice and other carbs along those
lines. Cleaner, fibrous carbs digest slowly and do not
induce an overproduction of insulin. Hence, you get a
steady even stream of this hormone, reaping the anabolic effects
of it, while suppressing the fat storing side of it. Remember,
processed foods usually always induce an overproduction of insulin.
5.
Essential Fatty Acid Intake
Efa's help us with countless
areas in our bodybuilding lifestyle. For more information on
this vital aspect of nutrition, refer to, Essential Fatty Acids - An In Depth Analysis.
6. Meal Balance
An optimal meal should be divided
into four parts.
a. You should have a starchy,
clean carb: To optimally replenish your glycogen
stores
b. You should have a fibrous vegetable: To slow
digestion/insulin release and to increase digestion by providing
your body with vital digestive enzymes.
c. You should have an excellent protein source: As mentioned
above, to maintain, repair and support muscle mass.
d. You should have a tall glass or two of water:
Or kiss your gains goodbye
An example of this would be a tossed,
leafy green salad with safflower oil-vinegar dressing.
Followed by a large baked sweet potato, a big fat juicy steak
and 2 cups of water. MMMM....If you will excuse me, I
have to go get my grub on!
Yes, that is just one of the perks
of bodybuilding, we eat so good! Of course, the ratios
will change according to whether you are dieting to burn fat
or to gain mass. I will discuss these differences below.
7. Nutrition
For Gaining Mass
The way I see it, there are only
two types of people who have trouble gaining mass.
A. The first person
is the pretty boy, who doesn't want to lose his abs. Look
I have news for you, you will never gain mass if you are not
willing to put on a little fat--period! My suggestion
to a person like this is to suck it up and do what it takes
to gain weight. Your abs will still be there when you
cut up!
B. The second
person, is the guy who tells himself over and over again that
he cannot gain weight. My answer to him would be this:
" You are lying to yourself!!!! "
Every healthy human being can gain
weight. End of discussion! You actually have several
advantages.
1. You are naturally lean,
which means all you essentially have to concentrate on is mass.
Don't feel sorry for yourself. Do you realize how many
people wish they had your metabolic rate? Use it to your
advantage, complaining will do you no good!
Here are the steps you will need
to take:
a. Use the calorie counter
on the food you eat.
b. Count each of the calories that you consume or start
reading the labels on the food you eat.
c. Add up your daily caloric intake.
d. Add exactly 200 calories to your menu
e. If you do not gain weight then add 200 more
f. If you still do not gain weight, then add 200
more to that, etc. etc.
g. Stop making the excuse that you have tried everything.
You obviously have not tried eating enough!!!!
Mass Rules: Below I will list rules for gaining
mass
Rule 1 - If you consume more
calories in a day then you burn off, then you will gain weight.
Its that simple!
Rule 2 - The slower the weight gain, the less likely
you will store fat, 1-2 pounds a week would be optimal.
Rule 3 - If you have a metabolism that easily stores
fat, then try and stay as clean as possible!
Rule 4 - Up Your Calories Slowly so that your metabolism
has time to adapt.
Rule 5 - Follow all the nutritional guidelines in this
section, i.e. meal balance, protein intake, frequency, etc.
Rule 6 - If you need more info, go to the nutrition section
and read the mass diets. They are completely customizable
and go into greater detail.
8. Burning
Fat
Burning fat is a much more difficult
equation. Below are some quick rules for burning fat:
Fat Burning Nutritional Rules
Rule 1 - Never Starve Yourself! 1, 000 calories diets
do not work!
Rule 2 - Change Your diet like you change your workout
routine. In other words change it up every 2-3 weeks.
And always tweak it if you hit a plateau. For example,
lets say that I am burning fat by consuming 6 starchy carb/protein
meals a day. If I were to plateau, the first thing I would
do is manipulate my carbohydrate intake. I would cut out all
starchy carbs for my last 2 meals. During these meals
I would only consume leafy green veggies and proteins/fats.
Rule 3 - Try calorie cycling. If I have been
dieting for a long time and have hit a major plateau, I will
raise my calories slowly up to maintenance for 2 weeks.
This will re-set my metabolism. Following this I will
resume my dieting.
Rule 4 - You must have discipline. Dieting can
really suck, but the reward at the end of the tunnel is well
worth it!
Rule 5 - Read my Take
Fat Burning To A Whole New Level!! article if you have
not already!
Rule 6 - If your thyroid gland starts to shut down, then
take 25 grams of soy protein twice a day. This will revitalize
your t-3 levels. In edition, if you are worried about
soy being estrogenic you need not be. 25 grams of Soy,
twice a day is way too small an amount to effect this.
Rule 7 - Keep meal frequency high
Rule 8 - Never lower Your protein intake! Unless
you want to see your muscle vanish as fast as your fat does!
Rule 9 - Only eat clean foods! If you hit a plateau,
stay away from fructose (avoid fruits).
9. Supplementation
The word supplementation literally means to enhance or
compliment. This is not the meat and potatoes of nutrition,
but if and only if the above requirements are met, then supplementation
can increase your gains big time! I will not cover every
supplement that I feel is valid, but I will cover those that
I feel most athletes in this sport should take, after their
nutritional regimen is in place.
Essentials - These are the supplements
that I feel every Bodybuilder should be taking!
1. Multi-Vitamin/ Multi-Mineral
- Vitamins and minerals can become quite a
confusing subject. They perform thousands of biochemical functions
in our bodies. However if you understand the basics of vitamins
and minerals, you shouldn’t
be overwhelmed by the subject. You
want to know what the basics are? Ok, here it is:
You need to be taking a Multivitamin and a Multi Mineral supplement!
If you supplement your diet with this every day consistently, I
guarantee you’ll
see and feel the results! You won’t get
sick as often and you’ll recover
quicker. Who
knows, the last plateau you were in may have been directly attributed
to this essential factor!
Important Observation!
Many old-school nutritionists and dietitians
will tell you that you can get all these important micronutrients
from simply consuming a balanced diet.
The reality of the situation is that they are clueless! No athlete
can get an efficient amount of these every single day, by simply
eating a balanced diet. You need to understand that your
needs are extremely higher than your average Joe, and you need
to factor that in to everything that you do.
2.
Vitamin C - If you are sick than you cannot gain muscle
mass. Your body must be in a perfectly peaked state to
accomplish this. Vitamin C, is the ultimate antioxidant
and is a must for every athlete across the board! Take
3 grams a day and 6-9 when you feel a cold coming on.
3.
Chromium - This is in direct correlation
with insulin resistance. If you are deficient, you will
be more insulin resistant and the opposite is also in effect
(Insulin Sensitivity). There is no RDA for chromium; however, most experts agree
you need at least 200 mcg/day. A recent study which showed positive
results used 1,000 mcg/day. Hard-working athletes may want to
make sure they get at least 300 mcg/day.
Note:
Insulin sensitivity simply means that your cells are more responsive
and that your body does not need to release as much to get an
anabolic effect.
Helpful Supplements
Protein Supplements
- In this sport, our protein needs are extremely high
for reasons stated above. For optimal gains you should
take in 1.5 grams of protein a day. Without a protein
supplement you would have to consume a tremendous amount of
meat. Considering that these supplements are both cost
effective and convenient I would suggest purchasing one.
So the question is this. Can you get enough protein from
solid food alone? If the answer is yes, then you are fine,
if the answer is no, then get a protein supplement to fill in
this gap.
Creatine: This giant
has stood the test of time! It has proven to do everything
from enhancing recovery to buffing lactic acid. If you
can afford creatine, you will not be disappointed with its tremendous
applications to this sport! ( See article in nutritional
section )
Glutamine: Take as much
as you can afford. For more info on this, read Glutamine—The
Conditionally Essential Amino Acid. Suffice it to say, you
will notice increased recovery, less soreness and a better pump
in the gym while supplementing with this amino acid.
Flax Seed Oil - I explained
the importance of essential fatty acids above. Flax is
the best supplement for getting enough of these in your diet.
If you lack in this area, pick some up. A few spoonfuls
a day will go a long way!
ZMA - Do not be deficient
in these minerals! Click
here to see why!
Supplementation Rules:
1. If you can't get enough
from your diet, supplement so that you do get it.
2. Take the essentials I discussed
above!
3. After the top two rules,
and once you get your nutrition in check, you may consider the
other supplements I mentioned above. However, make sure
that your diet is in order first and foremost!
Conclusion
Most people do not realize what a
key role self analysis plays in our sport. As I have stated
above you must be your most devout critique. I guarantee
that your gains will absolutely explode after implementing this
into your program! ( Use The self analysis sheet
in the magazine section that goes along with this! )
Sincerely
Jacob Wilson Trainer@abcbodybuilding.com
President, Abcbodybuilding
© ABC Bodybuilding Company. All rights reserved. Disclaimer
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