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Bodybuilding Diet

 

Table of Contents

  1. What should I eat?
  2. What is your goal?
  3. Why isn't my diet working?
  4. How can I lose fat if I eat fat?
  5. I am barely eating any calories, why am I not losing weight?
  6. Are products like slim-fast effective for weight reduction?
  7. Why don't I see results from protein powder?
  8. Are weight-gainers good for gaining muscle?
  9. Will alcohol affect my diet in any way?

What should I eat?

 
Goal Proteins Carbohydrates Fats
Lose Weight .8-1gram/lb Keep simple sugars low Essential Fatty Acid Levels* High
Gain Weight 1.5-3gram/lb High Complex Carbs Saturated fats Low-Moderate
Maintain Weight .8-1gram/lb Average Complex Carbs Saturated fats Low-Moderate

*A good source of Essential Fatty Acids can be found in either Flax Oil or Udo's Choice Blend Oil

 

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What is your goal?

Goal Eating Frequency Total Calories Changes in Exercise
Lose Weight Every 3hrs. 500 Calories under BMR* Reduce if fatigue occurs
Gain Weight Every 2-3hrs. 500 Calories over BMR Lift Heavier
Maintain Weight Every 3hrs Equal to BMR None

*To Find BMR record amount of calories over 3 days. If no change in weight that is your BMR.

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Why isn't my diet working?

Forget about all the diet fads and fantasies. Keep your carb intake moderate and get lean sources of protein into your body every 3-4 hours. Use whey protein drinks, nutrition bars, whatever it takes to give your body what it needs to develop and maintain muscle while depriving it of the excess carbohydrates which it will undoubtedly store as fat.

Here are a few general guidelines:

* Focus your meals around lean sources of protein such as: white chicken and turkey meat, lean cuts of beef, egg whites, tuna and other fish, etc.

 

* Don't be afraid of all fats. We've been brainwashed into thinking that all forms of fat in the diet are unhealthy and can lead to excess bodyfat. This simply isn't true. In fact, your body needs fat in order to burn fat, otherwise it will shift into preservation mode and attempt to maintain existing fat stores. It's true that you should watch your intake of saturated fat, but taking in so-called "good" fats (ie: those found in nuts, olive oil, flax seed, fish oils, etc.) can have a very positive effect on weightloss and overall health.

 

* Move your carbohydrate intake away from foods that spike a high insulin response in the body to foods that offer more quality fuel for long-lasting energy. To simplify, eat very few-or no-processed carbs (breads, pastas, refined sugar products, etc.) and eat more unprocessed carbs (fruits and vegetables). If it comes in a box (crackers, cereal, pasta, cookies), forget it. In fact, if there's one thing you can do that will have a significant, positive, and lasting effect on your health and bodyfat percentages, it's shifting your carbohydrate intake away from processed foods and towards natural fruits and vegetables.

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How can I lose fat if I eat fat?

Despite the mythology created by the mainstream nutritional industry and the mass media, not all fats are bad for you. Bodybuilders, of course, have long realized the benefits of supplementing with Essential Fatty Acids (EFAs).  As more research is done, the list of possible health and fitness benefits associated with EFAs continues to grow.

Here's just a partial list of EFA benefits. Supplementing with EFAs may help:

* maintain and even increase healthy hormone production;

* increase the percentage of good cholesterol to bad cholesterol in the body, potentially leading to better overall health;

* help regulate and maintain efficient metabolic levels;

* regulate insulin release, likely leading to less fat tissue accumulation;

* enhance the immune system;

* lower blood pressure in those with unhealthy elevations;

* enhance nitrogen retention and balance to protect lean muscle tissue.

It's clear that additional research will likely reveal even more dramatic benefits from EFAs.

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I am barely eating any calories, why am I not losing weight?

When you eat diet consisting of extremely low amounts of calories, your body goes into starvation mode.  What this means is your body will think it's in a situation where no food is availiable and it will preserve its own fat at all costs.  You might lose weight initially but this is just the lose of lean muscle tissue.  You might say 'who cares about muscle', well if your trying to lose bodyfat lean muscle is your bestfriend.  For every pound of lean muscle you put on you burn an additional 40-70 calories per day.  After a while this adds up and will help you to burn a lot more fat.  Now you know what you should not do and your probably wondering what the right way to go about things is.  The right way to do things is to eat small but frequent meals every 3hrs.  People fixed on old time diet myths probably just went crazy right about now thinking how fat this will make them, in reality this will do just the opposite.

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Are products like slim-fast effective for weight reduction?

           No! Stay away from these products, the further the better.  Honestly, when is the last time you read the labels on these things? You want a cheap recipe for slim-fast, here it is:

1 Cheap multi-vitamin/mineral

6-8 spoonfuls of sugar

1 cup watered down milk

Put it a blender and mix

Would you eat ice cream to lose weight? Then why do you drink these "diet" drinks that are more like candy.  Drinking a soda would almost be better.  If you want a quality drink, pick up a protein powder or a meal replacement powder.

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Why don't I see results from protein powder?

Protein powder is a useful tool for an athelete.  However, if you have one protein shake a day and expect to see results from it, you won't.  Get AT LEAST one gram of protein per pound of bodyweight.  Doing this overtime will help you add more muscle than you would have achieved without the use of protein.  Don't expect to gain 20lbs of pure muscle in a month on protein.  Some people think protein is like a safe steroid.  It's not a steroid at all. It can be used to assist you in gaining mass. So don't go out and buy a tub of protein thinking it will make you huge.  

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Are weight gainers good for gaining muscle?

Many people attempt to use weight-gainers to bulk up quick, others use it for calories.  Normal weight gainers will have between 1000-2000 calories per serving.  For the vast majority of people this is way to many calories to have in one sitting and will most likely make you put on fat instead of muscle.  If you have read the label on these things you will find that most of them contain around 100 grams of sugar, that is not a typo.  More calories are necessary for putting on muscle but just dont get them all in one sitting, spread them out.  If you are trying to bulk up fast, its not going to happen unless you are willing to use drugs, which I dont recommend.  

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Will alcohol affect my diet in anyway?

An occasional drink won't hurt.  But binge drinking or having a few beers a day is not good for gaining muscle and losing fat.  Alcohol is very fattening and it also retards muscle growth.  So try not to drink that often or large amounts.

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