True bodybuilder diets tips, not fads

Added: 10/31/2006

While fad diets that promise the stars pop-up daily, and one or two a year usually stick out that offer some results, there are no secret tricks that bodybuilders use year in and year out to add bulk or cut mass. Bodybuilding works when you utilize self-discipline over a period of time. You must find a program and a diet that works for you and stick to it. Fad sounds like fat for a reason.

So what diet is right for you? What can you do to tighten those abdominals or cut that mass down to fit into your old clothes? Perhaps you don’t want to be a bodybuilder, but would like to get in much better shape. Well, if you’re fixing a car its best to get instructions or tips from a mechanic. If you’re working on your body it’s best to learn from bodybuilders, who spend all of their time, energy, and resources perfecting their bodies. First things first, obviously exercise and a weight lifting program are important, but losing weight or cutting mass always begins and ends with bodybuilder diets.

Bodybuilder diets are based on several basic principles. Contrary to a lot of current diets, in order to build muscle, it is important for rest and exercise to be planned, and the fuel that you fill your body with is equally important. First, carbohydrates are necessary to build muscle. They are not necessary to cut fat, but they are necessary to build muscle. Second, protein is extremely important when it comes to building muscle. Third, fat is not always bad, there must be some fat ingested intermittently, though Trans-fats are always bad, in order to consistently lose weight. Fourth, portion size and calorie counts must be strictly monitored in all bodybuilder diets, and the program must be adhered to and followed. Finally, it is best to get as many nutrients that are required in the allotted calorie space and food that you consume in all bodybuilder diets, but this isn’t always possible, so you must supplement your needs and keep track of supplements such as vitamins, minerals, and amino acids that are necessary to build and sculpt muscle structure.

If you follow these principles, most bodybuilder diets will work, but let’s take a quick look at a typical metabolic bodybuilders diet.

Let’s start with carbohydrates. While it is true that you can lose weight by cutting carbs, carbohydrates are routinely worked into most bodybuilder diets on a rotation. When body building you destroy muscle by working out, and while resting the muscle rebuilds. In order to build muscle the body needs carbohydrate. Cut those out constantly and you will lose energy with little to no gains. However, when it is time for a bodybuilder to “cut-up” for a show, most bodybuilders will cut carbohydrates back in their diet, or altogether out of their diets for several weeks. Protein then often becomes prevalent in the diet. Protein is always important when it comes to building muscle, but when show time rolls around most bodybuilders overload, or flush the body with protein. The same is to be said with fat. If you cut fat from the body entirely your metabolism will adjust and stop burning fat at a high rate, so just like carbs, fat should be rotated into the diet. Steak and Chicken, grilled are a good example. A good ratio to follow is to keep less than three grams of fat per hundred calories consumed. One and a half to two grams per hundred are ideal. As far as calories go, a dieter should keep between 1600-2000 calories a day, though a body builder often keeps between 2000-3000 calories per day, once a week or so overloading with an extra thousand calories to keep the metabolism off kilter. Come show time the calories will be cut back to. It is also important to remember to eat multiple small meals, six instead of three, to never skip a meal, and to supplement the diet with needed vitamins and minerals.

Rate this article:

Bad

Good

Article comments:

No comments for this article yet. Post your comment now!

Return to top of the page