Eating to Build Muscle in an Overall Bodybuilding Program

By Harley Radowski


Bodybuilding routines must include eating to build muscle as a component of an overall bodybuilding program. Working up a sweat in the gym and concentrating on all your muscle groups in order to build muscle mass is fine, but you are only going half way if you do not also eat foods that build muscle.

Lifting weights in the gym forced your muscles to work, but guess what? Working your muscles uses considerable energy, and energy is supplied by your food. Correct nutrition also helps heal muscle injury that often occurs while you are working out. You may not even know you have caused injury to your muscles, but your body knows, and your body needs fuel from food that helps build muscle in order to repair that muscle.

When looking into the types of food that helps build muscle, you probably immediately think of eating a low fat diet. That is great, but probably the most important type of foods that build muscle are foods containing high levels of protein. Foods like meat, fish, chicken, eggs, cheese and other milk products. Nuts are also a great protein source.

Figuring out how much protein you should be eating can be tricky. Too much protein is bad for your health, and puts a strain on your system. But you need to eat a lot of protein and not much else for that to happen. Ask at your gym as to your daily protein requirement. It depends on your weight, and on your lean mass weight (basically the weight of all your bones and organs, minus all body fat).

Carbohydrates, in moderation, are also essential when finding foods that build muscle. Do not eat too much, though, unless you choose high fiber carbohydrates (which are the healthiest ones anyway), and then you can indulge in much larger amounts. Good high fiber carbohydrates include rice, potatoes (yes, potatoes - just do not add butter!), oatmeal and bananas.

Fats need to be reduced when you are consider what foods build muscle mass. Fat can never be eliminated completely (and nor should you try to do this), but reducing fat can have a healthy effect on your attempts to build muscle mass. Most foods that contain protein also contains fat, so when choosing your proteins, providing you opt for the ones that are low in fat, you will be on the right track.

You may argue that drinking has no effect on what to eat to build muscle. But you would be wrong. Hydration is critical to general health and wellbeing. Even more so when you are working to build muscle mass.

Two litres of water a day is what most experts recommend to maintain optimal health. To drink that amount, you need to drink up to 12 glasses of water a day, which is quite a lot. So start early in the day, and space your water consumption out throughout the day.

Foods that build muscle are great, and an essential component of your bodybuilding program. But do not be lulled into a false sense of security and think you can slow down on your workouts. Both bodybuilding exercises and bodybuilding diets are required to get a body to die for as quickly as you possibly can. Even if you are working on improving your physique slowly, you should combine a bodybuilding diet with bodybuilding workouts for best results.




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