Let’s look at simple arithmetic, which many, it seems, need help explaining to themselves. You spend just about an hour a day in the gym. In the remaining 22-23 hours, the growth of muscle tissue depends exclusively on what goes into your mouth or remains outside of it. So why does the nutritional side of the equation for building muscle mass often need to be noticed? Maybe because the dumbbells are much sexier than the spinach. But if you want to stop looking like a pod of beans and start looking like Mr. Clean, you will need to pay close attention to several dietary principles. The following 12 nutritional principles for building muscle mass will help you get the body you’ve always dreamed of, saving you from the danger of turning into Mr. Donut.
1. Eat real food
Michael Pollan, the most famous author of books on food and nutrition in America, says: «Don’t eat anything that your grandmother wouldn’t recognize as a food product.» This is excellent advice that does not apply except for protein cocktails. Natural products, such as lean meat, nuts, seeds, and vegetables, contain the largest number of nutrients necessary for your muscles and provide a more continuous supply of amino acids and glucose to them than the food waste stored on the shelves of the central rows of your local supermarket.
2. Wake up, have lunch
Eat two breakfasts if you want to build muscle mass. To replenish glycogen reserves in the liver and stop catabolism, which breaks down your muscle tissue while you sleep, when you wake up in the morning, immediately take two measuring spoons of whey protein and a dose of quickly digestible carbohydrates, such as Vitargo or simple white bread. One of our favorite morning cocktails contains two cups of coffee, two measuring spoons of whey protein, and two to three tablespoons of sugar. About an hour later, eat a second breakfast consisting of natural products and a quality source of protein, such as Canadian bacon or eggs, as well as slowly digestible carbohydrates, such as oatmeal.
3. Count the calories
The only way to understand whether you are eating enough to build muscle mass and in the right proportions is to keep a detailed food journal to track the calories and macronutrients consumed. The huge database of nutrition data available at nutritiondata.com will help you calculate everything correctly.
4. Включите в рацион дичь
В свое время дичь was a traditional part of the American dinner. Верните ее в свой рацион. The meat of such animals as buffalo, elk, ostrich, and deer is better than others for those who want to build muscle mass. Not only does the game have the most optimal ratio of lean meat to fat, which helps build lean muscle mass, but most wild animals also eat grass and are constantly on the move. Due to this, their meat contains a large amount of omega-3 fatty acids and conjugated linoleic acid, which contribute to the burning of subcutaneous fat. Мясо дичи can be purchased at the farmer’s markets or ordered at eatwild.com. We recommend using the Scitec protein-rich dried game as a snack between main meals.
5. Take whey protein before and after training
Recently, an article about the results of research conducted by Finnish scientists was published in the journal “Amino Acids.” They found that the bodies of bodybuilders who took whey protein before and immediately after training produced more of a compound known as cyclin-dependent kinase 2, or CDK2, than those who did not take the protein. It is believed that CDK2 activates muscle stem cells involved in hypertrophy and recovery processes associated with intense physical exertion. Moreover, in 2009, Japanese researchers found that consuming whey protein and glucose contributes to the accumulation of more post-training muscle glycogen (the main source of energy for working muscles) than consuming glucose alone.
6. Don’t avoid
Carbohydrates To increase muscle mass, you need to consume a large number of carbohydrates: from four to five grams per kilogram of your weight. Carbohydrates contain calories necessary for the growth of muscle mass and glycogen, necessary for intense physical exertion. Brown rice, oatmeal, quinoa, and sweet potatoes are the most recommended sources of carbohydrates. However, the first meal of the day and a post-workout snack – when a sharp jump in insulin is required to deliver amino acids to the muscle tissue – must contain quickly digestible carbohydrates, such as fruit, white potatoes, or white rice.
7. Plan ahead
Coming home from an exhausting workout, being hungry as a wolf, and not finding anything to eat in the house, it is very easy to succumb to the temptation and search for the nearest bag of chips. But having a supply of protein-rich food that you can easily reheat ensures you make healthy choices and get the nutrients your muscles need. On the weekend, prepare a stock of dishes from chicken, chili, stew, hard-boil a batch of eggs, boil rice, and store all this in the refrigerator or freezer so that you can eat without problems throughout the week.
8. Eat at the night
Before going to bed, use a portion of the slowly digestible protein casein in combination with healthy fats. Casein turns into intestines, providing a continuous supply of amino acids to the body, which slows down catabolism that occurs during sleep. Approximately half an hour before bedtime, take 20-40 grams of powdered casein or a cup of low-fat cottage cheese (an excellent source of casein) in combination with two tablespoons of linseed oil or 30-50 grams of nuts or seeds.
9. Plan frequent snacks
Frequent food intake saves you from feeling hungry and provides a continuous supply of nutrients necessary for the growth of muscle tissue. The feeling of hunger is a sign of approaching or beginning catabolism and the threat of being tempted by a piece of cake left in the office after an employee’s birthday. Eat healthy food eight times a day, including pre-workout and post-workout snacks.
10. Consume enough calories
Muscles, unlike subcutaneous fat, actively participate in the exchange of substances, so consuming a sufficient amount of calories is necessary to ensure their continuous growth. The lack of consumed calories leads to the breakdown of muscle tissue. При наращивании мискной такі try to consume daily about 40-50 kilocalories per kilogram of body mass (about 3600 kcal per day for a guy weighing 80 kg). If you find that consuming 40-50 kcal per kilogram of body weight per day leads to the growth of muscle and fat, reduce the consumption rate to 30-35 kcal per day. This, however, does not mean that you should eat pizza. The quality of food is important so that it won’t clog your diet.