Hello friends, today I will tell you how to eat for muscle growth. To understand what is at stake, first consider the theoretical part of the question. Even in ancient times, athletes realized that training alone is not enough - you need proper nutrition for muscle growth. Therefore, everything was reached empirically. With the development of science, gradually, the spots on this issue became less and less. And this is what we learned.
We are all made up of complex protein molecules. Only plants can literally synthesize complex substances from nothing. Animals, including humans, cannot do this. But they can only synthesize some (nonessential) amino acids (proteins). Therefore, they need food for normal activities.
It should consist of proteins, fats, carbohydrates, vitamins and trace elements. Each component matters. With a constant lack of any of them, catastrophic consequences can ensue.
Many novice athletes have already heard a little about the meaning of food and have an approximate idea of what it consists of. But they don’t know how to use it in practice. Sometimes their friends or acquaintances tell them what and when to eat. If they are lucky, they receive this information from good coach... In general, there is a problem. Therefore, I will tell you everything that is required for proper nutrition in order to build muscle mass, without any anabolic steroids.
Muscles do not grow only under any one condition, since the growth of muscle tissue is a very complex and lengthy process, for which all conditions must be observed.
- Regular resistance training (anaerobic). Since it is then that the growth of muscle mass occurs, since the muscle tissue receives microtraumas, as a result of which the body turns on a protective function (adapts), which consists in the restoration of damaged tissue and the growth of new (muscle increase). This happens due to the fact that the body is preparing to meet the next load already more prepared. This process in athletes is called "supercompensation", thanks to which muscles grow. This implies the following condition.
- For constant growth, it is necessary to increase the load, otherwise the body adapts, and muscle growth stops. Therefore, for the development of any physical quality, constant progress is always needed (increasing the load).
- Remember, the increase in muscle volume and their strength does not occur during training, but during the recovery of the body (rest). You will learn more about this in the article:.
- And another not unimportant point is that muscle growth is stimulated by a male hormone called testosterone. You've probably already heard about it ... But for the synthesis of testosterone, fat is needed, which in the diet should be 10-15%. However, fats are also necessary for normal metabolism (metabolism) - they are the main component of our cells. I recommend that it is best to consume vegetable fats (unsaturated), as they are the healthiest and eliminate animal fats (saturated).
- The body needs food, not only for muscle growth, but also for life. Therefore, proper nutrition for muscle growth will provide the body with all the necessary nutrients. And I will tell you about this in great detail, just below.
Processes that take place after anaerobic training
During exercise in the gym, the muscles are under great strain. And every time they lift a weight, they get, as it were, microtraumas. Also, in addition to microtraumas, the body uses all the stores of glycogen (energy) in the muscles and liver, without which training with heavy loads is simply not possible, as fast fatigue sets in.
During rest, the body is engaged in restoring energy and everything that has been damaged. And first of all, he needs:
- Restore the supply of energy (carbohydrates), which are necessary for vital processes. It's like a phone battery, without which the phone won't work, so it needs to be constantly recharged when it runs out.
- As soon as the supply of energy (carbohydrates) in the body is replenished, only then the body will begin to repair damaged tissues and build up new ones, but not vice versa. However, if nutrients are not supplied enough with food, then there will be no talk of any muscle growth, since the body will try to preserve what it already has.
- The body will also strive to get rid of the debris that has accumulated during training. And for this you need a liquid that will remove everything unnecessary from the body and restore the water balance.
However, for everything to work normally, some substances are needed in very small quantities. We are talking about trace elements and vitamins. Without them, there can be no question of any assembly process. We ourselves cannot get them just like that, out of thin air, only with food.
What are proteins for?
Protein is the building block of any organism, but since our muscles are composed of complex protein structures, proteins are essential for their growth. Therefore, it is necessary to consume enough leucorrhoea, which is 2-3 grams per kilogram of body weight. Which should make up 25-30% of protein from the total diet for muscle growth.
But you need to understand that proteins (this is a chain) are made up of amino acids (links), and our body cannot synthesize (produce) all amino acids, but only half of them, which are called "nonessential". "Essential" amino acids come only from protein foods. Therefore, this is why it is necessary to eat protein foods.
- Dairy products - milk protein is called "casein", it breaks down for a long time, but it is very useful and saturates the blood for a long time, which is very good.
- Meat, fish and seafood - this protein is quickly absorbed and has a high protein value.
- Legumes (peas, beans, beans) - although they do not have all the essential amino acids, they are rich in vitamins, fiber and trace elements.
- Eggs are the best protein product, which includes a full range of essential amino acids and is very quickly absorbed.
What are carbohydrates for?
Carbohydrates are the main energy that is necessary for the work of all vital processes and movement. In our body, it is stored in the muscles and liver in the form of glycogen. When it is used up, we feel tired (lack of energy).
So, while working with weights, you need a lot of energy (carbohydrates in the muscles and liver), which is spent throughout the workout and its consumption depends on the intensity of the exercise. And also carbohydrates are needed not only for hard training, but also to restore energy reserves, maintain existing muscles and increase muscle mass.
Therefore, when the supply of carbohydrates ends, the body begins to take them from proteins, which means destroying its own muscle mass. This suggests the conclusion that if you do not eat a sufficient amount of carbohydrates, then the muscles will not only not grow, but will completely decrease. Since after training, the body first of all restores the supply of carbohydrates, and after that it is engaged in the restoration of muscle microtraumas and muscle growth. Therefore, if there is a shortage of carbohydrates, the body will try to keep what it has left.
Carbohydrates should make up 60% of the total diet for muscle growth.
- Porridge (oatmeal, rice, buckwheat, pearl barley) is a golden reserve of useful (complex) carbohydrates, which, for a long time, saturate the body with energy. In addition to the high content of carbohydrates, they contain: proteins, vitamins, fiber, minerals and trace elements, but this is not all of its advantages.
- Vegetables and fruits are a source of healthy carbohydrates, which contain useful substances such as vitamins, minerals, fiber and antioxidants, substances that inhibit the aging process of cells.
There are people who are designed so that their muscles grow by leaps and bounds. But at the same time, of course, they eat right and exercise well, and there are those who, it would seem, nothing helps. No, there is relief, but the muscle mass itself does not grow as we would like and it depends on many factors, but practice shows that they are doing something wrong. So, now I will tell you how to eat to gain muscle mass.
1. Be sure to switch to fractional meals. That is, you need to eat thoroughly 3 times a day (breakfast, lunch and dinner). There should be light snacks during breaks. In total, you have to eat 5-6 times a day.
Fractional nutrition is needed not only for those who want to lose weight, but also for those who want to gain muscle mass, since the body understands that it is constantly being fed (fed). As a result, there is no need to store excess energy in fat. This means that there is always a sufficient amount of glucose (carbohydrates) in the blood, which, as we already know, is very necessary.
But keep in mind that if you are starting to gain fat deposits, and not muscle, then carefully review your diet. Thus, reduce the amount of fast carbs and animal fats. Eat everything that contains protein and carbohydrates in approximately equal proportions in the morning and in the afternoon, since there is a lot of energy loss at this time of day. And by the evening it is consumed much less, since physical activity decreases and metabolism too, so in the evening you need to switch to dietary protein products (low-fat cottage cheese, egg white, chicken or any other poultry meat, low-fat milk, kefir).
2. For those who consider their body thin, I advise you to eat more carbohydrates, but not fast (sweets), except for dark chocolate and everything that contains protein. These are all types of porridge: oatmeal, buckwheat, rice, and so on, meat without restrictions, in between meals, eat vegetables and fruits, drink milk and eat dairy products. In the evening, you also eat carbohydrates and proteins.
General nutritional guidelines for muscle growth
3. Charge yourself with carbohydrates to the fullest before training. They will be very useful to you later. But do it in advance, about an hour and a half before class. This time should be enough for the food to be completely assimilated, that is, to be disassembled into its constituent elements. It is important to consider the quality of the food.
Light food (porridge, fruits, vegetables ...) can be eaten, as it was said, an hour and a half before class. By this time, it will be fully assimilated. But heavier protein foods should be eaten a little earlier in one and a half, two hours. Since it will take a little more time to process it.
4. Drink at least 2 liters of water a day, since muscle growth and elimination of toxins occurs only thanks to water (water is a universal solvent). The amount of water drunk for everyone can be individual, depending on the load, temperature and many other factors. Fresh juices and nutritious drinks without preservatives and dyes are good for this. You can even cook them yourself (fruit drink, compote, cocoa).
5. After training, you have an alarming situation inside. The energy is used up, the body is in a deplorable state, everything is clogged with decay products. Think for yourself, will muscles grow at this time? Of course not.
First, everything needs to be returned to normal - to restore energy and start building damaged tissue. This is where carbohydrates and proteins will help you. While you go to the shower and change clothes, at this moment breathing and heart rhythm are restored. After a shower, you need to throw a piece of dark chocolate or any fruit (apple, pear, banana) into your mouth, even dried. This will help relieve internal stress and you will feel some relief after exercise. You can also drink a protein shake if you already have a lot of muscle mass.
Eat more dense foods when you come home. She will just go for muscle growth. Don't forget about proteins. There should be more of them than before training. As an example, I advise you to eat rice porridge (or buckwheat), chicken fillet (fish) or omelet (boiled eggs).
6. On rest days after exercise, your body will recuperate. That is, to restore damaged muscles and build new ones. Therefore, on rest days, you should eat as well as on training days.
Summarize. In order for nutrition for muscle growth to really help, some rules must be followed, such as:
- Fractional food.
- Those who have difficulty gaining muscle mass need to eat a lot of complex carbohydrates and proteins, even in the evening.
- And who, on the contrary, quickly gains excess fats, you need to eat a lot of carbohydrates and proteins throughout the day - in equal portions, but in the evening eat only dietary protein foods.
- Eat carbohydrates (complex) an hour and a half before training, and protein foods 2 hours before.
- Drink plenty of water, at least 2 liters a day.
- After training, eat carbohydrates first, and then proteins, or in equal portions - proteins and carbohydrates.
- The body needs to be given days of rest to restore damaged tissues and build new ones.
Go in for sports, eat right and get better - good luck!
And here is a video for you, which also says how to eat for muscle growth.
The two main factors affecting muscle gain are systematic strength training and thoughtful nutrition. Moreover, it is often nutrition that plays a decisive role in achieving the set goals. And eating a lot of protein is far from the most important key to success. You need to carefully count calories, BJU, and also eat according to the regimen.
Planning your menu is not an easy job that many athletes are simply too lazy to do. However, if you ignore this factor, training may not bring the desired result. It is important to understand why proper nutrition allows you to quickly build muscle mass, and to follow certain guidelines given by sports nutritionists.
These 10 rules will help you build muscle quickly.
If you consume 100-200 kcal per day more than usual, you will not be able to quickly increase muscle volume. With an increase in the caloric content of the diet, the metabolic rate also increases, which means that a small amount of "additional" calories will simply burn out without turning into muscle mass. As a result, muscles will grow almost imperceptibly for you. Well, if there is no visible progress for a long time, the motivation to give all the best in training gradually disappears.
In order to quickly increase muscle volume, you need to consume 10-20% more calories than usual. For people with asthenic physique, 2000 kilocalories per day is too little. Such a diet will not lead to muscle growth, but to weight loss, since the body will simply get rid of muscle fibers due to a lack of energy. Of course, in each case, the calorie surplus is calculated separately. However, as a rule, this figure is about 500 calories.
It is important to remember that it is impossible to gain mass only due to muscles: the amount of fat in the body will also grow. To limit the amount of fatty tissue, eat as few fast carbs as possible. Also, try to devote time to cardio several times a week.
# 2 eat food at the same time
Do not skip meals: you should not be hungry during the day. At the same time, it is not very important how many times a day you eat: the total number of calories consumed is much more important. It is not always possible to consume 100 kilocalories at a time, therefore experienced athletes advise to eat 4-5 times a day. Create your own meal schedule that suits you best. The most important thing is not to be hungry and monitor the amount of protein, fat and carbohydrates in the diet. You should not schedule six meals a day unless you are able to follow that schedule.
№3 Gainers and protein shakes
If you can't get the right amount of calories, you should use special and cocktails.
A gainer is a mixture of easily digestible carbohydrates and proteins. You should choose gainers that contain high quality protein (concentrate or isolate). The calorie content of the gainer should not be too high, otherwise the excess calories will turn into adipose tissue.
A gainer can be made at home by mixing cottage cheese, whey protein, oatmeal, and fruits and berries. All ingredients must be chopped and mixed with a blender. This cocktail can replace a full meal.
No. 4 Protein food
It is important to eat enough protein to grow muscle mass. You should eat about 1.8 grams of protein per kilogram of your weight per day. There is no need to eat sausages, sausage and fast food: this food contains low-quality proteins and carbohydrates, as well as all kinds of dyes and preservatives. Chicken, fatty fish, veal and beef deserve attention. Chicken eggs are a good source of carbohydrates, however, it is not recommended to consume more than two yolks a day. Buy dairy products that are low in fat. Supplement your diet with plant-based proteins (nuts, legumes, etc.).
# 5 Without fat, it is impossible to gain muscle mass
Most inexperienced athletes, when planning their diet, pay attention to proteins and carbohydrates, while trying to avoid eating fatty foods. However, this is a mistake: the less fat you eat, the lower your testosterone levels. Namely, the rate of muscle gain depends on this hormone. Testosterone is also responsible for bone strength, hemoglobin levels, and sex drive.
Healthy fats (Omega-6 and Omega-3) are found in nuts, vegetable oil (sunflower, flaxseed), fish. All of this must be included in your daily diet.
# 6 You need to eat food before and after physical activity
For maximum results, you need to eat both before and after going to the gym. The food you eat during this time directly affects the rate of muscle gain, as well as how your body will recover from exercise.
Approximately an hour before training and an hour after it, it is very important for an athlete to provide the body with everything it needs. Carbohydrates will act as a source of energy, and proteins will become "bricks" for muscle growth. At the same time, before and after training, you need to eat as little fat as possible: fat takes a long time to digest, and also makes it difficult to assimilate carbohydrates and proteins.
№7 Meals on the eve of bedtime
Muscles grow and regenerate at night. Protein that was consumed during the day is broken down into amino acids at this time and used to build new muscle fibers. Therefore, the protein you eat before you go to bed will protect you from catabolism, or muscle breakdown, during your eight-hour rest period.
At night, it is advisable to eat proteins that are absorbed rather slowly. This can be cottage cheese or casein protein.
If you have certain difficulties with gaining muscle mass, then you can drink a protein shake at night when you wake up. True, it is important to wake up not by an alarm clock, but on your own: just drink a glass of water before bed.
No. 8 Constitution
If you are of the ectomorphic type, you need a lot of calories, carbohydrates and fats. Endomorphs, on the other hand, should treat calorie intake with great attention: they run the risk of gaining too much fat. But mesomorphs are the luckiest of all: they can easily gain muscle mass, increasing the calorie content of their daily diet by only 15-20%.
# 9 Time to consume carbohydrates
To gain lean muscle mass, so-called fast carbs should not be avoided. However, it is advisable to use them in the morning and immediately after exertion, when the body needs energy. Slow carbohydrates are ideal for breakfast or for a meal two hours before you go to the gym to provide your body with the energy it needs.
№10 Diet planning
Try to plan your diet for the day: decide in advance what and when you will eat. Such a plan will allow you to quickly achieve success. Indeed, for the growth of muscle mass, it will not be enough just to eat as much as possible. Likewise, during drying, in order to achieve your goal, you need to not only reduce the calorie intake, but also decide which foods are best suited.
At first, it will seem that thinking through your diet is too difficult. However, over time, planning the menu for tomorrow will not take more than a quarter of an hour. And you will quickly see that your workouts have become more effective: they will not only take less energy, but they will also begin to bring noticeable results.
Diet is very important for an athlete. A balanced menu, the right amount of calories and planning will help you achieve success quickly!
do not open the refrigerator
for no good reason
who knows what you will find there
and then how do you live with it
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Muscle growth depends not so much on training as on nutrition. Therefore, it is so important to consume foods that promote muscle growth. Working as a team: We list the top muscle building foods and you add them to your shopping list.
- Chicken breast
It contains 30 g of protein per 100 g. It is dietary, healthy, inexpensive and allows you to cook a wide variety of dishes at once.
- Fish fat
Very important. It has anti-inflammatory properties and works great on muscles after exercise, allowing you to train harder and recover faster. In addition, it speeds up the metabolism.
- Beef
- Turkey
Turkey is a great food for those who are losing weight. Contains a huge amount of protein, 11 vitamins and minerals, including selenium, which is believed to prevent many types of cancer.
- Buckwheat
The best kind of side dish! Due to its high amino acid content, it contains 18 g of protein per 100 g of product.
- Oatmeal
Whole oat grains contain carbohydrates, protein, vitamins, minerals and trace elements. In addition, it is a "slow" carbohydrate, which provides a constant flow of energy and after consumption of which the appetite does not come soon.
- Spinach
If you eat 2 kg of spinach per day, you can increase muscle growth by 20%. Popeye the sailor knew what he was doing!
- Sweet potato
Again - high in vitamins and minerals, maintains normal blood sugar levels and keeps you feeling full.
- Broccoli
Vegetables - and especially broccoli - are one of the best sources of vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients.
- Brown rice
An excellent side dish option. This rice per 100 g contains 4 g of fiber and 8 g of protein.
- Cottage cheese
Another essential product for building muscle mass. Contains 28 g of protein per 100 g, which is not much inferior to chicken breasts.
- Chocolate
Too good to be true, you say. Nevertheless, it is necessary as a tonic to drive away fatigue. Of course, this is not about milk or white chocolate.
- Legumes
Beans, beans, peas, chickpeas contain a lot of protein and do not disturb the level of insulin in the blood.
- Nuts
Girls dislike nuts for their high calorie content, but they nonetheless contain the rare and beneficial vitamin E. They are also rich in antioxidants that fight free radicals and help recover from workouts.
- Lean Red Meat
Contains a huge amount of amino acids, as well as copper, zinc, selenium and creatine.
- Whey Protein
Most best protein which contains fast protein, it is best to consume it immediately after training.
- Salmon
Salmon contains not only protein, but also omega-3 acids, speeds up metabolism and has a very good effect on overall health.
- A pineapple
Pineapple contains a special enzyme - bromelain - which has a positive effect on muscle recovery, improves metabolism, participates in protein and carbohydrate metabolism, and breaks down fats.
- Water
It is certainly not a product, but adequate hydration is especially important. Muscle tissue is 75% water. Adequate water intake leads to increased strength. You must drink at least 0.6 ml per 1 kg of body weight.
- Eggs
1 egg contains 6-8 g of protein, as well as zinc and calcium.
Proper nutrition for muscle growth
Most men who play sports and regularly go to the gym are faced with the problem of muscle building in one way or another. Even with constant and intense training, muscles stop growing with increasing physical activity. Stopping the growth of muscle mass occurs for a very commonplace reason. This is a non-observance of the correct diet, which promotes muscle growth. There is no need for an exclusive diet, all that is needed is to make your food balanced and aimed at gaining mass. Proper nutrition for muscle growth is the key to a bodybuilder's success. The diet of an athlete who is gaining weight should include many organic substances, such as fats, proteins and carbohydrates.
Nutrition for Muscle Growth: Protein
Proteins are responsible for the development and growth of muscle fibers, and restore them. Protein is a building block for muscle tissue. If there is a lack of this component in the athlete's diet, you can simply forget about muscle growth and weight gain. Your body needs to get enough protein every day to strengthen and repair muscle fibers. It is quite simple to calculate the daily allowance: for each kilogram of weight, an athlete needs to consume from 1.5 to 2.5 grams of protein. This means that for a bodybuilder weighing 90 kg, the norm is from 135 to 225 grams. Protein foods: poultry, fish, milk, red meat, eggs, low-fat cottage cheese, cereals and legumes.
Proper nutrition for muscle growth: carbohydrates
The proportion of carbohydrates in food should be 50 to 60% of the total daily diet. Energy metabolism of the body is carried out with the help of carbohydrates. They give energy to muscle tissue and provide human blood with glucose. After oxidation of one gram of carbohydrates, 4 kcal of energy is produced. Essential carbohydrates are found in plant foods such as grains, fruits, and vegetables. Also, carbohydrates are found in oranges, grapefruits, potatoes, bananas, brown rice, tomatoes, etc.
The Right Nutrition for Muscle Growth: Fats
Fats play a critical role in maintaining immunity, cell formation, and this is a prerequisite for muscle growth. In the daily diet, fat should be present in the amount of 10-15% of the total amount of food. The most commonly used foods that are high in fat are butter and oil. By consuming dairy products and meats, you will get your daily fat intake.
How to eat right when exercising?
During exercise, the body burns a fairly large amount of energy. In order to get this energy, you will need to drink a protein-carbohydrate cocktail half an hour before training. Immediately after training, a protein shake is also taken, but already with a higher content of protein itself, to replenish energy and deliver the building material for muscle fibers (i.e. protein) to the body.
How do athletes eat right?
Fortunately, people who play sports professionally already know the answer to this question. In professional sports, indicators are much higher, and nutrition is prescribed there depending on the needs of the athlete himself, while making a bias towards the sport. Therefore, there is no universal recipe.
What, how and in what quantity do you need to eat in order to grow muscles? How many calories and protein do you need? How much does a muscle gain meal differ from a weight loss meal?
The principles of proper nutrition are always the same and do not depend on the goal of losing weight or pumping up. Whole foods, protein, lots of vegetables, fruits, grains, and healthy fats. In this sense, nutrition for a set of muscles is no different from a regular diet. It is free of secret nutritional schemes and growth-accelerating additives.
How many calories do you need for muscle growth?
Calories are just as important for muscle growth as they are for weight loss. Calories are energy. If forweight loss you need to create a calorie deficit, then to gain weight you need a surplus. We know from school physics that mass and energy cannot appear out of nowhere and disappear into nowhere. They can transform into each other.
But many still believe they can build muscle out of thin air. And someone wants to. As a result, a person is just marking time. He doesn't get results simply because he eats too little.
The main rule is: you need a surplus of calories for muscle growth.
It should not be large - on average, it is 10% -20% above the maintenance rate. Those who are inclined to be overweight can walk along the lower border, and those who are gaining any weight with difficulty can walk along the upper one. If the maintenance calories are 1800, then 180-360 calories are added in excess of the norm. The end number is 1980-2160 calories. You can start from the average figure - 39 calories per kilogram of weight, but for someone it may be too large, but for someone not enough. In any case, everyone will have to adjust the diet for themselves.
How much protein do you need for muscle growth?
Everyone knows about the importance of protein for muscle growth, because mMuscle is made of protein, isn't it? Not really. Muscles are made up primarily of water. There are about 250 grams of pure protein per kilogram of muscle. Although protein is still a building material for muscles and should be in food. V in general, a range of 1.7 to 3.3 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight can be taken.
There are those who grow well at the lower border, and there are those who are at the upper. This can be influenced by your body and how protein interacts with the rest of your diet. It is impossible to say exactly today in advance..
Should you drink protein powder for muscle growth?
Protein powders are just another source of protein. If you get enough protein from a regular meal, you don't need a sports diet.
Protein supplements have their obvious advantages: high protein per serving, good amino acid composition, no fat or carbohydrates, and few calories. And also fast absorption, which under some conditions is important in nutrition around a workout.
There are also disadvantages. If you do not take the issue of quality and fakes, then one of the main ones is poor saturation. Protein shakes satisfy the feeling of hunger poorly.
Why are protein norms so overestimated?
But the sports food industry is financially interested in selling more. And magazines are promoting this idea through partnerships with sports nutrition manufacturers.
Secondly, bodybuilding is a sport that is not alien to anabolic steroids. Consumers transcend physiology. They really need more protein as a building material.
In ordinary people, without enough protein, muscles do not grow, but after a certain threshold, too, more. More protein in a meal does not mean more muscle. The synthesis of new muscle protein proceeds at its own specific rate.
An illustrative example. Your muscles are home. Protein amino acids from regular food or sports food are the bricks for building it. The workers who will build are different hormones: testosterone, insulin, IGF-1, etc. Their salary is calories. Then there may be options:
- If you send bricks from time to time, irregularly, construction will take a long time or stop.
- If you send in more bricks than the workers are physically capable of stacking per day, the excess will remain unused (deposited in fat or burned out). You can call an additional team of workers (steroids), but not worth it.
- If you don’t pay the wages (there are enough calories), the workers will not be motivated and the construction will stop. But if you overwhelm them with money, they still physically won't be able to work faster beyond a certain limit. Thus, the excess goes into accumulation, into fat.
How many carbohydrates do you need for muscle growth?
General recommendations 4.4-6.6 grams of carbohydrates per kilogram of body weight. There are those here again who seek better results on thehigh carbohydrates, and there are those who do not tolerate large amounts of carbohydrates.
Carbohydrate intake is influenced by two variables: training volume and insulin sensitivity.
Training volume
Volume is the total number of approaches per workout. For example, each exercise has three sets. If you have eight exercises in your program, your training volume is 24 sets.
It is very roughly estimated that for every 2 approaches, the body spends 5 grams of carbohydrates. If your workout has a total of 24 approaches in all exercises, the body spends 60 grams of carbohydrates on them, which must be replenished with food. (24 sets * 5 g / 2 sets). This number is not a strict guide to action, but She shows that a huge amount of carbohydrates for muscle gain is not required, unless a person does several dozen approaches per workout.
Insulin sensitivity
Insulin sensitivity measures how well muscle cells respond to insulin and take glucose from the blood. Genetic insulin sensitivity can vary up to 10 times from person to person. When it comes to good genetics for bodybuilding, this is also meant.
So people with good insulin sensitivity can afford more carbohydrate in their diet and can store carbohydrate calories more efficiently in muscle rather than fat. People with poor sensitivities should eat fewer carbohydrates. So they not only feel better, but also grow better without adding a lot of fat in the process of gaining muscle.
How do you know how sensitive you are to insulin?
You can experiment or remember:
1. What do you notice after eating a high-carb meal? It is important to choose foods without fat: muffins and sweets are not suitable. Pasta, rice, potatoes, bananas, bread are fine.
- a) muscle fullness and better relief. This may indicate good carbohydrate tolerance.
- b) heaviness, flooding and bloating. This is not very good carbohydrate tolerance.
2. After a lot of carbohydrates, you feel:
- a) cheerfulness, energy, a surge of strength. This means you have a normal level of insulin secretion.
- b) loss of energy, drowsiness and rapid hunger in an hour. It is possible that insulin secretion is increased. This causes a sharp drop in blood glucose, making you sleepy and hungry.
Strength training increases your muscles' sensitivity to insulin. This is the most powerful tool we can use. But for people with poor sensitivities, carbohydrates should still be moderate, even during the muscle growth phase. In this case, it may be sufficient 150 grams of carbohydrates per day (this is not the weight of cereals, but the weight of carbohydrates). The rest of the calories are recruited from protein and fat to the norm.
How much fat do you need for muscle growth?
Fats come last. Their amount depends on the carbohydrates in the diet. People who thrive on a high-carb diet cut fat, and vice versa. This is done to create the desired calorie content.The starting point for fats is about1 g / kg body weight per day.
Nutrition Around Your Workout
A separate issue is nutrition around training. It has a special role to play. But the importance of pre- and post-workout nutrition for muscle growth is overestimated. Much more important is nutrition throughout the day. Muscle does not grow during training and not even for an hour after. Synthesis of a new protein takes 36-72 hours.
Eating before and after exercise plays an important role if the person is exercising on an empty stomach or more than 4 hours have passed since the last meal. More on this.
Putting it all together
There are many variables that determine what works and what doesn't for a particular person. Training program, training efforts , genetics and other factors all play a role. But the general picture of nutrition for a set of muscles looks like this:
- Calories: + 10-20% of the normal weight maintenance
- Proteins: 1.76-3.3 g / kg
- Carbohydrates: 2.2-6.6 g / kg
- Fat: 1-2.2 g / kg
