A bodybuilders diet must always be extremely balanced, so that it will contain the right amount of calorie intake. Bodybuilders eat less fat, and more proteins and complex carbohydrates. A meal plan of a bodybuilder always looks like an extremely heavy meal for the average person, but in fact the meal is rich in nutrients that will help build strong, healthy and lean muscles. If you start training, but you do not have a well thought out meal plan that you follow, you will not be able to develop those muscles quickly.
Proper muscle nutrition is a key component in ever bodybuilder’s life
Beginners should follow a lighter bodybuilders diet. Here are the main rules that you need to follow in order to cleanse your system properly and prepare yourself for the true challenge of becoming a healthy bodybuilder:
- You must give up eating prepackaged snacks and sugary foods that you usually collect from the supermarket shelves. Instead, you have to start eating healthy fruits and vegetables, nuts, seeds and whole grains, which are considered the best fibrous foods. Make sure to consume egg whites, which have a high protein content, and eat lean meats and low fat diary products.
- Salt, saturated fats, cholesterol, alcohol and any type of food containing sugar should definitely be excluded from the bodybuilders diet.
- Hydration is of paramount importance. In order for your system to digest properly and for your muscles to develop healthily, you need to consume plenty of pure water. Your daily intake of water should be between 2 and 3 liters every single day.
- Start exercising regularly. If you want to build yourself nice and healthy muscles, you should never start off with intense exercises. Take it slowly, see how your body reacts to the new dietary and fitness changes, and add more and more exercise and food along the way.
A bodybuilders diet usually contains some special supplements as well. Professional bodybuilders consume every day between 3,500 and 6,000 calories. An average person burns approximately 2,000 calories. Bodybuilders need so many calories because they need a higher dose of energy and power that they can use when training. The rest of the energy from food is being turned into muscle. However, bodybuilders may not be able to get the proper amount of proteins from food only, so this is why they may need these special supplements. This way, they will be able to build muscles much quicker, with less effort.
A bodybuilders diet is always created so as to help you gain as much muscle as possible, while at the same time help you maintain the lowest body fat possible. When you see bodybuilders that weigh even more than 120kg, the greatest part of that weight is pure muscle. When you compare a 120kg bodybuilder and an average person that weighs arou 70kg, it is more likely that the average person will have double or even triple the amount of fat in his system. For bodybuilders, diet is the most important factor that will help them have the energy and strength to work out, to get rid of the excess fat and gain instead only pure, lean musculature.
Overeating for the purpose of gaining musculature is a good idea if you are not already overweight. If you are overweight, you must first lose those extra pounds and get fit, and then start eating healthily and combine that with regular exercising. On the other hand, if you have an average weight of let’s say 70kg and you are 175-180 cm tall, here are a few smart tips on how to start the bodybuilders diet and strength program:
- Your calorie intake should be increased by 15%. You should have a look around and see which the best supplements currently available on the market are. You have to purchase supplements that will provide you with extra quality proteins. If you prefer to take all your proteins from food alone, you should again be careful to consume only foods that are rich in proteins but low in fat content. If you cannot calculate exactly how much you should eat, or what types of foods you should eat, a sports dietitian can help you with that.
- You will start training the large groups of muscles first (legs, chest, arms, abdominals and shoulders). As you consume the energy during training, the muscles will start growing.
- In the mean time, it is almost inevitable that, besides gaining muscles, you will also gain some extra fat. Now it is time to focus on getting rid of that fat and building some muscles instead. If the bodybuilders diet that you follow is created by an expert in the field (such as a dietician), it will be much easier to get rid of the fat, because the dietitian knows exactly what foods to include in your diet, and what foods to exclude.
- When you get to the point where you have obtained the muscles that you want, and now you look exactly as you wished, it is important to maintain that musculature through proper bodybuilders diet plans and regular exercise, of course. You don’t want to “grow” anymore, so overeating is not necessary, and it is important to keep the fat intake as low as possible (25% to 20%) and continue to feed your body with precious proteins. Also, in order to be able to maintain all those muscles, you must keep pumping your system with fibrous foods, minerals and vitamins that you get from fruits and vegetables.
The point when you start eating in order to build your muscles is called the “bulking phase” and this is when you need to eat 20% proteins, 20% fats and 60% carbohydrates. The point when you have already obtained the muscles and the body shape that you want and you just want to maintain these muscles in perfect shape is called the “cutting phase”. This is when you will reduce carbs to 55% and fat to 15%, but keep proteins at 20%. Follow such a bodybuilders diet, and you will build strong and lean muscles in a short time and maintain your ideal body shape long-term!