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For those of you who are hardgainers like me and want to
put on some serious slabs of muscle... You NEED to change
your eating patterns. This will probably be the hardest
part for you, it was for me. Eating like you're 15-20
pounds larger than you are is a challenge. Now, for those
of you wanting to gain weight, here is everything I know,
and everything I personally did to gain 21 pounds in 9
weeks with only a small increase in body fat percent.
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Let's start with protein, the formula I used is 1.4 X
target body weight. I was 159 and wanted to be 175 so I
would have to consume 245 grams of protein per day.
I found this was hard to do without a protein shake, so I
made my own weight gainer, I will show you that later.
Next is calories, the formula I used for this one is 24 X
target body weight which for me to be 175 pounds came to
4200 calories per day.
Now this is how I would achieve these numbers, since the
calories have to be from quality foods and the proteins
have to come from completed strands of amino acids (meat,
eggs, whey, milk, cheese)
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Carbohydrates:
I would always stick to carbohydrates with a low glycemic
index, this means there are less sugars in the carbs and it
takes your body longer to burn the calories, this helps burn
body fat. In case you don't know, carbs with low glycemic
indexes are those that are whole grain, whole wheat, low
processing of the foods. Examples would be brown rice,
sweet potato, whole oats, brown bread, whole wheat pasta.
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Morning:
Weight gainer shake right away
1 cup of 1% or skim milk
2 scoops of basic whey protein powder
3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup of oatmeal
1 cup of frozen berries/ or banana/ or any other fruit you
want for flavor.
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This shake will run you about 850 calories and 60 grams of
protein depending on your powder grade.
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Workout:
Immediately have another weight gainer shake after the
workout.
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3 Hours later have lunch:
whole wheat noodles
Chicken breast
serving of broccoli
(Vegetables such as broccoli have shown to increase
testosterone levels, great for protein synthesis as I'm
sure you know)
3 hours later snack:
2 hard boiled eggs
a carrot
glass of milk
3 hours later Dinner:
Brown rice
Salmon
corn
glass of milk
Just before bed I would have another weight gainer shake,
here is why:
During your sleep is when the majority of protein synthesis
takes place. Your testosterone levels are up along with the
human growth hormone and IGF-1. This is the prime time to
build muscle, so there needs to be protein present for this
to take place. Your body is fasting during sleep and needs
the nutrients to repair the muscles. I have a fast
metabolism, so I can get away with this without worrying
about body fat. However, if you do not have a fast
metabolism, you will gain extra body fat. In that case,
it's recommended that you have some cheese before bed since
it contains the protein casein, which stays available for
your body to use for building longer than any other type of
protein.
Now as for fats, these are very important. The fats we need
to build muscle (and actually burn body fat and boost
testosterone) are Poly-unsaturated fats, mono-unsaturated
fats, omega 3s and omega 6's. You will find these fats in
olive oil, avocado, grape seed oil, fish oil, nuts, sun
flower seeds and other various foods.
Personally I obtain these fats through my extra virgin
olive oil (extra virgin simply means it's less processed)
in my protein shakes, and I take fish oil tablets before I
go to bed.
By all means stay away from trans-saturated fats. You find
these in canola oil, margarine, and other highly processed
foods. Try to limit the amount of saturated fats in your
diet by not consuming too much butter or fatty steaks or
pork chops.
Red meat is great for building muscle, but the saturated
fats tend to add fat cells to your body as well. Lean meat
such as chicken and fish is preferred.
This brings us to fruits and veggies. I would try to stay
in the 5-10 servings per day. We need the amino acids and
anti oxidants that fruits and veggies provide us to repair
tissue damage. Lots of variety in this category is always a
plus
I also take a multi vitamin which helps provide the
minerals and vitamins that my diet may be lacking. Of
course whole food is much more effective, but a multi
vitamin does help fill in the gaps.
Eating every 3 hours keeps the metabolism high which in
turn burns body fat. It also keeps our body's nitrogen
levels high keeping us in an anabolic state. This means we
build muscle tissue 24 hours a day, and burn body fat 24
hours a day. This is the reason eating every 3 hours is
important, especially for people with high metabolisms.
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So make sure your carbs have a low GI (glycemic index). Consume whole wheat, brown rice, whole grain oats. Stay away from anything refined such as white bread and white rice.
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Now finally for the star of muscle building, protein. There are many recommendations and arguments as to how much protein you need to consume daily to build muscle tissue. I have been following the formula of 1.4 grams X target weight. So for a guy who is 165 and wants to be 180, he would need to consume 252 grams of protein per day.
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This is a relatively large amount of protein for one day. But with the help of a basic whey protein shake this is easily accomplished. This is what my protein shake consists of.
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One cup of milk
One cup of various frozen fruits
3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
70 grams of basic whey protein powder
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Now finally for the star of muscle building, protein. There are many recommendations and arguments as to how much protein you need to consume daily to build muscle tissue. I have been following the formula of 1.4 grams X target weight. So for a guy who is 165 and wants to be 180, he would need to consume 252 grams of protein per day.
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This shake provides me with my healthy fats, amino acids, protein, vitamins, and totals around 990 calories. So this recipe works well as a natural weight gainer shake without all of the toxins. The most important time to consume this shake is directly after your workout, very important to give your body the nutrition it needs at this point.
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Of course fruits and vegetables play a vital role too. 5-10 servings per day is the recommendation. The body needs vitamins and minerals to aid it in protein synthesis. Not to mention the anti-oxidants that we receive from the fruits and vegetables are crucial. Veggies such as broccoli are also known to boost testosterone, always a plus.
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So that is nutrition in a nut shell, plane and simple. Eat well and train smart, then you give your body no choice but to adapt.
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