Nutrition for Bodybuilders - Part 3

Parts 1 & 2 of this series covered ten significant and critical aspects of nutrition for bodybuilders. In this part 3 article I will expand on a few of those tips and offer added suggestions to help you achieve the physique that you desire.

Here are 5 more additional suggestions that you can make use of in your nutritional plan to augment your bodybuilding workouts. These include good fats, cycling protein, creatine, cortisol and overeating.

1. Good fats: As we discussed in a earlier article fat is a essential component to your nutritional intake. Just because you eat fat that doesn't mean you will become fat.Our bodies require a certain amount of good fats to function and grow appropriately. healthy fats will help promote testosterone production. It is recommended that you consume 6 to 8 ounces of lean red meat each day. Also consuming salmon or fish oil capsules is recommended as well to ensure that you are getting sufficient Omega 3 fatty acids. These fatty acids promote glycogen storing and combat muscle irritation.

2. Cycling protein: Consuming 1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight is the commonly accepted recommendation. This is a common recommendation and of course may have to be adjusted depending on your body type, your metabolism and whether or not you are achieving the results you long for. To help enhance protein synthesis it is recommended or suggested that you cycle your protein once every two weeks or so. This can be done by dropping your protein intake to about 0.7 grams for 2 or 3 days and then increase protein intake up to 2 grams per pound of bodyweight for the next 2 or 3 days. After that you can resume the common 1 gram per pound of bodyweight per day. Cycling in this manner can help improve your protein production.

3. Creatine: This is one of the more well-known amino acids in the body. It acts as an energy source by helping to replenish our systems ATP supply. ATP is the basic energy element for muscular contraction. So creatine will help improve strength and develop the quality of muscle contraction in addition to supporting protein regeneration. Any serious bodybuilder should be supplementing their workouts with creatine on a daily basis. Their are several suggestions as to how to take and how much you should consume but the general recommendation is 5 grams prior to and after training. The end result will be greater strength gains and substantially improved muscle mass.

4. Cortisol: The normal process in working out will cause muscles to become inflamed as cortisol levels increase in our systems. If you want to improve your recovery rate after a workout the research tells us to control excessive buildup of cortisol.In addition glycogen formation will improve and testosterone levels will become more stable. You can help control the corticol increase in your system by taking supplements such as vitamin C, glutamine and phosphatidylserine.

5. Overeating: Overeating of often a common fear that bodybuilders have.But if you raise your calories every two weeks or so for 1 or 2 meals what will essentially happen this will force your body to increase production of specific growth hormones which can convert those added calories and increased protein into muscle. So if you are consuming meals that consist of 40 grams of protein, 50 to 70 grams of carbs with the outstanding balance of fats try increasing your meals to 60 to 70 grams of protein, 100 to 125 grams of carbs and even more dietary fat.