Nutrition and Diet

Diet and nutrition play an equally important role in getting in shape. Bodybuilding supplements have contributed much in achieving fitness goals[1] for an athlete. Be it a faster post-workout recovery or maximizing lean muscle growth, bodybuilding supplements have always helped bodybuilders achieve more from every workout sessions. But the crux lies in taking the right amount of nutrition for the right purpose. Read this kickass blog post to know more about must have supplements to make your workout routine a better one.

Creatine

Creatine is unarguably one of the most common supplements taken by athletes and bodybuilders these day.

Creatine, a natural occurring nitrogenous organic acid that is found in human vertebrates and skeletal system provides the energy supply to all body cells, especially muscles.

To simplify the meaning, Creatine is nothing but a basic fuel that helps bodybuilders and athletes by supplying much-needed energy for intense workouts and exercises. Apart from supplying energy, Creatine also promotes the growth of lean muscle mass

Here are major benefits of Creatine as a bodybuilding supplement –

• Enhances performance
• Promotes lean muscle mass
• Boosts testosterone
• Faster recovery
• Aids fat loss

Glutamine

Glutamine or L – Glutamine is a non-essential amino acid which is known for improving immune system and thereby enhancing muscle growth and protein synthesis. Moreover, Glutamine is very effective in reducing muscle soreness after an intense training session. And in fact Glutamine consists of approximate 15-25% of nitrogen content, which is one of the main reason why we consider it as an important bodybuilding supplement. Here are other major advantages of Glutamine –

• Strengthens immune system
• Increases strength and endurance
• Reduces post workout muscle soreness
• Slows down muscle loss

Whey Protein

There is absolutely no doubt in the fact that Whey protein is the most known and consumed supplement[3] in the field of fitness and bodybuilding.

Whey Protein, a mixture globular proteins, is obtained as a secondary product in cheese production process.

“Creatine + Glutamine + Whey protein – A deadly bodybuilding supplement combo!” 

Well, everyone knows how important Protein is for building strong muscles and achieving fitness goals. Whey protein not only helps build lean muscles but also contributes in much needed fat loss. It also provides the body with adequate amount of macro minerals like calcium and magnesium.

Take a look at what keeps Whey Protein at the top among other bodybuilding supplements –

• Maximizes lean muscle gains and improves performance
• Prevents protein degradation and improves protein synthesis in the body
• Boosts metabolism process
• Efficient absorption of nutrients and minerals

Dextrose Monohydrate

Dextrose Monohydrate is one of the best supplements that can be taken during the workout session. It is a carbohydrate source which on its consumption releases the essential energy required during the workout. And when combined with post workout protein shakes, Dextrose Monohydrate delivers the protein and other vital nutrients to the muscle very efficiently.

Here are other reasons why you should add this energetic bodybuilding supplement in your protein shake –

• Speeds up recovery and growth process
• Gets easily absorbed
• Ultimate source of energy
• Boosts up protein synthesis

BCAA (Branched Chain Amino Acid)

Anyone who has ever been into the world of fitness and bodybuilding would have certainly heard about BCAAs. The three amino acids – Leucine, Isoleucine, and Valine, are referred to as BCAAs. BCAAs form an important part of the protein and are thus highly responsible for protein synthesis in the muscle cells. They are also known for promoting lean muscle growth along with a better recovery after an intense training session. Furthermore, BCAAs are highly recommended for increasing strength and endurance by decreasing muscle fatigue.

And other major perks of this superior bodybuilding supplement are –

• Aids fat burning process
• Reduces muscle loss and activates lean muscle growth
• Increases strength and endurance and enhances performance
• Fastens post workout recovery

Now you are well worst with “ABCD” of bodybuilding nutrition. Make the most out of your workout with the right bodybuilding supplement to achieve your goal. Have some query? Share your doubts in the comment section below.

References:

[1] Eric R Helms, corresponding author, Alan A Aragon, and Peter J Fitschen. Evidence-based recommendations for natural bodybuilding contest preparation: nutrition and supplementation. Published online 2014 May 12. doi: 10.1186/1550-2783-11-20.

[2] Giorgos K. Sakkas, Morris Schambelan, and Kathleen Mulligan. Can the use of creatine supplementation attenuate muscle loss in cachexia and wasting?. Published in final edited form as: Curr Opin Clin Nutr Metab Care. 2009 Nov; 12(6): 623–627. doi: 10.1097/MCO.0b013e328331de63.

[3] Volek JS1, Volk BM, Gómez AL, Kunces LJ, Kupchak BR, Freidenreich DJ, Aristizabal JC, Saenz C, Dunn-Lewis C, Ballard KD, Quann EE, Kawiecki DL, Flanagan SD, Comstock BA, Fragala MS, Earp JE, Fernandez ML, Bruno RS, Ptolemy AS, Kellogg MD, Maresh CM, Kraemer WJ. Whey protein supplementation during resistance training augments lean body mass. Published on J Am Coll Nutr. 2013;32(2):122-35. doi: 10.1080/07315724.2013.793580.

Many protein powder manufacturers add cheaper amino acids than the base protein powder in order to actually increase the product’s nitrogen content (known as “protein spiking” or “nitrogen spiking”) and also to lower the manufacture cost of the product and also to increase the profitability. To test the amount of protein present per serving the total nitrogen content is estimated but this test can be deceptive as the use of cheap amino acids can give false value and can give result with high values of nitrogen content.

Using of cheap amino acid typically decreases actual monetary worth of the protein and also decreases the ratios of BCAA (Branch Chain Amino Acid – such as leucine, isoleucine and valine) which is a big drawback as BCAA are an essential amino acid required to build muscle tissue.  That is why protein powder specifically whey isolates if available in cheaper to seem too good to be true, it could be that amino acids like taurine and glycine are added in excess. As amino acids are the building blocks of protein adding cheap amino acids do not have any harmful effect on our body but the desired effect of building muscle tissues is not achieved.

Check the label and in case if they are added in excess chances are that the protein powder could be spiked. You can also check for the presence of white specks in the protein powder easily visible in chocolate flavour powder. These white specks present in protein powder are usually the cheaper amino acids which are added to the protein powder to offset the cost and also to elevate the perceived protein content.

Therefore, one should be very careful when selecting the protein powder and one should read the label also carefully.

What 30 gm of protein looks like??? See how you measure your macros!!

PROTEIN

1 SERVE =30 GRAMS

Many small molecules of amino acid join together to form Protein. Protein is present in each and every cell of our body like our hair, nail, organs, muscles, bones, blood and even skin is made up of protein.

For bodybuilders, protein is even more essential as it’s an important part of the muscle-building process.

The daily average requirement of protein for an individual is around 1g/kg body weight. However, people those are working hard to build muscles the requirement of protein in much greater i.e. even up to 2g/kg bodyweight.

Therefore, the best way to include enough protein in your diet is to eat around 1 serving i.e. around 30 grams of protein per meal.

Below is the guide to the best way to measure 30 grams of protein without using food scale:

WHEY PROTEIN POWDER

Per 1 Scoop

Calories = 170

Protein = 32 grams

Whey powder is the best source of protein for vegetarian .It is easy to intake, made of Milk purely.

BOILED EGGS

Per 5 Eggs

Calories = 390

Protein = 31 grams

Eggs are the another good source of protein. It contains

TEMPEH

Per 180 ml

Calories = 333

Protein = 30.9 grams

Tempeh is a soy product. It is an excellent source of magnesium, iron, and vitamin B6. This is not generally recommended to men in excess due to the Estrogen hormone present into it which are directly related to female hormones.

TOFU

Per 100 Gram

Calories = 310

Protein = 33.7 grams

Tofu is a soy paneer and contains a lot of healthy fat and protein. Tofu is also a complete protein, which means it has all the essential amino acids necessary for protein synthesis.

CHICKEN BREAST

Per 120 Gram

Calories = 165

Protein = 29.2 grams

The chicken breast contains a good amount of   protein without many calories and is also low in fat. It’s also a good source of potassium and vitamin B6 as well.

CARBOHYDRATES

1 SERVE =50 GRAMS

Carbohydrates are the main source of energy for our body. However, many people think carbs the main culprit behind weight gain.

Carbohydrates are of two major types: Simple and Complex.

Simple Carbs are also called as fast-digesting carbs such as sugar. Excess of sugar in sweets and beverages like cola etc is considered bad as excess is stored as fat in our body.

Complex carbs like whole wheat cereals and its products such as wheat bread etc contain more fiber and hence doesn’t get stored as fat in our body.

To be energetic throughout the day and to maintain your energy levels one must eat complex carbs instead of eating refined carbs like donuts or cake to stay more consistent throughout the day.

SWEET POTATO

Per 1 Large

Calories = 200

Carbohydrates = 46 grams

Sweet potatoes offer long-lasting energy without much fat. They are also a good source of Vitamin A, calcium, potassium, thiamin, and niacin.

POTATOES

Per 1 Large

Calories = 241

Carbohydrates = 54.9 grams

Potatoes contain slightly more calories, carbs, protein, and fat than sweet potatoes, but the differences are negligible. Both are an excellent source of complex carbs.

OATMEAL

Per 1 cup

Calories = 291

Carbohydrates = 49.1 grams

Oats are rich in soluble fiber and thus help in lowering cholesterol. It is also rich in iron, calcium, riboflavin, and folate.

WHOLE WHEAT BREAD

Per 1 Slices

Calories = 200

Carbohydrates = 44 grams

Bread is the most convenient food source of carbs. But make sure that the label should read as—whole-grain and not as whole-wheat.

BROWN RICE

Per 1 Cooked Cup

Calories = 216

Carbohydrates = 44.8 grams

Brown rice is a good source of complex carbs as it contains fiber and other micronutrients like selenium and manganese.

Creatine is naturally found in protein rich foods like meat, fish and poultry. It is made up of three amino acids namely: glycine, arginine, and methionine.

Functions of Creatine

Creatine combines with the phosphate molecule to form Creatine phosphate. It helps to increase the energy store i.e. ATP (Adenine Tri-Phosphate) in our body by donating its phosphate group to the ADP molecule to reform ATP. ATP molecule is crucial to perform almost every process in our body. During the energy formation by ATP, it loses one of its phosphate groups to form ADP which has no role in our body much unless it is converted back into ATP. And for this now creatine supplement seems to have an important role.

Creatine stores are also useful during anaerobic activity (such as lifting heavy weights). Taking creatine supplement will increase energy stores to help you provide energy for your workouts. Another very important role of creatine is to increase protein synthesis by increasing the hydration in muscle cells.

Creatine is a Safe Supplement

However, creatine is relatively a new supplement but till now there is no harmful health effect which has been noted till now.

It’s Necessary to Load on Creatine

One can get the benefit of creatine supplement at a small dose of 5 grams per day. But loading your muscle cells with a dose of 20-25 gram daily for five days can give you complete benefit by saturating your muscles and you can see the results faster. Moreover, latter on one can keep taking a maintenance dose of 3 grams daily.

It’s Necessary to Cycle Creatine

Though it’s not necessary to do so, but it can help. The internal equilibrium of your body can be in your favour for some time, but eventually that equilibrium will ultimately swing back.

This means that taking excess dosage of creatine for a short period of time can temporarily increase the stores of creatine phosphate in your body but after sometime the levels of creatine phosphate will again come back to normal due to the body’s feedback mechanism. This could either be due to the decline in body’s own production of creatine or due to the decline in the number of creatine receptor in your cell. Not taking creatine for some time can set back the body’s equilibrium and then loading with excess creatine could be beneficial again.

Best Time to Take Creatine

Taking creatine with your post workout meal is most beneficial as the body absorbs nutrients much better after a workout. So acting foods which will spike up your insulin levels post workout will also help to absorb more creatine into muscle cells.

Taking Creatine Before a Workout

As muscle cell takes at least a week to get fully saturated with creatine. So taking creatine before a workout will not make a difference. To process creatine, the body takes time. For the upcoming workout, the body will use the creatine from the creatine phosphate stores already in the cells, not from the creatine you just ingested.

Best Type of Creatine

Powdered form of creatine is the best. As creatine degrades over time in water into a waste product creatinine which is useless in the body and will simply be excreted. Therefore, liquid creatine does not remain stabilise over time.

You might sometimes wonder that even after a sound good night sleep you still feel tired or jittery, the answer might be on your plate. Minor deficiency of nutrients or eating wrong things might make you feel rundown. So if your body is not functioning at 100% ”Eat Your Way to Happiness” and eat foods which will boost your well-being:

Boost Energy

You might think every day is a slog. This could be because your body might not be getting enough iron or mineral which get lost in the sweet after intense workouts. The result is that you feel groggy and fuzzy-headed for the rest of the day.

The best treatment is to eat foods such as red meats, fish, and poultry which are rich in iron as well as fat soluble Vitamins like A, D, E , K. If you are a vegetarian than eat foods like soybeans, Green leafy vegetables and fortified cereals but add a source of vitamin C for better absorption of iron. For example, you can eat a bowl of fortified cereals along with a glass of orange juice (good source of vitamin C).Iron rich foods boost energy by enhancing the rate of transportation of oxygen.

Related article: Why to reduce carbs from your diet

Feel Calm

 It’s well known that caffeine can keep you on edge. But there are still other sources of jitters: Eating too much of refined carbs like white bread, pasta, pizza etc which lacks in fibre and other nutrients and can therefore cause your blood sugar level to rise instantly and thus stimulating the pancreas to secrete an excessive amount of insulin.

As a result of the excessive amount of insulin, your blood sugar levels drop suddenly thus resulting in an inability to focus and making you feel sluggish.

To avoid this kind of drastic spikes and drops in blood sugar one should focus on eating foods containing complex carbs as well as rich in fibre like whole grain cereal products such as brown rice, whole-wheat bread and pasta, oats and legumes etc.

Beat Bloat

It’s rightly said that “stomach is like your second brain” and if your digestion is not good that the person might feel lethargic throughout the day.

Eating vegetables and whole grain pulses are good for your health. But certain vegetables like capsicum, beans, broccoli, cabbage, and cauliflower produces lots of gas, causing severe bloating in your stomach. Drinking too much-carbonated drinks can also increase bloating in your stomach.

So maintain a food dairy to record such foods which cause you a gastric trouble and try to avoid eating such foods on daily basis.

Related article: 5 must have food for a muscle toning diet

Curb Cramps

It’s quite normal to feel slight pain after a tough workout, but having cramps could signify that your body is low on electrolytes like sodium, potassium or magnesium.

Potassium along with sodium helps to regulate muscle contractions. But when you sweat after intense workout these minerals get depleted from our body thus leading to pain in your calves or feet.

Eating foods rich in minerals like bananas, baked potato with peel, prunes and orange juice can very well replace these minerals back in your body. Nuts like almonds etc and greens like spinach and other whole grain cereals and pulses are all rich sources of magnesium.

The passion and aspiration to build fast muscles can sometimes relate to the risk of undermining your health if one don’t eat or drink the right food. To be a successful bodybuilder you should eat a healthy balanced diet comprising of carbohydrate, protein and fat. Eating a well nutritious diet starts from the grocery store. Things you buy from the grocery store will determine your eating habits. By choosing fruits, vegetables and fibre rich foods and leaving sodium, fat, and sugar-filled junk will make it much easier for you to make healthy food choices at home when you are starving and eat whatever comes to your sight.

Below are some of the food choices that should be in your grocery cart or in your pantry:

Bread: Bread whether white or brown both are made up of refined flour and lack the nutrients present in the whole-grain bread. To increase the shelf life of bread the bran, germ and the fibre along with other nutrients like iron and B vitamin. People generally get misguided by the word “wheat” labelled on brown bread, but that doesn’t make it healthy. In fact check the ingredients panel for the word “whole,” which means that they include the entire seed.

BAKERY FOODS: Like cookies and cakes are rich in calories, added sugar and Trans and saturated fat. Moreover, they also lack the nutrients needed to stay healthy like vitamins and minerals.

JUICE: Avoid fresh or tetra pack juices which are even labelled as juices are laden with natural sugar and are, therefore, full of calories. As the fibre, part is removed to take out the juice they are even devoid of vitamins and minerals. Due to the absence of fibre it’s hard for the body to register “I’m full” when you drink juice.

SODA DRINKS: These are empty calories beverages. Even the diet versions contain ingredients like “caramel colour” and phosphoric acid which do not help you lose weight or stay healthy and will just add fat to your body.

SO now you know what to eat and what not to. Share this piece of knowledge with everyone and let your other fitness freak friends know about it.

Eggs are a magic weight loss food. Eating eggs for breakfast is a good option to reduce your calorie intake for the rest of the day. Eating eggs for breakfast will give you satiety and shall make you feel fuller for longer making you eat less for your next few meals. You end up having fewer calories and don’t feel hungry for a longer time.

Eggs are nutrient dense packed with a wide variety of nutrients like fat-soluble vitamins (A, D,E, K), vitamin B12, protein, zinc and iron. Besides being nutrient dense, each egg contains only 80 calories in whole. While the white portion of an egg contains only 35 calorie which is more beneficial for weight loss. Eggs are a complete source of protein, containing all the essential amino acids. It offers satiety and keeps you feel full. Each complete egg including yolk containing about 6 g of protein.

The past studies suggested fewer eggs should be taken because of high cholesterol. However latest researches have confirmed that egg whites doesn’t contain any cholesterol nor saturated fats and hence there is no limit to the number of eggs one can eat in a week as  a part of a healthy balanced diet. Note should be taken that the way you cook eggs like frying or scrambling can increase its calorie content because of the addition of butter or oil. Hence it is advisable to use egg in a sensible way to achieve the desired results. For a morning meal, eat eggs with whole-wheat toast and fruit which is high in fibre. Fibre provides an additional appetite control as it digests slowly. For an afternoon healthy snack eat a hard-boiled egg white, which will keep you full until your evening meal. You can also add chopped boiled egg whites to the salad.

The overall calorie intake is more important when one is trying to lose weight, and the kinds of food one eat affect the overall calorie consumption.

“The response to stress is different for every bodybuilder. The limit to a great workout may vary from a person to person; the same workout could be a motivation for one while it could be a cause of distress to another.”

In a bodybuilder’s life stress is inevitable and thus impends all over. Anything that will interfere with the smooth working of cells in the body will lead to stress. For a bodybuilder, any stimulus which produces stress are called stressors. Stressors could be physiological, environmental, psychological or nutritional.

There are two types of stress which a bodybuilder has to confront: positive stress and negative stress (Distress). Positive stress inspires and encourages successful workouts. On the other hand, negative stress or distress causes a detrimental effect on the body and if lasted long, can even lead to physical decline. For every bodybuilder, distress is a concern. The predisposition to take stress significantly depends on factors such as genetics, medical history, lifestyle and behaviour. The response to stress is different for every bodybuilder. The limit to a great workout may vary from a person to person; the same workout could be a motivation for one while it could be a cause of distress to another.

As stress is unavoidable, bodybuilder always look out for ways to lessen the effect of stress and for this nutrition holds the key.

A multifaceted association exists between nutrition and stress. Nutrition and stress both are involved in immune function, metabolism, neuro-endocrine function and peak performance. Stress nutrition takes into account more than just sufficient protein and calories. Below is the explanation:

Stress stimulates 3 significant reactions in our body.

To start with the first reaction is the alarm stage. During this stage the body prepares itself to meet the stress by initiating metabolic changes such as increasing the cellular uptake of amino acids by breaking down proteins to provide immediate fuel for energy for the body and thus increasing the blood glucose levels (formed by protein breakdown). The increased demand for glucose to face the stressful situation triggers the liver to further release the stored glucose (glycogen). Also due to the change in blood osmolarity there is a shift in intracellular electrolytes resulting in the retention of excessive sodium and leading to cases of uncomplicated high blood pressure.

During the second stage also known as resistance stage, the body will rebuild itself by utilising the nutrient from the diet you consume. If the case of inadequate diet to meet the demands, the body will repair itself by robbing nutrients from its reservoirs until they get exhausted.

The third stage of stress is the exhaustion stage. This stage occurs when all the body reserves, as well as the diet, is inadequate to meet the needs to rebuild thus leading to major illnesses.

For the above three stages its very evident that stress imposes a great necessity for a well balanced diet depending upon the needs of the individual bodybuilder. On the contrary, the deficiency of any important nutrient is in itself is a cause of stress. Therefore, a carefully chosen diet along with a good nutritional supplementation program can significantly enhance a bodybuilder’s ability to manage stress in both workouts and life in general.

Body utilizes 1 calorie to warm 30 ml of cold water intake, therefore to burn 4 litres of water body will require approximately 130 cal.

Superhydration implicates drinking large quantity of water i.e. four litres or more per day, in order to increase the metabolism and as well as to detoxify your body. Consequently this will keep the body super hydrated, which is usually beneficial for optimum bodily function.

It is also essential that the water needs to be extremely cold, for the benefits to be felt. Individuals who follow super hydration techniques will lose weight much easily while also making digestion more efficient. To warm down the cold water the body has to burn more calories through heat exchange, thus promoting weight loss. Body utilises 1 calorie to warm 30 ml of water, therefore to burn 4 litres of water body will require approximately 130 cal.

Thus, superhydration is very valuable during a weight training program. Superhydration assists the functions of your Kidney and liver. Drinking large quantity of water also triggers fat loss. When the kidneys cannot perform their functions due to lack of water, then the liver will take up its function while ignoring it’s own function to metabolise stored fat into energy. Thus ceases the fat loss process.

Retaining appropriate hydration during outdoor workouts is essential to maintain good health and as well as to prevent heat related illness. When the body begins to dehydrate a person will start to feel giddy, may start having a headache, feel fatigued, vision become impaired and muscles will start feeling weak. All these symptoms are related to bodily functions which demands water.

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The saying goes, “An apple a day keeps the doctor away,” but now researches has shown that an apple a day can keep away muscle loss too. An apple contains a compound called ursolic acid which prevents your muscles from breaking down during periods of intense exercise or injury. Ursolic acid is present in the wax-like coating of fruits like apples, prunes, pears, cranberries and it’s also found in high amounts in seaweed and rosemary.

Functions of Ursolic acid:

1). INCREASES MUSCLES

Ursolic acid increases the formation of IGF-1 which stimulates muscle mass and strength. At the same time it decreases fat mass, fasting blood glucose, plasma cholesterol and triglycerides and as well it decreases muscle-wasting (Atrophy) and promotes muscle growth (hypertrophy).

2). INCREASES STRENGTH

The ursolic acid significantly increases strength by lowering the fat mass and proportionately increasing the muscle mass by creating a “recomposition effect” in which the body uses fat to fuel the energy needed.

Ursolic acid makes this happen by signalling gene expression. It can turned on 18 genes while it can turn off 51 genes via examining mRNA expression signals. Two of the most effective genes to be turned off are these which are associated with muscle atrophy: atrogin-1 and MuRF-1. The most effective one which is turned on was IGF-1 in muscle which stimulates muscle hypertrophy response. Ursolic acid also possesses inhibitory activity which potentially reduces estrogen production in the body and increase testosterone which again stimulates muscle growth.

3). LIVER PROTECTIVE

Ursolic acid protects the liver from toxicity due to ethanol (Alcohol) consumption as it has strong antioxidants property.

Ideally individual should consume ursolic acid equivalent to 1.6 – 6.4 mg/kg bodyweight; for a 70 kg adult it would be the range of 112-448 mg. It should be consumed in three dosage at each meal consume 150 mg totaling to 450mg each day to have the biological effect.

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