Ideal foods and diet schedules for bodybuilding
A balanced diet that is filled with essential vitamins, minerals, proteins, carbohydrates, fats and other important nutrients is extremely important for muscle building. Not only the quantity, but also the quality of food that is being consumed holds a great significance.
Before chalking out a good diet schedule, it is important to have adequate knowledge about the importance of different nutrients required for muscle buildings and the precise food sources that contain these nutrients in relatively high proportion.
Proteins play a major role in the development and maintenance of muscles in an individual. Regular and optimum consumption of high quality dietary proteins is essential for muscle building. In general, an individual, who is doing muscle building exercises, should consume 0.8 - 1.3 gms of protein per pound of body weight spread over 6 times a day within every 2 - 3 hrs interval. Ideally, you can take a protein shake immediately after a workout.
Some important food items that are rich in proteins include meat products like breasts of chicken, turkey breasts, dairy products like low fat milk, low fat yogurt, low fat cottage cheese, low fat cheddar cheese and whey, fish items like tuna, salmon, mackerel and cod, nuts like almonds, peanuts, pistachios, and sunflower seeds. Even egg white is a rich source of protein.
The energy required to fuel your workouts is derived from carbohydrates in your food. If you consume fewer carbohydrates for fear of gaining weight, you can experience giddiness and fatigue as soon as you begin your workout. This is due to the reduced glycogen levels in your body, which can greatly hamper your workouts. Therefore, you need to constantly feed you body with carbohydrates for sustained energy supplies throughout your workout session.
Some important food items that are considered to be a good source of complex and high quality carbohydrates include sprouts, rice, whole wheat bread, oatmeal, cream of wheat, muffins, mushrooms, whole grain cereals, green leafy vegetables like spinach and broccoli, fruits such as apples, strawberries, bananas and peaches and also vegetables such as cabbage, peas, beans, baked potatoes, sweet potatoes.
A bodybuilding diet is not complete unless a source of fat is included in the diet. Contradictory to the popular perception that fat is not required to be consumed for the proper functioning of your body, your body needs a constant supply of essential fatty acids for its multiple functions which include assisting in the formation of the cell membranes, acting as an insulator, dissolving and transporting fat-soluble vitamins and cushioning vital organs of the body and preventing their damage due to external forces. Good sources of essential fatty acids include Fish Oils, Flaxseed Oil, Virgin Olive Oil, and Canola Oil.
Only a well-balanced diet can help you achieve your desired bodybuilding results. Usually, it is recommended by nutritionists that bodybuilders must stick to a diet that provides their bodies with 20-30% of proteins, 55-65% of carbohydrates and 15-25% of fats. This is in addition to the vitamins and minerals that need to be supplied to your body on a continual basis.
Tags: Fitness
