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It doesn’t matter how organized you are, it can happen between your workouts that you want to eat. In these cases you should know what you can eat and in what quantity. When there is no time to cook before or after training you can visit fast-food restaurants. Here are some suggestions:

Before workouts:

It would be perfect for you if you intake 20 grams of protein and about 40 g of slow-burning carbohydrates. At fast food restaurants it is very easy. In almost all restaurants you can find grilled chicken, but take care not to eat any sauces. You can also take a Diet Coke to get about 120 milligrams of caffeine to power your training.

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When it comes to eating, think marathon, not sprint

Remember how your mom would always tell you to chew your food? She know from what she spoke. Proper chewing of your food not only helps to break down the food mechanically, but also helps to release more digestive-system enzymes to carry the process further. If you don’t chew your food enough, it may result in incomplete digestion. That means there are less nutrients, such as amino acids, getting to your muscles, and this could limit your muscle growth.

According to research from Japan, the rate at which you eat your meals may influence the amount of bodyfat you hold. Researchers from the National Institute of Health and Nutrition in Tokyo assessed the eating rate and the amount of food eaten by almost 1,700 female subjects along with their body mass index (the BMI is a way to determine obesity based on weight and height). They reported in a 2003 issue of International Journal of Obesity and Related Metabolic Disorders that the faster the subjects tended to eat their meals, the higher their BMI and, therefore, their body fatness. read more »

A leucine metabolite that can help add muscle

Of all the amino acids that make up protein, leucine has been established as the most anabolic. In recent years, scientists have begun to uncover the muscle-building effects of leucine metabolites, such as KIC and HMB (alpha-ketoisocaproate and beta-hydroxy beta-methylbutyrate, respectively). Now another leucine metabolite, HICA (alpha-hydroxyisocaproic acid), is also showing great promise for its effects on recovery from intensive training.

Leucine is considered to be a potent anabolic agent because it can activate cellular proteins that lead to muscle growth. Once leucine is broken down in muscle tissue, it forms a variety of related compounds (such as KIC and HMB). These compounds have also proven to be popular supplements, because studies have shown that they can decrease muscle breakdown while helping to increase overall strength and muscle mass. HICA, which is formed when leucine is completely broken down, has also been reported to inhibit muscle loss by blocking the action of certain catabolic compounds. read more »

As runner-up for the Mr. Olympia, Shawn Ray certainly knows the right diet to follow. Catch his tips here.

Most professional bodybuilders claim that getting ready for a show is pure science. That’s not for Shawn Ray. He relied on instinct to lead him through his 12–week plan that garnered him legend status and runner–up in the Mr. Olympia. Here are some of his guidelines:

1. I never keep a running account of the quantities of food I eat–neither the calories nor the grams of fat or protein. I use the mirror, not the scale, to chart my progress.

2. During the off–season, I stay within easy striking distance–15–20 lbs.–of my goal weight. That might be the most important point of all. The stress and effort it relieves is more than worth the off–season vigilance.

3. At 12 weeks out from the show, I make sure I’m about 15 pounds above contest weight. I then drop a pound or two a week, slowly, until I hit my contest weight. read more »

When you’re stocking your pantry and fridge these are some of the healthiest choices you can make providing excellent sources of antioxidants, fibre, protein, carbohydrates and essential fats that won’t upset the balance when counting calories. In fact you may even find yourself shedding some unwanted kg’s! At this time of year when every one around you is coming down with colds and flu’s it’s of high importance to give attention to healthy eating so you can help build your immune system defences and keep yourself feeling on top of the world!

1) Salmon
Salmon is a great source of protein and one of the best remaining sources of the essential Omega 3 fats. Not only do these important fats (critical for your health) assist you in burning off unwanted body fat but they may offer some of the biggest protection against heart disease, arthritis and joint pain, mental decline and depression. Brain support has been the hot topic related to Omega 3 dietary intake, with positive results seen all round especially in the areas of concentration, depression, anxiety and excellent improvements seen in children suffering ADD. It is believed Wild Salmon is the best choice to make as opposed to Farmed Salmon which may contain much higher levels of chemical contaminants and toxins. read more »

You’ve probably heard me raving about the sport supplement HMB, and I know some of you are using it, but here is a bit more info on one of my favourite core supplements – I use my Reactiv Maximum HMB year round and benefit from continual progress – when I stop using it I find muscle degradation occurs almost immediately and very noticeably…

What is HMB?
HMB stands for Beta-Hydroxy-Beta-Methyl-Buterate and is a metabolite of the branch-chain amino acid Leucine. HMB occurs naturally in plants as well as meat. It is however, very difficult to obtain sufficient HMB through normal food intake (The recommended daily dosage for performance enhancement is 3 grams). Our bodies produce small amounts of HMB, usually between .3grams and 1 gram per day.

Can I get the same effect by supplementing my diet with Leucine instead of HMB?
No, scientists believe that only 5% of consumed Leucine can be converted into HMB in the body. Therefore you would have to supplement 60 grams of Leucine per day, which would cause digestive system problems. read more »

When it comes to getting into shape exercise and nutrition skip merrily hand in hand down the path of success. Travelling with your attention on one or the other will only get you so far before you’re left stranded and frustrated.

People ask me all the time what my view on which of the two is most important – nutrition versus exercise. Some people are surprised when I say nutrition is a bigger part of the picture. Exercising for a better body can be acheived in as little as three to four hours a week – the nutrition and eating can be a heap more time consuming (not to mention confusing) and deserves a much greater degree of thought and consideration.

So right now let’s take a look at your nutrition and what you can do to benefit. Some eating techniques will provide you big returns, so here’s a couple of my favorites – start working them in as soon as you can and you will be well on your way!

Let’s start with the biggest obstacle most people face – and this is one of the most critical areas to sort out. People who achieve ultra lean and muscle toned bodies will tell you that the most effective step they take is eating regular smaller meals – five or six per day – rather than two or three bigger meals each day. Eating food every three or so hours can stabilise blood sugar to read more »

10 MYTHS ABOUT HEALTY NUTRITION DIET

The majority of myths are transferred from one person to another creating an avalanche of gossip. Let’s discuss the most common delusions regarding healthy nutrition .

1. ‘Three meals a day are enough to provide our organism with construction material’.

It’s wrong. You’ll not be able to get everything your organism requires eating only three times a day. On the contrary, it can lead to the situation that your body will accumulate excess fat. It happens because in case of three-meals-a-day nutrition your metabolism rate is slower than when you eat more times a day. The other reason is that to provide necessary daily energy supply you need to split daily food amount into bigger portions and it’s not good for digestion. The best scheme is 6 small portions a day: it provides higher energy level and better nutrient assimilation.

2. ‘Sweets lead to pancreatic diabetes’.

Diabetes occurs when our body cells stop react to insulin. Food with high glycemic index (simple carbohydrates) causes abrupt increase of glucose level in our blood; but it’s only a consequence of pancreatic diabetes but not the cause of it. read more »

Aagaard P. Institute of Sports Sciences and Clinical Biomechanics, University of Southern Denmark and Sports Medicine Research Unit, Bispebjerg Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark.

As described in this review, maximal muscle strength is strongly influenced by resistive-types of exercise, which induce adaptive changes in both neuromuscular function and muscle morphology.

• Further, timed intake of protein in conjunction with resistance training elicit greater strength and muscle size gains than resistance training alone.
• Creatine supplementation amplifies the hypertrophic response to resistance training, although some individuals may not respond positively. Locally produced muscle growth factors are upregulated during creatine supplementation, which contributes to increase the responsiveness of muscle cells to intensive training stimuli.
• Usage of anabolic steroids boosts muscle hypertrophy beyond inherent genetical limits, not only by increasing the DNA transcription rate for myofibrillar proteins but also by increasing the nucleus-to-cytoplasm ratio due to accelerated activation of myogenic satellite cells. However, severe tissue damaging effects exist with the improper abuse of anabolic steroids.

If you’ve ever dieted for a bodybuilding contest—or for an extended period just to reduce bodyfat—then you know what you want to do right after that: nothing but eat all the decadent foods that you’ve been avoiding for the past couple of months.

Sure, that’s one way to follow-up a restricted diet, but it can turn into a disaster, resulting in startling bodyfat gains. A better strategy is to use this time to gain impressive heaps of muscle by taking advantage of the body’s rebound effect.

The best gains of an entire year often come in the first few weeks after a cutting phase, making that period of time ideal for growth. In fact, you can easily gain five, six or even 10 pounds of real muscle mass in just six short weeks. Here are seven steps you can use to transition from a diet straight into six weeks of pure anabolism.

1. Understand your body’s overcompensation mechanisms.

The lucky bodybuilder has a fantastic metabolism that allows him to get ripped to the bone yet retain valuable muscle mass during a precontest diet. For many, getting ready for a contest is an exercise in modified starving. Some bodybuilders have to cut back on nearly everything—fat, carbohydrates and total calories—while pumping up the time spent on cardio to facilitate bodyfat burn. read more »