Off season - Mass gaining/Bulking diet!!

I'm preparing for my first ever bodybuilding competition in the first week of July this year. So my diet had to change to cater to my goal of achieving as much muscle mass as possible, to do this my Carbohydrate intake has pretty much gone through the roof. For the way it makes me feel, to say I overdose on Carbs is an understatement, I've become so familiar with that bloated feeling it's almost normal.

21/01/13

I'm currently 7 months out and i'll be on this mass gaining diet until 10 weeks out of my competition (Mid April) when my diet will have to change again so I can lower my body fat % and look as ripped as possible whilst on stage at the competition.
A lot of bodybuilders go on what's called a "Dirty bulk", this is when they eat literally everything in sight in an attempt to meet their calorie intake target for the day. It's impossible to do that and gain pure muscle mass without an increase in body fat % also. Whilst bulking an increase in body fat %  is almost certain, but how much by is completely down to you! You can probably tell I don't promote this at all and what I'm doing is the opposite, a "Clean bulk" If you will.
The way I've approached it is to keep my Carbs high and clean. The foods which i'm talking about when I say Carbohydrates for those that don't know are as follows:

• Sweet Potato
• Rice/Wild Rice
• Brown Pasta
• Brown seeded bread
• Mass gaining shakes

I shall attempt to keep this as straight forward as possible, nutrition can get messy so pay attention!
My maintenance calories intake are the amount of calories I need to have per day to ensure I don't lose weight. To calculate this I multiply my weight in pounds (174lbs) and multiply that number by 16 calories per pound body weight. (15 for females) 174lbs x 16kcals = 2784kcal. (Macdonald, 1998) 

To gain weight I need a calorie excess on my 2784kcals maintenance. the calculation to work out how many calories I should increase by is the same but instead of 16kcals per pound of body weight, it's 20kcals. 174lbs x 20kcals = 3480kcals An increase of 696kcals.

Macro Nutrients

Carbohydrates/Protein/Fats are the three primary macro nutrients. Carbs are important because they're our primary source of glycogen. Glycogen is the energy source our muscles use when training. (Chiras, 2011) The higher the glycogen stores, the harder your muscles can train, the harder you train the bigger you get, easy! Protein has many roles in the human body namely: Digestion, protection from disease, transport of nutrients and more. Protein is also responsible for muscle tissue repair, which after weight training is very important for building muscle back bigger and stronger! Fats are something many people consider a huge no go but fail to understand there are different types which can be good or bad for you. Trans fats are man made fats that are used in processed/fried food. (Avoid) Saturated fats are the fats from animals. The white fat on red meat, underneath poultry skin, whole milk, cheese, butter and such. In off season i'm much more lenient with Saturated fats but still don't over do it. The fats which are good are unsaturated fats. Nuts, vegetable oils, fish, flaxseed.

• Meal 1 - 7am | Mass gaining Protein shake with full fat milk |

Calories = 811kcals. Carbohydrates = 139g. Protein = 35g. Fat = 10g.

• Meal 2 - 10.30am | Pancakes | 

3x Large eggs, 100g Quaker Oats, 100ml Full fat milk, 10 Raspberries, 10 blueberries.

Calories = 800kcals. Carbohydrates = 70g. Protein = 33g. Fat = 24g.

• Meal 3 - 2pm | 200g Chicken breast & 300g Sweet potato |

Calories = 618kcals. Carbohydrates = 78g. Protein = 58.5g. Fat = 4g.

• Meal 4 - 5.30pm (Pre workout) 200g Chicken breast & 300g Sweet potato |

Calories = 618kcals. Carbohydrates = 78g. Protein = 58.5g. Fat = 4g.

• Meal 5 - 9.30pm (Post workout) 200g Chicken breast & 400g Sweet potato |

Calories = 694kcals. Carbohydrates = 104g. Protein = 60g.  Fat = 4g. 

• Meal 6 - 11pm | Mass gaining Protein shake with full fat milk |

Calories = 811kcals. Carbohydrates = 139g. Protein = 35g. Fat = 10g.

Total Calories - 4352kcals
Total Carbohydrates - 608g
Total Protein - 280g
Total Fat - 46g

(Meals 3,4 & 5 always include peppers, red onions, garlic & spinach. Sometimes jalapenos; Values not included in totals)
I'd say only up to 10% (If that) of the 46g of Fat in my diet is saturated. From the full fat milk and whole eggs and little bits here and there, the majority is unsaturated.
As mentioned earlier, 3480kcals is my calorie intake target. (696kcals above my 2784kcal maintenance) I'm actually having 4352kcals, which is a lot more, but because It's clean It's not something to worry about, in fact it will work to my advantage! I have 4 meals and 2 meal replacements (Protein shakes high in carbs) The protein shake I'm currently having is 2 half portions of Optimum nutrition's Serious Mass. It's the best one in my opinion, for taste and nutritional value.

I'm still taking Kre-Alkalyn creatine pre and post workout. Also flaxseed tabs during any 2 meals of the day.

If I feel like snacking I either have a piece of fruit or more likely have a peanut butter and jam sandwich. (Brown seeded bread, organic crunchy peanut butter)

Calories = 487kcals. Carbohydrates = 55g. Protein = 17.5g. Fat = 21g.

Or a Tuna sandwich (Brown seeded bread)

Calories = 404kcals. Carbohydrates = 36g. Protein = 41g. Fat = 8g.

I'm always drinking water! Very important! I try to drink 4 litres a day and I'm sure that's not enough. Variations in my diet include having mince beef instead of chicken, or brown pasta or wild rice instead of sweet potato. It can get quite repetitive, as you can see there's little variety but I guess I've become used to eating more for function than pleasure. Plenty of time for eating for pleasure when I have a cheat meal but it's either the junk food I've craved for an hour or the body I've craved for a lifetime. Simple.


Any Further questions about this post
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References

Chiras, D. (2011). Human Biology. Jones & Bartlett Learning. Denver.
Macdonald, L. (1998). The Ketogenic diet: A complete guide for a dieter and practitioner.

"My New years resolution is to join a gym!"

Every single year, you hear at least one person say "My New Years resolution is to join a gym". Whenever I hear it, the first that comes into mind is "Oh we've got another one". That generalization of people is actually quite rude of me and I should encourage them, I want to; However I've just heard it so many times and the saying "Actions speak louder than words" comes to mind. Consequently the only exercise they get is jumping to conclusions, running down their friends, side-stepping responsibility and pushing their luck. Not my kind of workout. For those who are serious about making gym a part of their lives here are a few rules everyone should abide by! In no particular order...

03/12/12

1. Leave your ego at the door!!

Weight training to boost your ego is not only stupid but it's also unsafe for you and possibly for others too. When I was 16 I used to go to the gym and pretty much dumbbell curl the whole time because I wanted bigger arms than my friends. I've learnt a lot since then. When training with someone bigger than me pushing heavier weights, I have no problem adjusting the weight to what I can do to fail within my rep range. (Helps to train with someone around your size so you don't waste time changing the weights)

2. Be considerate and co operative

One of my pet hates. "Excuse me, how many sets do you have left?" "I've only just started yano mate". First of all, I asked how many sets remaining, not for an uncertain imprecise guess in reference to time. If you plan your sessions (which you always should) you should know. Also once you're done you should notify the person who asked, and also if asked, inform anybody else that there is somebody waiting.

3. Clean your sweat from machines

If I wanted to go swimming I would have brought my trunks.

4. Don't talk down at people

Everyone had to start somewhere, those who are inexperienced are already intimidated and don't need to be any further. Encourage others and help them out, I'm a firm believer of help others and others will eventually help you.

5. If you smell, stay at home

On too many occasions I'd be walking between machines, in the gym on the way to my next exercise and someones BO just slaps me in the face. Surely if you shower this wouldn't happen. I always make sure I've already showered before I go to the gym.

6. Don't skip leg day!

Largest muscle group in the body, most painful area to work until failure (My opinion) Just because this is the case, that doesn't mean you shouldn't work on them at all. There's nothing worse than an imbalanced upper and lower body!





7. Stay Focused

Guys who go to the gym and attempt to get girls. You can't be serious.

8. Put your weights back

Unexpected dumbbells barbells and plates on the floor are the fastest way to breaking someones neck. Please put your weights back!

9. Plan

I think a large part of the lack of motivation people have when going to the gym is due to not planning their week ahead. If you just walk in there and freestyle your session its much easier to just settle for anything, lose track of what you've already worked on and miss areas of the body out come the end of the week. If you fail to prepare, prepare to fail!

10. Be patient, don't quit

Whatever your goals are in the gym, I can almost guarantee you they're going to take longer than you hope. To achieve that body you really want you need to work hard, be persistent and patient. So many people expect to see the body they wish for after a week. Be realistic, Rome wasn't built in a day; Coventry maybe but that's besides the point. I've been going to the gym nearly 5 years, body building for 2 and a half of those and I know I won't hit my peak until at least another 5 years of hard work!

11/05/09-29/10/12

The biggest rule of all is to have fun and enjoy the journey of a healthier lifestyle! Although it may not seem like it, this is a very warm welcome to gym life from me to you! Good luck to everyone and Happy New Year!

If you feel I've missed anything out let me know! ;0)

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Monthly Measurements

In bodybuilding physiques that are classed as visually stunning are generally those regarded as being symmetrical and proportional - a state where there is an obvious balance between both sides of the body, where nothing looks out of place and everything seems to flow and taper into a harmonious whole (often referred to as the total package)

The best method, by far, to accurately determine where our individual body parts fall in terms of over symmetry and proportion is the tape measure.

Measuring the circumference of each body part will give an idea of where improvements need to be made, provided one is in reasonable shape and the individual muscles are able to be discerned - an excessive amount of fat will give a false indication of overall muscularity if taken into account when the measurements are taken - Bodybuilding.com

Measurement tips

1. Take all measurements before exercise

2. Take all measurements in a relaxed state

3. Don't pull the tape

4. Keep a diary

5. Measure both left and the right sides of the body. 

Right Bicep - 14.6 inches (+.1)

Right Bicep flexed - 16 inches (-)

Left Bicep - 14.4 inches (-)

Left Bicep flexed - 15.6 inches (-.1)
Chest - 40.5 inches (+.2) 

Right Forearm - 12 inches (-)

Left Forearm - 12 inches (-)

Right Thigh - 23.4 inches (-)
Left Thigh - 23.1 inches (-.1)

Right Calf - 15.1 inches (+.1)
Left Calf - 15.2 inches (-)
Waist - 32 inches (-)
Hip - 35 inches (-)
Shoulders - 47 inches (-) 
Weight - 78kg (+.1)

Notes - I hope everyone had a good Christmas! For those of you who also take monthly measurements, I bet you weren't as scared as me taking them knowing my diet went out the window and had a much needed 2 week break from weight training. (Ok week and a half, going cold turkey over Christmas isn't cool...)

Who said Santa was fat?

I expected more change over the Christmas break to be honest, not many complaints. I'm thankful 2013 is here, I've got big things planned throughout this year and It can only get better from here!