Big and healthy: 10 ways to supercharge your body and your nutrition plan for ultimate muscle gains—and better health

Flex, August, 2003 by Steve Stiefel

#10

This may seem counterintuitive to the bodybuilding mentality, but it's not. Overdieting will make you look flat and cause you to lose muscle mass along with bodyfat. Trying to grow too fast can result in adding more bodyfat than need be. In addition, gaining or losing weight too quickly can negatively impact health by overtaxing your body. Finally, diets low in healthy fats can have a negative impact on both health and bodybuilding results, because your body needs those fats for numerous physiological functions.

Recommendations: The take one aspect of bodybuilding to to the extreme is consistency it's the hallmark of bodybuilding success. Whether your goal is to reduce bodyfat or gain muscle, make moderate adjustments in your calorie consumption. Increase or decrease total calories by about 10-20%, depending on your goal.

Strategies: Plan your diet in advance, both on a daily and weekly basis. Prepare quality foods and have them available so you can consume them consistently at the appropriate times.

RELATED ARTICLE: TODAY'S TO-DO LIST

Implement the following suggestions immediately for better bodybuilding gains and better long-term health.

1 Drink a gallon of water throughout the day.

2 Increase fiber consumption.

3 Increase vegetable and fruit consumption to eight or more servings daily.

4 Make a doctor's appointment for a full physical with blood work.

5 Supplement with multivitamins/multiminerals and bodybuilding products for recovery. (See "Supplement List" sidebar for specific guidelines.)

6 Plan workout and recovery strategies.

7 Get a good night's sleep (at least eight hours).

SUPPLEMENT LIST

Here are some supplements that may help you boost muscle gains, as well as enhance recovery and improve overall health.

1 Take up to 5 q of creatine after you work out, or split that amount into two doses taken before and after training.

2 Drink a postworkout shake comprising 40-50 g of protein and 40-100 g of simple carbs (such as glucose or dextrose).

3 Take up to four doses of glutamine, 5-10 g each, over the course of the day.

4 Take 500-1,000 mg of IgG.

5 Take a multivitamin/multimineral. Look for a well-known brand that contains vitamins C, E and a complement of Bs, as well as minerals, such as zinc and magnesium.

6 Consider supplementing with an additional 500-1,000 g of vitamin C and 400-800 international units of vitamin E.