guardianactual
MuscleChemistry Registered Member
***Cheat Meals***
</br>
</br> For most, one cheat meal per week is acceptable and recommended For those that have extremely fast metabolisms, 1 small cheat food or treat is acceptable, but limit the entire meal to once per week. You should already know if you have a very, very fast metabolism. Less the 25% of you will fall into this category.
</br>
</br> ***Foods to be Avoided***
</br>
</br> Milk of any type: All milk contains massive amounts of sugar, regardless if Whole, Skim or in between, it contains the same amount of sugar
</br>
</br> Processed foods: Most processed foods contain large amounts of sugar and often lack the nutrients you need
</br>
</br> Soda: Any soda that is sugar free, i.e. Diet Coke is fine. If it is not diet or sugar free, then do not drink it.
</br>
</br> Fast Food: This should be a no brainer. Fast foods are loaded with sugar and all the bad fats that simply make you fat. Whats worse is they are packed full of calories but many of these calories are the wrong types. Fast food is more often than not made up of so much sugar and saturated fat that the bulk of your calories in those meals come from those two physique building enemies
</br>
</br> Excess Cheese: A little cheese here and there is not going to be the end of the world, but there is not a lot of benefit from eating cheese. If youre following a proper diet, proper means gaining lean muscle with as little fat as possible or dropping body fat while preserving lean tissue. Dont go overboard, dont do as some and cover everything you eat in cheese. The less you eat, the better youll do.
</br>
</br> Excess Condiments: Condiments cause many bodybuilders to consume more calories per day then they should. Many condiments are riddled with sugar and this is a major downfall to many diets. See list of Acceptable Condiments.
</br>
</br> Bread: Bread is often a favorite food for many to eat. For a true hard gainer bread may have a place in a diet. In a real pinch, at times, it may be slightly necessary, but it should be avoided as much as possible. As a part of a regular diet, eating bread is one of the surest fire ways to add excess body fat.
</br>
</br> Cereal: This has no place in a bodybuilders diet. Even the healthy cereals are in loaded with empty calories; in fact, the so-called healthy cereals are often packed full of more empty calories and more sugar then the so-called Kiddy cereals.
</br>
</br> ***Acceptable Condiments*** 1. Mustard: calorie free, eat all you want
</br>
</br> 2. Vinegar: all you want
</br>
</br> 3. Any spice such as pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, oregano, etc.
</br>
</br> 4. Low carb Ketchup: Ketchup itself has no place in your diet, but a little low carb ketchup which has 1g of sugar per serving will be acceptable.
</br>
</br> 5. Low Carb Buffalo Sauce: this can be a great addition to your chicken; a low carb buffalo sauce should have no sugar added and only 1 carb per serving.
</br>
</br> 6. Any condiment made by Walden Farms. Walden Farms makes a line of salad dressings, sauces and other items that are fat free, sugar free and gluten free.
</br>
</br> ***Condiments or Additives to be Avoided***
</br>
</br> 1. Regular Ketchup
</br>
</br> 2. Barbeque Sauce
</br>
</br> 3. Regular Salad Dressings. See list of approved salad dressings
</br>
</br> 4. Creamers
</br>
</br> 5. Any sauce with sugar or abundant carbs. If the sauce has more than 1-2 grams of sugar, avoid it.
</br>
</br> ***Approved Salad Dressings***
</br>
</br> 1. Oil & Vinegar
</br>
</br> 2. Sugar free Italian, Balsamic or Greek
</br>
</br> 3. Any Salad Dressing by Walden Farms
</br>
</br> ***Protein Bars***
</br>
</br> As a rule, protein bars and other so called bodybuilding snacks or meal replacements should be avoided as much as possible. Most of these items will have more sugar in them then a regular candy bar. True, they may indeed be packed full of protein but the sugar far outweighs the benefit.
</br>
</br> If you are bulking, you find yourself in a jam and there is no other option, choose a protein bar that has the least amount of sugar. This should be a very limited occurrence. If you are serious about your diet, you will plan out and make arrangements to ensure youre getting the proper foods.
</br>
</br> ***Hard Gainers***
</br>
</br> -If you are in fact a true hard gainer, some adjustments may need to be made.
</br>
</br> The first change would be adding in an extra meal or two. Choose meals that are similar to the ones in the outline.
</br>
</br> Your next option would be adding in more carbs per serving, start by adding an extra cup of rice or oats to your meals that have these foods.
</br>
</br> The 3 rd and final option, after you have tried both of the other two methods, adding in more meals or adding extra carbs to all your meals, now its time to do both. Less then 5% of you will fall into this category.
</br>
</br> If you follow the above outline for 8 weeks and are still not gaining, continue to add in more meals and more carbs. At this stage there is no sample Hard Gainers diet, this diet should make anyone grow, it doesnt matter who you are.
</br>
</br> ***The Diet Outline itself***
</br>
</br> The above diet outline will help you make the progress you desire, however, as this is a guided plan, there are substitutions that are acceptable. When it comes to the meats and protein sources, what you have read above should be followed fairly closely. There are instances when other meats are acceptable, i.e. things like beef tenderloin can be great, but the above listed is your staple.
</br>
</br> If you desire other carb sourced foods, and this is the big one where many people want a change, always examine the glycemic index. You should make your choices from foods that are lower on the glycemic index. If you want to sub one carb source food that is in your diet outline with another, gauge the glycemic index to make your choices. See the discussion on Glycemic Index below.
</br>
</br> Fats, these will be harder to substitute then carbs. Fats are a very important aspect to the diet, but keep in mind that as great and as important as fats are, most of the best ones have been mentioned in the diet outline already. Foods loaded with saturated fat are not acceptable. Foods that have fats that lack the connecting piece of the puzzle when it comes to healthy fats are not acceptable.
</br>
</br> ***Glycemic Index***
</br>
</br> The glycemic index (GI) measures the effects of carbohydrates on blood glucose levels. The faster the carb breaks down, the faster it will release glucose into the bloodstream. The foods that do this fast are labeled high GI foods. The slower the release of glucose, the lower the food will rank on the GI.
</br>
</br> Foods that are lower on the GI will typically have higher health benefits such as keeping insulin levels under control, and preventing type-2 diabetes and coronary heart disease.
</br>
</br> Foods low on the GI will have a ranking of 55 or lower on the GI Index.
</br>
</br> Foods that are Medium GI foods will have a ranking of 56-69 on the GI Index.
</br>
</br> Foods that are High GI foods will have a ranking of 70-99 on the GI Index.
</br>
</br> The ranking of 100 on the GI Index is pure sugar.
</br>
</br> ***Supplements***
</br>
</br> *Omega-3 Fish Oil: 3000mg every day, split into 3 doses, taken with food
</br>
</br> *Coral Calcium: 1000mg-1500mg every day, taken with food
</br>
</br> *Potassium: 99mg every day, taken with food
</br>
</br> *Juice Plus+ or Related Product: 2 garden blend in the morning, 2 orchard blend at night, both taken with food
</br>
</br> Omega-3 Fish Oil: An unsaturated fatty acid essential for good health.
</br>
</br> -Benefits:
</br>
</br> Reduce risk of coronary heart disease, increase blood circulation, therefore decreasing circulatory problems. Reduce blood pressure Reduce blood triglyceride levels therefore reducing heart attack risk
</br>
</br> Reduce flair up of arthritis or its onset Improve cholesterol levels Stronger immune system Works as an anti-inflammatory Coral Calcium: A very important mineral for your overall health.
</br>
</br> -Benefits:
</br>
</br> Keeps bones strong and healthy Helps maintain good oral health (teeth) Aides in muscular contraction Deficiency can lead to blood clotting, rickets and osteoporosis
</br>
</br>
</br> Potassium: Important mineral for electrolyte balance in the body. The green vegetables you are eating in your diet provide potassium, as well as the Juice Plus+ that is strongly recommended, however, it is easy to fall below what your body adequately needs due to the hard training. Potassium deficiency coupled with hard training can often lead to some serious muscle cramping.
</br>
</br> -Benefits Maintain electrolyte balance Decrease risk of hypertension
</br>
</br> Juice Plus+: A whole food based nutritional supplement. including juice powder concentrates from 17 different fruits, vegetables and grains. Each ingredient is specially selected to provide a broad range of nutritional benefits. As a physique athlete it is easy to not get as many of the nutrients you need from fruits and vegetables; Juice Plus+ will take care of this completely.
</br>
</br> -Benefits: Juice Plus delivers key phytonutrients that are absorbed by the body Reduces markers of oxidative stress. Positively impacts several key indicators of cardiovascular wellness. -Benefits: Juice Plus delivers key phytonutrients that are absorbed by the body Reduces markers of oxidative stress. Positively impacts several key indicators of cardiovascular wellness. Helps support a healthy immune system and protect DNA.
</br>
</br> *You can take other supplements if you like, but try to stay away from anything that has added sugar in it. A lot of supplements contain sugar, and as someone looking to build a great body sugar is one of the number one enemies. The supplements above, along with the diet youll be following is all you really need to get the job done. Whats more, youll be keeping your pocket book fuller if you spend less on supplements and rely on food as the bulk of your daily intake.
</br>
</br> At this stage things have changed. Most of you will be going back and forth between this diet and a pre-contest or similar diet during different points of the year. Because of that, once your pre-contest or similar diet is over, simply return to this diet again. However, many of you will be better suited to ease back into it with some caution; let your body get used to eating excess calories again. Its healthier this way, will yield more positive gains then negative, and if nothing else, because steroid.com says so.
</br>
</br> For most, one cheat meal per week is acceptable and recommended For those that have extremely fast metabolisms, 1 small cheat food or treat is acceptable, but limit the entire meal to once per week. You should already know if you have a very, very fast metabolism. Less the 25% of you will fall into this category.
</br>
</br> ***Foods to be Avoided***
</br>
</br> Milk of any type: All milk contains massive amounts of sugar, regardless if Whole, Skim or in between, it contains the same amount of sugar
</br>
</br> Processed foods: Most processed foods contain large amounts of sugar and often lack the nutrients you need
</br>
</br> Soda: Any soda that is sugar free, i.e. Diet Coke is fine. If it is not diet or sugar free, then do not drink it.
</br>
</br> Fast Food: This should be a no brainer. Fast foods are loaded with sugar and all the bad fats that simply make you fat. Whats worse is they are packed full of calories but many of these calories are the wrong types. Fast food is more often than not made up of so much sugar and saturated fat that the bulk of your calories in those meals come from those two physique building enemies
</br>
</br> Excess Cheese: A little cheese here and there is not going to be the end of the world, but there is not a lot of benefit from eating cheese. If youre following a proper diet, proper means gaining lean muscle with as little fat as possible or dropping body fat while preserving lean tissue. Dont go overboard, dont do as some and cover everything you eat in cheese. The less you eat, the better youll do.
</br>
</br> Excess Condiments: Condiments cause many bodybuilders to consume more calories per day then they should. Many condiments are riddled with sugar and this is a major downfall to many diets. See list of Acceptable Condiments.
</br>
</br> Bread: Bread is often a favorite food for many to eat. For a true hard gainer bread may have a place in a diet. In a real pinch, at times, it may be slightly necessary, but it should be avoided as much as possible. As a part of a regular diet, eating bread is one of the surest fire ways to add excess body fat.
</br>
</br> Cereal: This has no place in a bodybuilders diet. Even the healthy cereals are in loaded with empty calories; in fact, the so-called healthy cereals are often packed full of more empty calories and more sugar then the so-called Kiddy cereals.
</br>
</br> ***Acceptable Condiments*** 1. Mustard: calorie free, eat all you want
</br>
</br> 2. Vinegar: all you want
</br>
</br> 3. Any spice such as pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, oregano, etc.
</br>
</br> 4. Low carb Ketchup: Ketchup itself has no place in your diet, but a little low carb ketchup which has 1g of sugar per serving will be acceptable.
</br>
</br> 5. Low Carb Buffalo Sauce: this can be a great addition to your chicken; a low carb buffalo sauce should have no sugar added and only 1 carb per serving.
</br>
</br> 6. Any condiment made by Walden Farms. Walden Farms makes a line of salad dressings, sauces and other items that are fat free, sugar free and gluten free.
</br>
</br> ***Condiments or Additives to be Avoided***
</br>
</br> 1. Regular Ketchup
</br>
</br> 2. Barbeque Sauce
</br>
</br> 3. Regular Salad Dressings. See list of approved salad dressings
</br>
</br> 4. Creamers
</br>
</br> 5. Any sauce with sugar or abundant carbs. If the sauce has more than 1-2 grams of sugar, avoid it.
</br>
</br> ***Approved Salad Dressings***
</br>
</br> 1. Oil & Vinegar
</br>
</br> 2. Sugar free Italian, Balsamic or Greek
</br>
</br> 3. Any Salad Dressing by Walden Farms
</br>
</br> ***Protein Bars***
</br>
</br> As a rule, protein bars and other so called bodybuilding snacks or meal replacements should be avoided as much as possible. Most of these items will have more sugar in them then a regular candy bar. True, they may indeed be packed full of protein but the sugar far outweighs the benefit.
</br>
</br> If you are bulking, you find yourself in a jam and there is no other option, choose a protein bar that has the least amount of sugar. This should be a very limited occurrence. If you are serious about your diet, you will plan out and make arrangements to ensure youre getting the proper foods.
</br>
</br> ***Hard Gainers***
</br>
</br> -If you are in fact a true hard gainer, some adjustments may need to be made.
</br>
</br> The first change would be adding in an extra meal or two. Choose meals that are similar to the ones in the outline.
</br>
</br> Your next option would be adding in more carbs per serving, start by adding an extra cup of rice or oats to your meals that have these foods.
</br>
</br> The 3 rd and final option, after you have tried both of the other two methods, adding in more meals or adding extra carbs to all your meals, now its time to do both. Less then 5% of you will fall into this category.
</br>
</br> If you follow the above outline for 8 weeks and are still not gaining, continue to add in more meals and more carbs. At this stage there is no sample Hard Gainers diet, this diet should make anyone grow, it doesnt matter who you are.
</br>
</br> ***The Diet Outline itself***
</br>
</br> The above diet outline will help you make the progress you desire, however, as this is a guided plan, there are substitutions that are acceptable. When it comes to the meats and protein sources, what you have read above should be followed fairly closely. There are instances when other meats are acceptable, i.e. things like beef tenderloin can be great, but the above listed is your staple.
</br>
</br> If you desire other carb sourced foods, and this is the big one where many people want a change, always examine the glycemic index. You should make your choices from foods that are lower on the glycemic index. If you want to sub one carb source food that is in your diet outline with another, gauge the glycemic index to make your choices. See the discussion on Glycemic Index below.
</br>
</br> Fats, these will be harder to substitute then carbs. Fats are a very important aspect to the diet, but keep in mind that as great and as important as fats are, most of the best ones have been mentioned in the diet outline already. Foods loaded with saturated fat are not acceptable. Foods that have fats that lack the connecting piece of the puzzle when it comes to healthy fats are not acceptable.
</br>
</br> ***Glycemic Index***
</br>
</br> The glycemic index (GI) measures the effects of carbohydrates on blood glucose levels. The faster the carb breaks down, the faster it will release glucose into the bloodstream. The foods that do this fast are labeled high GI foods. The slower the release of glucose, the lower the food will rank on the GI.
</br>
</br> Foods that are lower on the GI will typically have higher health benefits such as keeping insulin levels under control, and preventing type-2 diabetes and coronary heart disease.
</br>
</br> Foods low on the GI will have a ranking of 55 or lower on the GI Index.
</br>
</br> Foods that are Medium GI foods will have a ranking of 56-69 on the GI Index.
</br>
</br> Foods that are High GI foods will have a ranking of 70-99 on the GI Index.
</br>
</br> The ranking of 100 on the GI Index is pure sugar.
</br>
</br> ***Supplements***
</br>
</br> *Omega-3 Fish Oil: 3000mg every day, split into 3 doses, taken with food
</br>
</br> *Coral Calcium: 1000mg-1500mg every day, taken with food
</br>
</br> *Potassium: 99mg every day, taken with food
</br>
</br> *Juice Plus+ or Related Product: 2 garden blend in the morning, 2 orchard blend at night, both taken with food
</br>
</br> Omega-3 Fish Oil: An unsaturated fatty acid essential for good health.
</br>
</br> -Benefits:
</br>
</br> Reduce risk of coronary heart disease, increase blood circulation, therefore decreasing circulatory problems. Reduce blood pressure Reduce blood triglyceride levels therefore reducing heart attack risk
</br>
</br> Reduce flair up of arthritis or its onset Improve cholesterol levels Stronger immune system Works as an anti-inflammatory Coral Calcium: A very important mineral for your overall health.
</br>
</br> -Benefits:
</br>
</br> Keeps bones strong and healthy Helps maintain good oral health (teeth) Aides in muscular contraction Deficiency can lead to blood clotting, rickets and osteoporosis
</br>
</br>
</br> Potassium: Important mineral for electrolyte balance in the body. The green vegetables you are eating in your diet provide potassium, as well as the Juice Plus+ that is strongly recommended, however, it is easy to fall below what your body adequately needs due to the hard training. Potassium deficiency coupled with hard training can often lead to some serious muscle cramping.
</br>
</br> -Benefits Maintain electrolyte balance Decrease risk of hypertension
</br>
</br> Juice Plus+: A whole food based nutritional supplement. including juice powder concentrates from 17 different fruits, vegetables and grains. Each ingredient is specially selected to provide a broad range of nutritional benefits. As a physique athlete it is easy to not get as many of the nutrients you need from fruits and vegetables; Juice Plus+ will take care of this completely.
</br>
</br> -Benefits: Juice Plus delivers key phytonutrients that are absorbed by the body Reduces markers of oxidative stress. Positively impacts several key indicators of cardiovascular wellness. -Benefits: Juice Plus delivers key phytonutrients that are absorbed by the body Reduces markers of oxidative stress. Positively impacts several key indicators of cardiovascular wellness. Helps support a healthy immune system and protect DNA.
</br>
</br> *You can take other supplements if you like, but try to stay away from anything that has added sugar in it. A lot of supplements contain sugar, and as someone looking to build a great body sugar is one of the number one enemies. The supplements above, along with the diet youll be following is all you really need to get the job done. Whats more, youll be keeping your pocket book fuller if you spend less on supplements and rely on food as the bulk of your daily intake.
</br>
</br> At this stage things have changed. Most of you will be going back and forth between this diet and a pre-contest or similar diet during different points of the year. Because of that, once your pre-contest or similar diet is over, simply return to this diet again. However, many of you will be better suited to ease back into it with some caution; let your body get used to eating excess calories again. Its healthier this way, will yield more positive gains then negative, and if nothing else, because steroid.com says so.
