The art of bodybuilding
Date: 11-05-2007
Posted by: Anabolic Info TeamIndia |
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My recommendation is to follow the nutrition part of a muscle building programme and to choose a different exercise programme, but it includes cardio and some form of strength training, but not necessarily bodybuilding routines.
Bodybuilding requires a great deal of planning, diet and charting out the right kind of exercises. Here are tips that give you an insight into bodybuilding and stay fit in genera.
I am a 42-year-old female, 5'7 in height. I have never been considered fat, and my weight has always matched my height. I am working toward losing five kgs. I would like to get into shape. I have started going to dance aerobics two or three times a week. This also incorporates 45 minutes of cardio and 30 minutes of strength training. I have noticed however that whenever I do regular weight training programs, my lean arms start bulking up. However, this is not my aim. I want to lose fat by not adding muscle. Why is that I put on muscles so easily. Am I triggering off some masculine hormone?
A. It is usually very rare for women to experience "bulking up" due to the lower levels of testosterone hormone that females have compared to men. However, some women may have higher hormone levels, but also they may lean more towards what's called a "mesomorph" body type, which means you have the genetically-inherited body structure and physiology to gain muscle very easily.
From what you described, (easily reaching your goals in the past, a little bit "thick" in the muscle bellies, and gaining muscle easily), I'd say you are leaning towards mesomorph.
That's good news for you because it means you will most likely be able to get lean and stay leaner when you apply the right nutrition and training, because you have those "good muscle genetics", as compared to someone with an "endomoprh" body type.
It's only bad news if you find that you are gaining more muscle than you want (actually, a lot of us guys wish we had that problem!
Muscle is hard to build for most people).
The solution is, if you do not want to look like a bodybuilder, then simply don't train like one. However, you can still eat like one! Let me explain.
You can follow a good nutrition programme and select a training programme that is more suitable for you given your body type and your personal goals. Your choices are nearly limitless. bodybuilding training is very effective — it's exactly how I got my physique to look the way it does today — but the same may not apply to everybody.
In 24 years of working out and 17 years as a fitness professional, I have never found a better method of burning fat than the bodybuilding method of eating. It just plain works!
These "body-builder" nutrition eating guidelines include:
*For fat loss, set calorie intake at a conservative deficit — approximately 20 per cent (very low calorie diets cause metabolic slowdown — you cant starve yourself, you have to burn fat and feed your muscles)
* Zig zag or cycle calories.
* Five to six small meals a day, each spaced approximately three hours apart (helps increase metabolic rate, stablize blood sugar/insulin and maximize retention and or growth of lean tissue)
*Consume a lean protein food like chicken, fish or egg whites with every meal (increase thermic effect of food and positive nitrogen balance).
*Eat natural sources of starchy carbohydrates and grains with every meal (oatmeal, yams, brown rice, 100% whole grains, etc).
*Avoid the refined sugars and refined grains/carbs as much as possible
*Eat generous amounts of fruits and vegetables
*40-40-20 ratios of protein carbs fat and adjust as necessary according to body/metabolic type.
*Keep fats low, but include essential fats such as fish, nuts or flax.
*Avoid alcohol or keep to bare minimum (list of negative effects too long to include here)
*Drink plenty of water.
Although there is a lot more detail to it, this is “bodybuilding-style” nutrition in a nutshell and it is incredibly effective for improving your body composition.
It all seems pretty simple. The only part that is a little counter-intuitive for most people is the part about eating every three hours, because most people are so used to starvation diets — well, they don't work.
My recommendation is to follow the nutrition part of a muscle building programme and to choose a different exercise programme, but it includes cardio and some form of strength training, but not necessarily bodybuilding routines.
Your options for your exercise and training are nearly endless. You mentioned aerobic classes that had a strength component — that might be the perfect thing to stay with. And if you are a runner, then by all means run as part your cardio component.
You will find that “body-building” style nutrition is not just for bodybuilders — it is for anyone who wants to get lean.
Follow the nutrition part of the programme and find the workout programme that you enjoy, which suits your body type and you will be very pleased with the results.
