Everyone’s dreamt of building muscles like Schwarzenegger’s, but few people have made it happen.
While a painstaking, disciplined exercise regime will help, eating the right food is vital.
All the squats and bench presses in the world won’t get you anywhere if you’re not eating the right nutrient-dense food to fuel muscle growth and repair.
Add these foods to your diet to help you pack on the muscle.
Egg Whites
With a protein to fat ratio of 60:1, there’s no mystery why almost all bodybuilders incorporate egg whites into their diets. Egg whites are unquestionably one of the purest natural forms of protein in the world.
This excellent muscle-building food also possesses a high biological value, which means that a large portion of the protein from egg whites is readily absorbed and utilized by the body for protein synthesis.
Egg whites contain very few carbohydrates, so if you’re on keto or are otherwise conscious of your carb intake, you consume egg whites with mineral concern.
Egg whites are also a great source of vitamins and minerals.
Chicken Breast
Lean meats such as chicken breasts are an excellent source of high-quality protein, and are also extremely low in saturated and trans fats, for those worried about their cholesterol.
Tuna
Although you should limit your consumption of saturated and trans fats, healthy fatty acids such as omega-3 are vital for the body and help support the muscle-building process. Cold water fish are an excellent source of both protein and healthy fats, with tuna coming out on top as the best source of protein.
Beans/Legumes
When people think about bodybuilding foods, they usually think of lean meats and the oh-so-delicious egg white shake. But any serious bodybuilder can’t ignore the power of beans and legumes as a delicious and concentrated source of both fiber and protein.
Fiber is essential to the digestive system and helps slow food so that their nutrients, like protein, can be absorbed by the digestives system.
Kidney beans are particularly incredible with nearly 14 grams of protein and fiber in every cup!
Red Meat
Red meat and lean ground beef are excellent mass-building foods rich in protein, iron, zinc and B vitamins. And for those looking to pack on size, red meats are high in calories, providing the energy required to fuel protein synthesis and power your workouts.
However, red meats are high in saturated fat, so should not be consumed on a daily basis.
Oats
You can’t build muscle with protein alone. You also need a good-source of slow-burning carbohydrates to fuel and sustain your muscles during and after your workouts.
When you exercise, muscle glycogen (carbs stored within your muscles) become your main source of fuel. As glycogen levels decrease, your body will begin to tap your muscles for a source of energy instead. Not a good thing!
Oats are full of slow burning carbs, so to spare your muscles and fuel you work, consume oats an hour before working out to give yourself a reliable source of slow burning carbs as fuel.
Water
Water is crucial for every single metabolic process, including protein synthesis. Think about it, over half of your body is made up of water, and your blood, that absorbs and transports nutrients throughout your body, is 92% water. This make drinking plenty of water the most important dietary requirement for any body builders that want results.
Water also keeps your skin looking good and muscles looking full, so drink plenty of water to keep yourself looking good, and to keep making gains.
