The Essential Guide to Building Muscle

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The Essential Guide to Building Muscle

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DISCLAIMER The material contained within this book is provided for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. It should not be used to diagnose or treat any illness, metabolic disorder, disease or health problem. As with all programmes, techniques and materials related to health, exercise and diet, you must first consult your doctor or health care provider before implementing changes into your lifestyle. If you chose not to obtain a doctor’s approval prior to beginning this or any diet and exercise plan, you do so at your own risk. The information offered within this book is intended for adults, aged 18 and over, who are in good health. Even if you have no known health problems, it is advisable to consult your doctor before beginning an exercise and nutrition programme. Sporting Excellence Ltd makes no representation or warranties of any kind with regard to the completeness, accuracy or safety of the contents of this book. Sporting Excellence Ltd accept no liability of any kind for losses or damages caused or alleged to be caused directly, or indirectly, from using the information contained herein. Published by Sporting Excellence Ltd 13 Scarisbrick New Road Southport Merseyside PR8 6PU England. Copyright © Phil Davies and Sporting Excellence Ltd. All rights reserved. Neither this book, nor any parts within it may be sold or reproduced in any form without prior permission. Layout and typesetting by Neil G. Tarvin Cover design by Ovi Dagar Interior images courtesy of istockphoto.com Editing by Phil Davies BSc., CSCS, CPT

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TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION Paralysis By Analysis What’s With All The Numbers In [Brackets]? 3 Steps To Success STEP 1 – WHAT’S YOUR GOAL? Be SMART Reasons STEP 2 – CREATE YOUR MUSCLE BUILDING EATING PLAN The First Rule of Weight Loss Your Metabolic Rate How To Gain Weight The Balance of Good Health Gaining Muscle & Losing Fat How Many Calories Measuring Progress & Making Adjustments 6 Simple Rules for An Effective Nutrition Plan Sample Meal Plans Supplements STEP 3 – CREATE YOUR MUSCLE BUILDING EXERCISE PLAN Resistance Training Resistance Training Guidelines Summary of Guidelines Sample Plans Recovery Weeks Cardiovascular Exercise Aerobic Vs Interval Training Cardiovascular Training Guidelines SUMMARY REFERENCES FOR STEP 2 REFERENCES FOR STEP 3

4 4 5 6 7 7 9 10 10 10 11 13 14 15 16 16 30 31 36 36 37 42 43 46 47 47 48 51 52 60

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INTRODUCTION This guide is designed to help you build muscle mass. Maybe you simply want to gain overall weight or perhaps you want to improve your physique by developing more muscle while keeping body fat levels to a minimum. Either way this guide will show you how. It’s designed with the 80-20 principle in mind – the scientifically proven techniques and strategies that will make 80% or more of the difference. Fitness and nutrition is often overly complicated and while it’s important to establish a few “rules”, too many can put the brakes on your progress before you even start.

Paralysis By Analysis When it comes to building muscle, you’ll find no shortage of advice and fervent opinion. Whether it’s in the paper pages of health & fitness magazines or the digital pages of the World Wide Web, diet and training recommendations aren’t hard to come by. Of course lack of information isn’t the problem. The problem is too much information and no way to verify what is fact and what is fiction. Here is just a small selection of claims you may have come across previously (we’ll examine throughout this guide which ones, if any, have some truth to them): • • • • • • •

You must eat a lot of protein to gain significant amounts of muscle Lifting moderately heavy weights (sets of 8-12 repetitions) is the best way to induce muscular hypertrophy You must eat every 2-3 hours to prevent your body from feeding on existing muscle, curbing your ability to build new muscle It’s possible to increase your testosterone levels naturally, without the use of anabolic steroids It is essential you take a post-workout supplement or meal within 20-30 minutes of your weight training session Creatine is the only supplement guaranteed to enhance muscle growth The human body can only digest a small amount of protein in one sitting so must eat a small amount of protein with every meal

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The Essential Guide to Building Muscle • •

Cardiovascular exercise hinders your ability to gain new muscle mass and breaks down existing muscle By eating a really “clean” diet you can gain muscle and lose fat at the same time

If you do finally manage to rationalize all the conflicting advice and marketing hype and find a suitable diet and training programme, it won’t be long before somebody offers up a very convincing argument as to why you are doing it all wrong! Nothing will kill your success like a lack of consistency, and nothing will kill your consistency like confusion and doubt over what you are doing. Fortunately, there is a way to selectively sift through the vast quantities of anecdotal stories, subjective opinion and persuasive advertising and arrive at what you can feel confident, are the facts. The solution is to use reliable scientific research… Science certainly doesn’t have all the answers. But when it comes to nutrition, exercise and building muscle, there are some tried and tested principles (most of which have remained steadfast for many years) that will enable you to achieve and maintain the physique you desire.

What’s With All The Number in [Brackets]? You’ll notice that there a quite a few references throughout this guide depicted by a number in square brackets like this [0]. One of the big criticisms of a lot of health & fitness literature is that it often makes controversial, broad sweeping claims without backing those claims up. There is no way for the reader to know whether it’s just the author’s opinion and how well educated that opinion is. You can have confidence that the recommendations in this guide are not just the opinion of one individual. They are based on sound science and they will give you the greatest returns for your efforts!

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3 Steps to Success This guide has been broken down into three key steps. It’s best to read these steps in order as each one builds on the next. Step 1 is perhaps the most important and unfortunately the most overlooked. It will help you set a target, an overall goal, for both your physical appearance and your health. Even more crucially, it will help you devise a powerful set of reasons that will keep you on track from start to finish. Please don’t skip this section. In Step 2 you will discover how to create and follow a healthy, muscle-building eating plan. It covers six key principles to help make integrating it into your lifestyle much easier. There is no reliance on calorie counting, point scoring or food weighing, but you will know what and when to eat in order to build muscle. Step 3 shows you how to develop an effective, scientifically based weight training programme. It also dispels some common myths surrounding various types of weight training routines and how you can easily fit a programme around your other commitments. Follow these 3 steps and you will gain a sizeable amount of lean muscle mass. You will also improve your health, your overall physical appearance and your self-confidence. Just as importantly, you will give yourself the greatest chance of maintaining your new physique for many years to come.

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STEP 1 – WHAT’S YOUR GOAL? Being clear about what you want to achieve, and why, is an essential first step in any effective plan of change. Unfortunately, it’s one that is often overlooked or dismissed. Remember, that gaining weight and muscle isn’t just about what to eat and how to train, it’s also about getting yourself to apply what you know consistently. Self-discipline and will power will only take you so far. In order to overcome any potential pitfalls, temptations and ingrained bad habits, you need a clear goal to keep you focused and a powerful set of reasons to keep you on track. Before you can set a suitable goal, it’s important to know what is realistic and achievable. A realistic weight gain is 1-2lbs per week with a proportion of that inevitably coming from fat. You probably already know that weight can be gained quite quickly by gorging on high-calorie, high-fat fast foods. However, as you’ll discover later you want to limit the amount of fat you gain in favour of muscle and you also probably want to improve or maintain your overall health.

Be SMART One of the best ways to create your overall goal is to use the acronym SMART. Goals that are SMART are: Specific General goals such as “I want to gain some weight” are less effective and motivating than “I will gain lean muscle, reduce my level of body fat and improve my energy levels”. It’s a good idea to make part of your goal about successfully following your plan. Measurable You should be able to measure your goal. So rather than saying “I want to gain weight” a better goal is “I want to gain 7lbs of lean muscle”. Attainable You want to find a balance between what is realistic and what is inspiring. A realistic gain in bodyweight is 1-2lbs per week. Assume that about half of this will be in the form of lean mass.

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The Essential Guide to Building Muscle Relevant Your goal should be meaningful to you. It should be about you and rely only on you. If you feel happy at the weight you are for example, but would like to tone and re-shape your body, then create a goal around that. Your goal should not rely on other people or outside influences to be successful, for example “I will gain more weight than my mate John over the next 8 weeks”. Time-Sensitive Give yourself a date by which time you will have achieved your goal. E.g. “I will gain 7lbs by February 28th”. A good time frame is 8 to 12 weeks as this is long enough to see measurable changes but no so long it becomes daunting. You may have heard the phrase “diets don’t work, it has to be a way of life”. That’s true but many people interpret that to mean “start eating right today and maintain it for the rest of your life”. That can be pretty demoralising and with that mindset it’s very easy to give up at the first hurdle. You justify to yourself that you can’t keep things up indefinitely so you might as well quit now. But compare this to someone who decides to train for a marathon. They have an end-goal in mind – the race date. If training gets tough one day or if they skip a session, they can muster the will power to carry on because they know it’s not forever. That’s why most people who make the decision to run a marathon usually achieve their goal despite it being so difficult. So take it one step at a time. In other words, make a commitment to see your plan through to the end no matter what. Remind yourself that you have the right to quit after the end date but, just like a marathon runner, you want that sense of accomplishment to look back on for many years to come. Only when you reach your goal, should you decide what to do next. And because by then the right food choices will be more habitual and because you will be experiencing first hand the satisfaction of changing your physique, you will be much more inclined and motivated to keep going. You can then set a new goal and then another and another, until suddenly you realise that it has become “a way of life”. Here are some examples of SMART goals.

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The Essential Guide to Building Muscle “By September 7th, I gained 10lbs of lean muscle, lost 10lbs of body fat, decreased my waist size by1 inch and improved my overall shape by following my eating and exercise plan consistently” “Starting January 1st, I will begin my highly effective 8-week weight gain plan and I will gain over 7lbs of body weight in less than 12 weeks” “Over the next 6 months I will follow a thoroughly enjoyable training and nutrition plan. By July 1st I will gain over a stone, whilst keeping my body fat levels in single figures.”

Reasons No matter how much you plan ahead, inevitably there will be days and moments when don’t feel like sticking to your plan. So once you’ve created a SMART goal the next step is to create a set of compelling reasons that are moving and motivating and that really mean something to you. You should come up with both ‘carrot’ and ‘stick’ reasons. In other words, think of the pleasurable consequences of achieving your goal as well as the negative ones if you don’t. When it comes to building muscle, your motivations might seem a bit vain, but keep them to yourself and don’t be afraid to acknowledge them. To help you create your list, here are some sample reasons: Positive Reasons • I will be a great role model for my kids • My clothes will fit me better and I’ll great in smaller fitting shirts and tshorts. I’ll have to buy myself a new wardrobe! • I will feel more confident and self-assured • I will look and feel younger and more attractive and I’ll get more attention • I will be more influential in my place of work • I will have more energy to do more things, learn new skills, travel more often • If I achieve this it will inspire me to set bigger and better goals in other areas of my life • I’ll turn heads on the beach this summer! • I can inspire other people to do the same

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STEP 2 – CREATE YOUR MUSCLE BUILDING EATING PLAN Before we look at what types of foods and what kind of nutrition plan will help you build muscle, we need to review a few basic biological laws. This will help you to understand why following certain diet and exercise principles will give you the greatest chance of long-term success.

The First Rule of Weight Gain The laws of energy conservation say there is one, and only one, way to gain weight:

Consume more energy than you expend Or put another way: eat a greater amount of food calories than the calories your body requires during day-to-day life. With the help of a suitable weight training plan, the aim is to convert as much of those surplus calories into muscle as possible. On the surface, this rule looks like a fairly straightforward one to follow. However, simply stuffing yourself with junk food will not only produce lacklustre results, it will lead to excessive amount of body fat – not to mention the negative affect on your overall health.

Your Metabolic Rate Our bodies need energy for everything, from carrying out basic bodily functions to lifting heavy weights. The energy we need during complete rest just to stay alive on a daily basis is known as our resting metabolic rate [1]. Several factors affect our resting metabolic rates: • • •

Body composition: the more fat free mass (such as muscle) a person has, the higher their resting metabolism will be Gender: men typically have higher resting metabolisms than women due to more fat free mass Age: resting metabolism usually decreases with age due to a decrease in fat free mass

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The Essential Guide to Building Muscle • • • •

Surface area and mass: the bigger you are, the more of you there is to keep alive and warm so the higher your metabolism will be Body temperature: an increase in temperature increases resting metabolism Stress: increases resting metabolism Hormones: the amount of certain hormones secreted from the thyroid and adrenal glands can increase or decrease resting metabolic rate

Under normal conditions, resting metabolic rate accounts for 60-75% of our total energy needs each day [2]. The rest of our energy needs come from our daily activities (from fidgeting to intense exercise) and also the energy needed to digest, transport and assimilate our food (called the thermic effect of food).

How To Gain Weight Research from the USA shows that on average a typical person gains about 1.5lbs of fat per year [1]. There are roughly 3500kcal in 1 pound of fat. So that equates to an imbalance of about 5250kcal per year for a typical person (i.e. they consume 5250kcal more than they need). Think about that for a moment. That’s an imbalance of less than 15kcal per day… or the equivalent of one potato chip! Even if they tried, nobody could control their energy intake and energy output to that degree of accuracy. What does this mean? 11

The Essential Guide to Building Muscle The human body is clever. If you consume a few more calories than it needs, your body can increase its resting metabolic rate, increase the amount of energy needed to digest food and increase the amount of calories you burn during activity. In other words, it can raise its daily energy needs in an attempt to defend its current weight [1,2]. Assuming your weight is fairly stable right now, making only small changes to your diet alone, consuming just a few extra calories, probably won’t show up on the scales. The good news is however, that the body cannot fully compensate for significant changes to energy intake. That means that if you increase your daily energy intake by a suitable amount (i.e.500 calories a day), you will start to gain weight despite your body’s best attempts.

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The Essential Guide to Building Muscle In theory, you could keep your energy intake exactly the same and reduce your energy expenditure instead. But for the vast majority of people it isn’t feasible to spend much of their time resting or taking things easy. It’s also not conducive to keeping body fat levels low in order for the new muscle you build to show through. The rest of this section shows you how to increase your daily energy intake and muscle mass through an effective nutrition plan. Of course a good nutrition plan should not only be effective for building muscle, it should also be balanced and healthy…

The Balance of Good Health There’s an old adage that says we are what we eat. While your main goal is to gain weight and muscle, eating large quantities of junk food is not a good idea. Your diet doesn’t just affect your weight – it also affects your health and risk from various degenerative illnesses. The National Foods Standard Agency [3] has devised a simple way to eat a balanced and varied diet. It’s called The Eatwell Plate and consists of five food groups on a plate. The plate is divided into different sized sections depending on how much of a food group should be eaten:

According to Eatwell Plate, about one third of your diet should come from fruits and vegetables. One third should be in the form of unrefined carbohydrates (such as bread, pasta, rice and potato), the remaining third is made up of fish, meat, dairy products and a small amount of sugary and fatty foods.

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Whilst we will use the Eatwell Plate as our starting point, there is evidence to suggest that a few changes to this can help to increase muscle gain. We’ll cover these changes a little later in this section.

Gaining Muscle & Losing Fat What if want to lose body fat (or keep your body fat levels low) and at the same time build a significant amount of muscle? You already know that to gain muscle you must have a calorie surplus. In order to lose body fat, the opposite is true - you must have a calorie deficit. This is why it’s difficult to both gain muscle and lose fat simultaneously. Of course, there are exceptions to this rule. For someone who is significantly overweight, even on a calorie-restricted diet, it’s possible for them to build some muscle as they lower their body fat stores. But for anyone who is reasonably lean to begin with, insisting on avoiding even a small increase in body fat is a sure-fire way to make little or no progress. If Your Priority Is To Build Muscle… Aim for a calorie surplus. You will inevitably gain some body fat, but this can be kept to a minimum using the guidelines in the rest of this section. When you are happy with the amount of muscle and weight you have gained, you can follow the guidelines in the Essential Guide to Fat Loss. This is designed to help you lose fat whilst preserving the muscle you have. The net result is that after following both programmes you will look both muscular and lean! If Your Priority Is To Lose Fat… Aim for a calorie deficit. Start by following the guidelines in the Essential Guide to Fat Loss and when you are happy with your body fat levels come back to this guide and use it to build some muscle. Alternating programmes this way will help you to reach your goals much more quickly. If you do lose a small amount of the muscle on the fat loss programme, it’s easier and takes less time to build it back up again [4].

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How Many Calories? We’ve all heard of calorie counting and you may have first hand experience of it from one time or another. From a weight gain point of view, its purpose is to measure the amount of food we eat – not the quantity but the energy within our diet – to ensure our energy input is above (but not by too much) our energy output. The problem is that calorie counting is not an exact science and can also be quite tedious. Even when weighing food, it’s difficult to measure energy intake precisely and we can only take a best guess at what our daily energy requirements are. There are a number of formulas designed to estimate your energy requirements. They range in complexity but all are best guesses and many of these formulas underestimate the resting metabolic rate of athletes, or anyone who exercises regularly [5]. A much more reliable and accurate approach is to adjust your caloric intake based on your weight – if you don’t notice a change on the scales you up your intake until you do. To do this however, you need a starting point. Here are two options: Option 1 If you’re weight is steady at the moment, add about 500 calories a day to your diet. The easiest way to do this is to add an extra (small) meal to your diet and/or to increase the portion sizes of your existing meals. Option 2 Start with a calorie intake of 15-25 calories per pound of bodyweight, which has been shown to lead to a suitable rate of lean weight gain [6,32]. For example, someone weighing 11 stone (154lbs) would aim for a calorie intake of about 2300kcal to 3800kcal. As you can see there is a big difference between those two intakes. Start at the lower end of this scale (15-20 calories per pound) if you have moderate to high levels of body fat. If you’re naturally very lean and light, you should aim for the upper end of this scale (20-25 calories per pound).

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The Essential Guide to Building Muscle Option 2 requires some degree of calorie counting. However, this doesn’t have to be indefinite – just until you get a feel for what food intake allows you to gain weight. Keep a food diary for a few weeks (use approximate portion sizes, there’s no need to weigh food) and use a free tool like Fit Day to gauge your calorie intake. Measuring Progress & Making Adjustments You should aim to gain 1-2 pounds of bodyweight each week, some of which will be a bit of extra body fat. Any more than this will likely mean that you are gaining too much body fat. Bear in mind that 1-2 pounds is difficult to track accurately on the scales because other factors, such as time of day and hydration levels, can all significantly affect the reading. Try to make sure you weigh yourself at the same time of day, ideally first thing in the morning before eating or drinking and on the same flat surface. If you find you haven’t gained any weight, increase your calorie intake by 250500Kcal per day and re-test a week or two later. Once you’ve found a food intake that adds to your weight, maintain this for 8-12 weeks before switching to a fat loss programme. Be aware that as you do gain weight, the rate will slow down and you may need to up your energy intake further to reach your target. Caloric intake is not the only important element of an effective, balanced diet. Below you’ll find a series of straightforward principles that will help to make your nutrition plan easier and more intuitive to follow…

6 Simple ‘Rules’ For an Effective Nutrition Plan Rule #1 – Choose A Meal Frequency That Allows You To Eat The Most The number one principle for gaining any form of weight is to consume enough calories. If you’ve never tried it before it might sound easy to eat lots of food as and when you want. But eat too much in one sitting and it can leave you feeling full and sick for the rest of the day. The result is that you eat less energy overall. Eating little and often (or grazing as its known) may help to increase your overall energy intake. By the same token, you may find it easier to consume

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The Essential Guide to Building Muscle more by eating 3 large meals a day with not much in between. Even though calorie counting isn’t essential, it may be worth keeping a food diary for a few days on each format to see which helps you to consume the most calories. Some fitness professionals, and especially bodybuilders, state that you must eat every 2-3 hours. They claim that going any longer without food causes your body to enter state of “starvation” wherein it begins to break down muscle tissue to use as energy. There is no reliable research to show that this is the case or indeed that the body’s metabolism changes to such as extent during the day. In fact, studies that have looked at meal frequency and its effect on metabolic rate typically conclude that eating few versus many meals each day makes little or no difference. From a common sense point of view, it can take several hours (3-5) to fully process even a small meal. So why would the body begin to breakdown muscle to avoid starvation after 3 hours of not eating when nutrients are still available from the previous meal? Practical Guidelines Consume the number of meals that allows you to eat the most. For most people, eating 5 or 6 times a day (either 5 or 6 small meals or 3 meals and 23 snacks) allows them to consume more calories than eating 2 or 3 very large meals. But there is nothing special about eating every 2-3 hours.

Rule #2 – Mix High & Low Energy Density Foods It’s not the amount, or the weight, of food that you eat that is important when trying to gain weight, it’s the energy contained within that food. So it would make sense then, to eat foods that contain a lot of energy, or calories, but that don’t leave you feeling full for long. Foods that contain a relatively high number of calories per gram of their weight are referred to as high energy density foods. As you might guess, the highest energy-dense foods contain a lot of fat or sugar (such as pizza and ice cream) and are typically items that we are told to avoid. But there are also healthier, more nutritious options and it’s these foods that you should aim to make a part of your diet.

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Because low energy density foods are usually the most rich in those essential vitamins and minerals, don’t avoid them out of fear they will leave you feeling full without adding many calories to your diet. The best approach is to mix low energy density foods with healthier high energy density foods. It’s easy to work out the energy density from any food label – simply divide the number of calories by the weight. A 100-calorie serving (100Kcal) weighing 100 grams has an energy density of 1 for example. •

Very Low Energy Density = 0.5 or less Examples include fresh fruits and vegetables

•

Low Energy Density = 0.6 –1.5 Examples include starchy foods like rice and pasta, especially wholemeal.

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Medium Energy Density = 1.6 – 4.0 Examples include dried fruit, bread and many fat-free snacks.

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High Energy Density = 4.1 and above Examples include high fat and high sugar foods like pizzas and confectionary. Healthier options include “good” fats found in avocados, nuts and olive oil Liquid meals, such as smoothies and shakes, may be low to moderate in energy density but they won’t leave you feeling as full compared to solid equivalents [19].

With each meal and snack, try to include some moderate to high energy density foods. This will help to increase the calorie content of your diet without curbing your appetite too much. Here are some practical examples for increasing the energy density of your diet: •

Alternate white and wholemeal versions of pasta, breads and cereals. Although wholemeal foods have been shown to keep you fuller for longer [18] they add essential fibre to your diet so shouldn’t be neglected altogether. For example, if you have wholemeal toast or cereal for breakfast, have white pasta or bread for lunch.

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Snack on raw nuts and dried fruit, which are both high in calories.

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The Essential Guide to Building Muscle •

Consider replacing one or two meals / snacks with a liquid smoothie or shake. Compared to liquid meals of similar energy content, solid meals tend to suppress appetite to a greater extent [19]. In other words, you’ll feel hungrier and sooner following a 500-calorie smoothie compared to a 500-calorie solid snack.

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Add plenty of healthy fats to meals. Examples include olive oil stirred into stews and sauces, flax seed oil or Udo’s Oil Blend added to shakes and salads, or slices of avocado as a side to any meal.

•

Avoid soup before main meals. It can significantly reduce your appetite and the amount you want to eat [20]. Despite anecdotal claims, drinking water before or during a meal doesn’t seem to effect calorie consumption [21] and as we’ll see later, water intake is important.

With these simple changes you can still eat healthily but significantly increase your energy intake at the same time. There’s no need to avoid fast food and desserts altogether either. You can be less strict than someone on a fat loss programme but eating too much junk food can quickly lead to an excessive amount of fat gain, hiding the muscle you are working hard to build!

Rule #3 – Eat Enough Protein Nothing stirs debate in the fitness and nutrition industry like protein intake. Bodybuilders and strength athletes in particular, are usually adamant that large amounts of dietary protein is required to build significant muscle mass. Most Registered Dieticians tend to disagree, stating that only a small amount of extra protein is necessary if at all, and that excessive protein consumption could have long-term health implications. As it stands, the official daily recommended intake of protein for adults is 0.8 grams per kilogram of bodyweight [22]. For a 70kg (11 stone) adult that equates to 56 grams of protein – an amount easily obtained by most people in developed countries. Bodybuilders on the other hand often consume upwards of 2 grams per kilogram with 4 grams per kilogram not uncommon. There is a growing body of research to show that a moderate to high protein intake (relative to the official recommended daily intake) can prevent the loss of muscle tissue during a weight loss programme [23-25]. But does that mean

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The Essential Guide to Building Muscle that a protein intake over and above the RDA is also superior for building muscle mass? Dietary Protein & Muscle Growth Some support for an increased protein intake comes from the work of Lemon and Tarnopolsky [26-28]. Dr. Peter Lemon, who is often cited by protein supplement makers, recommends that strength-training athletes require up to 1.7 grams or protein per kilogram with endurance athletes needing around 1.2-1.6 grams per kilogram [29]. However, there are limitations with these studies. The researchers didn’t actually measure changes in muscle growth – just indirect markers that suggest muscle growth could be more likely. Critics of higher protein consumption point to evidence that exercise, and in particular resistance training, improves the body’s ability use protein more fficiently [30,31]. The net result is that, in beginner weight trainers at least, protein needs can actually reduce. But our protein need is simply the amount we require to prevent deficiency and isn’t particularly informative about what amount is optimal for muscle growth. More relevant research has looked at actual changes in body composition with different protein intakes, alongside a weight-training programme. A number of studies have found that intakes of around 3 grams of protein per kilogram lead to significantly greater gains in lean body mass compared with 1.2-1.7 grams per kilogram [33-35] but not all studies agree that there are any benefits over and above the 1.7g/kg mark [32]. Protein Intake Per Meal There has also been a lot of speculation that the body, regardless of size, age and activity level, can only digest and utilize a limited amount of protein in one meal - about 20-30grams. It’s not difficult to eat more than this in one sitting with a medium to large chicken breast containing 45grams of protein or more. Contrary to this popular belief, there is evidence to suggest that the body can digest larger amounts of protein at a time. Studies have shown that as much as 56grams of protein eaten in one go can be effectively assimilated [44, 45]. Protein Intake And Safety Nutritionists opposed to higher protein intakes often speculate that too much protein could increase the risk of kidney damage or heart disease. 20


In terms of renal function (the function of the kidneys), there is no hard evidence to show that higher intakes of protein are dangerous, only theoretical reasons as why it might be harmful over the long-term [36]. Several studies monitoring increased protein intakes have found no adverse effects on renal function [36,37], even when protein intake is as high as 2.8grams per kilogram (1.27grams per pound) [38]. It’s important to note that there is some evidence to suggest high and even moderate protein intakes can accelerate the decline in people with existing kidney damage. So ff you suffer from even mild kidney dysfunction, you should consult your doctor before following a higher protein diet. As for heart disease, again there is a lack of evidence and only theories, to support the idea that higher protein intakes increase the risk. In fact, there is a body of research to suggest that replacing some carbohydrates in favour of protein may actually reduce the risk of heart disease [41-43]. Some researchers believe that our early ancestors ate much larger amounts of protein than we do today [39]. Studying modern day hunter-gathers, who live as our ancestors did, protein intakes could have been as high as 3.6g per kilogram (1.7g per pound) [40]. Bear in mind however, that hunter-gatherers were very active and ate wild animals, whose meat contained different types and amounts of fat compared to farm raised animals. Practical Guidelines Firstly, despite what many dieticians claim, there is research to show that an increased protein intake outperforms current recommendations. Based on the studies above, something in the region of 1.7 to 3grams per kilogram of body weight (0.77 – 1.4grams per pound) seems optimal, with levels at the upper end of the scale sometimes outperforming those at the lower end. A common and easy-to-remember guideline is to aim for 1gram of protein per pound of bodyweight (the equivalent of 2.2grams per kilogram). This falls within the maximum recommendation based how quickly the body can excrete excess protein [49].

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The Essential Guide to Building Muscle With all this talk of amounts of protein per pound of bodyweight, you might be thinking how you can apply this practically in your day-to-day life. Here are some tips: •

Eat a palm-sized portion of protein with each main meal. Opt for protein sources with a high biological value (which means it contains all nine essential amino acids that the body cannot produce on its own). Animal protein, such as fish, poultry and dairy, is typically high in biological value, whereas plant protein found in grains, pulses and vegetables are usually lower in biological value. Each portion should be roughly the size of your palm or clenched fist.

•

Try to eat some protein with each snack too. Snack ideas include nuts such as almonds, cashews, peanuts etc., (go for uncooked and unsalted and not dry roasted) with raisins or low-fat yoghurt with fresh fruit. You can also readily buy high protein, low fat snack bars and shakes, and while these can be expensive they have their place if used now and then for convenience.

•

Consider keeping a food diary for a week or so. Enter the protein foods you eat, and approximate portion sizes into a free nutrition calculator such as Nutrition Data or Fit Day to work out your average protein consumption each day. If it works out at less than 1g per pound of bodyweight, adjust your portion sizes or consider taking a protein drink with snacks or before meals.

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If you opt for a protein supplement, consider whey protein, which has a very high biological value and may outperform vegetarian alternatives, such as soy protein, when it comes to building muscle [33] (see the supplement section later on).

•

Don’t go over board. More is not necessarily better and while there is no evidence that higher protein intakes are dangerous, no long-term studies have been completed. A sensible approach is to start at the lower end of the scale (1.7g/kg or 0.8g/lb) and based on results, increase to a maximum of 2.2g/kg (1.0g/lb).

Rule #4 – Have A Pre Or Post Workout Snack It’s almost a universally accepted doctrine in the fitness and bodybuilding world: that a post-workout meal or snack is essential if you want to maximise your ability to build muscle. Additionally, it’s been said that this post-workout

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The Essential Guide to Building Muscle meal must contain some protein, carbohydrate and little or no fat and must be consumed within 20-30 minutes of the workout. But is it really that essential to consume something straight after your session or can you wait a few hours until your next meal? And what about eating something before or during your session? Proponents of post-workout snacks and shakes point to research that shows protein synthesis improves when something is consumed immediately after the workout compared to waiting several hours [46-48]. There’s also some research to show that nutrients consumed before or during a workout can have a similar effect [16-19,20,21]. But improved protein synthesis is only an indication that more muscle will be built as a result and not a guarantee. Protein Consuming some protein following a weight training session has been shown to help prevent muscle loss when on a calorie restricted diet [24,52,53]. Not only that, when compared to a carbohydrate only post-exercise supplement, a protein plus carbohydrate supplement comes out on top. Again, more indirect studies show that protein consumption after strenuous exercise can help to tip the balance in favour of protein synthesis (which, in theory could lead to muscle gain) [55-57]. In studies tracking changes in body composition, a protein supplement given before and after a resistance training session lead to greater increases in muscle mass compared to a carbohydrate supplement [23,25]. You may have heard of two classes of proteins called fast and slow proteins. Fast proteins (such as whey powder) are those that are rapidly digested and absorbed by the body, while slow proteins (such as the protein in milk) taker longer to digest and assimilate. Not surprisingly, popular consensus is that fast proteins are best for postworkout nourishment because they can be broken down and delivered to fatigued muscles more rapidly. However, there’s no reliable evidence to show that one type of protein is favourable over another and if anything studies favour slower proteins [58-60].

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The Essential Guide to Building Muscle Carbohydrate Research with athletes shows that early post-exercise ingestion of carbohydrate is important for quickly replenishing the body’s glycogen stores [61,62]. Glycogen is an essential fuel for any type of exercise and keeping levels high will help an athlete to recover between sessions and complete more training in total [63]. Your body may be able to replenish its muscle glycogen stores twice as quickly if a high-carbohydrate recovery drink or snack is taken immediately after exercise compared to waiting a few hours [64]. In fact, without early post-exercise carbohydrate consumption, it can take 2-3 days for muscle glycogen levels to return to normal [65]. But this is more applicable to athletes who are training strenuously for several hours everyday rather than someone who is lifting weights 3-4 times a week. Research Limitations Many of the studies examining pre and post-workout nutrition fail to take the rest of the day’s diet into account. This is a problem when you consider that a moderate sized meal can be releasing nutrients 4-5 hours after it was eaten. From a common sense point of view, it’s unlikely that your body will begin to break down existing muscle if it isn’t fed within half an hour of your training session. It takes several hours to process even a small meal, so unless you train first thing on an empty stomach, you’re likely to still have food and nutrients in your digestive system from your previous meal. Practical Guidelines Unlike what many supplement companies would have you believe, the benefits of post-workout nutrition are still unclear. In theory, consuming something before, during or after your weights session may help to accelerate gains in muscle mass, but if you eat several regular meals throughout the day, it becomes less important. Pre and post workout drinks or snacks certainly won’t do your cause any harm and may be worth taking just to boost your overall calorie consumption, but it’s also not worth stressing over precisely what and when to eat either side of your training sessions. With that in mind here’s some practical guidelines for pre, post and intraworkout eating: •

Aim to eat something within 3 hours after your workout. Ideally, these meals or snacks should consist of some protein and carbohydrate. 24

The Essential Guide to Building Muscle You may want to take a post-workout snack to the gym to eat immediately after training, or you can wait until your next meal. There is no need to become fanatical about eating within a 20-30 minute window. •

If you workout first thing in the morning on an empty stomach or after not eating all day, pre and post-workout nutrition becomes more important. If this is the case, have a small snack an hour or so before your session or take something for during your session. If you don’t want to consume anything before or during your workout, then take a snack to the gym to eat immediately afterwards.

•

If you do opt for a post-workout meal or snack, don’t worry about what type of protein (fast or slow) you consume after training. A fast protein, such as whey, is ideal for a pre-workout or an intra-workout drink because it digests more rapidly.

•

Carbohydrate taken immediately after a strenuous training session can help to quickly replenish your glycogen stores. But this is more important for athletes who are training daily and cannot afford to wait a day or two before glycogen stores return to normal levels. From a general muscle-building point of view, there is no urgency to consume carbohydrates immediately after your workout.

Here are some sample pre and post workout snack ideas: Pre Workout (About 1 Hour Before) o 1 scoop (20-25g) whey protein o 1 scoop whey protein powder and a banana During Workout o 1 scoop whey protein powder mixed with 2 scoops (40-50g) of dextrose or maltodextrin powder (both available from health food stores and bulk supplement companies online). o 1 scoop whey protein powder mixed with fruit juice or squash and water o Banana o Sports drink such as Lucozade Sport or (or make your own by mixing 200400ml of squash with 1 litre of water) Post Workout o Chicken / tuna sandwich o 2 pieces of fruit and 150g pot of yoghurt

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The Essential Guide to Building Muscle o Meal replacement shake such as EAS Myoplex or Met-Rx plus piece of fruit o Home made meal replacement shake - blend ½ - ¾ pint semi-skimmed milk with 50g ultra fine porridge oats, a banana or any soft fruit and honey to sweeten.

Rule #5 – Reduce Bad Fats, Increase Good Fats Despite the widespread awareness of the dangers of too much dietary fat, there is still much confusion surrounding the topic. Not all fat is bad. We need it for insulation and protection of vital organs such as the heart, lungs and liver and to transport vitamins throughout the body. What’s more, there is evidence to suggest that a suitable fat intake can increase testosterone levels – which can help increase strength and muscle gain from weight training [50,51]. Let’s take a look at some practical ways to limit the bad fats and increase the good ones… Saturated Fats Saturated fats are found in foods such as red meat, egg yolks, cheese, butter, milk and commercially prepared cakes, pies and cookies. Generally considered to be a major contributor towards coronary heart disease, no more than 10% of the diet should come from saturated fats – much less than a typical western diet. When is a particular food considered high or low in saturated fat? High: more than 5g saturates per 100g Low: 1.5g saturates or less per 100g Reduce saturated fat in your diet by: • •

• •

Cutting the fat off meat and removing the skin from chicken Eating leaner proteins such as poultry, fish and lean beef and avoiding pork, duck, standard burgers and sausages etc. (low fat versions made from good quality meat are acceptable). Boiling, grilling, steaming and baking rather than frying and roasting. Using low fat spreads and dressings on sandwiches and salads.

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The Essential Guide to Building Muscle •

Opting for low fat dairy products such as semi-skimmed or skimmed milk and low fat cheeses. Using yoghurt or fromage frais instead of cream or sour cream.

•

You don’t have to eliminate saturated fat from your diet and in fact, it can make the diet more palatable and help you to increase your caloric intake without adding bulk. Trans Fats Manufactured trans fats are another form of ‘bad’ fat that are generally accepted to be more harmful than saturated fat. Naturally occurring trans fats are found in meat and some dairy products but they are artificially formed when liquid vegetable oils are turned into solid fats through a process called hydrogenation. Laws in the US mean that packaged foods must list whether they contain trans fats. In the UK and Europe however, at the time of writing, there are no such laws. You can avoid trans fats by avoiding all foods that list hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated fats or shortenings on their labels. Baked goods such as donuts, pastries, cakes and pies are likely to contain trans fats unless stated otherwise. Only use margarines that are labelled as trans fat free. Unsaturated Fats Unsaturated fats come in the form of monounsaturated fats and polyunsaturated fats. Monounsaturated fats can actually improve cholesterol levels and lower the risk of coronary heart disease and are found in foods like olive oil, canola oil, avocados, almonds and pecans. Polyunsaturated fats, found in sunflower oil, safflower oil and corn oil are not thought to contribute to heart disease but don't offer the same protection as monounsaturated fats. You will naturally replace saturated fats with unsaturated fats by: • • •

Choosing oily fish such as salmon and mackerel instead of fatty meats. Using unsaturated oils such as olive, rapeseed and sunflower oil instead of butter, lard and ghee. Using mashed avocado as a dip or filling for a jacket potato instead of mayonnaise or cream cheese. 27

The Essential Guide to Building Muscle • • •

Making mashed potatoes with olive oil, a touch of garlic and seasoning instead of butter and milk. Snacking on uncooked, unsalted nuts instead of biscuits. Choosing fruit or healthy option desserts instead of cakes, puddings and pastries. Note: not all low fat foods are healthy or low in energy. Compare food labels to see what the energy (kcal) per 100g is.

Essential Fats Essential fatty acids (EFAs) are a class of polyunsaturated fats that have received a lot of attention in the media. There are three types of essential fatty acids – Omega-3, Omega-6 and Omega-9. EFAs are required for a healthy cardiovascular, reproductive, immune, and nervous system as well as healthy skin, hair and bones. A typical western diet tends to have too much Omega-6, particularly in relation to Omega-3, and this imbalance contributes to long-term diseases such as heart disease, cancer, asthma, and arthritis [66]. There is convincing research to show that increasing our intakes of Omega-3 can improve cholesterol levels, lower blood pressure, prevent clogged arteries, improve diabetes, improve arthritis, prevent osteoporosis and help with a number of other ailments [66]. There is also some research to suggest Omega-3 can help to reduce body fat stores by increasing fat metabolism during rest and exercise [67,68]. However, the research is limited at this time and there is no need to gulp down fish oil supplements every day. EFA Supplements Eating 1-3 portions of oily fish, such as salmon or mackerel, per week is the current recommendation for overall health benefits. You can supplement this with fish oil capsules on days that you don’t eat fish. Be aware that there are some concerns over environmental pollutants found in some brands of fish oils. Seven Seas has been recommended by the Foods Standards Agency previously. Alternatively, if your diet is reasonably low in fat intake, you could supplement with an omega oil blend. Fish oil is usually only available in capsule form (because of the taste), however plant-based essential fatty acids are widely available as an oil (with a much more acceptable taste). Try adding 2-4 28

The Essential Guide to Building Muscle tablespoons per day of flaxseed oil or Udos Choice 3 6 9 Oil blend to salads, stews, smoothies and juices or take alone. At a little over 100 calories per tablespoon, this can make a significant contribution to your increased energy needs. Note: The type of omega-3 derived from plant-based sources is not thought to provide the same cardio-protective benefits as omega-3 derived from fish. However, there is some research to suggest that the omega-3 found in plantbased oils can is converted into the beneficial type of omega-3 once in the body [69].

Rule #6 - Reduce Alcohol Intake Many people believe that the calories from alcohol are automatically stored as fat. It is true that alcohol can’t be used by the body as a fuel for energy, however relatively little gets stored as fat. However, too much alcohol can make it very difficult to lose fat… Firstly, alcohol appears to increase our appetites causing us to eat more at a meal that includes a drink [70,71]. Secondly, it also limits the body’s ability to burn fat [72,73] and finally, it seems to have a negative effect on lean muscle mass [74]. As we’ll discover in the next section, some lean muscle tissue, even in women, is very beneficial for burning fat. Water Water has received a lot of attention in the last few years. Celebrities swear by it and it seems that everyone is telling us to drink more of it. But just how much water do we need? According to a report published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association, we need between 2.2 and 2.9 litres (9-12 cups) of noncaffeinated, non-alcoholic fluids each day [75]. However, these fluids can come from drinks other than water and also water-rich foods. According to several studies, well-hydrated cells seem to be more efficient at burning fat [76-78] but the intravenous techniques used to hydrate individuals being tested would be difficult to replicate just by drinking more water. 29

The Essential Guide to Building Muscle Drinking cold water can increase your metabolic rate as your body expends energy to heat it up [79] although there is certainly no need to avoid cold water when on a muscle building programme. The bottom line is that drinking more water is probably an important goal for most people and perhaps more so if eating a higher protein diet, as additional protein may increase the risk of dehydration.

Sample Meal Plans With these 6 ‘rules’ to hand let’s look at some sample meal plans: EVENING WORKOUT Breakfast 7am

Large bowl oatmeal Honey to sweeten 1-2 scoops whey protein Handful dried apricots Glass fresh orange

MORNING WORKOUT Pre-Workout 6am

1 scoop whey protein

Workout 7am

Intra-workout drink: 1 scoop whey mixed with fruit juice, squash or dextrose

Post Workout 8am

Meal replacement shake 1-2 pieces fruit OR Scrambled eggs on 2 slices toast (plus margarine/butter) 1-2 pieces fruit

Snack 10am

Meal replacement shake 1-2 pieces fruit

Lunch 12pm

4 slices white bread Prawns 1 sliced avocado Slice tomato & cucumber 200ml semi skim milk 1 tbsp omega blend oil or fish oil tablets

Snack 11am

50g peanuts 50g raisins / dates 150g pot natural yoghurt

Snack 3pm

50g almonds/cashews 50g raisins / dates 150g pot natural yoghurt

Lunch 1pm

Workout 5.30pm

Intra-workout drink 1 scoop whey mixed with fruit juice, squash or dextrose

150g pasta 1 can tuna 1 tbsp mayonnaise Mixed veg (i.e from frozen) or salad 1 tbsp omega blend oil

Dinner 7pm

150g white rice 1 chicken breast diced Bag stir fry vegetables 1 tbsp omega blend oil

Snack 4pm

High protein bar 1-2 pieces fruit

Dinner 6.30pm

1 medium jacket potatoes 50g cheddar cheese melted 1 turkey breast Broccoli and carrots 1 tbsp omega blend oil

Snack 9.30pm

Low fat granola / museli Semi skimmed milk Chopped banana

Snack* 10pm

Bowl whole wheat cereal Semi skimmed milk Chopped banana

* If a late snack is too heavy going to bed, try switching it with the shake mid morning.

* Two options are given in case you prefer / are able to have a more solid breakfast

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These are samples only and you need to select from a variety of foods throughout the week.

Supplements The sports supplement industry is big business and the “muscle-building” sector is particularly lucrative. There are literally hundreds of nutritional and ergogenic aids all promising to elicit faster and more pronounced muscle growth Despite persuasive marketing that frequently utilizes scientific jargon to make their claims, there is often very little compelling evidence for the majority of sports supplements. In this section, we’ll briefly cover those few supplements that are backed by research or that can play a helpful role in your goal to build lean muscle mass:

Creatine It’s highly likely you’ve heard of this supplement and that’s probably because it has been more widely researched than any other. There is little doubt that creatine enhances performance in activities involving bouts of high-intensity exercise separated by short recovery periods. As for gaining lean weight, creatine has also proven to be effective. During a 5-day intensive loading phase, gains of 2-3lbs of lean weight are not uncommon. However, this is probably due to increased muscle water content and not additional muscle tissue. As well as any water retention, creatine can lead to additional and more rapid gains in muscle mass. This may be the result of allowing increased workload during sessions and also favourable changes in protein metabolism. It’s often advised that Creatine be loaded for a period of around 5-6 days (20grams per day) before following a maintenance dose of about 3grams per day. However, evidence suggests that taking 3 grams per day for 30 days will elicit the same results.

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The Essential Guide to Building Muscle Not everyone responds to creatine and it may be of little benefit in as much as 30% of the population. Side effects such as muscle cramps, muscle tears and stomach upset have been reported anecdotally, but objective research doesn’t agree. Despite numerous studies into creatine supplementation, no increased incidence of negative side effects have ever been found. See the creatine articles in the Sports Nutrition section of Sports Fitness Advisor for more information and recommended usage directions should you wish to try creatine.

Protein Powders Protein powder is probably the top selling sports supplement on the market – particularly amongst those who are aiming to build muscle mass. There are a wide range of proteins available, derived from different sources and each with there own digestive properties. Protein powders derived from animal sources include whey, casein and egg white. Plant-based derivatives include soy, brown rice, pea and hemp protein. Whatever the source a protein powder is derived from, it is not a magic bullet. Where it can be useful however, is as an adjunct to a balanced diet based predominantly on natural, whole foods. It’s particularly useful to increase the protein content of a meal or the diet as a whole, and as part of a convenient, easy-to-prepare snack. By far the most popular type of protein is whey. One of two proteins to come from milk, whey is said to have a high biological value - a measure of how readily the broken down protein can be used by the cells of the body. There are a number of types of whey protein with claims that some are superior to others. Whey protein is useful as part of a pre, intra and post-workout shake and also mixes well into smoothies, porridge, soups and stews. Flavoured protein powders mixed with water can make a palatable drink before meals to increase the protein content. For more information on the different types of protein powders see the protein powder article in the Sports Nutrition section of Sports Fitness Advisor

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Meal Replacement Powders Meal replacement powders (MRPs) are used for convenient, portable meals when preparing food just isn’t practical. Unlike protein powders, MRPs contain some carbohydrates and fat and are very often fortified with extra vitamins and minerals. A typical MRP will contain the amount of energy you’d get from a small snack (250-350Kcal) and a significant amount of protein (25-45grams). There are also “weight gainer” MRPs that contain upwards of 500Kcal with most of the extra energy coming from carbohydrate. The ingredients between MRP brands varies substantially and of course, so does taste and texture. Choose a brand based on personal preference for taste and also ingredients, or more to the point lack thereof. Some MRPs contain artificial flavours, preservatives and fillers. They may also add in “secret ingredients” such as glutamine that you will pay extra for and aren’t proven effective. You can make your own MRP by blending protein powder (or milk) with porridge oats and soft fruit (see Rule #4 above). Alternatively, you can design your own formula with just the basic, natural ingredients you want at somewhere like http://www.myprotein.co.uk/

Multivitamins & Minerals It’s debateable whether athletes undergoing intense training require additional vitamins and minerals, and if they do they are likely to be obtained through extra food intake. Intense exercise can lead to an increase in free radicals and antioxidants (such vitamin C and E) may help to combat this. However, taken in excess antioxidants can actually increase the damage caused by free radicals. So is there any reason to take a multivitamin and mineral supplement? Not if you consume a balanced diet from lots of different food groups. However, if you avoid a major food group (such as red meat, dairy or don’t eat much fruit and vegetables) then a low-potency supplement may be useful.

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The Essential Guide to Building Muscle In particular, even moderate deficiencies in zinc have been shown to reduce testosterone levels, with zinc supplementation having a significant positive effect [80].

Other Supplements A number of other supplements do have some tentative research that suggests that they may be useful in some people under certain conditions: HMB HMB may help to improve gains in muscle and strength, particularly in novice weight trainers. It could also aid recovery and increase training capacity. It’s expensive however, and any ergogenic effect is likely to be relatively small.

Ribose Another expensive supplement, ribose may offer some benefits to athletes in multi-sprint sports and could help with recovery between sets during weight training sessions. However, creatine offers similar benefits and has much ore scientific support. Colostrum Colostrum is a protein-rich substance found in mother’s milk during the first days after giving birth. As a supplement, it is usually derived from cow’s milk and is known as bovine colostrum. Colostrum contains insulin-like growth factor (IGF) – a hormone that has anabolic effects in adults but experts believe that the IGFs and protein found in colostrum, cannot be absorbed by the body. Research is mixed but some studies have shown that bovine colostrum can have a positive effect on body composition, immune function and athletic performance. The cost may be prohibitive to many and the general advice is to wait for further research. Glutamine Glutamine is a non-essential (meaning the body can produce it itself without obtaining it from the diet) amino acid. It’s marketed as a supplement to boost immune function and preserve muscle protein during periods of intensive training.

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The Essential Guide to Building Muscle There is some evidence that glutamine could strengthen the immune system. While in theory, it could help to prevent muscle breakdown following heavy resistance exercise (and hence speed up muscle gains) there is no evidence as yet to show this is the case. Glucosamine Glucosamine won’t have any effect on your body composition or muscle mass, but it may be useful for maintaining or improving joint health. Studies are mixed and focus on individuals with existing joint pain or osteoarthritis. However, there are a number of studies to show that a good quality brand can have a positive effect on joint pain and perhaps cartilage growth. You will find more information and research on these supplements in the MySport Fitness Knowledge Base.

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STEP 3 – CREATE YOUR MUSCLE BUILDING EXERCISE PLAN When you consume more calories than your body requires on a day-to-day basis you gain weight. If this calorie surplus doesn’t coincide with a suitable exercise programme, most of that weight will be in the form of fat (although believe it or not, even without any form of resistance training, excess calories can lead to an increase in lean mass [1]). The purpose of resistance training is simply to convert as many of those extra calories into muscle mass as possible. There are an inordinate amount of weight training routines and recommendations in magazines, websites and books. Many of those routines are less than optimal for building muscle mass, while others are designed for synthetically enhanced bodybuilders. In this section, we’ll look at the kind of resistance training programme that is optimal for building muscle mass (called hypertrophy). Fortunately, you don’t need to spend long, gruelling hours in the gym every day. We’ll also cover cardiovascular exercise and whether it’s a help or a hindrance in the musclebuilding process.

Resistance Training Resistance training is the only way to build a significant amount of muscle mass. But aside from building muscle, resistance training also offers the following benefits [2]: • • • • • • •

Increases your bone density helping to prevent osteoporosis Improves balance and stability Improves glucose tolerance and insulin sensitivity Increases functional strength making day-to-day life easier Improves muscular endurance Improves body composition and appearance Increases resting metabolism (while this is counter to gaining weight, it helps to keep body fat levels low)

There are many different variations of resistance training but there are only a few simple guidelines to remember to get maximum results with minimum fuss.

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The Essential Guide to Building Muscle A lot of people believe that bigger muscles equal stronger muscles but this is not necessarily the case. While you will inevitably become stronger, training for maximal strength requires a different set of guidelines. The guidelines that follow are designed to induce muscular hypertrophy.

Resistance Training Guidelines The following guidelines are intended for adults only. While resistance training can be beneficial and safe even for young children, it requires a different set of guidelines to adults. Anyone under the age of 18 or who hasn’t stopped growing should never lift heavy weights with maximal effort. Regardless of age, you should seek confirmation from your doctor that it is safe for you to begin a resistance training programme.

Frequency Frequency relates to the number of sessions you complete each week. Perhaps more important than the number of sessions is how often your train each specific muscle group. If you train a muscle group too frequently, you will never give it a chance to recover, adapt and grow. But if you don’t train it often enough, it begins to lose the beneficial changes made following the previous session. Research has shown that muscle fibres repair from strenuous training after around 5 days [3,4]. Additionally, protein synthesis (the creation of new protein in the muscle cells) returns to normal within 36-48 hours [3,4]. That means you should aim to work each muscle group once every 2-5 days. You may be familiar with the “body parts” routine, which works one or two specific body parts each session. On a 3-day per week routine, you might train chest & arms on day 1, legs on day 2 and back & shoulders on day 3.

Typical 3-Day Body Part Routine Monday

Wednesday

Friday

Chest

Legs

Back

Arms

Shoulders

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Here’s what a 5-day routine might look like:

Typical 5-Day Body Part Routine Mon

Tue

Wed

Thu

Fri

Chest

Back

Legs

Shoulders

Arms

The problem with these routines is that each muscle group is trained only once a week (every 7 days), so there may be some detraining effect by the time you start your next session. To offset this problem, these routines usually call for very high intensity sessions in which the muscle groups are completely exhausted. Lots of exercises and sets per muscle group are used and techniques such as forced repetitions, supersets and drops sets are heavily employed. Another problem with this approach is that you are also placing your nervous system under a tremendous amount of stress too, and it can take over 7 days for your nervous system to recover [5]. Aim to work each muscle group 2-3 times per week. As we’ll see next, there are a number of ways to group exercises so that you meet this criteria easily, without spending 7 days a week in the gym…

Grouping Exercises We’ve already seen one way to group exercises where one or two muscle groups are worked exhaustively each session. A more efficient alternative is to follow either a total body routine or an upper body / lower body split routine. Total Body Routine Although it might not be very fashionable with your peers at the gym, a total body routine is very effective for building muscle and it helps to prevent nervous system fatigue that can lead to burn out or injury.

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The Essential Guide to Building Muscle As the name suggests, you work all the major muscle groups each session. At first, it might sound like you need marathon sessions at the gym to squeeze in all the exercises but that’s not the case. Because each muscle group is worked three times per week, a minimal number of exercises and sets are used for each session. As a result each muscle group is stimulated every 2-3 days and the lower intensity sessions aren’t too stressful on your nervous system.

3-Day Total Body Routine Tuesday

Thursday

Saturday

Chest

Legs

Back

Legs

Shoulders

Chest

Back

Back

Legs

Shoulders

Chest

Shoulders

Arms

Arms

Arms

Core

Core

Core

Pros: if you miss a session and only complete two in the week, you are still working all the muscle groups once every 3-5 days. Cons: the only downside is that you are performing the same or similar routine each session. Upper Body / Lower Body Split Routine This routine consists of two sessions - one works the muscles of the lower body and one that works the muscles of the upper body. The two sessions are then alternated. Depending on how many days you train per week (three or four), each muscle group is worked at least once every 5 days. The sessions tend to be slightly more intense than the total body routine but your muscles are being worked slightly less frequently.

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3-day Upper/Lower Body Split Routine Mon

Wed

Fri

Mon

Wed

Fri

Chest

Quadriceps

Chest

Quadriceps

Chest

Quadriceps

Back

Hamstrings

Back

Hamstrings

Back

Hamstrings

Shoulders

Calfs

Shoulders

Calfs

Shoulders

Calfs

Arms

Core

Arms

Core

Arms

Core

4-day Upper/Lower Body Split Routine Mon

Tue

Wed

Thu

Fri

Chest

Quadriceps

Rest

Chest

Quadriceps

Back

Hamstrings

Back

Hamstrings

Shoulders

Calfs

Shoulders

Calfs

Arms

Core

Arms

Core

Pros: if you enjoy the feeling of really working a muscle, this might be more satisfying than the total body routine Cons: a whole session devoted to working the leg muscles does not appeal to everyone!

Repetitions You’ve probably already heard that lifting heavy weights for fewer repetitions is the best for building muscle, while lighter weights lifted for more repetitions is best for “toning”. But is there an optimal repetition range that you should aim for? According to the National Strength & Conditioning Association (6), sets of 612 repetitions are best for inducing muscular hypertrophy. A number of studies have found that very heavy weights that can only be lifted for fewer than 6 repetitions are best for developing maximal strength.

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The Essential Guide to Building Muscle Maximal strength and muscular size do not necessarily go hand in hand, and in fact using very heavy weight (that can only be lifted 1-3 times) can significantly improve strength without significant changes in muscle size. For each exercise you complete, select a weight that allows you to lift between 6 and 12 repetitions. If you are unable to reach 6 repetitions, reduce the weight slightly. Once you are able to lift more than 12 repetitions increase the weight next time.

Repetition Speed Aim to perform the concentric phase (i.e. the difficult part) of an exercise with a fast but controlled tempo. Anything too fast or too explosive will result in poor technique and you won’t actually overload the target muscle group as effectively. You may be able to lift heavier weights by using momentum or swinging the bar, but you won’t improve as quickly. The eccentric phase (i.e. lowering the weight) should be controlled rather than just letting the weight fall. Try lowering the weight to a count of 2 or 3.

Recovery Periods Hypertrophy occurs as a result of fatiguing a muscle group over a number of sets. In this vain, some people believe that the next set should be performed before full recovery has occurred [7,8]. Another argument for shorter rest periods is that it results in higher levels of testosterone and growth hormone [9,10], which can both have a favourable effect on muscle mass. However, short rest periods will significantly decrease your ability to perform each subsequent set to a high intensity. A good balance is to aim for 1 to 1.5minutes rest between sets.

Sets There is some research to suggest that just a single set performed to failure is enough to bring about gains in maximal strength and hypertrophy [11,12]. However, the majority of studies show that multiple sets per exercise are optimal when it comes to building muscle mass and improving strength [1318]. The recommendation is to complete 3 to 6 sets per exercise [6,19,20]. 41


Exercises There are literally an infinite number of resistance exercises to choose from. You want to select a range of exercises to avoid developing weak areas that can leave you prone to injury and with poor posture. You also want to select the exercises that work the largest muscle groups or combination of muscle groups – referred to as compound exercises. Good examples include barbell squats, bench presses, deadlifts, leg presses, shoulder presses and lat pull downs. Aside from making your routine more efficient, there is research to suggest that compound exercises stimulate a greater release of naturally occurring testosterone – a potent muscle-building hormone [21].

Time There is no need to spend forever at the gym or on a resistance training session at home. In fact, beyond a certain point you begin to get diminished returns. Aim to complete your session in 60 minutes or less – including a 510 minute warm up and cool down.

Summary of Guidelines Based on the guidelines above, here’s what your resistance training sessions should look like: No. sessions per week: 3-4 No. exercises per session: 6-10 No. sets per exercise: 3-6 No. repetitions per set: 6-12 Rest between sets: 60-90sec Rest between exercises: 60-90sec It goes without saying that you should warm up thoroughly before every resistance training session. Start with 5-10 minutes of light cardiovascular exercise such as brisk walking or cycling. Complete a couple of warm up sets for each exercise (especially the first few) using 50% of the weight you intend to use for each set.

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Sample Plans Here are some sample programmes based on the 3-day total body and 4-day upper/lower split routines:

3 – Day Total Body Routine Each of the three sessions in this routine covers all of the major muscle groups in the body. However, you’ll notice that the exercises and the order the muscle groups are worked in, varies. This is simply to allow different muscle groups to be worked at the beginning of the session when you are fresh, and to keep the routine more interesting. You can use a machine alternative to the free weights exercises below, however free weights work smaller stabilizing muscles that may be neglected with machine exercises.

3-DAY TOTAL BODY ROUTINE – SESSION 1 Exercise

Reps

Sets

Rest

Barbell bench presses

5-8

3-5

60-90sec

Machine leg presses

8-12

2-3

60-90sec

Machine lat pull downs

8-12

2-3

60-90sec

Dumbbell shoulder presses

8-12

2-3

60-90sec

Machine calf presses

8-12

2-3

60-90sec

Barbell biceps curls

8-12

2-3

60-90sec

Weighted dips*

8-12

2-3

60-90sec

Incline crunches**

8-12

2-3

60-90sec

* Dips are traditionally a bodyweight only exercise. However, if you can dip your bodyweight for more than suggested number of reps, add some additional weight. ** You can increase the intensity of crunches by holding a weights plate to your chest, performing more repetitions or reducing the rest period.

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Reps

Sets

Rest

Barbell squats

5-8

3-5

60-90sec

Barbell deadlifts

8-12

2-3

60-90sec

Dumbbell incline bench presses

8-12

2-3

60-90sec

Cable seated rows

8-12

2-3

60-90sec

Dumbbell lateral raises

8-12

2-3

60-90sec

Dumbbell incline curls

8-12

2-3

60-90sec

Cable triceps pushdowns

8-12

2-3

60-90sec

Back extensions

8-12

2-3

60-90sec


Reps

Sets

Rest

Weighted chins*

5-8

3-5

60-90sec

Barbell military presses

8-12

2-3

60-90sec

Dumbbell lunges

8-12

2-3

60-90sec


8-12

2-3

60-90sec


8-12

2-3

60-90sec

Weighted dips*

8-12

2-3

60-90sec


8-12

2-3

60-90sec

Hanging leg raises**

8-12

2-3

60-90sec

* Chins and dips are traditionally a bodyweight only exercise. However, if you can chin/dip your bodyweight for more than suggested number of reps, add some additional weight. ** You can increase the intensity of leg raises by, keeping your legs straight instead of bent knees, holding the position when your legs are fully extended performing more repetitions or reducing the rest period.

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• •

• • • •

Perform each of the sessions above once per week but not on consecutive days. For example train on Mon / Wed / Fri. Select a weight that allows you to just about complete a number of repetitions that falls within the suggested range. It may take a week or two to find the most suitable weights for you. If required, reduce the weight on the second and third sets so that you can still perform the desired number of repetitions. When you can complete 2 or more repetitions than the suggested maximum, increase the weight by the smallest increment next session. Do not hold your breath when lifting the weight. Use correct technique at all times.

4 – Day Upper Body / Lower body Split Routine There are two sessions in the programme, each to be completed twice per week. You can use a machine alternative to the free weights exercises below, however free weights work smaller stabilizing muscles that may be neglected with machine exercises.

UPPER BODY SESSION Exercise

Reps

Sets

Rest


5-8

3-5

60-90sec

Dumbbell incline bench presses

8-12

2-3

60-90sec

Machine lat pull downs

5-8

3-5

60-90sec

Cable seated rows

8-12

2-3

60-90sec

Dumbbell shoulder presses

5-8

3-5

60-90sec

Dumbbell lateral raises

8-12

2-3

60-90sec


8-12

2-3

60-90sec

Weighted dips*

8-12

2-3

60-90sec

* Dips are traditionally a bodyweight only exercise. However, if you can dip your bodyweight for more than suggested number of reps, add some additional weight.

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LOWER BODY SESSION Exercise

Reps

Sets

Rest

Barbell squats

5-8

3-5

2-3min

Barbell deadlifts

8-12

2-3

2-3min

Machine leg curls

8-12

2-3

60-90sec

Machine leg extensions

8-12

2-3

60-90sec


8-12

3-5

60-90sec

Kneeling crunches

8-12

2-3

60-90sec

Weighted twisting crunch

8-12

2-3

60-90sec

Recovery Weeks Resistance training can and should be intense – after all, the goal is to fatigue muscles enough to bring about muscular hypertrophy. Because of this, it’s important to factor in regular recovery weeks to prevent over training. Every fourth week, reduce the volume by half. In other words, if you completed 4 sets for an exercise before, complete only two during your recovery week. Every 8-12 weeks consider changing your routine. The basic format can stay the same but select different exercises for a change of pace and to make sure no muscle groups get neglected. You may also want to stop a repetition or two short of failure for each exercise during this week.

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Cardiovascular Exercise Cardiovascular exercise has unquestionable health benefits. The question is whether or not it hinders your ability to build muscle. Remember that weight gain of any kind can only occur when you are in a calorie surplus, so in theory at least, anything that burns extra calories is a hindrance rather than a help. Many bodybuilders and even Fitness Professionals go as far as claiming that cardiovascular exercise can actually reverse the muscle-building process. In practice, simply ruling out cardiovascular exercise for fear it burns excess calories is a shortsighted view. It brings with it many important health benefits, both physiological and psychological. As for the claims that it hinders muscle gain, scientific research doesn’t seem to agree… Research comparing a programme of weight lifting alone to the same weight lifting programme plus aerobic exercise, invariably finds that adding the aerobic exercise does not hinder muscle growth in any way. Not only is not detrimental, it may even help muscles to grow bigger [22-25]. Where the confusion comes from is that aerobic exercise can limit strength and explosive power gains, but these are not the same as hypertrophy. Pointing out that long-distance athletes are typically very skinny isn’t valid either, because they can clock up dozens of training hours per week.

Aerobic Vs Interval Training Cardiovascular exercise can be low intensity completed at a steady pace known as aerobic exercise. It can also consist of short bouts of intense exercise interspersed with recovery periods – known as interval training. While both forms of exercise burn a similar amount of energy during the sessions, interval training can burn significantly more calories in the hours following the session. It may also be more beneficial for improving markers cardio-respiratory fitness.

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The Essential Guide to Building Muscle Remember, that it is difficult to both gain muscle and reduce your body fat stores at the same time. Assuming you are reasonably lean, to build muscle you want to limit the amount of energy your burn while still receiving most of the health benefits from cardiovascular exercise. In this respect, it’s best to stick to a few aerobic sessions per week. If you have quite a bit of body fat to begin with, you are best following guidelines in The Essential Guide To Fat Loss first. Note: if you play sport or are involved in any vigorous activity during the week, don’t think it will prevent you from gaining weight and muscle mass. It simply means you’ll have to consume a little more energy than you would if you weren’t involved in those activities.

Cardiovascular Training Guidelines Here are some simple guidelines for incorporating aerobic exercise into your programme:

Frequency Aim to complete three sessions per week.

Intensity To determine the intensity of aerobic sessions you can either use a percentage of your maximum heart rate or a rate of perceived exertion. Your maximum heart rate can be predicted with the following formula: 208 – (Age x 0.7) For example, a 40year old would have a predicted maximum heart rate of : 208 – (40 x 0.7) = 208 – 28 = 180 beats per minute (bpm) This figure (180 in this case) is multiplied by 60-70%: 180 x 0.6 = 108bpm 180 x 0.7 = 126bpm If you don’t have access to a heart rate monitor you can use a scale of perceived exertion. Very simply, on a scale of 1 to 10 (where 1 is a gentle stroll in the park and 10 is an all-out sprint), aim for a 6-7. 48


Time Cardiovascular exercise can be limited to 20-45 minutes in duration. Keep to the lower end of this scale if you find it particularly difficult to gain weight.

Type There are many types of suitable cardiovascular exercise – jogging, brisk walking, cycling, swimming, aerobic classes, tennis, badminton and so on. Avoid the higher intensity classes at your gym such as Spinning® and Body Pump®.

Combining Resistance & Cardiovascular Exercise Ideally, try to complete your aerobic exercise sessions on separate days to your weight training. If you have limited time to train, complete a short aerobic session after you weights session rather than before. 3 Training Days Per Week

Day 1

Resistance session followed by CV session

Day 2

Rest

Day 3


Day 4

Rest

Day 5


Day 6

Rest

Day 7

Rest

4 Days Per Week

Day 1


Day 2


Day 3

Rest

Day 4


Day 5

Resistance session

Day 6

Rest

Day 7

Rest

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5 Days Per Week

Day 1


Day 2

CV Session

Day 3

Resistance session

Day 4

Rest

Day 5

Resistance session

Day 6

CV Session

Day 7

Rest

6 Days Per Week

Day 1

Resistance session

Day 2

CV session

Day 3

Resistance session

Day 4

CV session

Day 5

Resistance session

Day 6

Rest

Day 7

CV session

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To Sum Up… Many elements of fitness seem overly complex or contradictory. Yet when examine objective research that takes into account as many of the variables as possible, it becomes clear that just a few principles make the vast majority of the difference. From a muscle building point of view, those principles can be summed up in one short sentence… “Eat a lot of good food and lift heavy weights” Taking a pre or post workout supplement may make a small difference; it may not. Eating a higher protein diet is likely to help but not as much as consuming enough calories. As for supplements, few if any will make a noticeable change to your body, and certainly not in the presence of poor diet and training.

Copyright Sporting Excellence Ltd. All rights reserved. Neither this book, nor any parts within it may be sold or reproduced in any form without prior permission.

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REFERENCES FOR STEP TWO - NUTRITION 1. Wilmore JH and Costil DL. (2004). Physiology of Sport And Exercise, Third Ed. Human Kinetics, Champaign, Illinois 2. McArdle WD, Katch FI and Katch VL. (2000). Essentials of Exercise Physiology, Second Ed. Human Kinetics, Champaign, Illinois 3. Food Standards Agency. http://www.eatwell.gov.uk/ 4. Staron, R.S., Leonardi, M.J., Karapondo, D.L., Malicky, E.S., Falkel, J.E., Hagerman, F.C., & Hikida, R.S. (1991). Strength and skeletal muscle adaptations in heavy-resistance-trained women after detraining and retraining. Journal of Applied Physiology, 70, 631-640 5. De Lorenzo, A., Bertini, I., Candeloro, N., Piccinelli, R., Innocente, I., & Brancati, A. (1999). A new predictive equation to calculate resting metabolic rate in athletes. Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness, 39, 213-219 6. Kreider, R.B., Ferreira, M., Wilson, M., Grindstaff, P., Plisk, S., Reinardy, J., Cantler, E., & Almada, A.L. (1998). Effects of creatine supplementation on body composition, strength, and sprint performance. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 30, 73-82 16. Tipton, K.D., Elliott, T.A., Cree, M.G., Aarsland, A.A., Sanford, A.P., & Wolfe, R.R. (2007). Stimulation of net muscle protein synthesis by whey protein ingestion before and after exercise. American Journal of Physiology, 292, E71-E76 17. Tipton KD, Rasmussen BB, Miller SL, Wolf SE, Owens-Stovall SK, Petrini BE, Wolfe RR (2001). Timing of amino acid-carbohydrate ingestion alters anabolic response of muscle to resistance exercise. Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab 281: E197–E206 18. Holt, S.H.A., Brand-Miller, J.C., Petocz, P., & Farmakalidis, E. (1995). A satiety index of common foods. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 49, 675-690 19. Tieken SM, Leidy HJ, Stull AJ, Mattes RD, Schuster RA, Campbell WW (2007). Effects of solid versus liquid meal-replacement products of similar energy content on hunger, satiety, and appetite-regulating hormones in older adults. Horm Metab Res. 2007 May;39(5):389-94. 52


20. Gray, R., French, S., Robinson, T., & Yeomans, M. (2002). Dissociation of the effects of preload volume and energy content on subjective appetite and food intake. Physiology and Behavior, 76, 57-64 21. Gray RW, French SJ, Robinson TM, Yeomans MR. Increasing preload volume with water reduces rated appetite but not food intake in healthy men even with minimum delay between preload and test meal. Nutr Neurosci. Feb;6(1):29-37. 22. Food and Nutrition Board, Institute of Medicine (2005). Dietary Reference Intakes for Energy, Carbohydrate, Fiber, Fat, Fatty Acids, Cholesterol, Protein, and Amino Acids (Macronutrients). The National Academies Press. 23. Layman, D.K., Boileau, R.A., Erickson, D.J., Painter, J.E., Shiue, H., Sather, C., & Christou, D.D. (2003). A reduced ratio of dietary carbohydrate to protein improves body composition and blood lipid profiles during weight loss in adult women. Journal of Nutrition, 133, 411-417 24. Layman, D.K., Shiue, H., Sather, C., Erickson, D.J., & Baum, J. (2003). Increased dietary protein modifies glucose and insulin homeostasis in adult women during weight loss. Journal of Nutrition, 133, 405-410 25. Due, A., Toubro, S., Skov, A.R., & Astrup, A. (2004). Effect of normal-fat diets, either medium or high in protein, on body weight in overweight subjects: a randomised 1-year trial. International Journal of Obesity, 28, 1283-1290. 26. Lemon, P.W., & Mullin, J.P. (1980). Effect of initial muscle glycogen levels on protein catabolism during exercise. Journal of Applied Physiology, 48, 624629 27. Lemon, P.W., Dolny, D.G., & Yarasheski, K.E. (1997). Moderate physical activity can increase dietary protein needs. Canadian Journal of Applied Physiology, 22, 494-503 28. Tarnopolsky MA, Atkinson SA, MacDougall JD, Chesley A, Phillips S, Schwarcz HP. (1992). Evaluation of protein requirements for trained strength athletes. Journal of Applied Physiology, 73, 1986-1995 29. Lemon, P.W.R. (1998). Effects of exercise on dietary protein requirements. International Journal of Sport Nutrition, 8, 426-447

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The Essential Guide to Building Muscle 30. Hartman, J.W., Moore, D.R., & Phillips, S.M. (2006). Resistance training reduces whole-body protein turnover and improves net protein retention in untrained young males. Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism, 31, 557-564 31. Moore, D.R., Del Bel, N.C., Nizi, K.I., Hartman, J.W., Tang, J.E., Armstrong, D., & Phillips, S.M. (2007). Resistance training reduces fastedand fed-state leucine turnover and increases dietary nitrogen retention in previously untrained young men. Journal of Nutrition, 137, 985-991 32. Rozenek, R., Ward, P., Long, S., & Garhammer, J. (2002). Effects of highcalorie supplements on body composition and muscular strength following resistance training. Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness, 42, 340347 33. Candow, D.G., Burke, N.C., Smith-Palmer, T., & Burke, D.G. (2006). Effect of whey and soy protein supplementation combined with resistance training in young adults. International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism, 16, 233-244 34. Cribb, P.J., Williams, A.D., Stathis, C.G., Carey, M.F., & Hayes, A. (2007). Effects of whey isolate, creatine, and resistance training on muscle hypertrophy. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 39, 298-307 35. Burke, D.G., Chilibeck, P.D., Davidson, K.S., Candow, D.G., Farthing, J., & Smith-Palmer, T. (2001). The effect of whey protein supplementation with and without creatine monohydrate combined with resistance training on lean tissue mass and muscle strength. International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism, 11, 349-364 36. Knight EL, Stampfer MJ, Hankinson SE, Spiegelman D, Curhan GC (2003). The impact of protein intake on renal function decline in women with normal renal function or mild renal insufficiency. Ann Intern Med. Mar 18;138(6):460-7. 37. Poortmans, J.R. & Dellalieux, O. (2000). Do regular high protein diets have potential health risks on kidney function in athletes? International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism, 10, 28-38 38. Skov, A.R., Toubro, S., Bulow, J., Krabbe, K., Parving, H.H., Astrup, A. (1999). Changes in renal function during weight loss induced by high vs lowprotein low-fat diets in overweight subjects. International Journal of Obesity and Related Metabolic Disorders, 23, 1170-1177

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39. Cordain, L., Eaton, S.B., Miller, J.B., Mann, N., & Hill, K. The paradoxical nature of hunter-gatherer diets: meat-based, yet non-atherogenic. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 56, S42-S52 40. Cordain, L., Miller, J.B., Eaton, S.B., Mann, N., Holt, S.H., & Speth, J.D. (2000). Plant-animal subsistence ratios and macronutrient energy estimations in worldwide hunter-gatherer diets. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 71, 682-692 41. Wolfe, B.M. (1995). Potential role of raising dietary protein intake for reducing risk of atherosclerosis. Canadian Journal of Cardiology, 11, 127G131G 42. Wolfe, B.M., & Piche, L.A. (1999). Replacement of carbohydrate by protein in a conventional-fat diet reduces cholesterol and triglyceride concentrations in healthy normolipidemic subjects. Clinical and Investigative Medicine, 22, 140-148 43. Hu, F.B., Stampfer, M.J., Manson, J.E., Rimm, E., Colditz, G.A., Speizer, F.E., Hennekens, C.H., & Willett, W.C. (1999). Dietary protein and risk of ischemic heart disease in women. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 70, 221-227 44 Arnal, M.A., Mosoni, L., Boirie, Y., Houlier, M.L., Morin, L., Verdier, E., Ritz, P., Antoine, J.M., Prugnaud, .J, Beaufrere, B., & Mirand, P.P. (1999). Protein pulse feeding improves protein retention in elderly women. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 69, 1202-1208 45. Arnal, M.A., Mosoni, L., Boirie, Y., Houlier, M.L., Morin, L., Verdier, E., Ritz, P., Antoine, J.M., Prugnaud, J., Beaufrere, B., & Mirand, P.P. (2000). Protein feeding pattern does not affect protein retention in young women. Journal of Nutrition, 130, 1700-1704 46. Levenhagen, D.K., Gresham, J.D., Carlson, M.G., Maron, D.J., Borel, M.J., & Flakoll, P.J. (2001). Postexercise nutrient intake timing in humans is critical to recovery of leg glucose and protein homeostasis. American Journal of Physiology, E280, 982-993 47. Borsheim, E., Cree, M.G., Tipton, K.D., Elliott, T.A., Aarsland, A., & Wolfe, R.R. (2004). Effect of carbohydrate intake on net muscle protein synthesis during recovery from resistance exercise. Journal of Applied Physiology, 96, 674-678 55


48. Thyfault, J.P., Carper, M.J., Richmond, S.R., Hulver, M.W., & Potteiger, J.A. (2004). Effects of liquid carbohydrate ingestion on markers of anabolism following high-intensity resistance exercise. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 18, 174-179 49. Bilsborough S, Mann N (2006). A review of issues of dietary protein intake in humans. Int J Sport Nutr Exerc Metab. Apr;16(2):129-52. 50. Hamalainen, E., Adlercreutz, H., Puska, P., & Pietinen, P. (1984). Diet and serum sex hormones in healthy men. Journal of Steroid Biochemistry, 20, 459-464
51. Volek, J.S., Kraemer, W.J., Bush, J.A., Incledon, T., & Boetes, M. (1996). Testosterone and cortisol in relationship to dietary nutrients and resistance exercise. Journal of Applied Physiology, 82, 49-54
52. Levenhagen, D.K., Carr, C., Carlson, M.G., Maron, D.J., Borel, M.J., & Flakoll, P.J. (2002). Postexercise protein intake enhances whole-body and leg protein accretion in humans. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 34, 828-837 53. Doi, T., Matsuo, T., Sugawara, M., Matsumoto, K., Minehira, K., Hamada, K., Okamura, K., & Suzuki, M. (2001). New approach for weight reduction by a combination of diet, light resistance exercise and the timing of ingesting a protein supplement. Asia Pacific Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 10, 226-232 54. Flakoll, P.J., Judy, T., Flinn, K., Carr, C., & Flinn, S. (2004). Postexercise protein supplementation improves health and muscle soreness during basic military training in Marine recruits. Journal of Applied Physiology, 96, 951-956 55. Bennet WM, Connacher AA, Scrimgeour CM, Smith K, Rennie MJ (1989). Increase in anterior tibialis muscle protein synthesis in healthy man during mixed amino acid infusion: studies of incorporation of [1-13C]leucine. Clinical Science 76, 447-454 56. Biolo G, Tipton KD, Klein S, Wolf RR (1997). An abundant supply of amino acids enhances the metabolic effect of exercise on muscle protein. American Journal of Physiology 273, E122-129 57. Smith K, Reynolds N, Downie S, Patel A, Rennie MJ (1998). Effects of flooding amino acids on incorporation of labeled amino acids into human muscle protein. American Journal of Physiology 275, E73-78

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58. Tipton, K.D., Elliott, T.A., Cree, M.G., Wolf, S.E., Sanford, A.P., & Wolfe, R.R. (2004). Ingestion of casein and whey proteins result in muscle anabolism after resistance exercise. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 36, 2073-2081 59. Wilkinson, S.B., Tarnopolsky, M.A., Macdonald, M.J., Macdonald, J.R., Armstrong, D., & Phillips, S.M. (2007). Consumption of fluid skim milk promotes greater muscle protein accretion after resistance exercise than does consumption of an isonitrogenous and isoenergetic soy-protein beverage. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 85, 1031-1040 60. Hartman, J.W., Tang, J.E., Wilkinson, S.B., Tarnopolsky, M.A., Lawrence, R.L., Fullerton, A.V., & Phillips, S.M. (2007). Consumption of fat-free fluid milk after resistance exercise promotes greater lean mass accretion than does consumption of soy or carbohydrate in young, novice, male weightlifters. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 86, 373-381 61. Ivy, J.L., Goforth, H.W. Jr., Damon, B.M., McCauley, T.R., Parsons, E.C., & Price, T.B. (2002). Early postexercise muscle glycogen recovery is enhanced with a carbohydrate-protein supplement. Journal of Applied Physiology, 93, 1337-1344 62. Tarnopolsky, M.A., Bosman, M., MacDonald, J.R., Vandeputte, D., Martin, J., & Roy, B.D. (1997). Postexercise protein-carbohydrate and carbohydrate supplements increase muscle glycogen in men and women. Journal of Applied Physiology, 83, 1877-1883 63. Haff, G.G., Lehmkuhl, M.J., McCoy, L.B., & Stone, M.H. (2003). Carbohydrate supplementation and resistance training. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 17, 187-196 64. Ivy JL (2001) Dietary strategies to promote glycogen synthesis after exercise. Can J Appl Physiol 2001 26 Suppl S236-45 65. Wojcik, J.R., Walber-Rankin, J., Smith, L.L., & Gwazdauskas, F.C. (2001). Comparison of carbohydrate and milk-based beverages on muscle damage and glycogen following exercise. International Journal of Sports Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism, 11, 406-419 66. University of Maryland Medical enter. 2007. http://www.umm.edu/altmed/articles/omega-6-000317.htm

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The Essential Guide to Building Muscle 67. Couet C, Delarue J, Ritz P, Antoine JM, Lamisse F (1997). Effect of dietary fish oil on body fat mass and basal fat oxidation in healthy adults. International Journal of Obesity, 21, 637-643 68. Huffman DM, Michaelson JL, Thomas TR (2004). Chronic supplementation with fish oil increases fat oxidation during exercise in young men. Journal of Exercise Physiology Online, 7, 48-56 69. http://www.udoerasmus.com/articles/udo/fish_oil.htm 70. Tremblay, A., & St-Pierre, S. (1996). The hyperphagic effect of a high-fat diet and alcohol intake persists after control for energy density. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 63, 479-482 71. Buemann, B., Toubro, S., & Astrup, A. (2002). The effect of wine or beer versus a carbonated soft drink, served at a meal, on ad libitum energy intake. International Journal of Obesity and Related Metabolic Disorders, 26, 13671372 72. Siler, S.Q., Neese, R.A., & Hellerstein, M.K. (1999). De novo lipogenesis, lipid kinetics, and whole-body lipid balances in humans after acute alcohol consumption. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 70, 928-936. 73. Raben A, Agerholm-Larsen L, Flint A, Holst JJ, Astrup A. (2003). Meals with similar energy densities but rich in protein, fat, carbohydrate, or alcohol have different effects on energy expenditure and substrate metabolism but not on appetite and energy intake. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 77, 91100. 74. Kvist, H., Hallgren, P., Jonsson, L., Pettersson, P., Sjoberg, C., Sjostrom, L., & Bjorntorp, P. (1993). Distribution of adipose tissue and muscle mass in alcoholic men. Metabolism, 42, 569-573 75. Kleiner, S.M. (1999). Water: an essential but overlooked nutrient. Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 99, 200-206 10. Vom Dahl, S., Hallbrucker, C., Lang, F., Gerok, W., & Haussinger, D. (1991). Regulation of liver cell volume and proteolysis by glucagon and insulin. Biochemical Journal, 278, 771-777 76. Bilz, S., Ninnis, R., & Keller, U. (1999). Effects of hypoosmolality on whole-body lipolysis in man. Metabolism, 48, 472-476

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The Essential Guide to Building Muscle 77. Haussinger, D., Roth, E., Lang, F., & Gerok, W. (1993). Cellular hydration state: an important determinant of protein catabolism in health and disease. Lancet, 341, 1330-1332 78. Berneis, K., Ninnis, R., Haussinger, D., & Keller, U. (1999). Effects of hyper- and hypoosmolality on whole body protein and glucose kinetics in humans. American Journal of Physiology, 276, 188-195 79. Boschmann, M., Steiniger, J., Hille, U., Tank, J., Adams, F., Sharma, A.M., Klaus, S., Luft, F.C., & Jordan, J. (2003). Water-induced thermogenesis. Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, 88, 6015-6019 80. Prasad, A.S., Mantzoros, C.S., Beck, F.W., Hess, J.W., Brewer, G.J. (1996). Zinc status and serum testosterone levels of healthy adults. Nutrition, 12, 344-348

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REFERENCES FOR STEP 3 - EXERCISE 1. Forbes, G.B., Brown, M.R., Welle, S.L., & Underwood, L.E. (1989). Hormonal response to overfeeding. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 49, 608-611 2. Pollock M.L. et al (2000). Resistance Exercise in Individuals With and Without Cardiovascular Disease. Circulation, 101:828 3. MacDougall, J.D., Gibala, M.J., Tarnopolsky, M.A., MacDonald, J.R., Interisano, S.A., & Yarasheski, K.E. (1995). The time course for elevated muscle protein synthesis following heavy resistance exercise. Canadian Journal of Applied Physiology, 20, 480-486 4. Gibala, M.J., Interisano, S.A., Tarnopolsky, M.A., Roy, B.D., MacDonald, J.R., Yarasheski, K.E., & MacDougall, J.D. (2000). Myofibrillar disruption following acute concentric and eccentric resistance exercise in strengthtrained men. Canadian Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology, 78, 656-661 5. Baechle TR and Earle RW (2000). Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning (second edition). Human Kinetics, Champaign: IL 6. Hedrick A (1995). Training For Hypertrophy. Strenght cond. 17(3):22-29 7. Tesch PA (1993). Training For Bodybuilding. In: Strength and Power In Sports, Komi PV, ed. London: Blackwell Scientific. pp/370-380 8. Kraemer, W.J., Gordon, S.E., Fleck, S.J., Marchitelli, L.J., Mello, R., Dziados, J.E., Friedl, K., Harman, E., Maresh, C., & Fry, A.C. (1991). Endogenous anabolic hormonal and growth factor responses to heavy resistance exercise in males and females. International Journal of Sports Medicine, 12, 228-235 9. Hansen, S., Kvorning, T., Kjaer, M., & Sjogaard, G. (2001). The effect of short-term strength training on human skeletal muscle: the importance of physiologically elevated hormone levels. Scandinavian Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports, 11, 347-354 10. Lüthi JM, Howald H, Claassen H, Rösler K, Vock P, Hoppeler H (1986). Structural changes in skeletal muscle tissue with heavy-resistance exercise. Int J Sports Med. Jun;7(3):123-7.

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The Essential Guide to Building Muscle 11. Graves JE, Pollock ML, Leggett SH, Braith RW, Carpenter DM, Bishop LE (1988). Effect of reduced training frequency on muscular strength. Int J Sports Med. 1988 Oct;9(5):316-9. 12. KraemerWJ (1997). A series of studies: The physiological basis for strength training in football players: Fact over philosophy. J Strength Cond Res. 11(3):131-142 13. McGee D, Jessee TC, Stone MH, Blessing D (1992). Leg and hip endurance adaptations to three weight-training programs. J Appl Sport Sci Res. 6:92-95 14. Stowers T, Mcmillan J, Scala D, Davis V, Wilson D, Stone MH (1983). The short-term effects of three different strength-power training methods. NSCA J. 5(3):24-27 15. Willoughby DS (1993). The effects of mesocycle-length weight training programs involving periodization and partially equated volumes on upper and lower body strength. J Strength cond Res. 7:2-8 16. Kraemer WJ, Newton RU, Bush J, Volek J, Triplett NT, Koziris LP (1995). Varied multiple set resistance training program produces greater gain than single set program. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 27:S195 17. Kramer JB et al (1997). Effects of single vs. multiple sets of weight training: Impact of volume, intesnity and variation. J Strength Cond Res. 11(3):143-147 18. Herrick AR, Stone MH (1996). The effects of periodization versus progressive resistance exercise on upper and lower body strength in women. J Strength cond Res. 10(2):72-76 19. Ostrowski KJ et al (1997). The effect of weight training volume on hormonal output and muscular size and function. J Strength Cond Res. 11(3):148-154 20. Hansen, S., Kvorning, T., Kjaer, M., & Sjogaard, G. (2001). The effect of short-term strength training on human skeletal muscle: the importance of physiologically elevated hormone levels. Scandinavian Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports, 11, 347-354

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The Essential Guide to Building Muscle 21. McCarthy, J.P., Pozniak, M.A., & Agre, J.C. (2002). Neuromuscular adaptations to concurrent strength and endurance training. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 16, 152-156 22. Dolezal, B.A., & Potteiger, J.A. (1998). Concurrent resistance and endurance training influence basal metabolic rate in nondieting individuals. Journal of Applied Physiology, 85, 695-700 23. Häkkinen, K., Alen, M., Kraemer, W.J., Gorostiaga, E., Izquierdo, M., Rusko, H., Mikkola, J., Häkkinen, A., Valkeinen, H., Kaarakainen, E., Romu, S., Erola, V., Ahtiainen, J., & Paavolainen, L. (2003). Neuromuscular adaptations during concurrent strength and endurance training versus strength training. European Journal of Applied Physiology, 89, 42-52 24. McCarthy, J.P., Agre, J.C., Graf, B.K., Pozniak, M.A., & Vailas, A.C. (1995). Compatibility of adaptive responses with combining strength and endurance training. Medicine and Science in Sports Exercise, 27, 429-436

ESSENTIAL GUIDE TO BUILDING MUSCLE Copyright Sporting Excellence Ltd. All rights reserved. Neither this book, nor any parts within it may be sold or reproduced in any form without prior permission.

62

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