The search for the Holy Grail

Gaining Muscle and losing body fat- can it be done?

By Jason Rickaby- Champion Natural for life Body builder and author.

The common theory in body building is that losing fat takes one approach, whilst building muscle requires another. To a certain extent this ideal is true, though there are ways we can play around with our lifestyles to try achieve both simultaneously.

The single most commonly-made mistake in the life of the athlete looking to gain more muscle, is to over-eat. The second is to under train. Athletes of the last 15 years have unfortunately been weaned on the writings of so-called “gurus” infiltrating their subconscious with the “less is best” approach to training. The same self-appointed experts (read salesmen) will also try and shovel the “Eat big to get big” logic onto you. Neither are true and both are detrimental to you trying to achieve the most with your physique goals.

The simple fact is if you eat a lot, you’ll get fat. If you don’t burn off those calories and you’ll also get fat. Sure the scales will go up and you’ll look big in a t-shirt, but take the top off and you’ll see the real picture. When beginning weight-training, the idea is to look lean and muscular, whether you’re male or female. With this in mind we have to be super-efficient with both our diet and training, so let’s look at both.

1-       Training

It’s simple, we touched upon this in last months newsletter, see link http://monstersupplements.com/store/articles_detail-33-lang-1.html to read it again. Quite simply, if you train with short rest periods, yet still use heavy weights, you’re breaking down sufficient muscle fibers, yet you’re doing it with enough pace to raise GH levels, spike your metabolism and keep it stoked for hours after training. Wallop, anabolic and aerobic all-in-one.

2-       Diet

Again, the diet is straight forward, nothing revolutionary, yet seldom-few appear to be getting it right. http://phd-supplements.com/store/articles_detail-1-lang-1.html is an in-depth article I wrote for men and women really looking to maximise their condition and radically lose body fat. Of course if you’re not looking to be as extreme, don’t take it quite so far. Begin the day with your highest carb-meal (Oats and a protein shake, or eggs and 2-3 slices of whole wheat bread is good), have a small meal 90 mins before you workout (some fruit is great) and then after training make use of the elevated metabolism by consuming a good Post workout meal (Guys aim for 30-50 grams protein, girls aim for 20-30 grams, followed by 60-80 grams of liquid carbs for men and 30-40 grams for women). As the day goes on, make sure the complex carbs (potatoes, rice, pasta, breads) are eradicated. I usually eat my last complex carb meal of sweet potato around 5-6pm when really clamping down on body fat. At this time switch to fibrous carbs like broccoli, salads or fruit. To fill in the gaps, eat moderate protein, moderate carb meals and supplement meals with EFA’s in the form of flaxseed oil or fish oils.

3-       Supplements

1)       Always use a good whey protein product, both after training and during the day to make sure you’re maintaining muscle.

2)       Use a good thermogenic fat-burner before training and first thing in the morning (if you train mid-afternoon). If you train in the morning, just use one serving before training. I use Lean Degree™, by PhD Nutrition and it really works.

3)       Use essential fats. http://monstersupplements.com/store/product_list-sub_cat-20-lang-1.html as touched on before, adding Essential fats to each meal can really help. They satisfy appetite, help with fat-loss, ensure good health and improve brain function.

4)       Use Glutamine! This is vital in my opinion for gaining muscle and losing body fat. Glutamine is very anti-catabolic and will help to preserve muscle-tissue when attempting to strip body fat. Aim for between 10-40 grams per day, depending upon sex, weight, requirements.

5)       Pre-workout drinks can help. A pre-workout drink consisting of caffeine, creatine, BCAA’s, L-Tyrosine and low in carbs can really help drag you through the hard workouts and ensure cell volume, increased strength and concentration. Good ones I’ve used are Wired™ by PhD Nutrition and NOZ-Full Throttle by Nutrabolics.

So whilst others say it’s not possible, you know that with time, commitment and an optimum lifestyle, building muscle and losing fat simultaneously may not be quite as impossible as some think.

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