Let's face it. You could exercise to perfection. Take all the right supplements. But without the proper nutrient intake, you wouldn't gain an ounce of new muscle. Remember, nutrition is what gives your body the tools it needs to effect change. Just follow the guidelines I'm giving you here. You'll have the ability to supply your body with the proper fuel, energy, and building blocks it requires to carry out your total body transformation in the fastest way possible!

Your Daily "Mass Building" Caloric Intake

Here's an easy way to calculate you mass building caloric intake (MBCI). Multiply your weight by the "baseline factor" of 14.25. For example: Say you weigh 200 pounds. Take 200 times 14.25. That comes to 2850. It's that simple. Every day, try to eat 2850 calories. Stay on this caloric intake for two weeks. If you're training properly and not gaining, bump up the baseline calories by 10%. Multiply 2850 by 1.10. That comes to 3135, your new MBCI.

NOTE: If you have a high metabolism, try starting at an initial Baseline Factor of 15 times your body weight and adjust up or down by 10%. Conversely, if you have a slow metabolism, start at an initial Baseline Factor of 14.0 and adjust up or down by 10%. Keep in mind, make no adjustments to your MBCI until you've been on a specific caloric intake for at least 2 full weeks.

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Your Nutrient Ratios

At MRI we studied muscle gain with practically every kind of diet. We put experienced bodybuilders (2 - 10 years of training) on our exercise and supplement routines and experimented with a variety of nutrient ratios to see what positive or negative effects it would have on adding lean mass. Time after time, the optimum gains were made with the 50-30-20 ratio, carbs-protein-fat, with some small adjustments made for metabolism. 50-30-20 simply means that 50% of the total calories you consume each day should come from carbohydrates. 30% protein. And 20% fat. Here's your calculator for nutrient ratios:

Nutrient Ratio Calculator

Here's the way to convert "ratios of calories" to "grams of food." Here, MCBI is your mass building caloric intake (see above).

  • Grams of Carbs = (MBCI) x (.50)/4
  • Grams of Protein = (MBCI) x (.30)/4
  • Grams of Fat = (MBCI) x (.20)/9

For example: Say you need 2850 calories. And the nutrient ratio is 50-30-20. You know that 1 gram of carbs = 4 calories, 1 gram of protein = 4 calories, and 1 gram of fat = 9 calories. Here are the calculations:

  • Carbs (2850 calories) x (0.50) = 1425 calories (divided by 4) = 356 grams
  • Protein (2850 calories) x (0.30) = 855 calories (divided by 4) = 214 grams
  • Fat (2850 calories) x (0.20) = 570 calories (divided by 9) = 63 grams

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Your Food Choices

Carbs - Your Energy Source and More

Proper nutrition is all about growth and energy. And carbohydrates are your muscle's best energy source. They provide the muscle glycogen that powers your workouts. Did you know you can completely deplete the muscle glycogen from both liver and exercised muscle in less than 2 hours! (A situation you want to avoid at all costs.) That's why it's so important to get the right amount of carbohydrates in every meal. They're especially important to your recovery. In addition, carbs help spare your muscle protein. Although the main role of protein is to build muscle tissue, your body will breakdown existing protein to use as energy if muscle glycogen stores are depleted. But there's one very important part of the carb equation that you have to get right - the glycemic index.

Getting the Glycemic Index Right - Maximum-Energy Input

Not all carbohydrates are digested and absorbed at the same rate. The Glycemic Index is the relative measure of the increase in blood sugar after eating 50 grams of carbohydrates. The "standard" for the measure is pure glucose which is given a value of 100.

Now, here's the rule: Whenever possible, eat low and medium glycemic-index carbs. The reason is simple. NO2 "drives" more glucose into your muscle cell throughout the entire day. The "flow" of low-glycemic index carbs works ideally with NO2.

NOTE: You get one "cheat day" a week, that's when you can reach for the high glycemic carbs! (See chart below.)

GLYCEMIC INDEX CHART
SUGARS
High Medium Low
Glucose   Fructose
Sucrose    
Honey    
Cane Syrup    
Maple Syrup    
Corn Syrup    
VEGETABLES/LEGUMES
High Medium Low
White Potato Sweet Potato Cauliflower
Carrots Green Peas Peas
Parsnips   Asparagus
    Lentils
    String Beans
    Kidney Beans
    Kale
    Broccoli
    Lettuce
FRUIT
High Medium Low
Raisin Oranges Apple
Banana Grapes Peach
Plum Watermelon Pear
  Fig Cherries
DAIRY
High Medium Low
  Yogurt  
  Milk  
GRAINS
High Medium Low
White Rice Whole Grain Bread Barley
Cornflakes Spaghetti  
Wheaties Oatmeal  
White Bread Brown Rice  

Protein - Building New Muscle

Carbs give you and your muscles energy. But it's protein that gives your body the building blocks it needs to grow new muscle. In case you haven't heard it a million times before, I'll say it one more time: only "complete" protein builds muscle. Complete proteins contain all the aminos, including the 8 "essential" aminos that your body can not make by itself. Okay, I've said it.

After choosing only complete proteins, I think variety, and taste, are what count most. As bodybuilders, we're on such a "structured" diet, that if we don't enjoy the food we eat, we are likely to "cheat" more than the one day a week we're entitled to.

Fats – the Good, the Bad and the Ugly

Not all fats are bad for you. Some, in fact, are healthy. Let me give the final word on fat. There are three types of fats, with three completely different molecular structures. You’ve got Saturated, Polyunsaturated, and Monounsaturated.

Saturated Fats – NO GO

These are the harmful fats. They elevate cholesterol in the blood. They also lack the essential fatty acids you need! Here are examples of saturated fats:

  • Butter
  • Cheese
  • Chocolate
  • Egg yolks
  • Meat fat
  • Dairy fat
  • Shortening
  • Palm oil
  • Palm kernel oil
  • Coconut oil

Except for the “tropical” ones (palm, palm kernel, and coconut) you can easily recognize a saturated fat because it is solid at room temperature. In other words, if it keeps its shape, it’ll help you lose yours!

Poly and Mono Unsaturated Fat – GO!

Vegetable fats are mostly mono and poly unsaturated. And instead of raising blood cholesterol, they actually lower it. The contain the essential fatty acids (EFA’s) such as omega 3’s and omega 6’s. Where do you find these friendly fats?

Polyunsaturated:
  • Fish
  • Walnuts
  • Pecans
  • Almonds
  • Flax
  • Some salad dressings
  • Soybean oil
  • Sunflower oil
  • Safflower oil
Monounsaturated:
  • Avocados
  • Cashews
  • Peanuts
  • Pecans
  • Natural peanut butter
  • Olive oil

I'm telling you about the good fats, because all too often bodybuilders cut them out completely in an attempt to lean out. But listen to this. EFA's are essential to improving insulin sensitivity, energy production, oxygen transfer, suppressing cortisol, promoting growth and burning fat!!!

PROTEIN CHART
FOOD Portion Calories Protein Carbs Fat
BEEF
Bottom round trimmed  1 oz 45 6.2 0.0 2.1
Bottom round untrimmed 1 oz 64 5.7 0.0 4.4
Flank untrimmed 1 oz 51 5.6 0.0 3.0
Tenderloin untrimmed 1 oz 82 5.0 0.0 6.7
Top Sirloin untrimmed 1 oz 44 6.0 0.0 2.0
CHICKEN - WHITE MEAT
Breast+Skin 1 oz 49 5.9 0.0 2.6
Breast only 1 oz 31 6.5 0.0 0.4
TURKEY
Dark Meat 1 oz 35 5.7 0.0 1.2
Light Meat 1 oz 33 6.7 0.0 0.4
FISH
Cod 1 oz 23 5.0 0.0 0.2
Tuna (canned in water) 1 oz 35 7.5 0.0 0.5
Tuna (fresh) 1 oz 41 6.0 0.0 1.4
Bass (fresh water) 1 oz 32 5.3 0.0 1.0
Bass 1 oz 27 5.2 0.0 0.6
Salmon 1 oz 48 6.0 0.0 2.6
EGGS
The "Whole" Egg 1 large 75 6.3 0.6 5.0

Hint: Put every last gram of your daily fat allowance - what's not already in the food you eat - into great-tasting sauces! That way you'll avoid the weekend "pleasure mode" binges, and won't be tempted to try to "un-do" what you've done by going on one of those ketogenic-type diets.

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