The
body building diet is something that has confused many people new
to bodybuilding. These people are pursuing bodybuilding as a means
of promoting health and as a hobby, opposed to pursuing a career
as a professional bodybuilder.
Keep in mind,
in general terms, there is not much of a difference between a
professionals and a hobbyists body building diet,
because a proper diet is a fairly fixed, scientific entity. There
are, however, some subtle changes between the diet of the pro
and the amateur.
It is All
About the Calories
The number
of calories that a professional will eat in a body building diet
will be significantly higher than that of an amateur, because
the body builder professional probably weighs in excess of 220lbs
and is all muscle, low body fat. Muscle burns calories like crazy,
so a pro will not gain weight eating 7,000 calories a day.
In other words,
a professional burns up calories by exercising, and the metabolic
process of the muscle will devour those calories like crazy. For
a hobbyist, one would probably want to stay within a calorie level
to maintain ones weight, which is usually 2,000 a day for
most people, with some being higher and virtually never recommended
to be over that amount.
Water Intake
Variables
Water consumption
is a major factor in a body building diet because water does a
body good. When one drinks a lot of water, one will see a dramatic
change in ones body. Drinking a lot of water will make your
body cease storing excess water weight.
Water also
flushes the kidneys and the kidney will not need help from the
liver to do its job, so the liver is free to metabolize more fat.
Lastly, the body is primarily composed of water, so adding new
water to it will allow the body to function well. This is why
body builders will drink up to three gallons of water a day! Hobbyists
really only need to drink between 64 and 100 ounces of water per
day.
Pre-Contest Diet Phase
Bodybuilders
will do a great deal of cardio during a free contest period and
will drastically cut calories and carbs. They will also make other
body building diet alterations so as to develop a defined look
for a judge.
Since the hobbyist is not competing and is not taking in massive
calories during an off- season, they can usually avoid this part
of the body building diet and simply eat a more standard recommended
diet during the year. Of course, one can do a modified version
of this body building diet prior to the beach days of summer for
great results.