The previous three parts of this article series have discussed a variety of topics related to protein and amino acids (AAs): digestion, protein quality, requirements and many others. To help readers better understand some of the mechanisms that regulate protein and AA metabolism in the body, it is necessary to develop a model of AA […]
Protein, Part 3: Individual Amino Acid Requirements
In Part 2 of this series, the topic of protein quality was discussed, including examination of the major methods currently used to rate protein quality. For a variety of reasons, most of the currently available methods to rate proteins are deficient, especially when they are applied to an active population. Continuing with that discussion, this part of […]
Protein, Part 2: Protein Metabolism
This article is the second in a series of articles discussion the details of protein metabolism in bodybuilders. Part 1 addressed some basic concepts and definitions regarding protein, digestion of different forms of protein as well as total protein requirements for athletes. Part 2 of this article series builds on Part 1 with a discussion of protein digestibility and […]
Protein, Part 1 – Definitions and Technical Background
If you ask 10 bodybuilders what the most important nutrient is for putting on muscle, you will most likely get 10 identical answers (a rarity in sports nutrition). That answer is, of course: PROTEIN! Every bodybuilder knows that, no matter what else you do, if you aren’t getting enough protein, you won’t grow.
Charting Progress on the Baseline Diet Part II: Methods for Measuring Body Composition
In part 1 of this article, I made some general comments about body composition as well as discussing some of the possible methods of measuring changes in body composition. These methods included underwater weighing, the scale, tape measures, and calipers. In the second part of this article, I’d like to discuss some other methods of measuring […]
Charting Progress on the Baseline Diet, Part 1
In my last two articles, I talked about how to set up a baseline diet for basic bodybuilding purposes. In this article, I would like to talk about how an individual might monitor how well (or poorly) that diet is working for them in order to determine if a change is necessary. There are a […]
The Baseline Diet, Part 2: Protein, Carbohydrates, and Fat
Last article, I discussed three of the primary aspects of the baseline diet: meal frequency, caloric intake and water intake. To recap briefly, at a bare minimum bodybuilders (and probably everybody else for that matter) should be eating 4 times per day. Six time per day is probably closer to ideal, although this depends on […]
The Baseline Diet, Part 1: Meal Frequency, Caloric Intake and Water Intake
I’m going to start this article with a few questions. How much mass have you gained in the last few months? If you’re like the average lifter, the answer is ‘Not as much as I’d like’. Ok, next question: how much money have you spent on exotic supplements hoping they’d be the secret to freaky […]
Back to the Basics (for One Last Time)
For those of you who don’t know, there are several new entries into the world of muscle magazines including a print version of Testosterone, ‘Body International’ which is being published by Sergio Oliveira, and a magazine published by the folks at Penthouse magazine called ‘Mind and Muscle Power’ (now you really can say that you […]
Ask Lyle McDonald #15
Alternating Bodyopus Diet with High Calorie Diet Dear Lyle,Like everyone else my goal is to gain as much muscle as possible while maintaining a relatively low bodyfat level. I’m wondering whether you can shed some light as to whether alternating between a two week high calorie (300-500 cal/day above maintenance) isocaloric diet followed by two […]