Cooking for Bodybuilders 101

As you probably figured out by now, I have a slight obsession with food. Not only do I like cooking, eating and trying out new recipes, but I even watch the Food Network, occasionally.

Strangely enough however, only when I am doing 45 minutes of cardio at 3am in the morning. Guess I must have some form of masochism hidden deep inside of me, cause I am actually enjoying watching Guy Fieri biting into a greasy burger while climbing up the treadmill at a 10% incline. Maybe it's some kind of fetish. Maybe a food fetish???

With this being said, it shouldn't come as too much of a surprise that this post will focus again on, duh, FOOD.

I often get the question what I am doing to get bigger or to get leaner, and the answer is quite simple. I eat.

Obviously not everything, but the foods that I eat, I eat a lot of spread throughout the day as you can read in one of my previous posts about my diet. 

Oftentimes I get the response that following my, or any kind of, diet would be impossible for various reasons. I call BULLS***. 

Yes, it requires discipline, planning and some work but it is easier than some people think. Well planning and preparation is. Regarding the discipline part, you either have it or not, but if you're lacking it, you should probably consider a different sport, hobby, lifestyle.

For me the easiest and most efficient way to ensure that I stick to my diet is to prepare my meals in advance and in bulk. 

All you need is a grill (Gas, Charcoal or George Foreman), a rice cooker/steamer, and a whole lot of plastic storage containers.

Once the "hardware" is in place, you figure out your daily food intake requirements based on the diet you will be following and use this to calculate the total amount of food for the week.

I go grocery shopping once a week and prepare my meals right afterwards.

Since I am purchasing in bulk, my shopping trips lead mostly to Costco, the local farmer's market or, since I periodically check out the weekly grocery store circulars and compare prices maybe a local supermarket.

While I used to buy the frozen Perdue chicken breasts at Costco for the longest time, lately I am "hooked" on fresh chicken which I buy on sale at my local supermarket. Lucky me I found the pound of boneless, skinless chicken breast this week at $1.99. That deal was too good to pass up, so I ended up buying 30 lbs. of it, which should last me around 10-14 days. 

The brown rice is purchased in 20lbs. bags at the local farmer's market for dirt cheap and the vegetables come "freshly frozen" in 5lbs bags, along with the lean steak from Costco. 

Considering the amount of meat I consume per week I think I made it officially on PETA's most wanted list. 

The preparation part, including cooking time, etc. takes about an hour and is usually done on the weekend. 

I simply put the rice in the rice cooker and while it cooks by itself I clean up the chicken, cut off excess fat and crappy parts, weight it, cut it to weight, season it and throw it on the grill. 

I was never really into seasoning or adding spices to my food, but ever since I tried sodium-free seasoning from Mrs. Dash, I realized how much of a difference it makes taste wise and use it every day.

Amazing what effect a little bit of garlic, paprika and pepper can have. 

While the rice and chicken are getting ready put the vegetables into a pot and let the steam for a couple of minutes. 

Once everything is done I take out all my plastic containers, measure out the rice and veggies, add the chicken or steak to it, seal it and put it in the fridge. 

This preparation allows me to simply open up the fridge in the morning, take out the required number of containers for the day, put them in a cooler and take them to work. 

Another benefit, besides the convenience, is the ability to be more spontaneous when it comes to business or pleasure travels. All you need is to grab your cooler and off you go.

Little note on the side. To avoid any food poisoning, make sure that the food is cleaned, cooked thoroughly, stored in the refrigerator and eaten within a couple of days. 

And before I get any comments, yes this method will also work if you prefer fish or turkey over chicken and /or sweet potatoes over brown rice.

Putting the Kelvinator to good use

Now three weeks out, my coach Jack told me to add some extra Vitamin B6 and Vitamin C to my diet. And by extra, I mean a bulk load. To be exact a total of 1,500mg of B6 and 4,500mg of C per day. 

In terms of established daily values, my vitamin B6 intake per day until the day of the competition is 75,000%, in words Seventy-five THOUSAND percent, of the recommended daily intake value and 7,497% of the daily requirements for vitamin C. 

Both supplements are intended to enhance metabolic functions and  to further help achieving water depletion to look vascular and hard on stage. 

"Le chef" himself boating on Memorial Day

"Eating and sleeping are a waste of time."

The above quote was made by the late U.S. president Gerald Rudolph "Jerry" Ford and could not be more incorrect when it comes to bodybuilding, lifting, strength training or any form of athletic training in general.

A proper diet and the right amount of sleep are key factors to get the most out of the tedious efforts you are putting in at the gym.

During the "off-season", I am following a meal plan which factors in my body weight, as well as body fat content to help me increase lean muscle mass. In one of my previous posts I went a little bit more into detail on this plan. While I usually stick to this plan most of the time, I allow myself a "window" every once in a while to enjoy a "cheat meal" or something sweet.

Now that I am dieting for a show, all those "cheat meals" are history and my food intake got even more boring and strict. My plan calls for 8 meals per day, including pre-and post-workout meals. Since I am basically required to eat every 2 hours, proper preparation and planning is key. I usually prepare my three main meals (chicken and brown rice, chicken and vegetables) the night before, pack it into plastic containers and just take it to work the next day. For the afternoon Protein Shake, I keep an extra container of protein and a Protein Shaker Cup at work. While I am preparing the food for the next day I also make dinner and eat it while the other food is cooking.

PROTEIN:

To meet my daily protein requirements, I am relying on Whey Protein Isolate, which I mix with water and consume 3 times a day, Casein, chicken, lean red meat and occasionally tuna.

Whey Protein Isolate is a dietary supplement created by filtering milk protein. Since it is quickly absorbed by the body and used to fuel working muscles and stimulate protein synthesis, it is the perfect protein for my pre-and post-workout meals.

Casein is a slow digesting protein and provides a sustained slow release of amino acids into the body's blood stream. This release can last for several hours, depending on the composition, and helps to maintain the muscles in an anabolic state. It is my choice of protein right before going to bed, since it will provide my body with protein for muscle recovery and growth during my sleep.

My main source of protein is chicken breast, of which I currently consume three meals of 10 ounces each. To keep costs manageable, I purchase a 10 lbs. bag of frozen chicken once a week and just throw it on my George Foreman Grill.

To get some variation and fat in my diet, I have an 8 ounce piece of lean red meat for dinner.One of the leanest cuts of beef is the so-called "eye round", which I purchase as a roast, trim off the excessive fat and cut into 8 ounce pieces. In case I did not have time to prepare chicken or feel like eating something different, I always keep a couple cans of tuna (obviously in water) at home.

Protein makes up the majority of my daily caloric intake with around 54%.

CARBOHYDRATES:

I have tried different foods to meet my daily carb intake, such as yams, sweet potatoes, brown rice and oats, but out of sheer laziness and measuring convenience I stuck with plain oats and brown rice, as well as Carbohydrate Powder. I buy everything in bulk and just measure whatever I need.

For my pre-workout meal I have 1.5 cups of oatmeal mixed with my Whey Protein and water and for faster absorption after my workout, I mix Carbohydrate Powder with Whey Protein and water for my post-workout meal.The 10am and 12:30 meals consist each of 1.5 cups of brown rice with chicken.

By now it should become obvious that I probably lack any taste buds in my mouth, so it should not come to a surprise that I actually enjoy plain oats in water or reheated brown rice. However to add some taste to my oats, I usually mix them with my Whey Protein, some cinnamon and Stevia or a spoon of Calorie Free Caramel Dip and to my reheated brown rice I like to add some Calorie Free Barbecue Sauce. When your diet is that plain, every tiny, little bit of additional flavor is amazing.

Carbs make up roughly 34% of the calories I eat every day and consumed with the first four meals of the day.

FATS:

My daily intake of fats is currently very minimal, with most of it coming from meat (chicken and beef) or in form of healthy omega-3 fatty acids from Flaxseed Oil Pills.

Calories from fats account for approximately 12% of my daily calories.

VEGETABLES:

To get more vitamins and also add some "volume" to my meals, I have two meals daily to which I add two cups of vegetables. I keep it here with the rule "the greener, the better" and switch between green beans, lettuce, spinach and broccoli. Again, mainly out of convenience, I buy them frozen and in bulk.

A detailed version of my current "pre-contest diet" can be found in the "FREE NUTRITION PLANS" section on the right hand side.

Besides proper nutrition, rest is one of the most essential principles of performance enhancement and oftentimes overlooked. Ones sleeping habits can seriously affect the body's own muscle building potential and prevent one from reaching his or her full potential.

Muscle adaption or in other words muscle growth is occurring during the recovery time after workouts and not during them. Rest periods give the body time to repair muscle tissues and replenish the muscles' energy stores.

While not getting enough sleep is detrimental in the long-term and has serious negative effects on ones athletic progress, mood and overall health, too much sleep can make one lethargic and slow. By sleeping longer, the body also has to go longer without food and much needed nutrients cannot reach the muscles. A great way to provide continuous "fuel" for your muscles at night is by taking the above mentioned Casein before bedtime.

Recent studies recommend that athletes should sleep for 8-9 hours to give their bodies and minds enough time to rest, recover and refresh. I have discovered that my body reacts best to 6-7 hours of sleep at night.

Sleep, Eat, Train, Repeat!