Follow the Proper Diet to Build Muscle

One important consideration for anyone who wishes to build muscle, is choosing an appropriate diet to build muscle, a diet that will help you to achieve your goals. Without the consumption of the necessary foods, you won't have the building materials for muscle growth or the energy to build muscle.

Body building requires a lot of determination, commitment, and self control to stick with the exercises required. The body builder also has to maintain that same focus when following a diet to build muscles, by selecting which foods to include and exclude from his diet.

Diet is a major determinate of how healthy a person is and actually feels. Good nutrition and good health go together. Good nutrition is also key to maintaining the energy and strength needed to build muscle, and the speed at which it can be accomplished.




Diet is often thought of only in terms of general weight loss. In the context of muscle building, it has a definition that is quite different. Dieting to build muscle is focused upon providing building materials for muscle growth, providing the energy to perform the exercises needed to promote that growth, and to reduce the amount of body fat. Eating enough protein is critical to any diet to build muscle.

As with any diet, your diet plan should be tailored to your current body weight. As you increase your muscle mass and body weight, you must increase your protein and calorie consumption. If you weigh 160 pounds, you may consume only 300 grams of protein each day and about 3000 calories. This should be spread out during the day over five or six meals, and would include any protein shakes taken before or after workout sessions.

Fresh fruits like apples and bananas are great foods to include in a diet to build muscle. Eggs, egg whites, toast, and other unprocessed foods are also excellent choices, making breakfast one of the most important meals of the day. Avoid the processed foods in frozen meals. Your diet is a vital part of your body building program.

While diet is important for providing the nutrition needed for building muscle, the actual muscle building process still requires that you work out vigorously. The proper diet simply ensures that you are filling you body with the needed fuel. Don't be afraid of variety in your food selections.

Eating the same foods over and over is boring and can lead to bad eating habits simply to experience a pleasant change. Pork, chicken, and salmon are tasty protein sources, and applesauce and oatmeal muffins are excellent carbs with delightful flavors. Regardless of what you eat, make sure that the food is healthful, and you'll be more productive during you workout time.

If you truly wish to improve your general health and physical appearance by building muscle, make sure that you treat your diet choices with the same intensity that you perform your exercise routines. You're goal is to gain muscle and lose fat. Exercise and a good diet to build muscle go hand in hand to achieve those goals.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Jack_A_Bush/600750

How to Stay Fit and Healthy to Improve Your Game Through Good and Proper Nutrition

Today, there are many softball tips out there that proliferate everywhere, which aim to help softball players to improve their game. But to the average Joe, softball is just a game where it's just another team sport where guys or girls pitch and hit the ball and run around in a diamond inside the field. Little does he know that in order to be a good softball player, he must ensure that he gets the right types of food in the right amount.

Here are some softball nutrition tips that you can learn and apply not just to boost your game but also improve your physique so you would be able to perform better whether inside or outside the field.

1. Hydrate yourself. Be sure to drink a lot of water, typically seven to eight glasses a day, to keep yourself hydrated, especially when you're playing softball outdoors.
2.  Drink coffee in moderation. Coffee, a stimulant, is said to cause dehydration but if this is taken in moderate amounts, it can help increase your alertness while on the field.
3.  Avoid consuming too much energy drinks. Recently, studies were conducted that showed energy drinks containing cocaine, an illegal drug that causes alertness and hyperactivity on the person who consumes it. The problem with energy drinks is that they can be addictive and at the same time, they are composed of different chemicals that are harmful to your body.
4.  Consume sports drinks. These drinks contain active ingredients that help replenish electrolytes that normally gets lost when you engage in physically-demanding activities like softball. At the same time, they provide energy that you can use while you play the game.      
5.  When hungry, eat. Skipping a meal isn't healthy and if your stomach is often empty, this would surely affect your game. You need to stay sharp and alert so, better follow a proper diet, eating quality food, to keep yourself mentally and physically fit.
6.  Avoid drinking soda, juice and tea. The reason behind this is that these drinks cause dehydration. So, it would be better if you stick to water and sports drinks.
7.  Go for foods rich in carbohydrates, proteins, vitamins and minerals. Examples of foods that are recommended for softball players are whole grains, grapes, salmon and broccoli.
8. Avoid eating foods with artificial ingredients. Never eat processed food like bacon and hotdog as they don't contain the nutrients your body needs.
9.  Always opt for fresh foods. The fresher they are, the better.
10.  Go for vegetable juices. Vegetables are definitely good for your body as they provide enough vitamins and minerals to improve not just your performance physically but they also boost your immune system as well. 
11. Eat enough protein. Examples of foods that are rich in high-quality protein are fish, egg whites and beans. Avoid consuming simple or refined carbohydrates such as flour and sugar.
12. Spread your meals throughout the day. It's healthy to eat small meals five to six times a day as this boost your metabolism and in turn, this enhances your strength, power and your energy flow on a daily basis.
13. Avoid taking nutritional supplements. Many nutritional supplements promise to boost your performance as an athlete but the truth is, they don't actually work as there's no scientific findings to actually support the claims. What you need to do instead is to go for quality nutrition.
14. Consume alcohol moderately. It's widely known that alcohol causes dehydration and it can even disable you from reaching your optimum performance if you consume alcohol regularly.
15. Bring healthy foods with you, especially when you're outside your house. Instead of going for burgers and fries, pack healthy snacks like fruit and granola bars for you to munch on.

There you go, some sofball tips on how to stay fit and healthy to improve your game through good and proper nutrition.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Marc_Dagenais/226015

Can I Lose Weight by Eating Chicken?

Chicken has long been considered a great alternative to beef and pork for a variety of reasons. One factor that makes so many people switch to chicken as a protein source is the idea that it can help them lose weight. Let's take a quick look at the reality behind this practice, as we try to answer the question "Can I lose weight by eating chicken?"

Chicken breast is extremely low in fat, while other parts of the bird contain significantly higher levels of saturated fat. This means that if you really want to lose weight, you should focus primarily on the breast.

While it's true that many people have lost weight by substituting chicken for red meat, it is also true that chicken is hardly a "superfood." Dead food is dead food, and chicken is no exception.




What does this mean?

I am a firm believer that 70% of your diet should be made up of high water-content foods like fresh fruits and veggies. Animal products should take up only 10% of your dinner plate, reserving the other 20% for whole grains, legumes, and raw nuts. This is the ideal.

Of course, if you want to lose weight by eating chicken, simply have a nice big chicken salad with leaf lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, and avocados. Dress it with olive oil, fresh herbs, and fresh cracked pepper and you are not only on the right track, you're in 7th Heaven!

Grilled chicken sandwiches, pitas, and wraps are also good alternatives, provided you pile on the veggies and use whole grain breads.

Pay Close Attention:

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Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Lee_A._Murray/382695