The Weight Training Diet - The Type Of Weight Training Diet To Follow
Now that we have run over a few of The Basics that will help make your weight training routine successful, we need to address the type of weight training diet you should be following. Your weight training diet is what will make or break you. Working out and lifting heavy weights will only get you to around 20% of where you want to be. The weight training diet makes up the remaining 80% and should therefore be thoroughly looked at.
As I have mentioned in the basics, a weight training diet will need to be comprised of roughly 55% carbohydrates, 35% protein and 10% fat. Now I know your probably thinking how am I going to work out the percentages of what I eat. A simpler way to think of it is that you want the majority of calories coming from carbohydrates, protein and fats in that order. Roughly, try and get around 2g of carbohydrates per pound of bodyweight and at least 1g of protein per pound of bodyweight. To do this we need to carry out a similar method to that of the one used to Lose weight. However, this time you will need to note down the number of calories you consume in your weight training diet along with the amount of carbs, protein and fat you are consuming.
It’s a good idea to note this down in some kind of Food journal as this way you can see whether or not you are eating the correct foods throughout each day. You will also get to learn the kind of meals you are consuming on a daily basis so after a while you will probably be able to prepare the meals off the top of your head. Keeping a food journal can actually become a fun thing to do and can help fine tune your weight training diet. Many people are not aware of just how much they actually eat throughout a normal day so the food journal can help you realise where you are going wrong in your diet. It can also help to eliminate excess calories and incorporate more healthy foods into your weight training diet. Protein intake can also be monitored using a food journal so remember to get in your 1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight each day. The next thing were going to be looking at is the types of carbohydrates, proteins and fats we should be eating. These are also known as macronutrients and each come in different forms some more beneficial than others.
The Weight Training Diet - Macronutrients
Thats start with carbohydrates. Carbohydrates are very important in a weight training diet as they supply sustained released energy to get you through those tough workouts. There are two different types of carbohydrates. One group is called complex carbohydrates and the others are called simple carbohydrates. Both Complex Carbohydrates And Simple Carbohydrates should be part of your weight training diet. Ideally we need to be consuming the majority from complex carbohydrates. These are the ones that enter the bloodstream over a sustained period of time giving us more control over our energy levels. Simple carbohydrates do still however have a place in our weight training diet. The best time for consuming simple carbohydrates is straight after your workout. Believe it or not, this is actually one of the most important times to consume a small meal/smoothie that consists of both carbohydrates and protein. See my Post-Workout Nutrition Article for more information about eating after your workout.
Thats now take a look at the different kind of complex and simple carbohydrate foods available for you to consume on your weight training diet:
| Complex Carbs | Simple Carbs |
|---|---|
| Wholemeal Pasta | Dextrose/Maltodextrin |
| Wholemeal Spaghetti | Grape Juice |
| Wholemeal Breads/Brown Bread | |
| Wholegrain Cereals or High Fibre Cereals | |
| Bran (Bran Flakes) | |
| Brown Rice | |
| New Potatoes | |
| Beans | |
| Majority of vegetables |
We now move onto protein foods. Protein Is A Key Component in any weight training diet. Protein will help our muscles grow stronger and recover from previous workouts. Similar to carbohydrates, protein comes in two forms. These are complete proteins and incomplete proteins. We are going to focus on consuming more complete proteins in your weight training diet as these are the proteins that posses all the essential amino acids that our body needs to help us build new muscle. Hence why their called ‘complete’ proteins. Incomplete proteins on the other hand do not possess the full amount of essential amino acids.
| Complete Protein | Incomplete Protein |
|---|---|
| Turkey | Bread |
| Chicken | Pasta |
| Lean Beef | Rice |
| Fish | Oats |
| Milk | Beans |
| Yogurt | Spaghetti |
| Eggs | Nuts |
| Cheese | Vegetables |
| Protein Powders |
Incomplete proteins can actually be mixed together to create a complete protein. For example, eating peanut butter on top of wholemeal bread will compensate for the missing amino acids that occur in both bread and peanut butter. It is however best to ensure you are consuming some sort of complete protein in every meal as this will help meet your daily protein needs as well as supporting additional muscle growth.
Last up is fats. Fats obviously have a reputation for being bad for you and many people feel you should eliminate fats from your diet completely. This is not true. The so called Healthy Fats Are Extremely Important to both our weight training diet and our bodies as they play a vital role in maintaining healthy skin, hair, protecting body organs, maintaining body temperature, and promoting healthy cell function. They also serve as energy stores for the body. Not all fats can be produced by the body so it is important to get them from your diet in small amounts when possible. The healthy fats you should be eating are monounsaturated and polyunsaturated. Saturated and trans-fatty acids should try to be eliminated from your weight training diet as much as possible as these are the ones that have Potential Health Risks Associated With Them. Such risks include raising cholesterol levels and increasing the risk of heart disease. Just to give you an idea of what healthy fats you can include in your weight training diet, take a look at the list below.
- Olives
- Walnuts
- Avocados
- Vegetable Oils
- Fish
- Nuts
- Seeds
- Salmon
The list above probably doesn’t look to advertising to any of you so if you would prefer to get your healthy fats another way, I would recommend Taking An EFA Supplement. EFA stands for essential fatty acids. An EFA supplement will provide you with a good amount of healthy fats providing you take around 2-3 spoonfuls a day. You can either take a spoonful straight from the bottle and wash it down with a drink afterwards or you can pour it over cereals or salads. Be aware that EFA’s do have quite a distinct taste so it is a good idea to take it with food or a drink so that the aftertaste is not as noticeable. Overall EFA’s are a great way of incorporating healthy fats into your weight training diet. Just a quick look at the unhealthy fats that many of us consume in our everyday diets (saturated, hydrogenated and Trans fatty acids). These types of fat are usually found in:
- Cakes
- Cookies
- Dessert
- Pastries
- Sweets
- Chocolate Bars