Food. Food. Food. You may have read many times to gain weight you must eat a lot of a food. And basically that is correct, at the end of the day you need to be consuming more calories than you are expending in a day. There are different ways to monitor this, simply to start eating a certain diet and check if you are gaining weight but this is quite hard to get right straight away so it might take a bit of time to get it all right. My diet plan and 6 month tracking system is a much more specific way of finding your calorie balance and getting you eating enough calories to be able to start gaining weight. However, this doesn't always mean you're going to pack on lot's of muscle, many things come in to the equation like macronutrient balance, protein timing and of course exercise intensity, this can all be addressed in the plan.
Discussion
1. Protein timing- extremely important factor when aiming to build muscle. Research shows that for optimal muscle growth you must be consuming a good source of protein high in amino acids every 3-5 hours, this helps to stimulate Muscle Protein Synthesis (MPS), the process of rebuilding damaged muscles. So get your chicken, eggs, steak, fish, whey etc. and consume frequently! 2. Carbohydrates- energy for your muscles! Start filling up pre and post workout to give your muscles the fuel they need to maximise performance. I would suggest to fill up on some complex carbs a couple of hours before your workout, such as brown rice, sweet potatoes and wholewheat pasta for some steady release energy. Then due to your blood glucose levels being very low because of the heavy resistance training I suggest to consume another serving of simple carbs such as white rice or fruit post workout along with a good serving of protein for some fast release energy transporting it straight to your fatigued muscles. 3. Calories- if you're not consuming enough calories in your day then you will find it very difficult to gain muscle. Find your calorie maintenance, start tracking your food and aim to eat over that amount a couple of hundred calories to start with and check your progress. Your muscles need enough fuel to be able to grow so start filling up! This can be easily calculated by joining my plan.