YOU HAVE TO EAT BIG IF YOU WANT TO GET BIG.

If you wish to pack on quality muscle and gain size you must be consuming more calories than you are burning off.

Carbohydrates, Protein & Fat. The simple truth is your body can not survive without any one of these nutrients.

It is knowledge that an increase of 500 calories a day over and above your basal metabolic rate should lead to an increase in weight equal to a pound a week.

Another tried and tested way of gaining weight is to eat between 5 and 6 meals a day, general rule of thumb though is the more the better.

Some people feel like they cant eat so many meals a day however it is not so bad when you investigate. You do not eat 5 or 6 meals that are the same size as those if you were eating 2 or 3. Rather you would find your basal metabolic rate (Your body's required amount of calories to keep it at the same weight) and add the reccommended 500 calories then divide this by the number of meals you are planning on eating a day.

If your bmr is 2500 calories a day then to gain weight you need 3000. This should be divided by 5 (number of meals) and this means that by consuming 5 meals each consisting of 600 calories each you should be gaining the one pound of weight you are aiming at each week.

Once you know how many calories you need to be gaining weight you need to divide this total into protein, carbohydrates and fat. This is very important as it can mean the difference between fat gain and muscle gain.

The number one mistake of inexperienced bodybuilders is to try and gain too quickly and really increase calories. It is true they do gain weight but most of it will be around your waist as unwanted bodyfat.

CARBOHYDRATES
Carboydrates should make up approximately 55-60% of your total calorie intake. These carbohydrates are what provides the energy your body needs not only to provide the energy to exaust your intense workouts but also to provide the energy to enable your body to digest the protein and convert it into muscle.

Carboydrates come in one of two forms, either Complex or Simple. Complex carbs are digested more slowly and dont cause a surge in insulin levels like that of the simple carbs. It must be mentioned that there are times when consuming simple carbs are very beneficial and can help prevent catabolism. (a muscle destroying state) The best times to consume simple carbs are right after a workout when your body needs the depleted glucose levels to be replenished. Also aother good time to consume simple carbs is at breakfast when you have just woken up and your bodies glucose levels have been somewhat depleted throughout the nights sleep.

FAT
To put on mass you are going to have to eat like an animal. At first so much eating is going to be hard. In fact I have thrown up on more than one occasion trying to consume excess calories. At least by being allowed to consume a little extra fat calories will be more easy to consume. This is due to the fact that fat has 9 calories per gram as oppossed to the 4 calories that both protein and carbohydrates have.

The one problme that consuming large amounts of fat does have is that it suppresses appetite, it makes you feel full which can be a problem if you are trying to gain weight.

There are some fats that help in fat metabolisation, these types of fat are known as EFS's or essential Fatty Acids. A good rule of thumb is to be consuming 15-25% of total calorie intake from fats.

PROTEIN
This nutrient is what helps the bodybuilder put on the muscle that he is trying so hard to gain, none the less carbohydrates and fat are not to be underestimated.

On average a bodybuilder should be consuming about 1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight, (a 200lb bodybuilder should consume 200 grams). You should be aiming to get about 30 grams of protein at each of your meals.