When it comes to making lean strength and muscle gains, an important factor that comes into play is the food that you put into your body.

It is very common knowledge that protein is an essential component of your diet for things such as the actual growth of muscle in addition to the overall recovery of your body. Most people view carbs as an unnecessary component of their diet and ignore the fact that it is the most efficient source of fuel for your body. Another essential nutrient that a lot of people misunderstand is fat. There are a lot essential fats that come from things such as peanuts and coconut oil that provide a great source of stored energy in addition to contributing to your overall health.

Protein is an essential part of your diet, especially if your goal is to build muscle. Most people are under the impression that you have to overload your body with massive amounts of protein in order to build muscle, when that simply isn’t true. Your body can only absorb so much protein at a time, so getting more than 20-30 grams of protein within an hour is not the best decision. Instead, I would suggest that protein be consumed constantly throughout the day so that your body has time to process it. Protein, unlike fats and carbs, is a nutrient that can be consumed at any point during the day.  

Another important factor to ensuring that your body is properly nourished, but not overeat, is making sure you consume the correct nutrients in relation to the level of activity that you will be performing. For instance, in the morning it is best to have carbs and fats in order to ensure that your body has enough fuel to function throughout the day. As the day goes on, it is best to consume less fats and carbs, but more protein instead. The reason that the amount of carbs and that you consume should decrease later in the day is because in most cases, your level of activity decreases as the day goes on. Carbs and fats are more likely to get stored in your body in what we know as “body fat”.            

 Unfortunately, it is never easy to predict how many calories you will need, but there are foods that you can have at any time of the day regardless of your level of activity. This list of foods includes all fruits and vegetables in addition to lean sources of protein such as chicken breast and most fish. There is never a time that you should be starving yourself, but knowing what to eat and when to eat it is a very key step to ensuring that your body is adequately nourished, but at the same time not overloaded with calories that you will not use.