eating for size: why you need to eat big, to get big!
Hello everyone!
Welcome to the latest blog from your favorite chiropractor, the good doctor 
Today i want to talk about growth, or more specifically, eating to get big!!
So many bodybuilders i know and read about eat like birds! I mean, i personally know of a 170 pound bodybuilder eating 2700 calories and wondering why he isn’t growing. like duh! For gaining muscle, eating (and quality of food) is the most important thing in my opinion, particularly if you are and ectomorph. When i started bulking, i was eating about 3300 calories per day. Now let me tell you, i am not a huge guy, i mean i made bantamweight class for my last contest (70kgs)! Now at the start, i made some gains eating that quantity of food. However, over the last few weeks i have hit a plateua, so i have now upped my calorie consumption to 3600 a day and i am growing again. If i keep growing, i very possibly may even increase my calorie consumption to 4000 calories a day (provided bodyfat does not get too high)
At the moment, my bodyfat is good. currently maintain about 8-9% without too much difficulty and gaining some size which is the goal over this period. Doing a little bit a cardio for fitness and bodyfat control but trying to keep it at a bare minimum if i can (i did not do any cardio last week for example).
But this is my point, 3600 calories of food is a LOT of food. but, that is how much i need to grow. If you are not growing, you may simply not be consuming enough calories to be able to do so. I know of an ectomorphic bodybuilder eating nearly 5000 calories of food at the moment! But, that is how much he needs to grow.
I dont advocate eating any old thing, i am still eating super super clean. Nor do i random guess calorie intake either, i use the katch/mcardle formula as a starting point and go from there accordingly. if i gain too much bodyfat, i reduce. If i am not growing, i increase calories.
This is what i ate today and is a good example of my off season diet. a lot of people on this site are going to gasp when they see the ammount of carbs i am consuming but again, it works for me. I would also encourage people to read my blog cardio phobia and high protein madness
Diet sample
3600 calories
410gms carbs, 310gms protein, 80gms fat
Meal 1:
6 egg whites
2 slices of rye bread (toasted)
1 tablespoon low fat peanut butter
70gms oatmeal with water
*training*
Meal 2: postworkout
1 scoop protein powder in water
2 wholemeal muffins with jam
Meal 3:
1 scoop protein powder in water
70gms oatmeal in water
1 tablespoon low fat peanut butter
Meal 4: (lunch)
4 slices of rye bread
6oz of turkey breast
1 tomato
1 tablespoon fat free mayo
Meal 5:
1 wholegrain toritalla
4oz chicken breast
1 tomato
Meal 6:
2 slices of rye bread
6oz round steak
Meal 7
peanut butter sandwhich
1 scoop of protein powder in water
As i said, a lot of food! Now a lot of people are probably horrified that i eat that much bread, but again, that works for me. As i have said in previous posts, you DO NOT have to go low carb. I am keeping lean and growing and eating a ton of carbs without too much problem. Experiment, find what works for you and go ahead accordingly.
But again, you got eat big to get big!!
