How Much Fat Should I Have in My Diet?
For weight maintenance a good rule is 40/30/30 (carb/protein/fat). For weight loss and/or muscle building, 25/50/25 is probably a better goal. Fat in itself doesn’t make you fat, eating too many calories does. Eating too little fat will cause problems and will likely prevent you from reaching your goals.
Don’t worry too much about your overall fat consumption; eating the right foods will take care of it. However, when you consume fat, make sure it’s unsaturated. Unsaturated fat plays a very essential role in your body–insulates nerve cells, lubricates joints, component of all cell walls. You need unsaturated fats, like Omega 3 (tuna, salmon, flax seed oil) and Omega 6 (sesame oil, safflower oil, etc). Other good sources of fat include avocados, olives, and some nuts, like almonds and peanuts.
Avoid saturated fats. Those usually come from meat, eggs, and cheese. Keep your cheese to skim and 1% products. Egg whites are one of the greatest sources of protein but too many yolks are bad news. Stick to egg whites.
How Do I Get Past a Plateau?
Change it up. Your body will adjust once it gets used to what you’re doing. Two things to change: a) your diet, b) your exercise.
A) Diet: Try carb rotation. Try adding a meal. Try changing what you eat during the day, particularly morning and night. Waking up your metabolism in the morning can help you all day long.
B) Exercise: Four ways:
- Vary exercises: Change your routine. You’re probably stuck in a rut. Try combination exercises and supersets. Try the same bicep curl with a different range of motion or hand position. Scraping the entire routine and starting with all new exercises can be beneficial from time to time.
- Vary weight: Have you increased the weight or duration lately? If you haven’t, you’re not pushing.
- Vary Intensity: Get a few more reps in. Most people stop when their mind is done, not their body. Make sure you are getting everything out of the exercise. If you’re doing cardio, change up your intervals. After a warm up, do 4 minutes sprints followed by 4 minute jogs and repeat.
- Streching, Pilates and Yoga: If you do the same thing day in and day out, your body is probably adjusted. Do something to move the muscles in a different manner. You may find that a more flexible shoulder or chest will allow you to perform the same exercises but with an increased range of motion.
How Do I Gain Weight?
- Lift heavy weights. You need to work to failure (plus one if you can!). That failure should be somewhere between 5 and 8 reps. Greater than ten reps means your weight is too little.
- Get Plenty of Protein. You should get at least 1gram of protein per pound of body weight to build muscle. If you weigh 150 pounds, you need 150g. That’s more than most people get. (but don’t overdo it–too much protein and you go into ketosis). Eat plenty of chicken, egg whites, fish, and dairy. Supplement with whey or soy protein. Vegetarians can eat soy, lentils, egg substitute. Get a protein shake after a workout. Don’t go to bed hungry.
- Get plenty of calories.
Find out how many calories an item contains here. Find out how many you need here.
As a Female, How Do I Avoid Getting Too Buff While Still Working Hard?
First off, it’s very difficult for a woman to get overly large muscles; women just don’t naturally build like men do. But to be sure, stick to lighter weights and more repetitions. It’s fine to do the same workout as a man would do, but you should choose a weight that allows at least 12- 15 reps. This is the same advice I’d give to a man who’s trying to be more lean than muscular. And working to failure isn’t necessary, just work enough that you feel it. To be lean and firm, having your heart rate in the “zone” for an hour is more important than complete muscle exhaustion. See Heart Rate Calculator.
How Much Water Should I Drink Daily?
8×8. Eight glasses of eight ounces each. Total of 64 oz for the day. If you are working out, adjust your water consumption up based on intensity/duration of your exercise. Drink your first 8oz before you eat or drink anything else in the morning. Watch hydration closely before, during, and after exercise.
While everything you eat and drink generally has some level of water in it (soda, coffee, fruit, etc), you can cover your bases by just drinking 64oz of straight water. WARNING: Not all water is created equal! A 32oz bottle of Vitamin Water contains 200 calories. Is that bottle of water worth an extra 15 minutes on the treadmill?