March 25, 2022
A bodybuilding diet plan is highly dependent on the phase of training. High-level bodybuilding works in three phases: bulking/mass phase, strength phase, and cutting/competition phase. Let’s break down each of these phases to decide the best way to structure your plan.
Modern bodybuilding puts a lot of stress on the size and density of the muscles. The fastest way to put on muscle is to bulk up. There is no caloric limit in this phase; your focus should be on eating the right foods to put on clean weight through clean bulking. Our diet should consist of high-carb, high-protein, and low-fat foods. The high carbs will ensure that you continually have the power during your workouts to perform and train for size. High protein will ensure that we start to recover as quickly as possible after a workout. Low fat, because, basically, it serves very little of our goals. Try eating 5 – 6 meals a day, each with around 500 – 700 calories.
Following the bulking phase, we want to lose some of the density that is unnecessary but keep the muscles we worked so hard to build. Using our strength phase as a way of maintaining size, we should follow a diet with moderate carbs, high protein, and low fat. The only item that really changes is carbs, because we want to limit some of the extra size. Keep in mind that without these carbs, you will lack energy in your workout program, and your focus in training should revolve around low intensity and high volume.
Now that you have put the size on and slowly started to take it off with your strength phase, it is time to start the cut. The cutting phase is by far the most difficult. Your diet will consist of low carbs, high protein, and low fat. You need to make sure that anything you eat has some source of fiber, so sticking to chicken and tuna might not be the best idea. Oatmeal could be a great option in this phase! It will provide you with the necessary carbs and fiber for your cutting phase without putting on any unnecessary weight. During a cutting phase, you can eat as many vegetables and low-calorie proteins as you want. The goal of this phase is to bring your body fat percentage down to around 7 – 12%, so eating any fat should be largely avoided.
