The 25% stronger meal plan; Support your heavy lifting in the gym with this complete eight-week meal plan, designed specifically for maximizing your strength levels
That's why we designed the "Eat for Strength" meal plan to be used in conjunction with the "Get 25% Stronger" training program beginning on page 118. All your workouts and meals are laid out for you, so all you have to worry about is putting in the effort. With this potent combo, your one-rep maxes in the gym will soar, but your waistline won't follow right along.
POWER PLAYS
What's the key to eating for strength? How much different can it be from eating for, say, adding mass? First off, you must meet your protein quotient. Strength training requires a higher protein intake because hoisting big weights puts a lot of stress on muscle fibers, and additional protein is the main nutrient that rebuilds and repairs that damage. You'll require at least 1.5 grams of protein per pound of body-weight daily.
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Interestingly, you won't need a high carb intake because training for strength uses relatively less volume (sets and reps) than your typical mass-building program. Less volume takes less energy and thus fewer carbohydrates. A good target is around 1.5-2 grams of carbs per pound of body-weight per day. But you'll want to keep a close eye on the mirror: If you gain a significant amount of bodyfat, decrease your carb intake slightly; if you aren't gaining bodyfat, try increasing your carbs. The majority of these carbs should be slow-digesting--if you aren't already, get acquainted with oatmeal, whole grains, sweet potatoes and fruit, except postworkout, when you want fast-digesting carbs to drive up your body's natural insulin levels.
Fat intake is the component of a strength-training menu that will deviate a bit from the standard bodybuilding meal. When muscular strength is the primary goal, you need more dietary fat to lubricate joints and enhance the production of testosterone, the male hormone most closely associated with strength increases. Very low-fat diets are actually counter-productive to gains in strength.
Finally, it's important to include red meat in your diet because it's packed with zinc, a mineral that helps promote higher testosterone levels, as well as creatine, which can help provide immediate energy and boost strength levels. Nearly every great powerlifter we know says he feels stronger on a diet that includes red meat and doesn't restrict dietary fat. Make sure your total daily calories are made up of at least 20% fat, with the majority coming from healthy choices such as salmon, tuna, nuts, peanut butter, avocado and olive oil.
ALL-CONSUMING STRENGTH
Our companion "Get 25% Stronger" program calls for training five days a week, so the nutrition regimen you see on the next two pages alters nutrient totals based on whether it's a training or non-training day. On days you lift, you'll consume slightly more calories than you burn in the gym, which is the only way to get stronger. You'll burn roughly 17-18 calories per pound of bodyweight per day on training days, so you should consume just above that, or around 3,200 calories daily for a 180-pound guy.
Rest days are a bit different, as you'll likely be burning only around 13 calories per pound of bodyweight. Consuming about 14-16 calories per pound (2,500-2,800 calories for a 180-pounder) on these days will do the trick, allowing you to get stronger without adding too much bodyfat. Protein stays the same on rest days, because you still want to get your minimum 1.5 grams per pound of bodyweight, or about 270 grams for a 180-pounder.
Carbohydrates drop down to about 1 gram per pound of bodyweight (180 grams for a 180-pound guy) on rest days. Unless you do manual labor for a living, that 1 gram should cover your sedentary needs. Fat stays above 20% of your total daily calories, though you'll be eating a little less fat as you keep calories in check.
Of course, you'll have to do some math depending on your current weight, but this program is adaptable to any size if you follow the above guidelines. And trust us--it's better than gorging on two Quarter Pounders and an order of large fries for your daily dinner. Sure, you'd be able to gain some strength with that kind of "anything-goes" diet, but would you really want to be seen in public carrying around all that extra blubber? We didn't think so.
20* Percentage of total daily calories that should come from healthy fats
RELATED ARTICLE
It's a misconception that may be as old as bodybuilding itself: When you want to build strength, you should throw dietary caution to the wind and eat everything and anything you can. As the reasoning goes, the excess calories and fat are necessary evils of getting massive and powerful, and besides, you can chisel away the fat and reveal the muscle underneath with a get-lean diet later. Late-night McDonalds run, anyone? I'm in an "off-season" strength phase! $ C'mon, time to get back to reality. We hate to break it to you, but getting stronger isn't simply a matter of lifting heavy in the gym and then eating yourself into a calorie coma. If you want exceptional results in a relatively short period--without turning your six-pack into a keg--you need to be a little more vigilant about what you take in and when.
That's why we designed the "Eat for Strength" meal plan to be used in conjunction with the "Get 25% Stronger" training program beginning on page 118. All your workouts and meals are laid out for you, so all you have to worry about is putting in the effort. With this potent combo, your one-rep maxes in the gym will soar, but your waistline won't follow right along.
POWER PLAYS
What's the key to eating for strength? How much different can it be from eating for, say, adding mass? First off, you must meet your protein quotient. Strength training requires a higher protein intake because hoisting big weights puts a lot of stress on muscle fibers, and additional protein is the main nutrient that rebuilds and repairs that damage. You'll require at least 1.5 grams of protein per pound of body-weight daily.
Related Results
* iShape: a custom weight-loss solution that works!
Interestingly, you won't need a high carb intake because training for strength uses relatively less volume (sets and reps) than your typical mass-building program. Less volume takes less energy and thus fewer carbohydrates. A good target is around 1.5-2 grams of carbs per pound of body-weight per day. But you'll want to keep a close eye on the mirror: If you gain a significant amount of bodyfat, decrease your carb intake slightly; if you aren't gaining bodyfat, try increasing your carbs. The majority of these carbs should be slow-digesting--if you aren't already, get acquainted with oatmeal, whole grains, sweet potatoes and fruit, except postworkout, when you want fast-digesting carbs to drive up your body's natural insulin levels.
Fat intake is the component of a strength-training menu that will deviate a bit from the standard bodybuilding meal. When muscular strength is the primary goal, you need more dietary fat to lubricate joints and enhance the production of testosterone, the male hormone most closely associated with strength increases. Very low-fat diets are actually counter-productive to gains in strength.
Finally, it's important to include red meat in your diet because it's packed with zinc, a mineral that helps promote higher testosterone levels, as well as creatine, which can help provide immediate energy and boost strength levels. Nearly every great powerlifter we know says he feels stronger on a diet that includes red meat and doesn't restrict dietary fat. Make sure your total daily calories are made up of at least 20% fat, with the majority coming from healthy choices such as salmon, tuna, nuts, peanut butter, avocado and olive oil.
ALL-CONSUMING STRENGTH
Our companion "Get 25% Stronger" program calls for training five days a week, so the nutrition regimen you see on the next two pages alters nutrient totals based on whether it's a training or non-training day. On days you lift, you'll consume slightly more calories than you burn in the gym, which is the only way to get stronger. You'll burn roughly 17-18 calories per pound of bodyweight per day on training days, so you should consume just above that, or around 3,200 calories daily for a 180-pound guy.
Rest days are a bit different, as you'll likely be burning only around 13 calories per pound of bodyweight. Consuming about 14-16 calories per pound (2,500-2,800 calories for a 180-pounder) on these days will do the trick, allowing you to get stronger without adding too much bodyfat. Protein stays the same on rest days, because you still want to get your minimum 1.5 grams per pound of bodyweight, or about 270 grams for a 180-pounder.
Carbohydrates drop down to about 1 gram per pound of bodyweight (180 grams for a 180-pound guy) on rest days. Unless you do manual labor for a living, that 1 gram should cover your sedentary needs. Fat stays above 20% of your total daily calories, though you'll be eating a little less fat as you keep calories in check.
Of course, you'll have to do some math depending on your current weight, but this program is adaptable to any size if you follow the above guidelines. And trust us--it's better than gorging on two Quarter Pounders and an order of large fries for your daily dinner. Sure, you'd be able to gain some strength with that kind of "anything-goes" diet, but would you really want to be seen in public carrying around all that extra blubber? We didn't think so.
20* Percentage of total daily calories that should come from healthy fats
RELATED ARTICLE
It's a misconception that may be as old as bodybuilding itself: When you want to build strength, you should throw dietary caution to the wind and eat everything and anything you can. As the reasoning goes, the excess calories and fat are necessary evils of getting massive and powerful, and besides, you can chisel away the fat and reveal the muscle underneath with a get-lean diet later. Late-night McDonalds run, anyone? I'm in an "off-season" strength phase! $ C'mon, time to get back to reality. We hate to break it to you, but getting stronger isn't simply a matter of lifting heavy in the gym and then eating yourself into a calorie coma. If you want exceptional results in a relatively short period--without turning your six-pack into a keg--you need to be a little more vigilant about what you take in and when.
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