After 36 years of power bodybuilding, I can honestly say I train more intensely now than I did when I was young. At 60 years of age, I can deadlift as much as I did 30 years ago, carry less body fat, yet continue to gain quality muscle. I attribute this continued improvement to effective nutrition based on sound science, maintaining hormonal balance, and high-intensity training. In this series, I’ll be taking a look at each one of these topics in depth.
I realize now how critical food is to building a great physique. I have become so in tune with my body that I can actually feel any change in my diet. I am convinced one can literally manipulate his or her body composition with nothing but food.
Eating Clean to Maintain ATP Stores
In order to fuel the intense workouts that build quality muscle, we must eat quality foods. These foods provide the muscles with the nucleoside triphosphate known as ATP. The energy provided by ATP allows muscles to contract. The ATP lasts about three seconds. Then phosphocreatine combines with ADP to resynthesize ATP. The phosphocreatine lasts anywhere from eight to ten seconds. The phosphocreatine is replenished when glycogen in the muscles is broken down for energy to replenish the phosphocreatine. The resynthesized phosphocreatine once again combines with ADP to create more ATP. This energy last about 90 seconds. This process, up to this point, is called anaerobic glycolysis.
Carbohydrates, fats, and proteins can all be converted into ATP. But some foods contain pre-formed ATP within their cells. These foods include meat, fish, nuts, fruits, and vegetables. Maintaining anaerobic glycolysis is one reason I eat whole foods in the proper combinations.
Maintaining Nitrogen Balance for Protein Synthesis
When we train with weights, we create mirco-tears in our muscles. Protein synthesis repairs those tears and the muscles hypertrophy. For optimum protein synthesis to occur, nitrogen balance must be maintained. When the intake of nitrogen is greater than the loss of nitrogen, and the total body pool of protein increases, positive nitrogen balance is achieved.
Nitrogen is lost through the synthesis of the nine essential amino acids. These are the amino acids that our bodies do not manufacture. They are leucine, isoleucine, lysine, methionine, phenyalanine, threonine, tryptophan, valine, and histidine. Some of the foods that provide all nine essential amino acids include meat, poultry, eggs, dairy, fish, Greek yogurt, soy, and almond milk.
The proper use of carbohydrates can aid in achieving nitrogen balance. Carbs stimulate insulin secretion, which spares internal protein by transporting protein that is in the process of digesting, to the cells.
Supplementing with crystalline, free-form amino acids further assures the lifter that he or she is receiving the essential free-form amino acids necessary to sustain protein synthesis.
Maintaining Alkalinity for Muscle Growth
Another aspect of nutrition that is critical for anyone attempting to build quality muscle is maintaining alkalinity within the body. When our bodies become too acidic, growth factors decrease, growth hormone resistance occurs, hypothyroidism occurs, blood cortisol increases, oxygen uptake and release is decreased, and muscle mass is lost. The body will try to buffer the acidity with calcium, phosphorous, and glutamine it removes from the bones. The end result is weakened bones and muscle loss.
By eating fruits and vegetables, which are alkaline inside the body, we can bring the body back into an alkaline state.
Maintaining proper nutrition may sound overwhelming to a new trainee. But, like anything else, it becomes easier as time goes on. It becomes part of the lifestyle of the power bodybuilder. So, if you’re looking for new ways to grow more muscle and become stronger in 2019, try these nutritional strategies.
