Great Muscle Diet Guidelines — for everyone

You’re sticking to a regular workout to build muscle mass fast and burn fat. Great. Exercise is essential, but good nutrition is vital for overall health, as well as looking and feeling good.

Now is the right time to fold in that second all-important aspect: the right muscle diet.

You know you’re supposed to be eating low-fat protein, so you’ve made skinless chicken a regular part of your diet. Excellent. But did you know that getting too little fat can also be a problem?

Fats are essential for a wide range of natural body processes, including good nerve development and helping the body create certain essential compounds. Lean beef — far from being the evil food it was once depicted — is a great source of muscle building protein with a good balance of fat.

Red meat not only has the protein you need to build muscle (muscles themselves are protein, after all). It also contains creatine, vitamins, and vital minerals. Protein you consume is broken down by the body into amino acids, which are then re-combined into human proteins – including the type that compose muscle fibers.

White meat is also good, though, and none better than fish. Tuna is a good source of protein and omega-3 fatty acids, but with lower levels than salmon. Try both for variety.

Omega-3 fatty acids are essential but the body doesn’t produce them internally. All it needs must come from outside. They help with brain health and keeping the immune system in good working order. Make them a regular part of your muscle building diet.

Other muscle building foods include various kinds of carbs. Carbohydrates often get a bad rep because people associate them with sugars (which they essentially resemble). But remember that sugar or carbs are the body’s basic energy battery. Without them, all cellular processes would come to a halt quickly.

Still, there are carbs and there are carbs. Ease off on the pasta (good in moderation and a great source of fiber) and try some spaghetti squash instead. Veggies are good, as everyone knows. This helps you turn consuming a needed aspect of nutrition from a chore to a delight.

You’ve read that yogurt is good for you, and you read right. The lactobacillus acidophilus and natural additives in modern yogurts are a good way to boost your digestive system health. Among other things it helps create Vitamin K. That is an important aid to your muscle building diet.

Well, do yourself a favor and try some fat-free Greek yogurt. Greek yogurt has none of the added sugar that some commercial brands add to make up for the blandness that can accompany non-fat foods. This style is creamier and tangier, so no sugar needed. It also has twice the protein and half the carbs of ‘normal’ yogurt. Add colored fruit, such as raspberries or blueberries, for flavor and to get those really helpful phytonutrients.

A muscle diet contains muscle building foods with muscle building protein. Lucky for you, those also happen to be foods that form a great part of a highly nutritious and tasty diet for general health. Win-win, as they say.

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