ANTIAGING BODY-BUILDING

Muscle Building Protein

Nutrition for Muscle Building

Muscle building exercise is a significant part of our Antiaging Wellness Program. Energy management and exercise are a co-dependent circle. We need to ensure that firstly we maintain sufficient energy levels to support our workout schedules, and provide sufficient nutrition to boost muscle fibre; and manage our workout program to optimise our energy levels.

Remember the four nutritional aims of our antiaging program:

1. Optimal cell nutrition
2. Fat loss
3. Muscle building
4. High energy

The primary source of energy for muscle building is not from the calorie content of the food; but on how the food interacts with the body. We want foods that support more muscle, less fat and detoxification.

Muscle Building Protein

Proteins are made up of 22 amino acids, nine of which are essential, and must be obtained from an outside source. There are also conditionally essential amino acids, which play major roles in performance, recovery and reactions to stress.

Dietary proteins are divided into two kinds of proteins:

1. complete proteins, which include all essential aminos, and
2. incomplete proteins, which are deficient in one or more essential amino acids.

Assimilation of nutrients including protein, predominantly depends on genetic pre-disposition, individual needs and overall nutritional composition of meals.

A muscle building exercise program increases the metabolic requirement for certain amino acids, such as tryptophan, tyrosine, methionine-sAME and lysine-carnitine. These amino acids serve as building blocks for stress hormones and energy compounds, and are required in extra amounts during times of high-energy demand and extreme mental and physical stress.

Effect of Protein Deficiency on Muscle Growth

Protein is integral to your body; haemoglobin, the structure of your muscles, organs, brain cells, genes and all the enzymes that control all functions are protein based. Your body needs a constant supply of protein to support its constant rebuilding program.

Did you know that more than 98% of the molecules of your body are replaced every year.

• Your skin and mucous membrane completely rebuild themselves every month.
• Your blood supply renews itself every three months.
• Your muscle proteins are replaced every six months.

If your protein supply is insufficient, or your protein type is incomplete, [lacks all essential amino acids in the right proportions] a deficiency results. This deficiency suppresses critical metabolic functions necessary for repair and building of tissues, including muscles.

In addition, a deficiency of essential amino acids limits protein synthesis and growth.

To date, there is insufficient research to fully determine the best growth-promoting protein sources. However, it has been shown conclusively that animal protein [whey] is more effective for muscle building purposes than vegetable [soy] protein

For our purposes in the Antiaging Wellness Program we need to not only provide the right type of protein, but also ensure the protein is full utilised for cell and muscle growth.

Why Animal Protein Is Better Than Vegetable Protein

Soy and gluten proteins increase your thyroid hormones triiodothyronine, and thyroxine to muscle-destroying levels. You will never see a pure vegetarian athlete in power and strength sports. Ovo-lacto vegetarians, however, use milk and egg protein supplements, the premium diet for athletes.

Muscle building requires extra alanine. During and after weight training, the muscle branched-chain amino acids leucine, isoleucine, and valine are catabolized to make alanine and glutamine, which are then lost from the muscle.

Beef, sheep, and milk contain appreciable amounts of alanine, however, red meats are not great muscle food. Eating more red meats, to bump up your alanine levels, raises your fat content. Chicken, fish, and egg whites contain less fat, but very little alanine.

The best solution is taking supplementary branched-chained amino acids to provide a substrate for alanine and glutamine. Whey proteins are the best source, containing both a lot of alanine, and all three branched-chain aminos.

Protein Utilisation

It is commonly believed that increased consumption of animal proteins increases protein utilization, and effectively promotes muscle gain. Other factors also influence utilisation, including:

Body Building Nutritional Supplements

Even with a healthy diet with lean meat, fruit and vegetables, it is virtually impossible to build muscle. Bodybuilding requires additional supplements to compensate for those calories and nutrients lost during workouts.

Often these are incorporated into whey protein powders; or they can be obtained as stand alone supplements:

• Antioxidants
• Whey protein
• Vitamin/mineral supplement
• Creatine Monohydrate
• L-Carnitine
• L-Glutamine
• Prohormones [now banned as a dietary supplement in USA]

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