Gaining lean muscle

I wanted to address this issue as a lot of people believe gaining muscle or being on a bulk to be a huge calorie surplus, and so did I. In fact, when I 'bulked' before, I didn't track my macros. I ate well over my maintenance calories and a lot of my gains were actually just fat. This is fine, but for prep I want to do the whole process properly, so that when I eventually cut I don't have to go into an extreme calorie deficit, do ridiculous amounts of cardio and panic about it. A question often asked, is it is possible to gain muscle and lose fat at the same time? The answer most of the time is no, but I believe gaining muscle and staying lean is very possible and fat loss and muscle gains may in some cases if you're very very clever about it, come hand in hand. 

1) Calculate your macros

I know a lot of you reading this have probably done so already, but just a reminder. You want to know your maintenance and eat slighly over that, it's pretty simple. I find knowing my intake to be very useful, It means I can gain muscle in the leanest way possible, it also means that when I come to cut I can do it slowly, plus I'll know exactly where I stand. 
Using the IIFYM calculator to calculate your macros is a great start, but if you've seen my post on eating for your body type then you'll know that body type should also come into consideration.

2) Eat well

I'm not saying eat clean. I do, just because I enjoy it better. I'm saying eat lean meats, lots of veggies, fibrous carbs, healthy fats! you know the drill by now. Nourish your body to perform well. IIFYM is all very good, but you can't expect to have amazing workouts by simply eating lots of crap just because it fits your macros. Your body needs vitamins, your body needs certain things for it to grow efficiently. Optimize your results by eating wisely! Treats of course are fine, all in moderation. Just think of it this way, you could eat 100g of brown rice which provides you with nutrients, vitamins such as selenium and manganese, it's also high in fiber and a slow releasing carbohydrate or you could eat 100g of sugary cereal, that will definitely spike your insulin levels, probably contain some shitty chemicals, it won't keep you as full and it will probably contain a whole lotta salt. Now, please don't take this is the wrong way..cereal is fine, if you want cereal eat cereal! but when gaining muscle and staying lean at the same time the food you actually consume can be important too, not just the macro content. 

High protein is important, I tend to base my snacks around protein most of the time. So I'll have whey (I use the bodyvolt- 37g protein per scoop..low carb and fat!) and something else e.g - yogurt/cottage cheese etc. I used to snack a lot on fruits as I just thought they were a low calorie alternative to normal snack foods. I still eat fruits but not as much as I used to, I used to eat 4-5 portions a day! But I was definitely kidding myself about the sugar content. AGAIN, don't go crazy and avoid fruit..but I know myself, we can become very very reliant on them. Go high protein, you'll feel fuller and it'll help towards your goals, add fruit afterwards. 

3) Hydrate 

Water water water, Everyone talks about how great water is. Because it's true, If you want to gain muscle you need to hydrate your muscles. Every chemical reaction in your body takes place in H20! When you be up in the gym just werkin on your fitness (quote fergie) you sweat, you lose water, replace it. There is evidence that in a dehydrated state your body just doesn't go protein synthesis efficiently post workout. A dehydrated individual also won't perform as well at the the gym, and this is the place where you need to be at your best. So pretty much, water could be the difference between gaining muscle/ staying the same. So the message is, drink insane or remain the same. Water also aids in fat loss, it transports vitamins and minerals throughout the body and it may curb your hunger. 

4) Carb - cycling

The thought of this, it actually scared me. Carbs and me, we go waaaay back. Best buds in fact. But now, I take 2 days a week where I lower my carbs. Why? well..on rest days, my body simply does not need that extra energy. I hardly move. I eat high fats/proteins but just not as many carbs (it's not as bad as you think) You can manipulate your body to be a fat burning machine by tweeking your carb intake a little. This is why I start each day with a high protein/fat meal. Get that fat metabolism going for the rest of the day! post workout I'll eat a lot of carbs as they are ESSENTIAL but timed correctly they can be used to your fat burning desires. If you were looking to cut calories somewhere, and still maintain muscle then carb cycling is for you. Say you were to cut calories from somewhere else, e.g - proteins..yes you'd lose weight but a lot of that would be muscle mass. 

Here's some evidence..

this is off bodybuilding.com! absolutely amazing.
So, there was this study whereby a group of individuals ate a low carb diet they still remained high calories however, just got their calories via fats and proteins. Results show that they lost 2.2 kg or 4.8 lbs in total weight. The great news is that they actually lost 7.26 lbs / 3.3 kg of fat and gained 2.42 lbs / 1.1 kg of muscle in 42 days.

Also, there was a trial whereby a group of individuals fasted for 10 days (sounds like utter hell) 
they lost a lot of weight obviously..but the low carb diet lost a lot more fat. Crazy.


5) Supplements 

Lets talk fat burners. 

I did a post on L-cartinine, check that out! lots of benefits and won't break the bank.

Green tea extract, I get mine from here - The bodyvolt
Green tea extract is great as it pretty much has the fat burning equivalent of ridiculous amounts of green tea, but in a small tablet. Green tea extract increases thermogenesis, the fat burning hormone (norepinephrine) It's also full of antioxidants! 

Coconut oil - A great tool for those looking serious amounts of energy without the carbs, increases fat burning and calorie expenditure too. I love mine in the morning in my coffee or I use it to cook my chicken in! 

Caffeine - Don't need to go crazy on this, but some coffee in the morning may stimulate lipolysis and kickstart the fat burning process, It also gives you that added boost that we so often need. If you combine my last two..caffeine and coconut oil, fat burning winner right there. 

6) Weight training (DUH)

Gaining muscle obviously requires some resistance training. I mean WEIGHTS here, body weight exercises have their place but I really do recommend you push yourself when it comes to lifting. Tare down them muscles, rest them and watch them grow. Simple. The more muscle you have, the higher your metabolic rate. How frickin' awesome is that? you get to have muscles and eat more. I'm also going to say something a lot of people may not like, these workout plans which are mainly plyometrics..that won't build muscle. Those women advertising them, if they have muscle, they must do some proper resistance training at the gym. Don't be afraid of the weights area ladies,  do your research online, get to know the machines, walk on in there like you own the place and get lifting. 

7) Cardio 

If you're in calorie surplus, cardio can be a way of minimizing fat gains, it also means that whilst you're 'bulking' you maintain a level of fitness, and it's obviously got it's benefits in terms of cardiovascular health. My advice though, and everyone will have different views on this, is to go low intensity when trying to gain muscle. I also did a post on this here (go check it out) 

8) Meal timing 

So lets start with breakfast. It is a very important meal, stops protein breakdown after the fasted state when you're sleeping, you want to be aiding the fat burning process. So you need energy and you want to get your body relying on your fat stores more than your glycogen stores. The solution? high protein/high fat breakfast. 

Pre workout, this is usually breakfast for me. I like a non carby meal as I don't feel so full and perform better, I get my energy from fats and the satisfied feeling from protein. I also have a coffee or a pre workout supplement.

Post workout, I also did a post on this, concerning insulin spikes post workout - read up on this! post workout you want to be getting some carbs in, as well as some fast absorbing amino acids. The best WHEY to do this is protein (hope you liked my pun) and a carb source all combined into one lovely meal. OATS ARE ON THE HORIZON. Jazz it up with a banana if you like, go all out. This could be anything though, sweet potato.. etc etc. There's even evidence showing that high GI carbs are good for growth post workout! so if you're gonna go down that avenue, go post workout.

Late night, eating late at night isn't bad in my opinion. I think a low GI carb, some protein and healthy fats is great especially if you're trying to gain. Just be wise about it. Best combinations for me are cottage cheese and peanut butter (casein AND a healthy fat source) plus super delicious. Oats, total 0%, whey and peanut butter is a favorite of mine. Dark chocolate/nuts..the list continues. All preference, as long as you give your body a good source of protein that's fine. Casein is especially good as it's a slow release protein! 

Meal sizes are often a point of interest too. Some say it's better to eat smaller meals more often and others eat 3 larger meals. This is entirely up to you, I eat 6 smaller meals a day (they're not really that small though) It works for me, may not be suited to you. Either way, It's not all too important, it's all preference. 


9) Mind set

Now this is an important one. You're only capable of achieving what you believe is achievable. If you truly believe you can't gain muscle with minimal fat gain, you're limiting yourself. It is possible, you just have to pull out all the stops and give it your all. 

10) Sleep and rest

Another very important and overlooked one is sleep. When you're sleeping your body is using all the nutrients that you've eaten that day to repair your muscles. It's pretty much a prolonged anabolic state whereby your body is repairing the little tares you've made during training. Of course, when you're sleeping your body is in a fasted state. I usually eat some form of amino acids before I go to bed, slow release casein or whey is good. Sleeping causes the release of the growth hormone, an important hormone in muscle synthesis. A lack of sleep could also cause stress, the stress hormone Cortisol actually speeds up muscle breakdown. So sleep should be a period of muscle repair and growth, get enough of it, preferably around 8 hours. Same goes with rest days, they are essential and any professional will you tell you that. Do not kid yourself into thinking that skipping rest day will help you progress. Not only does rest allow muscle growth but it means your workout the next day will be 10x better!