"You Are What You Eat'

Not only does good nutrition foods help us to be at our mental and physical best on a day to day basis, but it also plays a large role in keeping our bodies healthy and disease free over a lifetime.

Building Muscle Mass

You've got to eat to lose body fat .Say that again? This statement often seems crazy to people like Red, who are new to the world of fitness. But, this idea holds true. This is because muscle needs calories to grow, and muscles burn more calories than fat. A client who isn't building muscle despite consistent weight lifting probably isn't eating enough calories to fuel muscle growth. Teaching clients to use high-calorie foods to supply the needed fuel for muscle growth is helpful, especially for clients who have difficulty finding the time or desire to consume these needed calories. Examples of nutritious high-calorie foods include nuts, dried fruits, peanut butter, and smoothies made with soy or protein power. When exercising to build muscle mass it is important to eat enough quality protein .    

What Is Good Fitness Nutrition ?

You know that all food are not created equal . The various substances that make up the foods we eat can have potent influences on the body and mind. For those involved in a fitness plan or training for an athletic event, the importance of food quality and quantity is even greater. Good nutrition, meaning a diet providing all the energy nutrients, vitamins, minerals, and water the body requires, is necessary to reach both performance and appearance goals. While each person's nutritional needs vary according to genetic makeup, lifestyle, and training program, there are certain rules regarding dietary programs that apply to and benefit all people regardless of individual fitness goals.

Dietary Rules For Training

The first step a person can take to get the most out of his training program is to eat at least five times a day . This means at the minimum, a person should have three small meals and two snacks spaced throughout the day. Eating frequently helps keep both blood sugar and insulin levels stable. These are tow important factors in determining a person's overall energy level. A body that receives food every few hours has the resources to repair itself and restock its energy stores. Eating infrequently causes the body to go into famine mode, meaning it stores the food a person eats as body fat for fear that it is being starved.

Athletes and Supplements

A final important consideration when it comes to supplementation is the psychological influence of the supplement. Some people feel that taking a supplement helps them to perform better. The placebo effect is when a person's belief that something has an effect results in a real physical change. For example, when someone gets confidence from taking a supplement, even if there is no proof of that supplement's impact, discontinuing use of the supplement may have a powerful effect on the person's state of mind. It may, in fact, be detrimental to his or her physical performance. In cases such as these, the continuation of the supplement is fine as long as it poses no serious health threat to the taker.

The Importance of Iron

Iron is a mineral that plays several important role in the body. An adequate supply of iron in the blood ensures that oxygen is getting to all body cells. When cells have plenty of oxygen they are best able to convert food into energy that the body can use. So you see, consuming enough iron is vital to an exerciser's energy and overall performance. Iron deficiency anemia is perhaps the most common deficiency in the United States. It affects as many as 58 percent of all females. Besides women, other groups at risk for iron deficiency anemia include adolescents and athletes.

Factors that lead to an iron deficiency in athletes include heavy training, decreased iron absorption, breakdown of red blood cells during exercise, gastrointestinal bleeding, iron loss through awaiting, and inadequate dietary intake. Vegetarians are more likely to suffer from iron deficiency since the iron that plan sources supply is not as readily absorbed as is iron obtained from animal sources. When symptoms of iron deficiency, such as fatigue, are present, a simple blood test is done to confirm the diagnosis. Treatment includes increased dietary iron intake as well as supplementation. 

Building Muscle Mass

Consuming an adequate amount of carbohydrates also is an important aspect of building muscle mass. This is because carbohydrates provide the energy needed to fuel a workout session. If the body runs out of stored carbohydrates during an exercise session, it starts to burn protein, and this hinders muscle growth. Remember that complex carbohydrates such as whole grain breads, high fiber cereals, brown rice, and whole wheat pasta digest slowly and provide a sustained source of energy, while simple carbohydrates such as fruits and fruit juices require little digestion and provide a quick source of energy.

Building Muscle Mass

You've got to eat to lose body fat. Say that again? This statement often seems crazy to people like Jessie, who are new to the world of fitness. But , this idea holds true. This is because muscle needs calories to grow, and muscles burn more calories than fat. A client who isn't building muscle despite consistent weight lifting probably isn't eating enough calories to fuel muscle growth. Teaching clients to use high calorie foods to supply the needed fuel for muscle growth is helpful, especially for clients who have difficulty finding the time or desire to consume these needed calories. Examples of nutritious high calorie foods include nuts, dried fruits, peanut butter, and smoothies made with soy or protein powder.


When exercising to build muscle mass it is important to eat enough quality protein. A high quality or complete protein supplies all the essential amino acids in the ratios that the human body requires to build muscle tissue. A protein source that is deficient in one or more of the essential amino acids is termed a low quality or incomplete protein. Do you remember reading about complete and incomplete protein in the previous lesson?