Tag: Nutrition

Steroids, Protein, and Muscle Building

Brad Pilon has taught me a great deal about diet and nutrition. His book on protein really opened my eyes to what the research (not supplement hype) says about this macro nutrient.

One of the most surprising studies he mentioned involved four different groups, all of whom trained for ten weeks:

1. Training+Steroids
2. Training+No Steroids
3. No Training+Steroids
4. No Training+No Steroids

Two of the results aren’t surprising. First, those who trained with weights and used steroids gained the most muscle mass (an average of 13 lb.). Secondly, those who didn’t train or take steroids did not gain any muscle. No shockers there.

But a couple of things did surprise me:

*Those who took steroids and did not train ended up gaining more muscle than those who trained with weights naturally. They made significant gains by doing nothing except sitting around!

*All subjects were eating only around 120 grams of protein a day (0.7 grams per lb. of body weight). This amount was enough for significant gains in muscle in only ten weeks.1

There are a couple of important lessons here:

1. Steroids are complete game changers, and anyone who tells you otherwise is just fooling himself. If you are training naturally don’t compare your results to those who are using drugs. Doing so is an exercise in futility.

I’m not completely opposed to steroid use, by the way (that’s another subject). But I believe many natural trainees get frustrated because they look at what some guy is doing with “pharmaceutical assistance” and wonder why they are not just as big, strong, or lean.

2. Eating huge amounts of protein is not necessary for gaining muscle. I still consume more protein than the average person, but I’m much less obsessed with it. I no longer worry about getting over a gram per lb. of body weight, and now I spend much less on supplements.

Brad’s book has a lot more research (including similar studies to the one I’ve mentioned) and I’d highly recommend you check it out. Just read my review for more information.

Reference:

1. N Engl J Med. 1996 Jul 4;335(1):1-7. The effects of supraphysiologic doses of testosterone on muscle size and strength in normal men.

Bad Diet=No Fat Loss

It isn’t unusual for me to see a question on a forum that goes something like this:

“I’m wanting to lose fat. Here’s my workout. I was also wondering what supplements may help.”

My response will have an over-used cliche: “You will never out train a bad diet.” Maybe this truth should not have to be repeated so often. But many trainees (including yours truly) have made the mistake of trying to lose fat with a primary focus on exercise and/or supplements.

Yes, exercise is important. Weight training helps maintain or build lean mass while on a calorie deficit. Adding cardio exercise burns additional calories.

But the first thing you have to do for weight loss/fat loss is to get your diet in order. You simply can’t exercise hard enough to burn a high calorie diet (maybe there are a few exceptions, like triathletes–but that’s why we call them exceptions).

I’ll give you one simple example:

An intense weight training session will burn about 500-550 calories. Let’s just say you go to the coffee shop and have a large mocha drink after this kind of workout. There’s a good chance you just consumed all the 500 calories you worked so hard to burn.

Here’s another idea to consider: “You will never out supplement a bad diet.”

I’m afraid many trainees put more thought into which “fat burner” they plan to use than how their diet plan.

There are a few supplements (such as the ECA Stack and Yohimbine) can be helpful. But the won’t do anything for you if you are consuming more calories than you are using (the ECA stack’s primary effect is, in fact, appetite suppression).

I now prefer intermittent fasting, but any diet strategy will “work” as long as you consistently achieve negative calorie balance.

Just remember that at least 90% of your weight loss/fat loss results will come directly from your diet.