The anabolic diet Dr. Mauro Di Pasquale

[bigcity]

Just wandering if anyone has heard of this diet or the dr? He sells a video and cd rom, Just wandering thoughts on this

[geesler]

Yep have heard about it

[geesler]

The Anabolic Diet
Test driving the Anabolic diet

Excuse me, but would ya' mind kickin' my ass?

Recently, a friend asked me what kind of steroids he should take. Now, he's a cool guy and we've been friends since high school, but ya' know what? I wanted to knock him to the floor and kick his teeth out. And while he was down there, maybe I would give him a wedgie, just for good measure!

Taking too much Tribex again? No, and it's not because I'm some sort of anti-drug zealot. While I am "natural for now," I'm keenly interested in steroids. I'm sure that I'll use them one day, especially now that I'm almost 30. No, I wanted to kick my buddy's ass because a) he seldom even lifts weights and, when he does, he sticks to the "chick section," i.e. machines, b) he's only been "training" for a year, and c) he's a goddamn vegetarian! Now, you tell me—did he really deserve the privilege of chewing his food?

The point is this that there's a time for steroids but, in my opinion, that time only comes when you have truly maximized your potential and reached your natural genetic limits. How do you know if you've reached these limits? That question could spawn a huge debate, but here's my personal opinion. Everyone, regardless of body type, should be able to add a good 20 pounds of lean muscle though proper training, diet, and supplementation. I also believe that a person should be over the age of 25 and hit the weights hard for at least five years before considering some sort of ergonomic substance.

Now, I'm no Duchaine, and I know that the above recommendations are debatable, but I'm simply tired of 17-year-old kids asking me about steroids when they don't even squat or try to eat enough protein first! Hard training is really the easy part. Diet separates the "haves" and the "have nots," and it's the key to reaching those genetic limits. What kind of diet? That's easy, too. Eat like a man!

The Anabolic diet? Is that legal?

Although it's been around longer than BodyOpus, you may not know much about Dr. Mauro DiPasquale's Anabolic diet. The general public is really clueless. This is primarily because DiPasquale didn't design it for them. You see, the good doctor is one of us. He's not only a gifted physician, he's a former world champion powerlifter who's set records in five different weight classes. He's held top positions in several bodybuilding, powerlifting and athletic organizations and still squats over 600 pounds. He's written several books on steroids and their uses in sports, but he's written the book on using food to mimic the anabolic effects of steroids. This came about partially because the World Bodybuilding Federation (now disbanded) wanted their athletes to get clean yet maintain their muscle mass and low bodyfat percentages. Dr. DiPasquale refined the Anabolic diet to help them do this. Could the effects of anabolic steroids be reproduced through the manipulation of diet? The answer, DiPasquale decided, was yes.

You want me to eat what?

Be prepared. The Anabolic diet goes against just about every "rule" that you've ever heard about nutrition. Dr. DiPasquale's ideas about putting on muscle and losing fat are the real kick in the teeth when it comes to popular dietary theory. In fact, when some people hear the words "high fat" and "red meat," they just about choke on their carb drinks. Just remember, most of the popular diets today, like the Zone diet or the Atkins diet, aren't designed to fit the specific needs of bodybuilders and athletes. While parts of these diets overlap with the Anabolic diet, they're written primarily for the average couch spud.

Also, since women are the number-one buyers of diet books, I'd guess the dietary guidelines in such books are geared toward them, not a 200-pound male who throws around hundreds of pounds in the gym as a hobby. This is another reason why the general public hasn't heard of the Anabolic diet. The cover of my copy depicts the sweaty torso of a pro bodybuilder. Maybe if it featured a smiling, old fart in a lab coat on the cover eating a carrot and used words like "toned" instead of "ripped" it, too, would top the bestseller list. It's certainly more sensible than most of the crap that's out there.

Let's look at the goals of the Anabolic diet, and then we'll get into the details. According to DiPasquale, the Anabolic diet will:

• naturally maximize production and utilization of the "Big Three" growth producers—testosterone, growth hormone, and insulin
• shift the body's metabolism from that of a sugar-burning, fat-producing machine to that of a fat-burning, muscle-building machine
• decrease catabolic activity in the body
• increase strength and endurance
• help you avoid health problems and stay in shape year round
• increase energy and decrease mood swings
• decrease even "problem area" fat
• scare the living shit out of vegetarians!

Peak your interest? Hell, it gives me a hard-on! What's more, the methods used to reach these goals are a lot like the girl at the front desk of your gym—simple and easy. Here's a quick and dirty summary of the Anabolic diet:

Monday through Friday

Eat a diet consisting of 60% fat, 35% protein, and only 5% carbs. You'll get the fat and protein mainly from steak, hamburger, eggs, and fish. Turkey, chicken, and tuna are all okay, but the password here is red meat. You'll also eat full-fat cheeses, pepperoni, sausage, and certain nuts. The key is to generally avoid carbohydrates, eating only around 30 grams a day.

As for calories, the Anabolic diet has three phases—maintenance or start-up, mass, and cutting. We'll focus here on the start-up phase, which allows a person to gain some muscle and lose some fat. During this phase, which lasts about three to four weeks, you keep the macronutrient ratios above and eat calories equivalent to 18 times your bodyweight. In other words, a 200-pound male would consume 3,600 calories per day. The next two phases will simply manipulate those numbers while keeping the same 60/35/5 ratios. The start-up phase ends once your body has adjusted—in other words, you can shit without Metamucil and small pieces of plastic explosives—and has gone through the "metabolic shift."

Saturday and Sunday

Switch gears. On the weekends, eat 30% fat, 10% protein, and a whopping 60% carbs! Bring on the pizza, beer, and cheap sluts!

Note: Cheap sluts were suggested by TC, not Dr. DiPasquale.

Almost anything goes on the weekend. DiPasquale only cautions against taking this carb-loading period overboard and making yourself sick. The weekend food festival is important for many reasons, but the best thing is that it allows you to go out and be sociable like you normally would on the weekend, instead of sitting back and watching your friends have fun while you scan the pathetic "lite" section of the menu. This has a powerful psychological effect. For one, you know that you'll get to satisfy any craving you have during the week on the weekend, making it much easier to stick with the diet.

How is that supposed to work?

If you're a practicing vegetarian like my friend, pick your atrophied ass up off the floor and continue reading. There's some very interesting science and real-world experience to back this eating plan. The theory behind the high-fat weekday eating is simple. According to DiPasquale, the less fat you eat, the more fat your body will want to store. You must eat fat to lose fat! He goes on to say that if you do not give your body any dietary fat, it anticipates famine and stores as much fat as possible to insure your "survival."

Now, before you run into the kitchen and start eating lard by the spoonful, realize that the high-fat diet doesn't allow for a free-for-all binge. The only way to help create this anabolic environment is to limit carb intake to 30 grams per day on weekdays. This doesn't put you into ketosis, nor is this a ketogenic diet. The approach could be best described as a "near-ketosis" diet. Just as Dr. Atkins and Dr. Sears believe, DiPasquale says that the high-carbohydrate intake of most Americans is what's making them fat, not dietary fat itself. When carbs make up the bulk of your diet, you burn glucose as energy. Insulin is secreted to utilize the glucose for energy or store it as glycogen in the liver and muscles. The problem is that the insulin also activates the lipogenic (fat-producing) enzymes and decreases the activity of the lipolytic (fat-burning) enzymes. In other words, you store more fat and use less of the fat that you already have. In simpleton's terms, those fat-free carbs will make you fat!

This isn't just theory—DiPasquale backs it up with several clinical studies in his book. Besides "laying on the fat," excessive carb intake leads to mood swings, drastic drops in energy, and decreases in motivation. Think about it, high-carb meals increase the levels of serotonin in the brain, making you feel lethargic and sleepy. What else effects serotonin levels? Prozac, the drug of choice for today's fat housewife! More than anything else, the Anabolic diet teaches you how food can act as a drug on the body and, what's better, how to manipulate that "drug" to build muscle and lose fat.

The weekend carb party is backed by science, too. The body is "shocked" by the sudden intake of carbs and responds by stuffing the muscles with glycogen and driving amino acids into the muscle cells. You may feel a little tired because of all the carbs but, on Monday, you'll experience the best pump of your life in the gym. Later in the week, you'll switch back to a fat-burning metabolism to maximize your gains. You won't gain much—if any—fat from the weekend splurge once your body goes through the metabolic shift during your first week on the diet.

Exactly what is going to happen to me?

Dr. DiPasquale says that, when bodybuilders bulk up and then go on a cutting program using the high-carb method, they tend to gain muscle in the mass phase only to lose it while dieting. The result is that, year after year, they tend to have about the same amount of lean muscle tissue. In essence, they're running in place. Using the high-fat approach, he states that he's seen bodybuilders gain 25 pounds in two years with a marked increase in definition. Note, he refers to competing bodybuilders who may go on several cutting programs a year. What's going to happen? You'll lose fat, build muscle, and feel better doing it.

But...but...but...but...

With any revolutionary concept like the Anabolic diet, there's bound to be questions and concerns. Dr. DiPasquale covers these in his book, but we'll hit a few of the more common "buts" here:

But won't a diet high in fat lead to high cholesterol, cancer, and heart disease?

According to DiPasquale, other factors—like smoking, obesity, stress, and lack of exercise—contribute to high cholesterol just as much, or more, than diet. However, just to be safe, the diet recommends using fish oils and other cholesterol-lowering supplements. DiPasquale also notes that he hasn't seen any major problems with people on the Anabolic diet. Some even report that their cholesterol levels have decreased during the cutting phase of the plan. He goes on to cite numerous studies that show no link between dietary fat and cancer. Similarly, an unhealthy lifestyle and obesity, not fat intake, often lead to heart disease.

But won't I feel drained without my usual carb intake?

Once your body goes through a "metabolic shift" during the first week, your body will use free fatty acids, triglycerides, and ketones for energy. The human body has evolved to process meat and use it for energy. However, DiPasquale notes that during the first week, before you shift from a carb- and muscle-burning to a fat-burning machine, you may feel some fatigue and mental fogginess. Once the shift occurs, though, you'll feel stronger and more energetic than ever. Remember, it's the carbs that usually cause that drowsy, weak feeling after a big meal.

What supplements can I take?

DiPasquale recommends a fiber supplement to compensate for what you would normally get by ingesting carbs. Without it, you may experience constipation or swing the other direction and get diarrhea, since fats act as stool softeners. A fiber supplement like Metamucil is best—just don't forget to count the carbs in your Metamucil. The book also recommends multivitamins to make up for any nutritional gaps and fish oils for omega-3s. Using MRPs might be tricky, though. For example, Grow! has 23 carbs per three-scoop serving. That doesn't leave much room for extra carbs during the day. DiPasquale also suggests that you take in your carbs during the evening. That way, any feeling of lethargy caused by the sudden carb intake won't matter much because your day will be winding down. My suggestion? Take a two-scoop serving of Grow! or other MRP after a workout. You're only getting about 15 grams of carbs but still reaping all the benefits of a post-workout shake.

But won't I constantly crave sweets and carbs?

You may experience cravings at first, until the body goes through the readjustment phase. To combat sweet cravings, you can eat a ton of sugar-free Jell-O with whipped cream, which doesn't contain any carbs.

But I'm already using steroids—any point in trying this diet?

Dr. DiPasquale sees the Anabolic diet as an alternative to steroid use but says that, if you "choose to use," you'll see even better results than if you were just taking steroids and eating a traditional diet.

Any hints and tips to make this as painless as possible?

Compared to a traditional diet, the Anabolic diet is almost pain-free, especially after the metabolic shift occurs. The first week is going to be the toughest. Also, remember that I've only outlined the diet here—you really need the book to get the full details. Dr. DiPasquale gives many helpful tips in the book, including several pages of sample daily menus. As for my recommendations, I personally went out and bought one of those countertop grills like George Foreman incessantly advertises. A thick a piece of hamburger takes about seven minutes. I'm also going through a break-in period before I start the diet next week. I started cutting down on my carbs about a week ago. My problem was breakfast. I usually have a Grow! shake as soon as I wake up, then an hour later I have oatmeal and a bagel with peanut butter. Gradually, I nixed the bagel, then the oatmeal. Next week, I'll have a traditional anabolic breakfast—whole eggs and bacon, zero carbs.

I think I need to meditate and have some celery...

The funniest thing about my vegetarian friend is he can't understand why he's fat:

"I don't eat meat! I take in almost no fat! How can I be fat?"

After reading this article, I'm sure that you'll see the humor in those statements. But they only go to show how John Q. Public has been miseducated. The latest stats show that 75% of Americans over the age of 25 are overweight. It's time that we analyze the low-fat, high-carb approach and admit defeat. That diet was a nice idea, but it simply didn't work. This is especially true for those who want to build muscle. As bodybuilders, isn't it time we stopped trying to get huge on diets designed to make us small? Could the Anabolic diet, with its history dating back to early man, be the real solution? We'll see. I start my Anabolic diet next week. If Dr. DiPasquale is right, I'll soon reach my natural limits. Then, maybe I'll look back in Testosterone Issue 18 and read that little ol' Steroids For Health piece by Nelson Montana.

Our copy of the Anabolic diet by Mauro DiPasquale came from Optimum Training Systems, complete with a video featuring DiPasquale giving an overview of the diet and answering questions from an audience. To order a copy of Mauro's book, call OTS at 1-800-582-2083. Additionally, Chris Shugart has agreed to write a follow-up article to describe the mass phase and the cutting phase, provided that there's enough reader interest. Let us know if you want to read more about the Anabolic diet

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in this next article don't pay much attention to what he saying about glucose levels. we will talk about it later and what he says can be unresonable for some...

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By: Jonathan Deprospo


What exactly is Ketosis? The metabolic state of ketosis simply means that the quantity of ketone bodies in the blood have reached higher than normal levels. When the body is in a ketogenic state this means that lipid energy metabolism is intact. This means that the body will start breaking down your own body fat to fuel the body's normal, every day functions.

What's So Great About Being In Ketosis?

Establishing this metabolic state of ketosis even for a short period of time has many outstanding benefits.


The main benefit being that it increases the body's ability to utilize fats for fuel, which gets very lazy on a high carbohydrate diet. When on high carbohydrate diets the body can usually expect an energy source to keep entering the body. But in the state of ketosis the body has to become efficient at mobilizing fats as energy.

Another nifty thing about being in a state of ketosis is that if the body has no further use for ketones they can simply be excreted through urine as a waste product. This means that at times your body will be peeing out body fat! This is a novel theme because you body is very efficient at storing energy substrates for later use.

Ketosis has a protein sparing effect, assuming that you are consuming adequate quantities of protein and calories in the first place. Once in ketosis the body actually prefers ketones to glucose. Since the body has copious quanities of fat this means that there is no need to oxidize protein to generate glucose through gluconeogenesis.

Another benefit has to do with the low levels of insulin in the body, which causes greater lipolysis and free glycerol release compared to a normal diet when insulin is around 80-120. Insulin has a lipolysis blocking effect, which can inhibit the use of fatty acids as energy. Also when insulin is brought to low levels many beneficial hormones are released in the body such as growth hormone and other powerful growth factors.

Another small but very important benefit about the ketogenic diet is that when in the state of ketosis, ketones seem to blunt hunger in many people. I mean honestly, what is not better than being on a low calorie diet and not being hungry all the time like you usually are such as on a high carbohydrate diet. Since on the ketogenic diet you have to consume a lot of fat, which hold 9 calories, you are not getting much food volume. This makes not being hungry a very good thing when on the diet. When you add such thermogenics like the ECA stack and prescription appetite suppressants you won't even think about your next meal. It's kind of funny that when the Atkins' diet first came out one of the early criticisms was that the diet blunted hunger too much! What, is it mandatory to be hungry on a reduced calorie diet?

The last benefit has to do with the fact that a ketone body is an inefficient fuel source due to the fact that when the fatty acid is converted to a KB it contains 7 calories. This means that the normal pound of fat has less than 3500 calories.
Where Is The Scientific Data?

The state of ketosis is to the most part controlled by insulin, glucagon, and blood glucose levels. Insulin is one of the hormones that the pancreas secretes in the presence of carbohydrates. Insulin's purpose is to keep blood glucose levels in check by acting like a driver, pushing the glucose in the blood into cells. If insulin were not to be secreted blood glucose levels would get out of control and this would not be good for the body.

Glucagon on the other side of the spectrum is insulin's antagonistic hormone which is also secreted by the pancreas when insulin falls to quite low levels, this usually happens when a person skips meals, or does not consume adequate amounts of carbohydrates for an extended period of time. When this happens glucagon is secreted by the pancreas to break down stored glycogen in the liver into a more usable form, glucose. But what happens if this continues and liver glycogen runs out? This is where the metabolic state of ketosis comes in, because the pancreas can also start breaking down free fatty acids into a usable energy substrate, also known as ketones, or ketone bodies.

What Is A Ketone, Or A Ketone Body (KB)?

A KB is formed in the liver through the Krebs cycle, or the citric acid cycle. When there is no glycogen for the body to run off of, the pancreas releases glucagon. Glucagon is a catabolic hormone, since it is used to break down body tissues for energy. In our case glucagon is very important since it is used to convert free fatty acids into the energy substrate called a ketone. Ketones are free fatty acids broken down through a process that involves carnitine and glucagon. After the free fatty acids are processed in the liver the fats have been transformed into beta-hydroxybutyric and aceto-acetic acids, or, what you and I know them as, "ketones".

Does Being In The Metabolic State Of Ketosis Present Dangers?

In reality the benefits of the ketogenic diet heavily outweigh the few pit falls it may have. Some of the points of arguments are:


During the first few weeks of the ketogenic diet the body has to go through the "metabolic shift", as Mauro DiPasquale calls it. While going through this the body will experience a small degree of fatigue and brain fog, but once the body gets used to manufacturing ketones as the main energy substrate the body actually has more energy than it previously had, and you won't have to be fighting through all those low blood sugar crashes that your high carb meals previously gave you. Also when in ketosis, ketones are the preferred energy substrate for the brain over protein.

Blood lipid profile is also a concern on the ketogenic diet due to the staggering amounts of saturated fats in the diet, although the diet can be centered around healthy fats, what is not as fun as eating a egg and cheese omelet fried in butter with bacon on the side! The issue of blood lipid profile is experiencing much debate due to the fact that for some people following the ketogenic diet, they will experience a drop in cholesterol levels, while for some it will increase.

Another point is that since carbohydrates are so restricted during the no carbohydrate portion the issue of micronutrient deficiencies can occur. The best thing to do to avoid this is to make sure you take a high quality multi vitamin /mineral twice a day to insure that you are getting 100% of the daily value. Also supplementing with a fiber supplement is a good idea to make sure you plumbing doesn't get clogged, if you know what I mean. Another course of action one can take is to make sure that on the high carbohydrate period of the diet you consume adequate amounts of fibrous green vegetables, and also quality carbohydrate sources such as brown rice, squash, sweet potatoes, and whole-wheat pastas.

This last focus point is the danger of ketoacidosis. This occurs when the level of ketones in the blood gets out of control, this happens because ketones are acidic only as long as they are floating around waiting to be burned. If the level of ketones in the blood rises out of control it would lower the pH of the blood and this could result in death. BUT, this is not a concern for the non-diabetic whatsoever because for the non-diabetic blood sugar levels are kept low by our bodies and it will only allow so many ketones to be manufactured at one time. In the diabetic person blood sugar can rise as high as 300-2000mg/dl, where as normal being around 80-120. Also when this happens the low insulin to glucagon ratio causes ketogenesis to be stimulated, this is where the person can run into ketoacidosis.
What About The Anti Catabolic Effects Of The Ketogenic Diet?

Every reduced calorie diet is Catabolic, meaning that they can cause you to lose muscle. It's a fact! This is largely due to the fact that on a reduced calorie diet many of the anabolic hormones in the body are significantly reduced. Added to that most dieters do copious amounts of aerobic exercise when dieting which is a very good way to catabolize muscle. So the main thing we can try to do is lose the least amount of muscle possible when dieting, or even possibly rebuild lost tissue, which is where the carb-up comes in. But that will not be discussed in this chapter.

Other than hormonal reasons the main reason why catabolism occurs is because protein will be broken down, or catabolized, to make glucose. This is because the brain uses a boat load of glycogen, upwards of 25% of the body's glucose. Now when carbohydrates are restricted, the body will still need glucose for the brain, so it is forced to breakdown protein mostly from your own muscle tissue.

Now, ketosis is different because when in the state of ketosis the brain will prefer ketones over glucose. For the dieter this is very good because the body will not have to break down protein for energy. In turn the body will be forced to use its fat reserves, a.k.a. your love handles, for its energy. This is why ketosis is such a good method of dieting.

So What Is The Best Way To Get There?

Ultimately the best way to get into ketosis is to incorporate the use of performance enhancers into the diet. But that is a topic for a later chapter, for now I will explain the best way to get into ketosis using mostly dietary tricks.

Through experimentation I have found that the best way to get into the metabolic state of ketosis is starting off using a fairly high fat intake with small amounts of protein. After your body gets into ketosis I feel that the fat intake can be reduced and the protein intake can be increased.

During the first two days after the carb-up, I suggest the dieter use a ratio of 80% fat, 20% protein, and no carbs, except the small amounts in eggs, and the small amount in cheese. Due to the low amounts of protein, insulin will drop faster, because protein can be converted in to glucose with about 58% efficiency, allowing the dieter to reach ketosis quicker. After those two days the ratios are going to change slightly because the body will need more protein for muscle tissue.

After the two days the dieter should change the ratios to 65% fat, 30% protein, and 5% carbs. This will insure that the dieter stays in ketosis but also has enough protein for the muscles. The small amounts of carbs should mostly come from high fiber veggies to insure adequate bowel movements.

Now the no carb period can be used longer causing the carb up to be more infrequent, but for most people the carb up will be Friday night and all day Saturday. Before Friday's workout we want to insure maximal glycogen super compensation. To do this the dieter is going to drop his amounts of saturated fats and make sure that his intake is only of quality fats. This is due to the effects that saturated fats have on insulin sensitivity.

Also around two hours before the workout the dieter should consume a small amount of carbs, a PowerBar will work well in this situation. This is so the body will not be running off ketones and blood glucose will be able to drop lower than the normal state of ketosis, which is around 50-60. This is important due to the fact that the lower the blood glucose in the body, the more of an anabolic effect the carb-load will have on the muscles. This is important because the main goal of the carb-up is to rebuild any muscle loss that occurred during the week, and we want all the possible carbs available for muscular anabolism to occur. But the main science about glycogen super compensation is to come later in the my book
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In my last article I presented the scientific research pertaining to the metabolic state of ketosis. While in the state of ketosis we come to realize that it is the optimal metabolic state to activate the breakdown of dietary/stored fat. This is one of the greatest benefits of dieting while using the Ketogenic dieting route. Now we know that ketosis presents a highly anti-catabolic environment even while on a reduced calorie diet. So now the question on everybody's mind is, "Can you use the Cyclic Ketogenic Diet (CKD) as a way to gain a substantial amount of muscle mass while keeping body fat accumulation to a minimum?"

The Diet

The most important aspect about using the CKD as a means of bulking is to set your calorie level around 20% (25x bodyweight) over your normal daily calorie level. On a similar note if this causes your calorie level to be too low/high you can always adjust it to fit your individual needs. The best way to consume the copious amounts of calories needed while bulking is to eat a high amount of: steak, chicken, fish, whole eggs, sausage, bacon, and protein and oil shakes. The best way to set this up is to adhere to the "ketogenic ratio," which is some where around 1.5 g of fat for every gram of protein. Your meal planning should consist of anywhere around 5-10 meals a day, that's right I did say 10. This is to constantly keep your muscle cells saturated with the optimal nutrients for growth.

The most substantial difference with using the Ketogenic diet for bulking opposed to cutting is the carbohydrates. During the bulking phase I recommend a 36-hour carb-load, this is to allow a substantial influx of carbs into the muscle but not to over do it. The next major difference is that you are to have 1000 calories worth of carbs, with a good amount of whey protein, approximately two-hours before your Wednesday workout. The main goal of this carb-spike is to allow the person to have a substantial amount of muscle glycogen to maintain workout intensity.

Now as far as the carb-up goes, you can either start with very high glycemic carbs. Then taper down to lower glycemic carbs. The other route is to eat what you want. For a hard-core bulking routine this is what most people will do. If you are going to follow the "eat whatever you can get your hands on" route definitely try to choose the lower fat route. This means if you are going to get donuts, try to find the brand that's lower in fat. But if you know you can drop the fat off at a relatively fast pace, then go ahead and get Nesquick and Krispy Kreme and have a fun time!

Reasons For This Plan

All right, now I'll discuss my rational behind this radical plan. Since you will be carb-loading Friday night into Sunday morning you most definitely want to hit most of your body on Sunday when your muscle glycogen is overstocked. This is the main reason for the carb up (bulking or dieting). The next weight workout will be performed on Wednesday, and I advocate a 1000 calorie influx of carbohydrates (preferably simple) before that. The rational backing this up is that by Wednesday your muscle glycogen should be fairly low, this influx of carbs will restock your glycogen stores substantially and allow you to perform at an optimal level in the gym. The next weight workout will be performed on Friday night before the carb-up. On this workout you should be performing a heavy full body workout, mainly to fully deplete glycogen stores and causes an anabolic stimulus when you start exploding carbs into your muscles.

The Workout

I will not be deeply going into the workout schedule because people respond very differently to various workout routines. The main advice regarding working out is to hit half of the body Sunday when your carb stores are very full, hit the other half of the body on Wednesday after your carb-spike, and then hit the full body Friday (1-2 sets to failure) before the grand carb-up. Another key point of advice is to stress exercises such as, squats, lunges, dead lifts, barbell rows, bench press, military press, barbell/dumbbell curls, tricep pushdowns, close bench, and reverse curls. These are undoubtedly some of the best mass builders around and should be the core of your workout schedule. I highly recommend using different intensity techniques with these exercises. For example, have you ever tried doing a triple drop set with rack dead lifts? I'm talking about incorporating rest-pause and triple drops with compound movements. In another article I'll describe some death defying workouts.

As far as sets and reps are concerned, I highly advocate 1-2 very intense sets per exercise, around 3-4 exercises per body part (more for bigger muscles and less for smaller muscles). As far as reps go, I think anywhere between 4-10. When I go as low as 4 reps they are usually performed very, very slow with a 5 second pause at the peak contraction. They are also usually the first very heavy set in a 3 set drop.

As far as time in the gym goes, keep it to a minimum. Most people like to turn their workouts into a social hour. No, that is not how it should be, just hit your muscles as hard as you can and get the hell out of there! Also, I highly recommend to keep cardio to a minimum, although I do recommend 10 min. warm-ups and cool downs before the workouts. But aerobics can greatly hinder your workout intensity so keep them to a bare minimum. Plus they will not allow you to get the most out of your bulking phase, muscle wise.

Supplements

As far as the supplements go I highly advocate essential vitamins such as C, A, E, and a high quality multi. But the best supplements I will be discussing are glucose disposal agents. These will allow you to hit ketosis faster, and also allow you to ram jet even more glucose into your muscles during carb-load periods. A good dosing schedule for glucose disposal agents would be as follows:



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Sunday-Monday-Tuesday

Vanadyl Sulfate 120 mg split over 6 of your meals
Chromium Picolinate 1000 mg split over 5 meals
Magnesium 1000 mg slip over 4 meals

Wednesday

Vanadyl Sulfate 50 mg with carb-spike meal
Chromium Picolinate 400 mg with same meal
Magnesium 250 mg with same meal

Friday night-Saturday Night

Same as Monday and Tuesday

Another powerful glucose disposal agent is alpha lipoic acid, which mimics insulin. A schedule for this would be as follows:

ALA 600-1200 mg a day in divided dosages



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This would be used like the other glucose disposal dosage schedule. 200 mg would be taken Wednesday. The next best supplement to use is a combination of Creatine Monohydrate and Glutamine. These should be taken in high amounts only during the carb-up, to further increase cellular hydration. Creatine should be taken in around 40 g during your carb-up, and Glutamine should be taken in around 60 g along with the Creatine. Both will not be that beneficial during the low-carb portion, so save your money and use higher dosages during the carb-up. If Glutamine is not in your budget, then definitely use Creatine. Many people prefer to use the Creatine with a sugar base. That option will also work very well during carb-ups. This is because most companies will throw in some beneficial goodies.

On a further note, if you are going to be stuffing your face with Donuts during the carb-up, I highly recommend you take 1gram of HCA 30min. before meals. This is so you don't go overboard with your eating, and it also helps push glucose into the muscles and not the fat cells.

A Normal Days Bulking Diet

I am going to roughly outline a normal days bulking diet. The key word is roughly, this is just sample meals for the day, don't follow it meal for meal.

Meal 1: 3-5 eggs, cheese, bacon, butter on the eggs
Meal 2: 2 double cheeseburgers (no bun) with Mayo
Meal 3: tuna with Mayo
Meal 4: 2 double cheeseburgers with Mayo
Meal 5: Steak with cheese
Meal 6: Protein shake with flax oil, Natural Peanut butter
Meal 7: 3 egg omelet with mushrooms and cheese, bacon
Meal 8: Protein shake with flax oil, Olive oil

I repeat, this is just a rough outline not a recommendation. You can add more meals, or less meals. The diet setup is a very subjective thing.

	IGF-1

	Supps

	protein

	energy

[FrkyBgStok]

sounds like my kind of diet. very interesting read bro.

[daved150]

man...i dont know about that one....

[Badman]

phew i dont know if i could actually committ to a diet like that i rather have my carbs and good amount of fat than mostly fat...

[vcemprevet]

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