Diet

Diet is one of the most over looked aspects of power training. Many times I have heard Powerlifters say, “Who cares about diet, I am not a body builder.” This attitude is false. In August of 1999, I calculated I was eating about 100-150 grams of protein a day. It was football season and two-a-days had just begun. I weighed about 250 pounds at this time. I felt great on this slight improvement in protein intake; I did not lose weight or strength during two-a-days.

I noticed how good I felt and how strong I was getting even though it was football season. I was amazed as were my team- mates. I wondered to myself  what would happen if I increased my protein intake to 300 grams a day. At a meet before the season started, I benched 457 while weighing 247. After eating 300 grams of protein a day for a month I then weighed 260 and benched 480 in the gym. I discovered the more protein I ate the stronger I would get.

I have played around with how much protein is optimal for almost four years now. What I have figured out is no matter what time of year it is you should eat one gram of protein per pound of body weight. This is the absolute bare minimum. What has worked best for me is from 1.5-1.6 grams of protein per pound of bodyweight. After I do a meet and want to give my system a rest, I’ll go down to one gram per pound of bodyweight, but only for a couple of weeks. When it comes to protein, I have found that more is better; however, when I go beyond 1.6 grams per pound of bodyweight I reach a point of diminishing returns.

Carbohydrates are the primary fuel source for the powerlifter and any athlete requiring short explosive bursts of energy.  Carbs are the primary glucose source.  It is important to eat primary complex carbohydrates and avoid simple carbohydrates that are easily converted to adipose tissue.  Carbs should be eaten before, and if possible during, and after exercise. However, growth hormone levels are elevated quite a bit after intense exercise and the athlete may want to wait an hour or so to eat anything to take advantage of the anabolic effects of the natural growth hormone spike.  Carbohydrates are very important in keeping stable blood sugar levels, which not only effect health but peak performance.

Hydration is very important, and I drink at least one hundred and fifty ounces of water a day. On days of really tough workouts, it is not common to go through two and a half gallons of water. I have read that one should drink an ounce of water for every kilo of bodyweight; I believe this is the bare minimum. The benefits I have personally experienced since I began drinking water are getting leaner, increasing muscle endurance, and just feeling better.

It is important to make sure all people especially athletes are getting adequate amounts of fiber, vitamin, and minerals.  The requirements for a hard training super heavy weight powerlifter going for peak performance are going to be much different than that of a sedentary 150 lbs. individual whose goal is just to sustain life. 

Nutrition is essential to life and to peak performance in athletics.  Most guidelines put out out by the FDA are for non-active people with little to no muscle whose primary goal is survival.  If your goal is survival, just keep doing what you are doing and you will probably be fine.  If your goal is peak performance it is important to seek out someone with nutritional knowledge.  Josh Bryant has done customs diet consultations with division one football players and track athletes along with middle aged people who just hope to improve health.  The athlete who eats properly will not only perform better but enjoy greater health and a higher quality of life. Josh Bryant can help you with your diet.  To learn more contact Josh at joshstrength@yahoo.com