There are two schools of thought when it comes to white bread as a food for bodybuilding purposes. The first opinion is that white bread is great for bodybuilding goals. It digests quickly, which delivers fast calories to trainers seeking to gain mass. These fast-digesting carbohydrates, eaten following a workout with a good protein source creates the desired hormonal environment- resulting in higher insulin levels and greater testosterone uptake in tissues.

White bread is readily available, whether in the slice, or more common, in the bun format from restaurants. Perhaps a chicken breast on a bun is the fastest and easiest way to put protein and fast carbs into the body following a workout? The carbs are there, the calories are there, the taste is there, the speed is there, and the convenience is certainly present. The perfect carb?

The other school of thought is that white bread has no place in the bodybuilding diet. The fast-delivery of its calories results in an insulin spike, which does contribute to creating an anabolic environment, but creates a higher chance of adding body fat as well. The enriching process removes most of the valuable vitamins and minerals from bread.

White bread also contains processed complex starchy carbs, which are not utilized by the body efficiently. One might as well consume a bag of flour. While the bread packaging may claim good micronutrient content, but as much as half these are removed during enriching and processing. Additionally, the lack of fiber means the bread's journey through the body will be a slow one at best.

The answer, as with many things in life, likely lies in the middle. If the trainer has access to no other carbohydrate source, white bread provides a quick insulin spike and needed calories. After all, bad calories are better than no calories, when valuable muscle tissue is wasting.

For trainers looking to gain mass, any source of carbohydrate calories can be good at time. However, optimal gains will be achieved with liberal use of white bread, and more frequent use of quality carbohydrate sources, such as brown rice, oatmeal, oat bran, oat bran cereal (IE Cheerios), whole wheat pastas, baked chips, low fat popcorn, potatoes, sweet potatoes, whole wheat bread, some fruits (berries are best), and vegetables.

Bodybuilders looking to gain mass should consume white bread occasionally, and bodybuilders watching body fat levels should eat white bread rarely.

The vegan diet is one that falls under criticism quite frequently in our society. Some believe that a vegan diet could not possibly provide all the nutrients needed for a healthy body and will result in a scrawny appearance and weak physical fitness. However there are several vegan bodybuilders striving to eliminate this prejudice against their lifestyle. Through careful monitoring of protein intake, to ensure that the level of protein is high enough, vegan bodybuilding can be accomplished with great success. Follows is a summary of what constitutes a vegan diet, why protein is so important to vegan bodybuilding as well as some tips on how to make sure you get enough protein in your vegan diet.

What Is A Vegan Diet?

A vegan diet is one that allows the consumption of no animal products at all. This includes meat, fish and fowl as well as eggs and milk. Obviously this is a highly restrictive diet and can easily lead to a lack of essential nutrients without proper management. For instance, the primary source of protein for most people is either meat or eggs so vegan can be faced with the challenge of working to ensure proper amounts of protein are obtained. Iron is another nutrient usually absorbed through meat that vegans need to make sure comes from another source. Both iron and protein are important for bodybuilders, so naturally ensuring their presence in a diet when vegan bodybuilding is essential.

What Does Protein Do?

Protein in the form of amino acids is the building block of the cells that make up bones, muscles, cartilage, hair and skin. This proves that protein is especially important in vegan bodybuilding where large strong muscles are desired and a strong skeleton is necessary to support the vegan bodybuilding physique. Protein is also utilized in the production of hormones and chemicals that are beneficial to bodybuilding by regulating how the body responds to exercise.

Getting The Right Amount Of Protein

Vegan bodybuilders need approximately 1 gram of protein per pound of lean muscle. One example stated that a 180 lbs person with 10% body fat should strive to consume between 150 and 160 grams of protein to grow muscle, less to maintain it. The best way to get this much protein while vegan bodybuilding is to eat grains, green vegetables, nuts and especially beans. One should also note that these foods also provide a decent amount of iron into the vegan diet. Grains that are good sources of protein include brown rice, wheat and barley. Green vegetables such as broccoli and spinach provide both protein and iron. Just about any nut is an ideal choice for protein but beans are the real wonder food for getting protein while vegan bodybuilding. Including beans such as kidney beans and soybeans will make getting enough protein in your vegan diet much easier to accomplish.

Bodybuilding means proper discipline with time management, training and of your diet intake. No, bodybuilding isn’t just about physical hard work but it also requires wise decision in setting up diet plans for your daily intake. Since a bodybuilder requires a lot of work out, proper nutritional supplement is highly needed.

But don’t perceive bodybuilding diet as a difficult element in achieving your bodybuilding goals. It doesn’t take a lot of time to decide which appropriate you should choose since most likely, energy-giving food is going to be on top of your diet list. Don’t forget though that you also need to complete your other nutritional needs to balance out everything.

Protein enriched foods should be a priority. You might ask why. It’s simply because protein-rich foods is responsible for developing muscle synthesis and since your goal is entirely devoted to developing body muscles, you need not to argue why there’s a need for you to drink milk or include eggs in your meals. For better protein consumption though, ensure that you consume about a gram of any food rich in protein for every pound of your bodyweight daily.

Assuming your total weight minus body fat is 190 pounds. This means that you should consume 190 grams of food rich in protein everyday. But you don’t have to take it all in one sitting. Divide your protein consumption depending on the grams you need to take each day. If you eat five times a day for example, divide 190 grams to five. This is easier since you don’t have to eat all the 190 grams of protein food in one go. But other problems may occur. You may not be able to take the entire amount of grams you need per day. If this is the case, you can resort to supplements rich in protein instead.

Keep in mind that protein is just a portion of what you need to have everyday as a bodybuilder. Watch your body fat as well. Your calorie and complex carbohydrates intake should also be monitored.