What are the ideal percentages of protein, fat and carbs for those seeking added muscle mass?
AA: If you go by percentages alone, you can fall short of optimal nutrient intake, particularly protein. While there’s much talk about carbs making you fat, it’s rare to find an athlete who got fat from eating a high-carb diet. You get fat from overeating, period. When you gain weight, you gain not only fat but also muscle. That’s the response to overeating. About half the weight you gain, assuming you’re not using anabolic drugs, is muscle. That’s true even if you do nothing more strenuous than lie on a couch all day. JB: Is there a preferred diet for boosting fat loss in bodybuilders? AA: The old standard dieting technique among bodybuilders was to bulk up with excess calories, followed by strict dieting to achieve muscular definition. It’s possible to lose 30 percent of your bodyweight in three months, but you lose fat and a considerable amount of muscle. I don’t believe it’s necessary to get fat to gain muscle. It’s better to monitor calorie intake and adjust calories according to
