When the word diet is brought up we often think concepts like fasting, starvation or deprivation of food. However, the word diet is really the food choices we make on a daily basis. For body building, our choices include those foods which help us burn fat while we feed muscle.

The best body building diets include a balance consisting of 40% carbs, 40% proteins and 20% good fats. Your body building program may consist of gaining muscle or losing body fat but the best programs involve both. The calories may be adjusted upward or downward according to your plan for reducing weight. Some of the best sources of carbohydrates include oatmeal, grits, brown rice, sweet potatoes in combination with fibrous sources such as snap peas, green beans and broccoli. Proteins are the building block of muscle a come from lean sources which include chicken, turkey, and fish such as tuna. Fats are used many bodily functions such as the production of naturally occurring hormones. Some great sources of good fats include oils such as flax seed oil, and canned extra virgin olive oil.

Your body building goals can help you determine the type of diet that is best for you. Careful planning is in order if you are just starting your bodybuilding and fitness program. The best programs include a program for building muscle while burning fat. The plan needs to estimate the calories burned and from this you can determine the number of calories that can consumed. The calorie equation is simple: losing weight demands that calories in must be less than calories out. Male body builders with over10% body fat or female with over 12% should choose a diet that emphasizes fat loss. By focusing on building muscle, the number of calories consumed can gradually be increased since the muscle burns more calories (even at rest) than fat.

After identifying and implementing the proper body building diet and exercise program, the following four diet myths should be kept in mind:

– A diet focused on starvation yields the results.

– Carbs are bad and must be eliminated.

– Restricting all fat from the diet produces the best results.

– Consuming too much water makes you gain weight.

A diet designed to build muscle while burning fat should be well planned. This plan should take into account the fact that the calories burned should be greater than the calories consumed. That building lean muscle promotes the expenditure of greater amounts of calories.