How to keep your body in an anabolic state
- Arius Norris BA, NSCA-CPT
- Apr 13, 2018
- 3 min read
Anyone who wishes to put on muscle mass or enhance their overall strength should keep their body in an anabolic state as often as possible. When examining the body there are basically two states that your body shifts from on a daily basis: anabolic and catabolic. Anabolic is a muscle promoting state in which your body is most readily and able to build muscle. The first step in achieving an anabolic state is to have a surplus of calories that your body can use at anytime.
The first thing you should figure out is what body type you are. There are three different body types that people fall under. The first is ectomorph: someone with long limbs. The downside about being this particular body type is that is makes it extremely difficult to put on muscle mass. This is because ectomorphs tend to have a higher metabolism than the other two body types. The positive is that they also tend to be the leanest, so most of the weight they do put on is mostly muscle. The second body type is endomorph. Endomorphs are usually bigger with high body fat, often with a pear shaped body. Endomorphs tend to store fat a lot easier than the other two body types, so the positive is that they hold on to their weight easier. The last body type is a mesomorph. Having a mesomorph body type is ideal for putting on as much lean mass as possible. People with this body type tend to have higher metabolisms and very responsive muscle cells. Knowing your body is very important in determining how much of each nutrient should be consumed.
After figuring out which body type you are, the next order of business should be determining if you are eating enough calories. There are about 3,500 calories in a single pound of fat, there are even more in a pound of muscle since it's more dense and requires more calories to maintain. One source I have found to be pretty reliable is a fitness calculator on bodybuilding.com. You input your information and it estimates how many calories you need from each macro nutrient.
A myth almost everyone has been told is that carbs are evil and to stay away from them. The truth is you need carbs in order to build muscle they are your bodies primary source of energy, and not eating enough causes your body to dip into your protein and fat stores in order to get what it needs. Obviously protein is going to be your most important nutrient they are the building blocks for muscle growth. You should be getting about 1.2-1.7 grams per pound of body weight. By creating a surplus of calories your body begins to use a feed forward mechanism but you have to exercise chronically in order to induce this response.
Eating small meals every two hours is going to be ideal. The reason you want to eat frequently rather than eating three large meals is because your body can only absorb so many calories at once. The second reason is because it keeps your metabolism going at a constant rate which promotes fat burn. All together you should be eating 5-6 small meals during the course of the day.
I encourage you to eat fats. Fats are directly related to testosterone levels especially cholesterol which is a precursor to testosterone production. Foods like red meat and egg yolks are plentiful in saturated fats and are a perfect option, although just like everything else it needs to be eaten in moderation, too much can raise LDL (low density lipids) to unhealthy levels.
By following the steps above you can get the best results possible but just a word to the wise it's hard and takes a lot of patience if it were easy everyone would do it.
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