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When I first became acquainted with bodybuilding, the majority
of bodybuilders commented on their high protein consumption
as a means of acquiring a great deal of muscle mass. Little
was said about a very important nutrient, the carbohydrate.
For natural bodybuilders, carbohydrates are all the more important
because you have to rely on the maximum efficiency of food
for your energy production and muscle development rather than
on steroids. This involves more critical balances of nutrients
and their optimum utilization, two areas where carbohydrates
play a preeminent role.
Carbohydrates yield an abundant supply of energy to the body.
They are also protein sparing because their availability allows
protein to perform its primary function of building tissue
instead of supplying energy.
There are three types of carbohydrates: monosaccharides, disaccharides
and polysaccharides. Monosaccharides and disaccharides are
classified as simple carbohydrates; polysaccharides are complex
carbs.
Examples of simple carbohydrates are sugars such as glucose,
fructose, galactose, maltose, sucrose and lactose. Complex
carbohydrates are starches such as rice, beans, peas, potatoes,
yams and so forth.
Except for fiber, the body converts the different types of
carbohydrates into readily available fuel called glucose,
which resides within the blood and cells but is primarily
stored within the muscle and the liver in a complex form called
glycogen.
Adequate glycogen stores are of vital importance to the bodybuilder,
especially the natural bodybuilder who has no assistance from
anabolics.
I try to ingest 75% of my total calories from carbohydrates,
with 10% coming from simple carbohydrates and the remaining
65% from complex sources.
In situations where a bodybuilder deprives himself or herself
of adequate glycogen stores, the body then turns to its own
protein as a means of generating glucose, which means less
protein is available for muscle tissue building.
Don’t let your carbohydrate level fall to the point
where your body scavenges protein to compensate for its energy
needs, and make sure those carbs are the right kind for constant
utilization.
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