Fat In Muscle Building Diets

If you are interested in muscle building diets, you need to know that there are three types of fat: saturated, monounsaturated, and polyunsaturated. Mainly saturated fats, such as butter and lard, are solid at room temperature. Meats and cheeses also contain high levels of saturated fat, which raises the amount of cholesterol in the blood and increases the risk of atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries). Monounsaturated fats, including avocado, olive, canola and peanut oils, are much healthier. They have even been shown to inhibit bodyfat gains in mice compared with mice given an equivalent amount of saturated fat. Polyunsaturated fats are more unsaturated than the monounsaturated fats. Examples of these fats are corn, soybean, and safflower oils.

Sources Of Fat In Muscle Building Diets…

All sources of fat have a mixture of both saturated and unsaturated fats in them. As a general rule, animal fats are predominately saturated while vegetable oils are mostly unsaturated. There are exceptions, however. Palm kernel and coconut oils are made up of mostly saturated fatty acids, while chicken fat has a great deal of unsaturated fat. Fish oils are also high in polyunsaturated fatty acids. Hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated vegetable oil is actually unsaturated vegetable oil that has been chemically processed to make it more saturated. Products with these modified oils should be avoided if you’d like to get bigger muscles for the same reasons you steer away from saturated fats.

High levels of fat consumption have been linked to diabetes, obesity, hypertension and even cancer. They can adversely affect the transport of glucose into skeletal muscle, restricting the formation of the glycogen stores. They can even reduce the effectiveness of insulin and the oxygen-carrying capacity of the blood. For these reasons, it is wise for athletes to restrict the total amount of fat in order to get bigger muscles.

Optimum Fat Intake For Muscle Building Diets…

Athletes who are interested in health and maximum strength gains should consume a diet that is 10- to 15-percent fat. This will provide enough of the two essential fatty acids while keeping the impact on your total caloric intake to a minimum. (Fats have nine calories per gram versus four calories for proteins and carbohydrates). Depending on your workout program and metabolism, greater fat intake may result in bodyfat accumulation without any corresponding sports benefit. You could also eat a relatively fat-free diet and consume a tablespoon or two of flaxseed (linseed) oil each day. This oil is an excellent source of linoleic and linolenic acids, which are known as omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, respectively. Evening primrose oil and borage oil are also good sources of these fats, but they are much more expensive. Flaxseed oil has relatively more omega-3 acids, while primrose oil and borage oil have higher amounts of omega-6 acids. Cold water fish, such as tuna, and fish-oil supplements also have high amounts of omega-3s.

You can minimize your exposure to saturated fat by eating mostly fish, chicken, turkey, and egg whites for your protein sources. This will keep your total fat intake down as well. Reduce your beef, pork, and egg-yolk consumption to a minimum, and when you eat meat buy a very lean cut and trim away all of the visible fat. Throw out your butter dish and keep on driving past those fast-food restaurants. Over time, these dietary changes will give you a trimmer, more defined physique that will show off the results of your hard work at the gym and you will get bigger muscles for sure.