Cross Training Diet: What to Eat to Pack on Size

Many athletes in the CrossFit gym acknowledge that adding mass is synonymous with moving the weight a lot easier. Furthermore, people who have packed on size look stronger. Resistance training using weights gives you a solid foundation that you can build on. That said, you need some serious work especially in the kitchen if you are to realize optimal results.You have to take proper CrossFit diet to improve your performance. 

Eating for Size

Doing compound lifts and exercises which engage more than a single joint such as squats trigger your body to release 3 critical hormones that aid in muscle growth. The hormones include human growth hormone (HGH), testosterone, and insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1). These hormones work in unison to help you build muscle size and strength. For them to properly synthesize, you have to get the right combination of nutrients into your body. The question is, how do you go about that?

Increasing Your Food Intake

It doesn’t matter how relentlessly you attack the gym; if you don’t eat more than what is required to sustain your energy for the next workout, you may never see any positive gains. It’s always recommended that you eat the right quantity of calories and other macronutrients to help you recover and promote muscle growth.

The total daily caloric intake is derived from protein, fat, and carbohydrate. However, if you want to increase in size, you should up your caloric intake. In short, you need to include more in your CrossFit diet. Eating more than what your body needs will keep your metabolism running. The best starting point for athletes serious in gaining body mass is to eat about 20 calories per pound of bodyweight on a daily basis.

Your meals should be spread throughout the day making a total of about 6 to 8 meals. The reason you are taking so many meals is that your body is designed to take in small amounts of foods, but frequently throughout the day. This keeps the digestive function working normally without the threat of it being overburdened. It is also an exceptional way to maintain stability in your sugar and fatty acid levels.

Protein Consumption

It’s recommended that you take 1 gram of protein for every pound of your bodyweight. As you may know, protein is a must-have macronutrient in your CrossFit diet because it forms the foundation for muscle growth. The amino acids in protein help in repairing muscle tissue after a hard workout. One thing to note though is, the quality of protein you take should be high. Go for grass-fed lean meat, wild fish, and pasture-raised eggs.

Get Good Fats

Fats help your brain and give you the energy to work right. Monounsaturated and saturated fats are considered good fats because they stall insulin secretion. Too much of insulin injected into your bloodstream may lead to diabetes, fat gain, and other cardiac problems. Good fats can be found in avocados, flaxseeds, fatty fish, leafy vegetables, and coconut oil. Remember, the leaner the meat, the lesser the fat.

Carbohydrates

For you to gain mass, the ratio of carbohydrates must be the highest of all macronutrients. Athletes regularly doing resistance-based CrossFit workouts should eat about 2.3 to 3.6 grams of carbohydrates for every pound of their body weight daily. Since carbohydrates are the prime fuel source for your body, you must never underestimate their power.

Low carbohydrate intake causes the body to turn to your muscles for fuel and instead of gaining muscle, you will lose muscle. Get the right type of carbs and stay away from overly processed carbs.