Fooooooood

[new york star]

Hi I'm 6 foot tall and a little over 150lbs, and, as you could imagine, a hard gainer. I've asked nutrition questions in the past, but still have a few short random questions, so if anyone could help me out it'd be great.

1) I want abs but know I need to eat a lot in order to get big. The question that's so hard to get a definitive answer on: Do I or do I not do cardio? (Also, I workout out 3 days a week and do abs for about 15 min each day, is this a good amount?)
2) I read that a good ratio of protein/carbs/fat is 40/40/20. Is it ok, or rather, SHOULD I, eat foods high in carbs/fat like mayo, dressing, donuts, cakes, whole milk, cheeses, pasta, etc. for someone like me, or should I still go with low fat, even though I'm trying to gain weight? Also, I read eating at night before bed make you gain weight, so should I do this? Or is it unhealthy?
3) Eggs - how many per day is a good number, and are the yolk bad (I hear I shouldn't have too many because of the cholestorol, although I don't have a cholesterol problem)? I currently eat 3 eggs per day, and only eat the yolk in one of them, what do you all think?
4) Protein supplement - the container of my whey protein says to consume 1 pound of protein per pound of body weight (food + supplement combined). This means that I need 2 protein shakes per day of about 45-50g each, even on days I don't lift. Is this not too much?


This site is great and I hope you guys can answer my questions if you know the answers! Thanks!

[Paul Stagg]

Hi I'm 6 foot tall and a little over 150lbs, and, as you could imagine, a hard gainer. I've asked nutrition questions in the past, but still have a few short random questions, so if anyone could help me out it'd be great.

'Hardgainer' usually means 'undereater' or someone who doesn't train properly.


1) I want abs but know I need to eat a lot in order to get big. The question that's so hard to get a definitive answer on: Do I or do I not do cardio? (Also, I workout out 3 days a week and do abs for about 15 min each day, is this a good amount?)

You do cardio if you need to do cardio. Generally, cardio is an inefficient way to increase caloric expenditure - it's much easier to eliminate some calories from your diet than to drone along on a treadmill. However, there are other benefits to aerobic training. You don't need to do abs every day... train them like any other bodypart.


2) I read that a good ratio of protein/carbs/fat is 40/40/20. Is it ok, or rather, SHOULD I, eat foods high in carbs/fat like mayo, dressing, donuts, cakes, whole milk, cheeses, pasta, etc. for someone like me, or should I still go with low fat, even though I'm trying to gain weight? Also, I read eating at night before bed make you gain weight, so should I do this? Or is it unhealthy?

You should eat whatever you need to eat in order to gain muscle. I think 40/40/20 is an OK place to start, I'd like to see more fat than that, but that's just me. The keys to gaining muscle are calories and protein. You can eat any time you like.


3) Eggs - how many per day is a good number, and are the yolk bad (I hear I shouldn't have too many because of the cholestorol, although I don't have a cholesterol problem)? I currently eat 3 eggs per day, and only eat the yolk in one of them, what do you all think?

There isn't a specific number per day, and the yolk isn't 'bad'. what you eat now is fine as long as it fits in your overall diet. Dietary cholesterol isn't the evil scourge it was once thought to be.


4) Protein supplement - the container of my whey protein says to consume 1 pound of protein per pound of body weight (food + supplement combined). This means that I need 2 protein shakes per day of about 45-50g each, even on days I don't lift. Is this not too much?

No, it isn't too much. It might not be enough.

[Shao-LiN]

1 gram of protein per pound of body weight. 1 pound of protein per pound of body weight is "a bit" excessive =p.

[YungLifter]

:withstupi lol yea one pound of protein per lb of bw is a little much.