Nutrition for muscle mass.

Mr. Skinner is a registered dietitian and certified strength and conditioning specialist. He works with athletes from 23 different NCAA sports, as well as Olympians and players from the NFL, NBA and MLB.

Many high school athletes ask how they can "bulk up" to have a chance against bigger and stronger members of their own team or the competition. Empower your athletes with knowledge about the critical components for muscle gain -- strength training and calories.

Adding Calories to Add Muscle

If the ultimate goal is enhanced muscle size, athletes need to push themselves with a challenging strength training program and "top off" their daily food intake with an additional 500-1000 calories. With calories from all three macronutrients (carbohydrates, protein and fat), the body can use dietary protein to build muscle. But if athletes don't eat enough calories the body's protein stores are used for energy and muscle gain is limited. Contrary to what many athletes believe, the extra calories needed for lean muscle mass do not have to come from protein exclusively.

Protein is Only Part of the Power

Amino acids are the building blocks of protein. Although protein provides amino acids for promoting muscle growth and recovery from strength training, the most important macronutrient for strength building is carbohydrate. Eating adequate carbohydrate fuels the body with the right kind of energy for tough workouts and saves amino acids for muscle building and recovery. Although athlete's protein needs are slightly higher than non-athletes, research shows that most athletes can eat enough protein without using additional supplements or following a high-protein diet. Protein is found in meat, poultry, fish, dairy products, eggs, nuts, and dried beans.

Timing Can Make a Difference

Recent research shows carbohydrate and protein eaten within 30 minutes of a workout is an effective time to restore amino acids and carbohydrate in the muscles, preparing them for the next workout. Adding a snack during this window is one way to add the 500-1000 calories needed daily for a muscle building program. Foods like turkey sandwiches, crackers and cheese or an energy bar containing 7 to 14 grams of protein are good choices.

RELATED ARTICLE: High Protein Diets and Protein Supplements

Protein supplements or switching to a high protein diet is not effective for athletes who already get enough calories and eat protein foods two to three times daily. Here's why:

* Athletes get enough protein for muscle growth and repair in an average mixed diet.

* Protein from a food or a protein supplement acts the same in the body.

* Extra protein not needed by the body is burned for energy or stored as fat.