Muscle 4 Hardgainers

Trying to build muscles and gain weight fast? Are you on a bodybuilder diet but getting sick of the usual chicken brocolli and brown rice? Here are simple, fast and easy to prepare recipes suitable for bodybuilders. Here I’m going to show you how to make meals that contain a healthy balance of protein, fats and carbohydrates per serving – the sort of foods you need to be eating for lean and fast bodybuilding.

These are the sort of meals you ought to be having to gain weight and grow muscles fast – without putting on belly fat. I tailored these recipes so that they are high in protein and low in fat and low in sodium and sugar. I kept this simple, and if a hopeless culinary-challenged guy like me can do these, you can do them too.

Lean Mean Salad

Prep time: approx 15 minutes

Eat meals with the right combination of Protein, Carbs and Fats

Ingredients:

• 100 g sirloin steak
• 1 x parsnip
• 2 x dates, sliced
• mixed leaf salad
• handful of mint leaves (optional)

Dressing:

• 2 tbsps sour cream
• 1 x teaspoon horseradish
• juice of 1/2 small lemon

Peel parsnips cut into thin strips.

Drizzle a small amount of olive oil into a griddle pan and fry steak each side for 2 minutes (for rare to medium). Allow to rest for 5 minutes and slice into strips.

Next, whisk the sour cream, horseradish and lemon juice in a bowl and toss the parsnip and dates through the dressing.

Serve by placing the leaf salad on a plate, lay the steak strip on top and have the dressing on the side. Garnish with mint leaves.

Per serving: Calories 327; Fat 8 g; Carbohydrate 16.5 g; Protein 32 g.

Citrus Couscous Salad

Couscous salad is always handy to have around

Couscous salad is always handy to have around. You can make it in advance and can be eaten anytime on its own, either hot or cold. It’s also the perfect accompaniment because it goes with almost anything – leafy salads, vegetables, or fish.

This recipe yields 4 servings, so you have enough left over to store in the fridge, ready for snacking or as a side dish for your meals anytime of the day.

• 1 cup orange juice (freshly squeezed)
• 1/4 cup water
• pinch of salt
• 5 oz couscous
• 1/4 cup sliced dried apricots
• 1/4 cup dried currants
• 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
• 1/2 cup chopped seeded cucumber
• 1/2 cup chopped spring onions
• 1/4 cup coarsely chopped walnuts or pistachios (or a mixture of both)
• chopped fresh mint (to taste)
• juice of 1 small lemon
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Preparation

Bring 1/2 cup orange juice, water, and salt to a boil in a medium saucepan; gradually stir in couscous. Remove from heat; cover and let stand for 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork. Place couscous in a large bowl.

Combine 1/2 cup orange juice, apricots, currants, and vinegar in a small saucepan; bring to a boil. Remove from heat; let stand for 15 minutes. Drain and discard cooking liquid.

Add apricot mixture, cucumber, and remaining ingredients to couscous, tossing to combine.

Per Serving: Calories 295 (23% from fat); Fat 7.4g (sat 1g, mono 4.4g, poly 1.5g); Protein 7.7g; Carbohydrate 51.4g; Fiber 5g; Cholesterol 0 mg; Sodium 302mg; Calcium 43mg

Easy Fishy Veggie Dishy

Salmon steaks are good sources of protein

This is a dish cooked for me by my girlfriend, and as always it was a big hit (what can I say, I’m one lucky guy!). Fillet of pan-seared salmon topped with basil pesto on a bed of vegetables. If you want a bigger meal, you can have it served on a bed of citrus couscous, or roasted potatoes whichever you fancy. I gotta tell ya – it’s simple yet extremely satisfying!

• 150 g  Salmon fillet
• 1 tbsp organic basil pesto (ready made)
• 1/4 Courgette (also called Zucchini)
• 1/2 a handful of brocolli florets
• 1/4 turnips, diced
• 1/4 leek, sliced in diagonal strips
• 1/4 carrots, sliced in strips
• 50 g frozen peas
• olive oil spray
• pinch of salt
• freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 50g crème fraiche
• Zest of 1/2 lemon
• 25ml white wine
• 125 ml pint vegetable stock

Preparation

Heat some olive oil in a frying pan, add the vegetables except the peas, cook for 1-3 minutes (depending on how crunchy you like your vegetables – I like mine semi-raw). Add the lemon zest and cook for 1-2 more minutes. Season, add the white wine and cook for another minute or so and then add the vegetable stock. Simmer for another minute and set aside.

Next, cook the salmon: add olive oil non a heated non-stick frying pan. Fry the fish skin-side down for approx 2 minutes, then turn and cook for 3 more minutes. Remove from heat and season lightly. Set aside.

Return the veg to the pan, add the crème fraiche and herbs, add the peas and simmer gently for about a minute.

Arrange the vegetables on a plate and put the salmon fillet on top. Garnish with a dollop of basil pesto and top with a sprig of herb like parsley or mint.

Skinny Omelet

Egg whites are high in protein and low in fat

Egg white omelets are high in protein, low in fat, low in carbohydrate, and low in cholesterol. It’s a great way to start a bodybuilder’s day. This one is a recipe I got from Reader’s Digest.

Ingredients:

• 3 large eggs (whites only)
• 1 teaspoon water
• herb of choice (parsley/dill/coriander)
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 1/2 cup loosely packed, thinly sliced fresh spinach
• 1 plum tomato, chopped
• 2 tablespoons pineapple cottage cheese (or cheddar cheese or any cheese you like)
• Vegetable cooking spray

Preparation

Whisk egg whites, water, herbs, salt, and pepper together in a medium bowl until soft peaks form. Toss spinach, tomato, and cheddar together in a small bowl.

Lightly coat an omelet pan or small skillet with cooking spray and heat over medium heat for 1 minute. Pour egg mixture into pan and cook until eggs begin to set on bottom.

Spread filling over half of omelet, leaving a 1/2-inch border and reserving 1 tablespoon mixture for garnish. Lift up omelet at edge nearest handle and fold in half, slightly off-center, so filling peeks out. Cook for 2 minutes. Slide omelet onto a serving plate and garnish with reserved filling.

Per serving: Calories 110, fat 0.5 g, saturated fat 0 g, cholesterol 3 mg, sodium 906 mg, carbohydrate 8 g, fiber 1 g, protein 18 g.

Conclusion

There are many factors you need to get right when it comes to your bodybuilding diet. You need to eat foods with the right combination of protein, fats and carbohydrates. Doing the right training program is not enough to build muscles – you need to eat frequently and eat the right amount suited to your body type, activity level and goal.

As hardgainers we need to eat to gain weight! This means eating lots in order to attain a calorie surplus necessary for muscle growth, but keep in mind that we still need to eat the right kind and combination of foods. As such, it is absolutely essential to know how to prepare your own meals. If you find this particularly challenging (like most of us) so you end up eating bad food (thinking you can get away with it), I recommend you stop eating fast food now and start learning how to put together simple and healthy meals, like the ones shown here.

Highly Recommended

Empowered Nutrition Plan

If you want convenient, fast, easy meals that are great for bodybuilders without having to research, calculate and plan, here are done-for-you meal plans. All you need is follow instructions.

Vince DelMonte’s Empowered Nutrition Done-For-You Meal Plans will show you EXACTLY what to eat, how much to eat, when to eat it, how to cook it and exactly what to shop for.

Although you can see that it’s being marketed to the fat loss market, if you know your bodybuilding nutrition well, you can easily  tailor the meal combinations and portion sizes to suit your bodybuilding needs, whether you’re on the bulking phase or cutting (getting ripped) phase. These meal plans are for men and women who want to make their own delicious, well-balanced, nutritious healthy meals – without the hassles of meal planning.

If you’re not one of those culinary gifted people and you find meal planning confusing, challenging and time-consuming, this ready made meal plans is the answer. I highly recommended you check it out now.