Here is a nutrition program I wrote. I wrote it such that no supplements would have to be used in the bulking process and all the food could be made in the microwave (ideal for college kids). I also wrote it so someone can follow the program whether they work out in the morning, afternoon, or multiple times a day. One cheat day is allowed per week. This program was originally written for a high school athlete. While it is not perfect by any means, it is a very simple, easy-to-follow plan that still allows for results.
Mass Gain Nutritional Plan
By: Charlie Cates, CPT
Breakfast:
6 whole eggs
1-2 pieces of whole-wheat toast with peanut butter
You call it for drinkâ??If you choose orange juice, dilute it (�½ cup juice, �½ cup water)
Mid-morning:
1 cup of oatmeal, 1 tablespoon honey
1 apple (sliced) with peanut butter
Water
Lunch (45-60 minutes pre-workout):
1-2 peanut butter and jelly sandwich(es) on whole-wheat bread
3 hard-boiled whole eggs
1 piece of fruitâ??preferably apples, not bananas
Water
Immediately post-workout:
2 peanut butter and jelly sandwiches on white bread
1-2 bananas
Water
Mid-afternoon (2 hours post-workout):
1-2 roast beef or turkey sandwiches on whole-wheat bread; add cheese if desired
1 cup of spinach
�½ cup of cottage cheese
3 hard-boiled whole eggs
1 cup of whole milk
Water
Dinner:
Whatever your family is serving is appropriate here. If you usually cook for yourself, see my suggestions below for easy microwave meals.
Post-evening workout:
1 peanut butter and jelly sandwich on white bread
1 banana
Water
Within 30 minutes before bed:
1-2 cups of whole milk
3 hard-boiled whole eggs
1 can of albacore tuna
1 handful of almonds
First of all, this is obviously a lot of food. It may take time to work into this plan, but eventually youâ??ll be able to adapt. If you find that youâ??re not waking up early enough to eat both the breakfast and the mid-morning snack before your pre-workout lunch you can either merge the breakfast and the mid-morning snack into one meal or just skip the snack all together, depending on how you feel during you workouts, i.e. if youâ??re too full during your workouts.
Hard-boiled eggs can be purchased at Trader Joeâ??s already pealed and everything. They run at around $3.50 for 10 of them.
Depending on when you go to sleep, you could conceivably split your dinner into two parts and eat one before you run at night and one a few hours after you work out. If you find that you are going longer than 2-3 hours without food between your post-workout meal and your before-bed meal, eat dinner again.
Cottage cheese, tuna, and spinach are gross, I know. Gag them down. Theyâ??ll do wonders.
If you are cooking for yourself for dinner, you can get microwavable salmon and chicken breast at the grocery store. If you feel comfortable using a grill, stove, or oven, you can use any of these options. Yams and sweet potatoes are great dinner options for carbohydrates, as well as brown rice. Both of these can be prepared in the microwave as wellâ??brown rice can come frozen in microwaveable bags, and for the yams and potatoes you run them under water until the outside is damp, poke a bunch of holes in them with a fork, put a wet paper towel over them and microwave it for 7 minutes. Make sure to get some source of green vegetables in at dinner as well, preferably spinach, broccoli, or asparagus. You can find frozen microwaveable broccoli, and asparagus can be prepared by slicing it up, putting it in a bowl, covering it with water, and microwaving it for 5 minutes. If you feel comfortable using the stove and oven then whole-wheat pasta and ground beef is an excellent dinner option as well.
Plain yogurt with granola (actual granola, not the sugar-filled kind) is a great alternative to oatmeal in the morning or any time during the day. You can add ground flax seed to this as well to get some more Omega-3â??s.
Your goal should be to drink a gallon of water a day.
MAKE SURE YOU ARE EATING EVERY THREE HOURS MINIMUM!!! If you have trouble keeping track of this, set your phone alarm or watch alarm to go off every three hours to remind you.
Get big or die tryinâ??.
Charlie Cates