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Workout Questions - Protein and Calories To Increase Metabolism

Workout Question:
I'm trying to gain some muslce after a history of an eating disorder and was wondering what is the proper amount of protein to take in for my age and height and activity level. Right now I only do cardio, light arm weights a few times a week and isometric leg excercises. How many calories and protein should I take in a day to get my metabolism back to normal?

Workout Answer:
For optimal muscle growth, I recommend eating at least 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight. This amount of protein will keep your nitrogen levels high and prime your body to fully recover from workouts and assist in muscle growth. In terms of your basal metabolic rate (BMR), your daily caloric level should be:

1,206 calories per day

Focus on choosing lean protein items like chicken breast, egg whites, turkey breast and fish. Also, make sure to eliminate all empty calories like soda, high sugar fruit juices, candy and fast food. Try and eat several small and nutritious meals throughout the day. By cleaning up your diet, you should see a vast improvement in your physique.

The best way to increase your metabolism is by adding lean muscle tissue to your body through strength training. Muscle is your body's most potent and active tissue for burning calories and body fat. Its basically your body's "furnace" which you want to always keep burning hot. I would recommend a weight training routine 3 times a week and focus on basic free weight movements such as bench press, squats, barbell curls and triceps push downs. These core exercises will build quality muscle which will burn more calories and give your body a drastic change in composition. You can review our weight training exercise and workout routines databases here:

• Weight Training Database
  
  
• Workout Routines

You can also add calories back into your diet but make sure to add them at a rate of a few hundred extra calories a day. You should shoot for a max of 500 extra calories per day which equates to a 1 pound increase in weight per week (3,500 calories). For your diet, focus on getting enough protein throughout the day by choosing lean items like chicken breast, egg whites, turkey breast and fish. Also, make sure to eliminate all empty calories like soda, high sugar fruit juices, candy and fast food. Try and eat several small and nutritious meals throughout the day. By cleaning up your diet, you should see a vast improvement in your physique.

Its also extremely important to keep a diet journal of your nutritional intake. This way you will be able to track where all your calories are coming from and really monitor your intake. You can download our free diet journals here:

• FREE Diet Journals
  

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