Mistake #1 – Being Impatient

The most popular of the bodybuilding dieting mistakes is dieting impatiently.  Athletes tend to jump from one diet to the next and never give any of them a chance to prove themselves.  Chances are you are guilty of this too.  Andy Baker at www.BakerStrengthCoaching.com explains, “Chronic Program Hopping is a form of self sabotage that keeps us from reaching our goals.”  It takes at least 21 days for your body to adjust to any new dieting changes.  Be patient and give your current diet program a chance to show it works.

Mistake #2 – Eating Haphazardly

Another popular bodybuilding mistake is eating haphazardly.  It’s safe to say that 99.9% of the lifters are guilty of this one.  Random eating doesn’t allow a steady flow of nutrients and can cause low-blood sugar.  Random eating actually works against you because you can’t keep a positive nitrogen balance.  If you want to build muscle you have to keep the nutrients moving through your body continually.  That’s why you will see serious bodybuilders eating a meal every 3-4 hours.  You have to eat consistently to get the muscle-building results you want.  This means you may have to plan and even precook and package your meals.

Mistake #3 – Overeating

Overeating is probably the most common bodybuilding dieting mistake.  It’s so easy to fall into the overeating trap.  Granted, you need a surplus of calories to build muscle, but going overboard and eating excess calories continually will only lead to fat gain.  Eating balanced meals that contain a complete protein, complex carb and essential fat can help keep you on track and prevent you from overeating.  A good high-calorie meal once in a while is perfectly fine, but making it a daily activity will just destroy your body.  Eating to grow is good.  Overeating continually is unacceptable.

Mistake #4 – Not Logging Calories

Another very common bodybuilding dieting mistake is not tracking calories eaten.  Failure to track calories can lead to overeating or under eating.  Now, you don’t have to track every blessed calorie, but you have to have a really good idea about how much you consume on a daily basis.  Log your food, time, calories, and all the macros; protein, fat and carbs.  Try to keep accurate records to you can gauge if your program is working toward muscle gain or fat gain.  Estimating caloric intake leads to miscalculating and failure.

Mistake #5 – Using The Scale

This is the all-too-popular bodybuilding dieting mistake. It’s using the scale only to gauge your progress.  You know you’ve done this.  Sure, the scale is a measuring tool.  However, it can’t distinguish between muscle, fat and water weight.  For best tracking, check your body fat.  Keep in mind that bodybuilding is a visual sport.  Photos are a great way to gauge your progress.  Taking measurements also proves to be an efficient means.  Another great way to gauge your progress is to have an unbiased eye provide some constructive criticism.

Mistake #6 – Copying Pro Bodybuilders

The last, but not least, bodybuilding dieting mistake is copying the Pros.  It’s common to see newbies following the diet and training programs of the professional bodybuilders and figure competitors.  This is like spitting in the wind, as it will only come back to smack you in the face.  Of course, we all respect the physiques that grace the stage.  They appear flawless.  We think they have all the dieting and training answers to the perfect body.  Yes, professional bodybuilders, physique competitors, and figure competitors have accomplished a lot.  They have made it to the elite level.  However, you have to keep in mind that there is a huge difference between the Pros and amateurs.  Pro bodybuilders have been dieting and training for years, if not decades.  They are also known for “supplementing” heavily.  There is a dark side and you have to be able to read between the lines and see through the pics in the magazines and on the Internet.

Now… This next piece of information is critical to YOUR muscle-building success…