The body building diet is something that has confused many people new to bodybuilding. These people are pursuing bodybuilding as a means of promoting health and as a hobby, opposed to pursuing a career as a professional bodybuilder.

Keep in mind, in general terms, there is not much of a difference between a professional’s and a hobbyist’s body building diet, because a proper diet is a fairly fixed, scientific entity. There are, however, some subtle changes between the diet of the pro and the amateur.

It is All About the Calories

The number of calories that a professional will eat in a body building diet will be significantly higher than that of an amateur, because the body builder professional probably weighs in excess of 220lbs and is all muscle, low body fat. Muscle burns calories like crazy, so a pro will not gain weight eating 7,000 calories a day.

In other words, a professional burns up calories by exercising, and the metabolic process of the muscle will devour those calories like crazy. For a hobbyist, one would probably want to stay within a calorie level to maintain one’s weight, which is usually 2,000 a day for most people, with some being higher and virtually never recommended to be over that amount.

Water Intake Variables

Water consumption is a major factor in a body building diet because water does a body good. When one drinks a lot of water, one will see a dramatic change in one’s body. Drinking a lot of water will make your body cease storing excess water weight.

Water also flushes the kidneys and the kidney will not need help from the liver to do its job, so the liver is free to metabolize more fat. Lastly, the body is primarily composed of water, so adding new water to it will allow the body to function well. This is why body builders will drink up to three gallons of water a day! Hobbyists really only need to drink between 64 and 100 ounces of water per day.

Pre-Contest Diet Phase

Bodybuilders will do a great deal of cardio during a free contest period and will drastically cut calories and carbs. They will also make other body building diet alterations so as to develop a defined look for a judge.

Since the hobbyist is not competing and is not taking in massive calories during an off- season, they can usually avoid this part of the body building diet and simply eat a more standard recommended diet during the year. Of course, one can do a modified version of this body building diet prior to the beach days of summer for great results.