MuscleCircuit.com

Protein is a big part of a bodybuilding diet. Sometimes it can be difficult to get all the necessary protein (1 - 1.5 grams per pound of body weight) throughout our busy days. I know it’s difficult for me at least.

That’s why I like to use my homemade protein bars when I’m on the go and don’t have time to cook (did that sound like an endorsement line?).

It’s far better than eating a semi-healthy restaurant meal and way better than fast food.

The problem is that most store bought protein bars are typically what I call “sugar-filled, over-processed, soy-protein filled, over-priced crap.”

What’s the solution?

Make your own!

It’s 10x cheaper and actually taste amazing (especially if you like peanut butter!). Here’s my recipe with pictures.

Ingredients:

• Whey Protein Powder
• Natural Peanut Butter
• Oats
• Milk

Instructions

1. Get Bowl

2. Add 3.5 cups of whole oats

3. Add 5 scoops Whey Protein Powder

4. Add 4 tablespoons of natural peanut butter

5. Add 1 cup milk

6. Mix it all together! It gets a little messy, so don’t be scared to dig in.

7. Important! Spray Pam on a separate plate.

8. Place contents on plate and play with it until it forms a rectangle shape.

9. Cut into 4 equal bars

10. Refrigerate for at least a few hours, and enjoy.

Voila.

Nutritional Information for one protein bar:
Total Calories: 530
Protein: 45 grams
Carbs: 57 grams
Fat: 14.5 grams

With a strenuous training program, supplements can be a useful tool to provide additional nutrients. I’ve outlined only what I feel are the essentials and what I’ve used and can vouch for. Don’t be fooled by advertisements and insane claims of “gaining 15 pounds of muscle in one month.” Here are some legitimate supplements.

Disclaimer: Supplements are only useful when your diet and training are intact. Focus on diet and training first, then use the following products to supplement additional nutrients.

1. SciVation Xtend

Ah, the wonderful, sweet taste of SciVation Xtend makes me recovery faster while satisfying my sweet tooth. This stuff is literally amazing. What makes this BCAA product so great?

• Proven science of Branch Chain Amino Acid (BCAAs) with respect to muscle recovery
• It includes Citrulline Malate which increases nitrix oxide production, reduces lactic acid buildup and increases aroebic performance
• L-Gluatmine which further enhances recovery
• Easy to mix with water and spoon
• It tastes freaking amazing!

I always take 2 scoops pre-workout and 1 scoop post-workout. I highly recommend the lemonade or watermelon flavor as well. Those two flavors blow me away and I haven’t gotten tired of them even though I used them everyday for around 65 days straight on different occasions.

1. Higher Power 100% Whey Protein

Higher Power Vanilla is a great blend of whey protein concentrate (the cheaper type) and whey protein isolate (the more expensive type). This makes for a nice balance of quality and price. Actually, it’s one of the best costing proteins I’ve found that contains whey protein isolate.

• A blend of whey protein concentrate and whey protein isolate
• Nice balance of quality and price, $34.99 with a reliable brand
• 25 grams of protein per serving
• Comes in Vanilla, Chocolate and Berry (I can only vouch for the Vanilla flavor)

Keep in mind, however, I recommend you get the majority of your protein from whole food and supplement the rest with 1-3 scoops of whey protein everyday.

3. Controlled Labs Geen MAGnitude

Finally, a cheap, quality creatine product that actually lasts more than 30 days. Green MAGnitude is essentially a creatine product using 2 creatines plus a few extra goodies. It uses Magnesium Creatine Chelate and Dicreatine Malate which are 2 forms of patented creatine. Why do I recommend it?

• Solid creatine formula with little to no gain in water weight
• Very economical at 50 cents a day
• Easy to mix with water and spoon (no blender or shaker cup necessary)
• Juicy Green Apple flavor tastes like candy

The science behind these two creatines is harder to find than its popular cousin creatine monodrate (which tends to increase water weight more than this product). However, the anecdotal evidence is overwhelmingly positive from my personal usage and from the reviews of others I’ve read in the past.

Plus, you can expect to gain a minimal amount of water weight from it!

4. NOW EcoGreen Men’s Multivitamin

I couldn’t make an “essential supplement” article without including a multivitamin! It may be a given, but you shouldn’t forget to take your vitamins. NOW EcoGreen is a capsule based men’s iron-free multivitamin. Here’s a rundown of why I recommend it:

• NOW brand makes exceptional products for dirt cheap
• Iron-free multivitamin
• Includes all essential vitamins AND minerals
• Capsule based, giving better and faster absorption than press tablets

I have many exciting things to bring to this brand new blog in the upcoming weeks. With so many different aspects to talk about when it comes to bodybuilding, it’s difficult to decide!

What Articles To Expect This Month

MuscleCircuit.com official bodybuilding workout plan. This will include what exercises to do, how many reps and sets, how to switch it up, and what results to expect (which are definitely big).

Sample diets with pictures. I’ll show you what to eat, every single day. No matter what your goals are or what your metabolism is like, I have a diet plan made just for you.

Essential Supplements. There’s only a few supplements I like to recommend, but the ones I like are extremely helpful.

More motivational articles. These types of articles always seem to hit home with MuscleCircuit.com readers, so I’m posting more.

Beyond those basics, I have a few other extra ideas as well. But the problem is I need to know what you want to read.

I’d love to hear your comments and suggestions. Click here to make a comment now.

Honestly, why do you work out?

Do you want to gain attention from women? Do you get something out of it besides looking better? Do you love spending tons of extra money on food and supplements?

These are just some of the questions I ask myself when I see other people at the gym and chatting online. As I put my own reasons aside, I tried to figure out why other people are so fixated on building a better body.

To answer this, I looked to a few online bodybuilding forums for answers.

The forums are public, online discussion boards. There are literally millions of forums on the internet, most are targeted to be about a specific topic. In this case, I went on to fitness/bodybuilding forums to look for information.

Take a look at the following graph to see why others do the same thing you do.

The information comes from a survey of 980 people, all who are members or at least readers of AnabolicMinds.com’s forum.

My Interpretation of the Graph

It’s interesting (and nice) to see most guys work out because it’s a healthy lifestyle. This is undoubtable the best reason as well. But just under it is vanity. It looks as though vanity is just as important to guys in general as well.

If working out didn’t make you look better, would you still do it? Asking yourself that is a good way to figure out why you really workout.

Why Do I Workout?

Initially, I wanted to attract more girls - and that’s it. After I began working out, a few months passed my results were merely decent, but I realized it was going to take a long time to really build a body good enough to impress anybody. Over the months, my interest in attracting more girls gradually transfered to bodybuilding and the science behind it. Now, I’d skip a date with a hot girl over a workout anytime, easily!

The lifestyle of bodybuilding is actually quite addictive. The endorphins from heavy lifting, the constant eating, the mental benefits, etc. In fact, I think I’d have difficulties stopping this lifestyle. When I go 3 or 4 days without working out, I become more anxious and stressed. I sometimes get frustrated with something going on in my life and working out seems to calm the storm somehow.

Why Do You Workout?

Take a minute to think about why you put yourself through the pain of working out. It might bring to mind what motivates you. Use this to motivate yourself even further.

You’ve seen the commercials, heard it from your friends and all over the internet. The “secrets” of how to build muscle mass and lose fat. I hate to bring it to you, but there aren’t any secrets I’ve come across other than proper diet, hard training and time.

Let’s use the following example to illustrate this:

The “Secret” Myth Examined

Grade School. We’ve all been to school before, so given that, what is the secret to getting good grades? Is there a mysterious technique to getting straight A’s? Is there a set-in-stone method proven to work for everyone?

Or does it merely have to do with going to class everyday, doing your homework, and studying hard for your tests?

Bodybuilding. With that in mind, let’s look at fitness. Is there a hidden exercise and/or type of protein to put on tons of muscle naturally? Is there a one-size-fits-all approach that holds the key to massive gains and strength?

Or is it merely have to do with eating the correct diet, training hard, and patience?

You Know the Answer

So the next time you see an advertisements claiming to have the hidden secret…

You’ll know the answer.