The M&F “GFH” Diet

There is no “proven” laboratory formula for gaining quality muscle weight but the commonalities of every weight-gain nutrition regimen are the same: high calorie, high protein. It’s going to take more than skinless chicken breasts and organic spinach to put on appreciable amount of muscle and any serious powerlifter, strongman or bodybuilder will tell you the same.

To get big you gotta eat big…or rather, bigger than you thought. John McCallum, a legendary bodybuilding writer during the 1960s and 1970s, prescribed drinking the following get big drink daily, in addition to three big meals.

McCallum’s GFH Drink

2 quarts of whole milk

1 serving weight gainer (more if you want to gain faster)

2 cups of powered skim milk

2 whole eggs

4 tablespoons of peanut Butter

Half brick of chocolate ice cream

Banana

4 tablespoons of malted milk powder

6 tablespoons of corn syrup

Blend ingredients together and voila! Drink throughout the day in addition to three big meals.

How This Applies

McCallum’s approach works for adding bulk. The potential downside is that it can be too effective and, for most trainees, can result in gaining unwanted body fat. For the mesomorph with a fast metabolism, this will work. And if you think that your body type or training intensity and frequency can keep up, then by all means, give it a go.

For everyone else, a more measured approach to big eating is required. But please remember McCallum’s protocol next time someone says that they, “Eat everything in sight but can’t gain weight.”

The M&F Approach

In the words of country legend, Toby Keith, “What about me?” Well, for you, we break it down into training and non-training days. Surprise! You’re going to eat more calories and protein on training days than on rest days. See below for the particulars.

GFH Diet, Explained

This nutritional protocol is designed for a male that has trained seriously for at least two years and weighs 200 pounds, trains with weights 3-6 days a week and does no cardio or a very moderate amount of it.

If you want to design your own plan that caters to your physique or training level, we recommend taking these two points away: eat 16-20 calories per day per pound of bodyweight and eat a minimum of 1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight per day.

The protein shakes are in there for convenience. It is unfortunate but most Muscle & Fitness readers have to deal with work, school or family, all of which get in the way of the weight room and meal planning.

Your objective on training days is to get complex carbohydrates to supply energy to train and simple carbohydrates and fast-acting protein, during and after the workout, so we can immediately replenish glycogen stores and shovel amino acids to muscles that are ready to grow. For post-workout, use whey protein.

For all other protein shakes, use a multi-blend mix that contains both slow (casein) and fast (whey) acting proteins.

It’s important to eat for the day’s activities. That’s why on off days we are reducing carbohydrates and calories. If you see foods that you don’t like, we have provided you with substitutions.

For training days and non-training days, it is important that our fats come from good sources like fish, avocadoes, nuts and seeds for sustained energy, focus and health.

Older athletes and readers that easily gain body fat can look at reducing calories and carbohydrates by 20-25 percent as a starting point, adjusting up accordingly when ready. Some easy-gainers with a fast metabolism may need to increase caloric intake by 20-25 percent as a baseline and adjust accordingly.

Do you have to eat big to get big? Absolutely. But you have to go big and smart to put it all together.

Josh Bryant, MFS, CSCS, PES, is the owner of JoshStrength.com and co-author (with Adam benShea) of the Amazon No. 1 seller Jailhouse Strong. He is a strength coach at Metroflex Gym in Arlington, Texas, and holds 12 world records in powerlifting. You can connect with him on Twitter and Facebook or visit his website at www.joshstrength.com.