Sports Nutritionist Tucson AZ

By Nick Nilsson

Learn how to manipulate your protein intake to literally FORCE your body to add muscle mass. You can gain 4 to 5 pounds of fresh new muscle in only 10 days!

Protein intake is absolutely crucial for building muscle mass. It is what muscle tissue is made of. So how can you possibly gain muscle by eating NO protein?

To help answer this question, we need to first look at a training technique known as carbohydrate or carb-loading. Carb-loading is used primarily by endurance athletes to increase glycogen stores in the muscles beyond what the body will normally store. This increased fuel storage equals greater endurance. This phenomenon is known as "supercompensation" and it is very well documented.

The basic technique for carb-loading involves first eliminating carbs from the diet for several days while continuing to train hard. Training is then reduced and the athlete eats large amounts of carbs, in effect "loading" the muscles with glycogen (stored carbohydrates). Since the body has been deprived of carbs, it reacts to the extra carbs by greedily holding onto every last one it can. This technique can result in glycogen stores up to 1 1/2 times greater than normal.

But what does carb-loading have to do with eating no protein and gaining muscle? Everything.

In the context of supercompensation, imagine the result if you were to remove protein from your diet for a day. Just like with carb-loading, your body will react by greedily holding onto every last bit of protein it can. But here's the major difference: when accompanied by appropriate training, unlike with carb-loading where the extra carbs are burnt for fuel, you can convince your body to hang onto that extra protein permanently. How does this happen? By using it to build muscle, which is the primary storehouse of protein in your body.

How To Do Zero Protein:

Note: before I tell you exactly how to do it, please keep in mind that I am not a medical doctor or nutritionist. This information is for educational purposes only and you should always consult your physician before making any major changes to your diet.

The technique consists of 3 phases: lead-up, protein deprivation, and supercompensation. These phases work synergistically to produce the conditions for very quick muscle gain.

In a nutshell, the lead-up phase consists of your training and diet for the several days before the protein deprivation day. The protein deprivation day is simply a day without protein. The supercompensation phase is the nutrition and training techniques you will use to maximize the rebound off the protein deprivation day.

I first encountered this technique a number of years ago in the writings of Leo Costa Jr. of Optimum Training Systems. He originated this theory after noting that farmers in Bulgaria would rotate protein in and out of the diets of their livestock to improve the amount and quality...