Big Meals Or Small Meals To Build Muscle?

Bodybuilding is by its very nature is a lot of smoke and mirrors; it can be complicating at times, and very frustrating for people searching for a yes or no answer in black and white. Just when you think you’ve convinced yourself of something and are feeling settled in your mind, you come across something else and bam! You’re back to square one, none the wiser. There comes a time, however, when you need to simply take action, and you’ll often find that even the ‘wrong’ way of doing something produces results, and you will also learn a lot more from it by having experience, so don’t be afraid of diving in and testing – and making mistakes. As a rule of thumb, stick to the basics and go from there. One issue that has many people bogged down is the way meals should be consumed. Should people be eating a few big meals, or a greater number of smaller meals, or doesn’t it really matter at all?

Big Meals

Despite what some would have you believe, not everybody who has achieved greatness with their physique has 6-8 small meals a day. Some simply have 3-4 huge meals.

However, for most people, it’s not the most popular choice. Conventional wisdom tends to revolve around the idea that if you take in too many calories at once per meal, the body will store the rest as fat. Plus, we’re told, the body can only digest around 30g of protein in one sitting, so in order to get in a lot more protein the meals must be smaller.

Some disagree with both arguments against big meals, stating that the amount of calories consumed within a day is all that matters, and their distribution into fewer big meals or lots more small meals is a very small issue, if an issue at all. Some also say that the idea the body can only make productive use (i.e. build muscle mass) of 30g of protein per meal is a myth and the body can use far more than this to build muscle quite easily.

One thing that’s very hard to disagree with, however, is that big meals can be a shock to the digestive system for many people, particularly those who aren’t big eaters. If you don’t have a gigantic appetite, I’d suggest you go with smaller meals so you aren’t bloated and aren’t torturing yourself.

Small Meals

Small but frequent meals are the most common way bodybuilders go about their diet. The reasons people choose smaller meals are predominantly that they’re easier to consume and digest, and they believe it helps prevent fat gains by taking in too much at once, and also helps to distribute protein intake more evenly throughout the day.

Conclusion:

This issue is more of an individual choice than anything else. The important thing is to get in the calories and nutrients your body needs, and to ensure you eat before and after training and always have breakfast as those are the key meals no matter how else you structure your diet. Lifestyle will also dictate what’s practical/possible for you.

Also don’t forget that meals don’t have to be solid food, but can be drinks like milk, or milk and whey protein, so don’t be intimidated by mealtimes – it’s not all about eating.