Gain muscle for football?

Question:

I’m a high school football player and have a potential college career. i want to burn fat and gain muscle. how do i do this. should i take protein shakes concidering i workout 5 days a week. or should i just do tons of cardio. etc. any advice is welcomed. also if i pack on 5 pounds i dont care. as long as its good weight. how do i go about this and would protein shakes help?

Answer:

Before I answer your question I’m going to get a couple of thoughts out of my system.

First of all, if your goal is to play football at the next level, your only concerns should be what you should do in order to get there. One thing I can say without even knowing you is that one of your goals in training is to get stronger (if not, it should be). I’ll assume this is what you mean by gaining muscle, so you’re on the right track here.

As far as losing fat, be careful. Are you looking to lose fat in order to look good for the ladies? Or do you have a weight issue that can hinder your performance on the field? Make sure that if you’re trying to lose any fat, it’s the latter reason.

I’m not sure what your position is, but if you’re a lineman of some type, forget about the 6 pack! Really. Look at your favorite linemen in the NFL. If you get them to take their jerseys off, I guarantee you won’t see any rippling abs. Why not? Because it’s all about PERFORMANCE.

Trust me, I wasn’t in high school all that long ago, and I have to admit that I wanted my mirror muscles to show - chest, abs, and biceps were all that really mattered at times.. But wouldn’t you rather to have the body that allows you to DOMINATE on the field? That’s what’ll really impress the ladies…

Anyway..

If you’re at a skill position, that ripped type of physique is more realistic and should come along with proper training and nutrition, so don’t worry too much about it if you’re a wideout, corner, or even a safety - it’ll come.

Now about your training regimen and nutrition..

Training Regimen

Every time you do something in your training regimen, you need to ask yourself the following question:

“Is this going to make me a better football player?”

Is doing “tons of cardio” going to make you a better football player? Since football is an anaerobic sport (I think the average play is around 7 seconds or so), then the answer is NO. Why train your body like a marathon runner? It makes no sense. You want to be able to perform explosive, powerful movements for short periods of time - And then be able to repeat it over and over throughout the course of the game. So this is how you should train!

Explode. Rest. Explode Rest. Explode Rest… You get the point..

If you find a high level football player running in any 5K races or jogging on the treadmill, let me know, and I’ll give you 20 bucks (it can’t be a kicker).

Right now, you should be just beginning your off season for football. If you’re not playing any other sports, the off season is the perfect time to get stronger, as you don’t have to worry about any grueling practices or important games - It’s your chance to put in your work and show up to practice next summer with a new body.

If you work hard in the off season, you should have build so much muscle, there won’t be much room for fat on your body.

But..

If you still have too much body fat at the end of the day, the problem isn’t in your training–you may want to look at your nutrition–are you eating junk?? If so, stop it.

Nutrition

You are on the right track in knowing that protein is important to build muscle. Before worrying about a protein shake or supplement, make sure you’re eating healthy, staying away from soft drinks, eating vegetables, and including a source of protein in every meal. If you’re already doing all this, a protein supplement can help in that it’s an easy way to fuel your body between meals.

Say you’re between meals, and don’t really have time to cook up a chicken breast or cook up some ground beef. Now’s when a shake comes in handy as it allows you to supply your body with the protein it needs between meals.

It’s not that using the powder is better than eating real food (it’s not). The reason to use the powder is that it’s fast and convenient. It’s a way to get your 40-60 grams in without having to cook up 7 complete meals every day.

If you train hard and eat well consistently, you’ll have a true advantage over your competition.

I hope this information helps, and I wish you the best of luck in your career!

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