Although a fair amount of how you look is determined by the amount of activity you do, the true key to changing the shape of your body is how and what you eat.
The human body (as with all organisms) is designed for activity. Understanding that, if the body is constantly active, it will require a constant supply of fuel. It's a simple concept of physiology that most people aren't aware of, but once you understand how your body reacts to food (or the lack of it) it will make bodyshaping much easier.
So, the purpose of this page is to give you a rough idea of how to structure your meals such that you can effectively reach your fitness goals.
Below is a sample of things I eat for breakfast, lunch, dinner and in between.
I began training after high school because I got sick of being the skinny kid. I was always very athletic but, my size held me back in some endeavors. While in college it always seemed as if the popular guys were always in great shape. I was determined to turn my 6'1", 155lb scrawny body into something that everyone would admire at any cost.
Jared, “The Subway guy” was my nick name. Everywhere I went, whether it was the grocery store, the mall, even my family, everyone laughed and called me Jared. Don’t get me wrong, I love Subway and I applaud Jared’s accomplishments, but I wanted my own image. Believe it or not, I avoided mirrors. I looked at myself one day and was just stunned at my size. I weighed 220lbs and was on the brink of upgrading to a size 40 in pants. I realized I needed a drastic change - the change of a new me.
If you're a competive bodybuilder or just a frequent "gym rat" working to improve his/her physique, feel free to use this photographic guide as a resource to determine how far you're progressing.
I originally posted this article on http://forum.bodybuilding.com several years ago as a supplement to the book "SLICED" (by Bill Reynolds & Negrita Jayde).
In SLICED the authors objectify the states of muscularity, this article helps to clarify these states by including photographs and approximate bodyfat percentages
Staying Motivated - "How Skippy Got His Groove Back"
Written by Skip
Saturday, 23 February 2008
It's happened to all of us at one time or another. You started off really excited about your weight training / exercise regimen. You'd go to the gym faithfully for days, weeks, months, even years, and then somehow... you don't know how or when, but you just lost the motivation. Your drive to get to the gym fizzled like a dying flame. Although the desire to get out and exercise was still faint within you, something seemingly insurmountable was keeping you trapped in a never ending spiral of non-activity. This is what happened to me last year (2006). I never thought it would happen to me. I've seen it happen to my friends and family, but I never thought I'd have problems staying motivated. I've been consistently weight training since I was 17 years old. By the time I'd reached this 'slump', I'd been weight training for almost 22 years. I used to say to myself, 'Man, I'll never quit! I'll lift forever! It's in my blood!"
Carbohydrate cycling is a 6 day program that will allow your body to burn bodyfat while still retaining muscle mass. It's a technique that is described in detail in the book SLICED by Bill Reynolds and Negrita Jayde, however I will summarize it here.
Over the last 10 years I've competed, I've used this technique each time and without fail I've been able to achieve exceptional definition while retaining the muscle mass that I gained during my bulking phase.
If you're using this program to cut down for a bodybuilding competition, remember to give yourself enough time to get the results you want. Depending on your bodyfat percentage you may need 12-24 weeks to get to competition quality definition.
After reading this, if you have any questions or comments, feel free to e-mail me:
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I originally posted this on forum.bodybuilding.com, however I decided to make it permanent here.
Due to the complexity of muscle tissue, it often takes years to develop quality muscle mass. The key is to be consistent and be aware of the following principles:
Bodybuilding & body shaping are built on three factors:
If you leave out any of those 3, your gains will be minimal.
Nutrition is the most important factor, and sadly most people neglect that part of it. I did for years when I started. The majority of people focus only on weight training. Although weight training is a large component of adding musculature, better than average nutrition is extremely important as well. First, we'll talk about exercise.
Articles 
It's happened to all of us at one time or another. You started off really excited about your weight training / exercise regimen. You'd go to the gym faithfully for days, weeks, months, even years, and then somehow... you don't know how or when, but you just lost the motivation. Your drive to get to the gym fizzled like a dying flame. Although the desire to get out and exercise was still faint within you, something seemingly insurmountable was keeping you trapped in a never ending spiral of non-activity. This is what happened to me last year (2006). I never thought it would happen to me. I've seen it happen to my friends and family, but I never thought I'd have problems staying motivated. I've been consistently weight training since I was 17 years old. By the time I'd reached this 'slump', I'd been weight training for almost 22 years. I used to say to myself, 
Carbohydrate cycling is a 6 day program that will allow your body to burn bodyfat while still retaining muscle mass. It's a technique that is described in detail in the book 
Bodybuilding & body shaping are built on three factors: