The Best Meal Plan For Women's Bodybuilding

Women bodybuilders follow a strict training and dietary routine to achieve a muscular, defined look. The sport is not about performance, but about aesthetics and your food choices help support your goals. The best diet for women bodybuilders includes a proper ratio of macronutrients from natural food choices and meal timing so they most benefit your goals.

Nutrients

The ideal bodybuilding diet for a woman contains about 55 to 60 percent carbohydrate, 25 to 30 percent protein and 15 to 20 percent fat, according to a review of bodybuilding research and recommendations published in the 2004 issue of "Sports Medicine." You should aim for this ratio of macronutrients in the off-season, when you are trying to build muscle, and the pre-contest season, when you are trying to lose maximum amounts of body fat.

Calories

The exact number of calories you should consume is individual, depending on your size, age and training intensity. The International Sports Science Association recommends using a formula that accounts for these factors as well as your body fat percentage. Take your body weight in kilograms, multiply it by .9 and then by 24. Take the resulting number and multiply by .95 if your body fat is between 18 and 28 percent or 1 if your body fat is between 14 and 18 percent. Finally, multiply by a number representing your activity level -- 1.3 for sedentary women, 1.6 for the average active body builder and 2 for hard trainers who also do manual labor. For example, a 130-lb. woman with 17 percent body fat would need about 2,042 calories to maintain weight. In the off-season, add about 15 percent to this number to help build muscle and in the pre-contest season subtract 15 percent to lose fat.

Foods

Aim for about eight to 10 servings of a protein option daily. A serving equals 1 1/2 oz. of lean beef, chicken breast or fish, 10 oz. of nonfat milk, 3/4 cup of plain, low-fat yogurt, 1/3 cup of low-fat cottage cheese, two egg whites or 2 oz. of tofu. You should also have 5 to 7 cups of dark leafy vegetables, such as spinach or broccoli daily. Include two to six servings of whole grains and starchy vegetables for your carbohydrates -- 1/2 cup of cooked grains or sweet potato is a serving. Also include two to four 1-cup servings of fruit. Your body needs healthy fats to absorb vitamins and produce hormones to support muscle growth, so go for at least two servings of heart-healthy options. Choose 2 tsp. of olive oil, one-fourth of an avocado or 2 tbsp. of nuts or seeds.

Timing

Spreading your calories out over six meals per day helps you maximize nutrition and potentially store less carbohydrates as fat. Your body only uses about 30 g of protein per sitting for muscle synthesis, as noted by a study published in the "Journal of the American Dietetic Association" published in 2009. A muscle-building diet for a woman bodybuilder might include 100 g or more of protein daily. Spreading these grams out over several meals allows your muscles to constantly use the protein for growth and repair. The International Society for Sports Nutrition notes that consuming protein around the time of your workouts also promotes muscle growth, repair and recovery -- so you can experience better gains and get back into the gym sooner.