Science of Aesthetics

By Ihab Sarieddine

This book is targeted for people of all fitness levels (beginner, intermediate, and advanced) desiring to build a lean and natural muscular physique. It is self-educational, simple to understand, and requires no training or dieting knowledge or experience in the domain of bodybuilding. It teaches all key training and dieting fundamentals and gradually builds on your learning from ground up to help you assimilate the acquired knowledge to create your most effective individualized meal and workout plans, ultimately making you become your own trainer.

 

The book is scientifically driven and synthesizes information from more than 350 different research studies and papers. It consists of nine chapters:

 

Chapter 1 explains the four key dieting fundamentals that every bodybuilder should know about for effectively planning his meals. It lists down common fallacies you should be wary of and explains the concept of energy balance, macros and micros and their types and functions, the dieting approach you should be adopting, and the means to calculate your BMI, BMR, and TDEE to help you determine your body needs.

 

Chapter 2 explains your muscular system, structure, mechanics, and the way your body responds to different types of exercise.

 

Chapter 3 teaches you how to read food nutrition labels and calculate your calories to help you track your progress better and increase your food awareness into making wholesome choices for better health.

 

Chapter 4 elaborates on the different approaches to improve your body composition by addressing concepts such as body re-composition, cutting, bulking, intermittent fasting, refeeding, and cheating.

 

Chapter 5 addresses the time dimension of your nutrient consumption and explains in minute detail when and what to eat, drink, and supplement before, during, and after exercise to maximize your muscle building and fat burning progress. It also emphasizes the benefits of sleep for recovery and explains how to create a conducive environment for better sleep hygiene. Further, it describes causes of water retention and various ways to reduce it, and lastly, it discusses and clears out all confusion about the alleged muscle building and fat burning benefits of meal frequency using research, eventually driving into a logical conclusion.

 

Chapter 6 explains in detail the key strength/resistance training principles to amplify your muscle building, strength gain, and performance, such as progressive overloading, using compound and isolation lifts, optimizing mind-muscle connection, emphasizing eccentric movement, tweaking exercise tempo to optimize time under tension, and using the right rep ranges for hypertrophy.

 

Chapter 7 describes everything you need to know about cardio. It elaborates on the different energy systems of the human body, introduces and compares the two types of cardio (steady state and HIIT) and lays down guidelines on how to correctly and effectively do cardio to maximize fat burning and minimize muscle loss without overtraining your body.

 

Chapter 8 dives deep into the minutiae of stretching and explains the six common stretching techniques practiced by trainers and athletes with their pros and cons to help you decide which are appropriate for your training program and to teach you when and how to effectively apply them.

 

Chapter 9 is where you are guided to customize your workout and meal plans based on what you have collectively learnt from all the chapters throughout the book. 

• Language: English
• Publisher: Ihab Sarieddine
• Release date: Feb 7, 2024
• ISBN: 9798223028529

Ihab Sarieddine

Ihab Sarieddine is an experienced fitness trainer and motivator from Lebanon with more than 14 years of bodybuilding experience. He has a successful YouTube channel "Science of Aesthetics" where he posts videos about how to efficiently build muscle and burn fat naturally. 

Book preview

Introduction

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This self-training book is intended for people of all fitness levels (beginner, intermediate, and advanced) desiring to build a natural and lean muscular physique. It is self-educational and simple to understand as it requires no training/dieting knowledge or experience in the domain of bodybuilding. It teaches all key training and dieting fundamentals and gradually builds on your learning from ground up to help you assimilate the acquired knowledge to create your most effective individualized meal and workout plans, ultimately making you become your own trainer.

It is no denying there is utter lack of understanding and awareness in the world of resistance training today. This becomes evident when you come across all those fad diets permeating the internet and purporting to be the only way out for all fat-burning dilemmas, or  bump into an article explaining about the ‘best’ leg routine that works for everyone, or watch a video promo of a product promising a six-pack, or learn about a body transformation program guaranteeing far-fetched results in less than a month, or countlessly get asked about the supplements you are taking, as though they are the panacea for aesthetics, without any due consideration to the diet and training details.

For all these reasons and many more, I have decided to write this book to scientifically shed light on the underlying facts of dieting and strength training and reach out to all those looking to learn in the right way how to reach their aspired goal of building an eye-catching natural physique.

The book you have in your hands is scientifically driven and synthesizes information from more than 350 different research studies and papers. It unravels various controversies prevalent in the fitness realm, addresses many perplexing questions, debunks many myths, and elucidates information in a truly objective manner. It takes into account your current body composition, body type, body biomechanics, genetics, age, training experience, and dieting preferences (vegan/non-vegan) and elaborates on the following meal and workout planning concepts and guidelines.

Meal planning

Energy balance

Macronutrient balance and needs

Determining your body’s energy expenditure

Calculating and tracking your calories

Micronutrient (minerals and vitamins) benefits and needs

Body re-composition, bulking, and cutting

Intermittent fasting

Cheat meals

Refeeding

Pre-, intra-, and post-workout nutrition

Meal timing

Water intake

Supplementation

Alcohol

Workout planning

Muscular system anatomy

Human body mechanics and types

Weightlifting terminology

Strength training principles

Progressive overloading

Compound and isolation lifts

Mind-muscle connection

Time under tension

Training to failure

Rep ranges for hypertrophy

Cardio

Stretching

Periodization

Tracking your progress

Advanced training techniques

Creating your customized workout plan

Sleep hygiene

Water retention

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You see, the process of building muscles and burning fat is not just about hitting the gym and guzzling your supplements. There are many other underlying contributing elements that you must factor in and understand to master and fast-track your progression. This is why the chapters in the book have been meticulously written and logically ordered to shepherd you step-by-step throughout the process and expand your knowledge on these topics. By virtue of this book, you will be equipped with all the information you need to pinpoint and work on your weaknesses and tackle every aspect of your diet and training in the quest for perfecting your aesthetics.

Finally, note that this book is not intended for treatment or prevention of disease nor as an alternative to medical advice. Using the guidelines herein is at your discretion and risk.

1  Dieting fundamentals

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You may have probably heard about all those different fad diets, each promoting its own way of improving health and body composition. For example, Paleo proponents follow the diet of the ancient cave-dwelling ancestors, vegans do not eat meat, and ketogenic dieters prefer a low carbohydrate diet. But, who is true?

Well, let me tell you one thing, there is no one-size-fits-all diet plan that works perfectly well for everyone, and that could be the reason why you are not losing weight. Studies have shown that people can metabolize the exact same food in very different ways [1], which means a diet that works for you may not be suitable for someone else, or a food that is perfect for your body may make another person gain weight and feel lethargic!

Are you confused now?! I bet you are. Do not worry, here is the truth.

By the end of this book, you will be able to come up with your own meal plans that will work for your diet. You will also use your diet to fully control your body composition and health without having to restrict or force yourself to certain foods or deprive yourself from the food you love! Curious to know how?! You better keep reading!

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1.1  Dieting fallacies

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First of all, there are quite a few dieting fallacies you should be wary of as most dieters fall into them and end up struggling in their weight loss journey.

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1.1.1  Fallacy 1: Clean eating makes you lose weight

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It is very important you understand the concept of energy balance, which is the relationship between the amount of calories you eat or take into your body through food and drink and the energy your body uses or expends.

A calorie is a measurement of energy. One calorie is the amount of energy it takes to heat one kilogram of water by one degree Celsius (also called a kilocalorie).

According to the law of energy balance:

If you want to lose weight, you have to eat less energy than you burn (i.e. you are in a negative energy balance or in a caloric deficit).

If you want to gain weight, you have to eat more energy than you burn (i.e. you are in a positive energy balance or in a caloric surplus).

If you want to maintain your current weight, you have to eat more or less the same amount of energy you burn (i.e. you eat at your caloric maintenance level or simply your total daily energy expenditure - TDEE).

So, no matter how clean your diet is, if you feed your body more calories than it burns, you will gain fat! And no matter how dirty your diet is, if you feed your body less calories than it burns, you will lose fat!

Thus, in a sense, a calorie is a calorie regardless of where it comes from.

As you see, the law of energy balance, defined by the first law of thermodynamics, dictates whether your weight is lost, gained, or remains the same, and the fundamental rules of dieting must be based on it.

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1.1.2  Fallacy 2: Certain foods make you fat

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Food does not make you fat, overeating does! Eating French fries or donuts does not make you fat, but overeating them does!

There is nothing specific in certain foods that makes you fat. All foods are broken down in the same process by the digestive system into three main macronutrients: protein, carbohydrate, and fat. The amount of calories in food is determined by the amount of its macronutrients.

Hence, it is not about eating certain foods and avoiding others that will make you control your weight; it is more about manipulating your diet in a smart way as you will see later.

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1.1.3  Fallacy 3: Low carb dieting is the best way to lose fat

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Several studies [2-4] portray the superiority of low carb diets over others for weight loss without realizing it is actually the high protein, not the low carb content, that is offering the weight loss benefits. If your protein intake while dieting is inadequate, you will end up losing your muscles [5], your basal metabolic rate (more on this later) will drop [6], you will burn less calories during workout [7], and your fat and carbohydrate metabolism will be impaired [8].

Additionally, low carb dieting will not help you build muscle either because when your carb intake is low, the amount of glycogen stored in the muscle decreases [9], which reduces your muscle endurance [10] and strength [11] and eventually leads to less muscle growth over time [12].

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1.1.4  Fallacy 4: Very low calorie dieting makes you lose weight quickly

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Preserving your muscle mass is crucial when dieting for fat loss. By dropping your calories too low (in other words starving yourself), you end up losing your muscles and becoming skinny fat!

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1.1.5  Fallacy 5: Frequent eating speeds up your metabolism

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Every time you eat, your digestive system breaks down and processes food, which expends energy and stimulates your metabolism. This thermogenic enhancement, which constitutes around 10% of your caloric intake, is known as the thermic effect of food (TEF). So logically, if you eat more frequently, you will keep your metabolism on fire the whole day and burn more fat, right?

Not so fast. Studies [13] revealed no difference in 24-hour energy expenditure between low and high frequency eating. In other words, whether you are nibbling small frequent meals, which will cause slight increases in your metabolism, or gorging large meals, which will cause longer boosts in your metabolism, will both lead to the same energy expenditure at the end of the day.

While few studies [14, 15] showed that frequent feedings can cause an increase in thermogenesis, many others [16-20] simply failed to prove it. Hence, the body of evidence simply does not advocate increases in metabolism as a result of eating frequent meals. Meal timing is explained in more detail in Chapter 5.

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1.2  Energy balance

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It is crucial that you understand the concept of energy balance as it dictates weight loss and gain more than anything else. If still in doubt, you can refer to my earlier explanation (fallacy #1). Once done, you can move to the next step, macronutrient balance.

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1.3  Macronutrient balance

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A macronutrient or a macro is a nutritional component needed in large quantities for normal growth and development. Macros are the body’s source of calories or energy to fuel life processes and are of three types: Carbohydrate, protein, and fat.

According to the law of energy balance, in order to lose weight, you need to be in a caloric deficit. However, your goal is to lose fat and not muscle, and this can only be achieved by getting your macro balance right. Understanding what these macros are, their structure, and their function in the human body is crucial for your meal planning.

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1.3.1  Protein

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There are different types of proteins in the body performing different critical functions, such as immunity, facilitating chemical reactions, signaling biological processes, providing structure and support for the cells, and reparation and regeneration of tissues.

A protein contains 4 calories per gram and is made up of amino acids, which are the building blocks of your muscles and body. Without amino acids, it would be impossible to build, repair, or even maintain muscle tissue.

Protein is made up of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen. A sufficient protein intake throughout the day will put you in a positive nitrogen balance or an anabolic state, which favors muscle building and growth. On the flip side, a negative nitrogen balance will put you in a catabolic state whereby your hard-earned muscles are broken down by the body for fuel and energy.

Your body can produce some amino acids on its own, while others must be consumed in your diet. The latter are called essential amino acids and are nine: phenylalanine, valine, threonine, tryptophan, methionine, leucine, isoleucine, lysine, and histidine.

These amino acids are ‘essential’ because your body cannot manufacture them and survive without them. Of these essential amino acids, three are named branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) ─ leucine (the most important and strongest anabolic agent), isoleucine, and valine ─ due to their unique branched structure. This structure improves your body’s performance, stimulates release of the human growth hormone (HGH) (hormone secreted by the pituitary gland to facilitate protein synthesis), repairs damaged muscles, decreases muscle soreness, and increases muscle function.

According to the PDCAAS (protein digestibility corrected amino acid score), protein quality is determined by its chemical score (essential amino acid content in a protein food divided by the amino acid content in a standard protein food that has the highest possible PDCAAS score being a 1) multiplied by its digestibility. Proteins with highest PDCAAS scores are casein, egg, milk, whey, soy protein (all 1.0), beef (0.92), black beans (0.75), peanuts (0.52), and wheat gluten (0.25) [21].

A complete protein contains all the essential amino acids that your body requires on a daily basis, whereas an incomplete protein contains only some of them. While animal protein is generally considered complete, plant protein is not. Exceptions, however, include quinoa, buckwheat, soybean, hemp seeds, chia seeds, and amaranth, which are plant-based complete proteins that vegan bodybuilders should include in their diet.

Combining incomplete plant proteins together (throughout the day and not necessarily in the same meal) can provide all essential amino acids, thereby optimizing the biological value (measure of the proportion of absorbed protein from food) and increasing protein quality. Excellent combinations include grains-legumes, grains-dairy, legumes-seeds, legumes-nuts, and grains-seeds [22].

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1.3.2  Carbohydrates

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Carbohydrates contain 4 calories per gram and are your body’s preferred source of energy, especially for high-intensity activities, such as weight training. Carbohydrates are often overlooked when a muscle building diet is planned since many people are unaware of their importance and their role in muscle development.

There are two major types of carbohydrates: simple and complex.

1.3.2.1  Simple carbs

Simple carbs or simple sugars are made up of 1 or 2 sugar molecules and are rapidly absorbed and digested by the human body. A monosaccharide is a simple unit sugar, and a disaccharide consists of two sugar molecules. Simple sugars include:

Glucose or blood sugar is a monosaccharide and is the simplest sugar unit found in some fruits (e.g. bananas, grapes, kiwi, cherries, and persimmons), dried fruits, potatoes, sweet potatoes, pastries, candies, chocolates, syrups, honey, agave, molasses, fruit juices, sauces, salad dressings, energy bars, processed cereals, cakes, pies, and sugary drinks. All carbohydrates that you eat are eventually broken down into glucose.

Dextrose is another monosaccharide that is chemically identical to glucose and is made from corn. Dextrose supplements are commonly used by bodybuilders immediately after a training session for recovery.

Galactose is another monosaccharide that is less sweet than glucose and is found in all dairy products. It is normally not found in high quantities in any food. Foods such as honey, beets, cheese, yogurt, cherries, celery, kiwi, soy sauce, plum, and dried figs contain galactose.

Fructose or fruit sugar is another monosaccharide that is abundantly available in fruit juices, dried fruits, canned fruits, and certain fruits, such as apple, banana, cherries, grapes, mango, pear, pineapple, and watermelon. Fruits such as honeydew melon, lemon, cantaloupe, orange, clementine, apricot, kiwi, avocado, blackberries, figs, grapefruit, papaya, peach, plum, raspberries, and strawberries are low in fructose.

Sucrose or table sugar is a disaccharide that is made up of glucose and fructose and is found in sweets, processed foods, many commercial grain products (e.g. breads, pastas, tortillas, cakes, pastries, crackers, candy, gelatin, and other baked goods), dried fruits, plain sugar, refined sugar, canned fruits, sugar cane, sugar beets, sweetened beverages, and sweetened dairy products (e.g. ice cream yogurt and sherbet).

Lactose is a disaccharide that is composed of galactose and glucose and is found in milk.

Maltose or malt sugar is a disaccharide that is composed of two glucose molecules and is naturally found in low quantities in food. It is an intermediate product of starch digestion and is mainly found in barley malt syrup, high maltose corn syrup (HMCS), molasses, sweet potato, spelt, beer, cider, compote, malt beverages, and processed foods.

1.3.2.2  Complex carbs

Complex carbs or polysaccharides digest slowly because they are made up of 3 or more sugar molecules strung together in complex chains. Fiber and starch are the two types of complex carbs.

Fiber does not affect your body’s sugar levels and is of two types: Soluble fiber and insoluble fiber. Soluble fiber dissolves readily in water and takes long time to digest, which slows down the release of nutrients into the bloodstream, keeps you fuller between meals, and increases your satiety. Sources of this type of fiber include lentils, oats, nuts, seeds, beans (all kinds), peas, strawberries, blueberries, legumes, and some fruits and vegetables.

Insoluble fiber does not dissolve in water. It helps in bulking up the stool and keeping food moving through the digestive system. Sources of this type of fiber include whole-grains, such as wheat, barley, brown rice, bulgur, wheat bran, nuts, seeds, fruits, and vegetables (with peels).

Replacing refined grains, such as white flour, white bread, white pasta, and white rice with whole grains is a great way to increase the amount of fiber in your diet. Whole foods make you feel full longer, providing you with fiber and all the nutrients your body needs. It is suggested you ingest 10 to 13 grams of fiber for every 1,000 consumed calories. Fiber consumption should increase with age since energy requirements decline in older people.

Starch is found in veggies (like corn, parsnips, green peas, potatoes, pumpkins, winter squash, and yams), fruits (like avocadoes, mangoes, oranges, nectarines, peaches, apples, pineapples, grapes, melons, and dried fruits), beans, lentils, bread, bagels, wheat, corn flakes, grains, cake, cookies, brownies, crackers, and potato chips.

All digestible carbohydrates eventually get converted to glucose in your body, which rises your blood glucose levels. This stimulates the pancreas to secrete insulin hormone in the blood to balance out blood sugar levels by signaling the liver, muscle, and fat cells to absorb glucose from the blood for use as energy or storage. Once this is done, insulin levels drop back to normal.

The glycemic index (GI) is a way to classify carbohydrates, on a scale from 0 to 100, according to how quickly they raise the blood sugar level. High-GI foods break down rapidly and trigger a large spike in blood sugar and insulin levels, whereas low-GI foods are digested more slowly and cause a smaller glucose increase while keeping insulin levels consistent. Most healthcare organizations classify food using the following GI rating system:

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Table ‎1.1 - Glycemic Index (GI) classification

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The glycemic load (GL) is a concept that builds on GI as it takes into account both the GI of the food and the amount of carbohydrates it contains. GL is based on the idea that a high GI food consumed in small quantities would give the same effect on blood glucose levels as larger quantities of a low GI food. GL is calculated by multiplying the GI by the amount of carbohydrates (in grams) in a serving of food. You could refer to the online international tables populated by Atkinson, Foster Powell, and Brand Miller in 2008, which today serve as a comprehensive guide of GI and GL values for more than 2,480 individual food items [23].

Carbohydrates consumed and not immediately used for energy are signaled by insulin to be stored as glycogen. Glycogen is stored in the liver and muscle cells and is later broken down into glucose to provide energy. If you continue to consume more carbohydrates than your body can use or store, insulin will trigger the body to convert them into fat for long-term storage. To improve your physique, you would need every gram of carbohydrate that you take to be burned for energy or stored as glycogen. You do not want these carbs to end up getting stored in your fat cells.

Your muscle glycogen stores serve as your primary fuel source to quickly generate energy during exercise. If they are depleted, your body will tap into your hard-earned muscle as its next closest source of available energy. This will cause your intensity and strength capacity to suffer, leading to poor performance in the gym and ultimately less muscle growth. Hence, ingesting carbohydrates before your workout is vital.

Consuming carbohydrates after your workout is equally necessary as it helps replenish the glycogen stores that were depleted during exercise and maximizes recovery in preparation for the