I woke up to a fun message in my inbox. "Thanks! Love the blog. Hurry and get to the diet part. That's my weakness!" I loved that message. Let's do it!
I have wanted to do this for a long time. I hope it can help. I don't write meal plans for people anymore. One evening some good pals expressed a sincere interest in getting lean. After 20 minutes of talking and scratching out a detailed plan, they went home. The plan sat on my kitchen counter for a week. I tossed it in the can. It was never mentioned. Other experiences were similar.
When you hammer out your own plan, just like setting your own goals, you are more likely to take action on your plan. Then make adjustments as you go.
I'll share with you my plan and how I did it. But you should know upfront, I only know my body. The amount of macronurients (fats, carbs, and protein) I consume to gain muscle and burn fat are probably different than yours. We all have a unique size, shape, and metabolism.
When I got serious about diet, (as in walk-the-stage-in my-skivvies) serious, I paid a trainer $200 for a customized meal plan. It was a good start. I dropped a few lbs the first week. The next week I dropped 6 lbs. That didn't seem right. I felt like I was starving. My calories were too low. My hard earned lean muscle was in jeopardy. I doubled my carbs and added more protein. I continued losing 2-3 lbs/week. It felt healthy. Most importantly, I wasn't sacrificing the hard gained muscle.
That first meal plan was missing a key ingredient. Me. I tweaked and tuned it to made it MY MEAL PLAN.
When my wife consulted a true nutritionist, a doctor who drew blood. She instructed Kristen to eat more egg yolks, butter and whole milk. Her cholesterol was too low, along with her overall calories . That wouldn't work for someone with high cholesterol. Some can't eat wheat, I'm thankful my body likes it. But our systems vary.
The best advice I can give, Make your body your project.
A successful diet, is simply, the right macros, the right amounts, the right time.
Here's my routine.
I am 38 and start out my pre-contest diet at around 200 lbs, roughly 12% bodyfat. That puts my lean mass around 176. I spend about 1-1.5 hours in the gym, six days/week. And I like to really hammer it hard in the gym for that hour. Aside from that, my days are mostly sedentary.
All this plays into how much one should eat. Activity, bodyfat, meal frequency, age, etc.
I want to to cut around 20 lbs of fat. Here's my plan. (I've been working this since December)
I eat every two hours. Most people do fine with every three. But this is bodybuilding. It's a little freaky. I believe in eating every 2-3 hrs. I eat 8x/day, including my workout protein shakes. As a general rule, every three hours, 6 meals/day is a good way to go. I am trying to build and maintain muscle, so I choose to get more protein than most people need, and eat more often. *I noticed my metabolism sped up, and fat burning off when I went from eating every four hours to three. It starts to crank, the closer your meals are together. (providing you are not overeating). Burning fat is about giving the body almost enough, often.
I eat protein every meal. 40-50 grams/meal
Sources: Meat: Wild game, (moose, caribou, sheep), chicken, turkey, tuna, any white fish, and beef or salmon twice/week.
Egg whites and whole eggs.
Cottage cheese
Whey and Casien Protein Powder
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Carbohydrates, 25-30 grams/meal
A 25-30 gram portion of the following carbs = 1/2 Cup.
Sources: Oatmeal, brown rice, black beans, kidney beans, white beans...dang near any bean. Sweet potatoes, one or two slices of whole wheat bread (depending on the kind you buy), or one small tortilla.
Fruit. I eat a little bit of fruit in the morning, or around a workout. 1/2 cup blueberries with my protein shake, a banana, or an apple. I could probably benefit from more fruit in my diet, but I'm trying to keep a steady, slow carb diet, and fruit doesn't keep me full like the grains. So I eat more veggies, take multivitamins, and drink a green drink to get the nutrients. (This prep, I pulled the fruit from my diet for a couple of months).
Fat, 10-15 g, every other meal. (not including the small amount of fat naturally occurring in meat.)
Avocado, almonds, almond butter, olive oil, egg yolks, omegas.
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Veggies
I don't even count veggies in the diet. I just try to fit them into every meal if possible. I don't care if it's green, red or purple. I don't pay attention to the glycemic index, with the exception of carrots. I don't eat beets or carrots on the diet. I usually add pico, cherry tomatoes, green beans, broccoli, cucumbers or peas into the meal.
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After 5 pm I don't eat any starchy carbs. Some people make 3pm their cutoff time. At night I eat greens. A salad, broccoli, asparagus, beans with my protein. They say leafy greens are the best. Keep the meals low in carbs. We typically burn less carbs in the evening. Get the majority of carbs in the morning. That's what most bodybuilders do.
My last meal of the day, often right before hopping into bed is 1 cup of lowfat cottage cheese. It gives my muscle slow digesting casien protein through the night.
I have found the best way to keep on track is to keep things simple. This is the foundation of my diet. There are other adjustments I make. But for the most part I keep it to these.
There's nothing mysterious about getting lean, it is just about getting the right amounts of nutrients, in the right amounts, at the right times.
I hope that helps. I welcome your comments, tips, and discoveries.
