Thread: Need help - I cannot stick to a diet

My mates lives at a college and i bet if you just ate alot you'd get easily enough protein from the sandwhich meats etc, ham and tuna is win here. I'd say the problem is that college food is only 3 times a day right? so have your 3 normal meals at college times and just use whey protein post workout, it really shouldnt be a problem, 3 college meals and 2 whey meals should be sweet? have you got like a mini fridge or anything, 12x eggs cost like 2.40 (Aus) here so they're cheap as sources of proteins and fat.

long story short don't really worry too much, but yeah knowing caffeteria food just eat alot of salad, occasional of any type of slow digesting carb and stock up on the tuna / ham kinda stuff they have - by far the healthiest more than likely.

Use the stickies as a guideline and adjust to your needs.

If you are an ectomorph, then eating can become a chore. Use the pasta bars, salad bars, and any meat/chicken products you can. When you get to school, check the types of food available, and use www.fitday.com. That way you can get an idea on the number of cals you are consuming and macro breakdown. You will also have something to reference to make adjustments based on your progress.

You may also want to look into some sort of EFA supplement(ie Fishoil caps)

To add to IainDaniel's suggestion - definitely stick with the pasta and salad bars. As far as adding protein on salads - don't forget hard boiled eggs, if available, are a great source. Beans and nuts offer protein and fat, and use Olive Oil as your dressing to add some more calories to your meals without really feeling like you're stuffing your face. As far as deli sandwiches, if they offer whole grain breads, go for those, and load up the sandwiches with good protein sources.

I know you said you're not consistent with counting calories or tracking whta you eat, but if you at least get an idea of what you're eating, or what caloric values certain foods have, you'll be able to make the best possible choices. With that in mind, spend some time looking up your foods, as IainDaniel suggests, on fitday.com, calorieking.com, nutritiondata.com, dietfacts.com, and other such online databases. Armed with that information, you should be able to get in there and make that school cafeteria food work for you.

As a hardgainer AND working out 4-5 days a week, you don't have to worry as much about eating 100% clean, though I'd suggest you try to keep MOST of your food choices on the clean side for HEALTH reasons. Whole foods, grains, lots of fresh fruits and vegetables, lean proteins, and unsaturated fats.

Originally Posted by Valias

3 college meals and 2 whey meals should be sweet?

Nope

White bread,mayo's loads of crap in cafeteria food

Pick out the best parts,Tuna,hardboiled eggs,

Or better still buy it and take it in a plastic box it's wat i do and i can assure you my eating pattern is ALOT harder than yours

I am up at 1am and eating sweet potato and chicken at like 3

My next question, before I start researching calories of certain foods and such...roughly how many calories should I be taking in per day? 5'11" and about 145lbs, looking to gain weight.

I have an extremely low BMR. If I sit around all day and do nothing, I can go on just a couple snacks sometimes and I'd be fine. Which makes it so hard for me to shove food in my face because it gets to the point of where thinking about food makes me want to upchuck - very frustrating.

Originally Posted by Island Roots

My next question, before I start researching calories of certain foods and such...roughly how many calories should I be taking in per day? 5'11" and about 145lbs, looking to gain weight.

I have an extremely low BMR. If I sit around all day and do nothing, I can go on just a couple snacks sometimes and I'd be fine. Which makes it so hard for me to shove food in my face because it gets to the point of where thinking about food makes me want to upchuck - very frustrating.

Rough calculations, not knowing exactly how intense your workouts are or how long they last, just using your weight, height, age, and my guess for what your activity level is I'd say start at 3000 cals (3118 to be exact, by my little calculator). But a lot of other factors go into that. That's just a number to start with since you're asking for a number. If your metabolism is faster then you may require more. If your metabolism is slower, or your activity level is lower than what I calculated it to be, then you may require less. Best thing to do is start out at a certain calorie level, stick to it, without changing anything else, for two weeks. measure yourself at the beginning and end of that two week period: weight, BF% if possible, and a few key body areas like waist, chest, thigh, bicep. See where you stand, adjust accordingly, up or down.