Diet Critique

[danzik17]

Seems I've lost as much fat as possible and gained as much muscle as I can as a beginner without really having a formed diet, so I guess it's time. I'll have to do the same with my training schedule. Thanks in advance for any help.

Current Bodyweight: 160lbs male at 16-18% BF
Calories for the day at 160lbs/day = 1793 = 357 cals/meal

Protein = 36g/meal

Carbs = 36g/meal

Fat = 8g fat/meal


Meal 1
---------------------------------
1 large apple
1 whole large egg
1.25 cups egg whites

351.3cals
5.7g fat
36g carbs
38.75g protein

Meal 2
----------------------------------
2 Slices Sprouted Grain Bread
5oz Boar???s Head Oven Gold
Cherry Tomatoes/Lettuce/Mustard
Couple Walnut Halves

366 Cal
6.1g fat
30.5g carb
37g protein

This meal has to be something portable and very fast such as a sandwich since this will be eaten at work (student worker at college), and a lot of the time we don't have a chance to really eat.

Meal 3
-----------------------------------
5 oz chicken breast
3/4 cup long brown rice

424 calories
33.6g carbs
42.5g protein
12g fat

Meal 4
----------------------------------
1.5 cups nonfat milk
2 scoop whey protein
2 tbsp ground flax

392.5 cal
7.3g fat
24.3g carb
59.45g protein

Meal 4 has too much protein I think and not enough carbs. Should I maybe cut out half a scoop of whey and add in some oats or something? As with meal 2, this has to be portable since I will be having it during class or immediately after. Is also the pre-workout shake.

Meal 5
-----------------------------------
5oz top round beef
random vegetables (peppers, onions mostly)

322 calories
12g fat
0g carbs
49.5g protein

Meal 5 is eaten towards the end of the night (around 9pm), so I chose to leave carbs out of that meal.


Totals:
Format is actual values / estimated needed values
Calories: 1855.8/1793
Fats: 43.1/40
Carbs: 124.4/180
Proteins: 227.2/180

 

[danzik17]

Forgot to mention that vegetables will be added to meal 3 and 5 being eaten in my dorm. They didn't impact the overall macros really though.

 

[bigsahm21]

More carbs/less protein in meal 4, perfect just like you said I'd throw in some oats, especially since it's the preworkout shake. I'd also add some oats to meal 1.

I don't know what Boar's Head Gold or whatever that is, but other than that, your food choices look really good.

 

[ABCs]

Yeah, drop the Boars head deli meat. It's all crap. Replace it with another chicken breast.

 

[danzik17]

Ok can't find the damn edit button for some reason, but I'll replace the 5oz Boar's Head turkey with 5oz chicken breast.

 

[Tom_B]

Meal 1
---------------------------------
1 large apple
1 whole large egg
1.25 cups egg whites

351.3cals
5.7g fat
36g carbs
38.75g protein

Looks good. I would probably increase fat ever so slightly (some fish oil?), half that apple, and replace the missing carbs with some type of starch. Also can you add some veggies here? (maybe make an omelet?) Some Dairy (perferably Fat free no sugar added yogurt with live active bacteria cultures) would also be a nice addition.

Meal 2
----------------------------------
2 Slices Sprouted Grain Bread
5oz Boar???s Head Oven Gold
Cherry Tomatoes/Lettuce/Mustard
Couple Walnut Halves

366 Cal
6.1g fat
30.5g carb
37g protein

This meal has to be something portable and very fast such as a sandwich since this will be eaten at work (student worker at college), and a lot of the time we don't have a chance to really eat.

Looks really good! But just to repeat what was mentioned you'd be better off with another type of meat than that processed stuff..
Also if you ever get bored of this and need something new and is easily portable, refer to THIS post, lots of great ideas from the great Emma-Leigh!

Meal 3
-----------------------------------
5 oz chicken breast
3/4 cup long brown rice

424 calories
33.6g carbs
42.5g protein
12g fat

Looks good .. Protein is slightly high though.
I would also decrease the brown rice slightly and add a bit of fruit here..

Meal 4
----------------------------------
1.5 cups nonfat milk
2 scoop whey protein
2 tbsp ground flax

392.5 cal
7.3g fat
24.3g carb
59.45g protein

Meal 4 has too much protein I think and not enough carbs. Should I maybe cut out half a scoop of whey and add in some oats or something? As with meal 2, this has to be portable since I will be having it during class or immediately after. Is also the pre-workout shake.

Yes defintly cut down on the protein and add some Carbs. Your going to need the energy, remember more energy = a much better, productive workout. So some oats and even some fruit like berries would be a nice addition. Also You might want to change the milk to some Fat free no sugar added Yogurt.
Also how soon afterwards are you working out after drinking this? If it's 1.5 hours + afterwards the fats alright... But if it's under an hour or a little over an hour I would get rid of the fat completely. Your going to prevent complete uptake of this meal, and without complete uptake your not taking advantage of the energy you'd be getting for your workout.

Also where is you POST workout shake? If you currently don't have one I would add that in.
Some of your meals are a bit high in protein .. so you could decrease that slightly and put it in towards a Post workout shake. A good shake could be something like:
~ 1 -2 Cups of SKIM milk
~ .5 - 1 scoop of whey

So you wouldn't have to revamp macros/calories too much, especially if you took some protein out from other meals and added them here.

Meal 5
-----------------------------------
5oz top round beef
random vegetables (peppers, onions mostly)

322 calories
12g fat
0g carbs
49.5g protein

Meal 5 is eaten towards the end of the night (around 9pm), so I chose to leave carbs out of that meal.

Perfect choice!! Although protein is pretty high .. you may want to decrease that slightly and add it to other place.

Totals:
Format is actual values / estimated needed values
Calories: 1855.8/1793
Fats: 43.1/40
Carbs: 124.4/180
Proteins: 227.2/180

Looks good .. fats are just slightly low though, but that can't be helped much considering your limited caloric intake.
However that being said, your calorie intake/carb level is quite low for someone your size .. have you ever considering implementing some periodic refeeds into your diet? I bet you'll find they help greatly with energy/results, and you'll certainly need them as you get leaner.

Hope that helped.

 

[danzik17]

Changes Being Made
---------------------
Meal 1 change to a small apple and add in 1/4 cup of oats. I'll look into ordering some fish caps and check out what fat-free/no sugar yogurts are available when I go shopping.

Meal 2 change the deli meat for chicken breast

Meal 3 possibly go to 4oz chicken breast, 1/2 cup rice and add a small apple in

Meal 4 cut down the whey to 1.5 scoops, add in some oats to the shake to compensate. Shake will normally be taken about 1.5 hours before working out. (Taken at 6pm or so, in the gym by between 7:30-8)

Meal 5 I'm not sure if I should drop some protein or something. From what I've read, I shouldn't really have carbs in this meal, and I'm already slightly over the quota on fat.

Do I still need the post-workout shake if meal 5 is that close to working out? If I need to I'll make one with 1 cup of milk and 1 scoop whey or something close.

 

[Tom_B]

Meal 1 - 3 Looks good.

Now from Meal 4 onward this is what I would do -
Since your working out 1.5 - 2 hours after the shake, keep the flax in there. However decrease the whey to ONE scoop, and add in some oats (perferably a little bit of berries as well.) .
Then as soon as you start your workout at 7:30 - 8:00pm have another shake with you, one with:
1 - 2 cups of skim milk
.5 - 1 scoop of whey.
Start to drink it at the beginning of your workout, and keep sipping it all the way through. So by the time your done your workout at say 9 - 9:30pm you will just be finishing that shake. Go home, wait 45 - 60 minutes and have Meal 5 (10-10:30pm) and then your ready for bed at say 11pm.
And yes defintly decrease the protein in Meal 5 to a absolute max of 40G. Just move the protein to your PWO shake, and if you want you can increase the fat in Meal 5. 12G isn't a HUGE amount ... trust me, there are some days where I have to eat 130G of fat throughout the day, and I'm only 140lbs!

 

[danzik17]

Forgot to mention I'm on a cut in the original post. Looking to hit around 9-10% BF.

On the days where I'm not working out (Monday/Tuesday) and not having a post-workout shake, should I leave the extra scoop of whey in meal 4?

 

[Tom_B]

I wouldn't .. I would add more protein into meal 1 and 2, anything over 40-50G is overkill .. so 60G would be kind of pointless..
Also if your not working out that day, I would also personally switch Meal 4 to a real whole food meal, and not some shake.
If it needs to be portable, then check out the link I posted earlier, lots of great ideas in there.

 

[danzik17]

Ok then, so on Mondays and Tuesdays for Meal 4 would something such as a combination of yogurt, whey, berries, and oats be acceptable? Same basic macros as the current Meal 4. I'd give exact but I'm sort of studying for a week of midterms at the moment unlike the weekend.

 

[Tom_B]

Yup that sounds great!! Only thing is maybe top it with some Nuts?? (You need a little bit of fat in there as well) .

And if you want heres a good recipe .. Put the oats raw in a bowl and then put the yogurt overtop of them. Put the bowl in the fridge and leave it overnight, that way the yogurt seeps into the oats. Then when your ready to eat it the next day add in the whey powder, berries, and nuts and mix all together .. SOOO GOOD!! It's like a mock bircher muesli..

 

[danzik17]

I think I'll definately do that over the shake.

I made one of the shakes today and holy crap it was disgusting - the consistency of milk, ground oats, and flax almost made me gag - couldn't finish the last half of the shake.

What you described actually sounds pretty good though, I'll give it a shot when I can grab some yogurt and some fresh fruit.

 

[Tom_B]

lol ya .. I like Milk + whey + oats ... but to add flax .. ... instead of the flax you could add some Peanut butter though, that'd be better.

Let us know how you like the mock bircher muesli thing! It's sooo good!

 

[danzik17]

Problem came up that I think is related to diet since I haven't even touched training lately, and have even been doing a little less of it because of the problem.

Basically for about 2 weeks, which just about coincides with the diet start, been having just a lack of energy. I mainly notice it in my legs since I walk around a lot of the day at my job, but I also do know that I can't do as many pullups as I could before, and I couldn't have gotten that much weaker in the period of a week. I also noticed a lot of fatigue when I was doing DB presses - my middle weight felt like it was one of my heavy sets.

Before I stated this, I did have a diet much higher in carbs/simple carbs. Could the sudden switch to a more balanced diet with almost no simple carbs have something to do with it? Or possibly do I need to include more carbs or look into a refeed day or something?

 

[danzik17]

Oh, the mock bircher muesli thing is great btw - the only thing I do different is the night before I'll also crush a couple of raspberries and let that flavor seep into the yogurt and oats.

 

[Tom_B]

Okay there could be many reasons behind this lack of energy...

1/ Could all just be psychological, since you KNOW you're eating carbs you think you should be feeling 'run' down. If this is the case then theres not too much you can do .. just try and get yourself in a right mindset.

2/ Yes you're carb intake could be too low. Generally people are really going to start to feel fatigue and lack of energy once carb levels hit 1G per pound of bodyweight and lower. So with this diet how many carbs in total are you taking?

3/ Could be simply from a lack of CALORIE and not necessarily carbs. Like I have stated before 1700 - 1800 calories for someone your size is really low ... I'm only 140lbs and I could lose a pound a week eating 2300 calories.

4/ How much sleep have you been getting? Has your sleeping significantly been cut back in the last two weeks?

5/ Stress. Was there/ Is there any particularly stressing event that took place Recently? Be it in work, personal or social life?

If your problem is 2 or 3 (or a combo of both), then yes an increase in carbs or even a refeed may be of interest for you. Try doing a refeed every 7 days .. your not lean enough to need them more frequently than that. But I have a nagging suspicion that it's your low caloric intake .. you said that before starting this new diet you were dieting beforehand as well? When was the last time you took a 'dieting break' ? Meaning for an entire week you ate at your maintenance calories, with a good healthy dose of Fats, Proteins and Carbs? Everyone should take a dieting break every 6 - 8 weeks, it'll help with maintaining metabolism ...
So I would suggest taking a dieting break, eat at your maintenance for a week, see how that helps with Energy. After you get back to dieting you can incorporate those refeeds .. but you may not need them. Just track progress and see what happens.

If none of this helps then you need to start exploring different aspects of your lifestyle than just diet for the culprit of this issue.

PS you can even get a blender and blend the berries in the yogurt as well ! Glad you liked it

 

[danzik17]

.

Okay there could be many reasons behind this lack of energy...

1/ Could all just be psychological, since you KNOW you're eating carbs you think you should be feeling 'run' down. If this is the case then theres not too much you can do .. just try and get yourself in a right mindset.

I don't really think it would be that - I haven't even really thought much about the specific macros of the diet. I only really think about that while designing it - to me food is food when it's being eaten

2/ Yes you're carb intake could be too low. Generally people are really going to start to feel fatigue and lack of energy once carb levels hit 1G per pound of bodyweight and lower. So with this diet how many carbs in total are you taking?

I'm roughly 155lbs depending on waterweight but taking in somewhere around 140-150g carbs I think.

3/ Could be simply from a lack of CALORIE and not necessarily carbs. Like I have stated before 1700 - 1800 calories for someone your size is really low ... I'm only 140lbs and I could lose a pound a week eating 2300 calories.

Possibly - the "diet" beforehand was more just an attempt at watching the quality of the food I was eating, rather than the quantity. So I'm not quite sure of the calories I was taking in then. Possibly a mistake on my part, I'm also not sure of my actual maintenance calories. I was using 12cals/lb of bodyweight to figure out daily needs since I had read that in one of the stickies.

4/ How much sleep have you been getting? Has your sleeping significantly been cut back in the last two weeks?

Nope, same as it has always been, if not a bit more since I don't have class this week

5/ Stress. Was there/ Is there any particularly stressing event that took place Recently? Be it in work, personal or social life?

No more than the usual crap at work and whatnot. The only thing that could come close would be a couple of internship interviews, but I wasn't all that nervous or stressed about them I think since I was pretty confident about my performance

 

[danzik17]

I think it was the lack of carbs doing it. Instead of my normal meal 2 at 12:00, I decided to make a plate of spaghetti to get some carbs and see if it made any difference.

Couple hours later after eating it I started to feel way better - I'm still sort of tired probably from having a lack of carbs for a while, but it's no longer dragging ass tired like it was.