Clean Eating Advice for College Athlete


Hi there everyone,

I’m a 20 year old college football player in my second year. I play offensive line stand at 6’1", weighing 315-320 depending on the day. I am 23.15% body fat. As an Athlete I Strength train 3-4 days a week and do cardio 2-3 times a week.

My workouts very depending on what phase of the year we are in and the area my S&C coach feels I need the most work in based on test outs i.e. ( speed, strength, power). for example I just started a 4 week reactive set program to focus on speed.

Prior to the start of this reactive cycle I just finished 4 weeks of concentric work and 4 weeks of ISO work. I’m telling you this just to give you an idea of how my training changes over the course of the year, and that I don’t dictate my training.

Like I said I am 6’1" 320LBS and 23.15% body fat. I would consider my self and Endomorph body type. my measurements are as follows-

Neck 19"

Shoulders 56"

Chest 53"

Waist 49"

hips 53.5"

Upper Arm 18"

Forearm 14.25"

Now it’s not my muscularity or the mass I’m able to put on that is the problem I put on muscle fairly quick and easily when im in the right phases of training. What I would really like to do is get my body fat down to the 16-18% range while maintaining my size.

Now I know that the key to this goal is proper diet and clean eating. I have read numerous posts and articles on that very subject, but my question is (and one that has yet to be answered) is how to do it while in school with factors such as limited budget, space for cooking and being on a campus meal plan… which for those who don’t know is basiclly fast food at every meal. I guess it’s just the nature of the beast.

Im hoping to find some guys or gals who have had expereince in similar dilemas and can pffer some advise on clean eating on a college campus while being constricted by limited monetary reasources.

Thanks,

Tbone7794

Why did you black out the soap dispenser thing?

As for your questions, you just have to do what you can. Buy in bulk, and freeze if you can. Learn to make a good chilli. Chilli is the ultimate muscle building food and very very cheap. Buy eggs in bulk too.

If your dorms are catered, then you are just going to have to make the most of it. Be nice to the people serving your food so they’ll give you more meat and less shit.

"Why did you black out the soap dispenser thing? "

I blacked it out becuase it has the University logo on it is all

Guys im looking for any and all advise…bring it on

OP, does your university not have a training table or a sports nutritionist available to you?

As an athlete and one who needs to be big to do your job, a standard bodybuilding style approach isnt going to be optimal for you.

Tell us what a normal week of eating is like. I say week because I want you to include your weekends and any fast food runs or nights drinking as well.

If you feel more comfortable, look up mutant strength and conditioning on facebook and message me there.

OP, does your university not have a training table or a sports nutritionist available to you?

As an athlete and one who needs to be big to do your job, a standard bodybuilding style approach isnt going to be optimal for you.

Tell us what a normal week of eating is like. I say week because I want you to include your weekends and any fast food runs or nights drinking as well.

If you feel more comfortable, look up mutant strength and conditioning on facebook and message me there.

How can you tell if you’re putting muscle on if you can;t see it?

Also I’m willing to bet you’re WAY higher than 23% bodyfat. Closer to 40.

It might not be fun to hear but you are pretty worthless to your team as such a hamplanet. Read, read, read. Get to a respectable bodyfat. Nobody would ever call you an athlete.

My 2 cents. I’ve been the fat lardglobe you are right now. I thought I was huge too (in a good way). You’ve got a long road ahead.

I say, thou doth appear to be above 23% bodyfat.

[quote]DixiesFinest wrote:
I say, thou doth appear to be above 23% bodyfat.[/quote]

omg

If that is 23% then holy shit I am apparently at 10%.

IMO clean eating is a lot more about building habits. If you don’t have a family or significant other it’s much easier…

  1. find a diet “idea” that excites you. Something you think hey I wanna try this
  2. KNOW your options. What’s in your budget, what’s available, what can you realistically cook
  3. start small. Get a few regular but flavorful meals/foods that fit your diet plan and eat them regularly. Get very good at preparing these efficiently and so that they taste good.
  4. slowly add more stuff to it that fits (1) and (2).

We don’t know your options and the market in your area and what you like to eat so its hard to make a detailed plan.

learn how to successfully manage a diet. Assuming you did some homework, the management is much more important than the actual diet itself…

[quote]DixiesFinest wrote:
I say, thou doth appear to be above 23% bodyfat.[/quote]

Indubitably

6’1" 320 lbs and 23.15% bodyfat…that would translate to a lean mass of 246 lbs…at 6’ 1" ???

You need to lose a lot of fat… or you will have serious health problems in your future.

Edit: as far as “clean” eating goes, just stop drinking shit loads of alcohol. Don’t go to McDonalds three times a day. Start tracking macronutrients and calories.

[quote]Consul wrote:
You need to lose a lot of fat… or you will have serious health problems in your future.

Edit: as far as “clean” eating goes, just stop drinking shit loads of alcohol. Don’t go to McDonalds three times a day. Start tracking macronutrients and calories.[/quote]

lulz

Stop doing cardio. It will make it harder to lose weight, make you more injury prone, and completely negate all the positive effects of strength training.

Better cardio options: buy a sled, buy a plate for it, drag that fucking thing for a mile everyday. Also, look into some HIIT on a bike or sprints on the track. For the love of God, stop jogging. Jogging was invented for tiny people with shitty bench presses. Not for people who play sports and want to wreck shit.

If you are truely looking for a life style change, check out the books “Power Eating” and “Nutrient Timing.” They provide some basic diet information and will get you pointed in the right direction.Just like anything in life, knowledge is the key. Read everything (mostly books) you can find on nutrition and get on a time tested program for your strength training. I played college football and the program given to me by the school made me weak as shit and hurt for 3 years. 5/3/1 for football is awesome. So is all of Defranco’s stuff.

Yes, I agree with the other posters; your fat.

Get on a reasonable diet like the warrior diet, and start a proper lifting program such as 531 that you could work into your current training.

Uncle Bird.

tweet

[quote]StormTheBeach wrote:
Stop doing cardio. It will make it harder to lose weight, make you more injury prone, and completely negate all the positive effects of strength training.

Better cardio options: buy a sled, buy a plate for it, drag that fucking thing for a mile everyday. Also, look into some HIIT on a bike or sprints on the track. For the love of God, stop jogging. Jogging was invented for tiny people with shitty bench presses. Not for people who play sports and want to wreck shit.

If you are truely looking for a life style change, check out the books “Power Eating” and “Nutrient Timing.” They provide some basic diet information and will get you pointed in the right direction.Just like anything in life, knowledge is the key. Read everything (mostly books) you can find on nutrition and get on a time tested program for your strength training. I played college football and the program given to me by the school made me weak as shit and hurt for 3 years. 5/3/1 for football is awesome. So is all of Defranco’s stuff. [/quote]

Many impressive physiques were shredded upon with all types of cardio including steady state.

You need a coach my dude. My bet is that you could be 200lbs and still be nowhere near shredded. The fact that you allowyourself to become like this without any appreciable muscle mass tells us that you and your sport coaches along the way don’t know what they are doing or that they don’t give a fuck that you’re going to die in your mid 30s.

1.Learn to count your macros as accurately as possible now
2. Get a coach.

[quote]paulieserafini wrote:
You need a coach my dude. My bet is that you could be 200lbs and still be nowhere near shredded. The fact that you allowyourself to become like this without any appreciable muscle mass tells us that you and your sport coaches along the way don’t know what they are doing or that they don’t give a fuck that you’re going to die in your mid 30s.

1.Learn to count your macros as accurately as possible now
2. Get a coach.[/quote]

He’s a college football player and he plays offensive line. Chances are, being 300lbs is a big part of why he’s at the college he’s at and he won’t stay on the team if he goes on a permadiet and ends up at 200 lbs in a year. He’s obviously a young guy, and this is what a lot of non-blue chip college offensive linemen look like when they first get to school and get into a S&C program. If he’s playing college football, he’s got more than “no appreciable muscle mass”, but he needs to learn to eat to fuel his training and practices and let the lifting and running change his body, not diet down like a bodybuilder.