The Master Plan

Diet and Nutrition
1

Hi,

After doing some research about diet rather than just asking stupid questions I have come up with a potential eating plan to help me with my goals, and i would really appreciate views. Stats:

22 y/o, 6"2, 215LBS,~18%BF, Want to get swole (approx 240LBS with same bf)

Plan

Meal 1 (Smoothie) Whey Protein, 2 Bananas, Coffee, Creatine, Ice

WORKOUT

Meal 2 (Post W/o): Whey Protein, Creatine, Glutamine

Meal 3 (30 mins later): 2-3 Potatoes, 1 Chicken Fillet, Carrots, Gravy, Fish Oils, Multivitamin

Meal 4 (Smoothie): 500ml Whole Milk, Half serving of whey, Peanut Butter

Meal 5 (Sandwich): 2 Slices Brown Bread, Can of Tuna, Cheese, Spring Onions, Coleslaw

Meal 6 (Smoothie): 500ml Whole Milk, Half serving of whey, Peanut Butter

Meal 7 (Sandwich): 2 Slices Brown Bread, Can of Tuna, Cheese, Spring Onions, Coleslaw

Meal 8 (Mixed in Bowl): Weight Gainer, Natural Muesli

READ THIS BEFORE YOU COMMENT!
-I plan to train about 1 hr after waking up, so that is why my breakfast is small, i dont want to feel bloated. i went for whey to get some protein into me fast, as well as 2 bananas for fast release energy in the upcoming workout
-I live a fairly busy lifestyle (work, study, volunteering, library blah blah) so i need meals that i can take with me on the go. i have designed meals 5+7 to be taken with in a lunch box. I have designed meals 4+6 to be blended in my machine before I leave the house, poured into a big bottle, and taken with me also.
-All of the above meals taste great to me so I think if i enjoy eating them i will be less likely to derail with my consistency.
-The final consideration is that I do not have a lot of money (im a student) so i cannot afford to be too picky in terms of my food choices. I have complied the above list with keen regard to my small budget.

MAIN QUESTIONS:
-are my protein sources varied enough?
-is the muesli slow release enough to help keep me anabolic throughout the night? (I chose it because it is fibrous and therefore likely to keep me full. i cant sleep on an empty stomach)
-would i be eating too much salt with the 2 cans tuna + 2 servings peanut butter in my diet?
-any other general comments welcome, even if its just to say the plan is good or bad.

Sorry if this was long winded, and thanks for reading. Hopefully I can gain some better insights on diet in general.

2

I wouldn’t be worried about the ‘various’ protein sources, seeing as how a lot of people live on chicken breasts and tuna.

Natural PB has pretty much zero sodium, so thats essential null and void. The PB I eat has 8mg/100gm.

Is it possible to have meal 3 - solid PWO meal, a little later? Say 60mins rather than 30?

3

  1. you dont need to vary your protein sources. Your body will not freak out and say “I only had 3 different sources of protein, im going to eat my muscles now”. Variety is nice but not necessary unless you have an are intolerant to the food you are eating. I have lived off eggs and chicken breasts for years, I am fine.

  2. You will be fine. Your body will not go catabolic overnight. so sure your muesli is fine.

  3. I doubt you will be harmed from your tuna and peanut butter

  4. If your really that busy, why eat 8 meals in a day? Your body will not start breaking down muscle just because you have not eaten in 3 hours. I don’t even know how people eat 8 meals, thats like 2 hours apart. And probably like 300-400 cals, which is a very small amount of food. You could just move your 4&6 smoothies to meals 5 and 7 and then you would only eat 6 times a day. Still more often then a “fairly busy” person should probably be eating. But hey if you want to eat that many times a day fine it wont hurt you.

4

Just based on this brief info, the approach and your mentality seem sound. Don’t be worried about sodium. Without knowing more I would say go for it. Seems to be in line with your goals and lifestyle.

Personally, I would recommend against a multi in favor of more varied nutrient sources. Ideally increase the following:
dark green leafy (kale) veggies
organic berries (wild blueberries, the small guys… frozen are often affordable)
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Coconut oil (a Tbs per day is quite affordable)
Supplementing key nutrients can be a good idea (D3, ZMA, Selenium, K2, Gamma E – in that order)

These suggestions shouldn’t totally blow your budget, I hope. Oh and trade out a sammy for tuna and rice to replace some bread with more tummy friendly carb. If you have no tummy issues, then proceed with the plan.

5

Whoa, firstly guys i would just like to say that i’m blown away with how good the responses have been generally. really targeted my issues and very relevant advice. Thanks!

I will address them each individually:

[quote]sexyxe wrote:
I wouldn’t be worried about the ‘various’ protein sources, seeing as how a lot of people live on chicken breasts and tuna.

Natural PB has pretty much zero sodium, so thats essential null and void. The PB I eat has 8mg/100gm.

Is it possible to have meal 3 - solid PWO meal, a little later? Say 60mins rather than 30?

[/quote]

Thanks for the assurances, and I think you are right, meal 3 would be better later to give the whey time to do its thing. has definitely helped, thanks!

[quote]fisch wrote:

  1. you dont need to vary your protein sources. Your body will not freak out and say “I only had 3 different sources of protein, im going to eat my muscles now”. Variety is nice but not necessary unless you have an are intolerant to the food you are eating. I have lived off eggs and chicken breasts for years, I am fine.

  2. You will be fine. Your body will not go catabolic overnight. so sure your muesli is fine.

  3. I doubt you will be harmed from your tuna and peanut butter

  4. If your really that busy, why eat 8 meals in a day? Your body will not start breaking down muscle just because you have not eaten in 3 hours. I don’t even know how people eat 8 meals, thats like 2 hours apart. And probably like 300-400 cals, which is a very small amount of food. You could just move your 4&6 smoothies to meals 5 and 7 and then you would only eat 6 times a day. Still more often then a “fairly busy” person should probably be eating. But hey if you want to eat that many times a day fine it wont hurt you.[/quote]

points 1-3 great, very positive!

@point4: I know my plan says 8 meals, but when you think about it meals 1 and 2 are basically just protein shakes, water and whey I will also be waking up very early to get these meals in. I don’t get a proper solid meal into me until meal 3 (because i’m traning first thing). In reality then i more or less count meal 3 as my breakfast, which means i wind up eating 6 meals a day. With regard to meals 4-7, i have done thsi to avoid the bloated sensation and also limit any potential fat storage by eating small and often. meal 4 is liquid, 5 is solid food, 6 liquid, 7 solid. therfore i should feel “full” throughout the day, but never “stuffed.” In addition I am naturally a skinny guy that seems to respond better to eating very frequently if i want to gain weight.
I don’t count your tip as worthless though man, because in the event that i sleep in on a given day (bound to happen at some point) and i still want to get all my meals in and i dont have time then i could readily combine meals 4+5 and also meals 6+7. thanks for your insight bro.

[quote]BulletproofTiger wrote:
Just based on this brief info, the approach and your mentality seem sound. Don’t be worried about sodium. Without knowing more I would say go for it. Seems to be in line with your goals and lifestyle.

Personally, I would recommend against a multi in favor of more varied nutrient sources. Ideally increase the following:
dark green leafy (kale) veggies
organic berries (wild blueberries, the small guys… frozen are often affordable)
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Coconut oil (a Tbs per day is quite affordable)
Supplementing key nutrients can be a good idea (D3, ZMA, Selenium, K2, Gamma E – in that order)

These suggestions shouldn’t totally blow your budget, I hope. Oh and trade out a sammy for tuna and rice to replace some bread with more tummy friendly carb. If you have no tummy issues, then proceed with the plan.[/quote]

@point 1, thanks man, yeah i’m really determined to get where i want to be!
@point2, yeah i might actually look into adding more veggies to my PWO meal, depends on availability and price, but i will definitely consider it! I get olive oil, or something somewhat similar from the fish oil capsules i take.
@point3: hmm i can see the rationale in some of the supplements you describe but why ZMA? I mean im a 22 y/o male, surely my testosterone is at its peak levels already?
@point4: yeah man i have no digestion issues, and i really appreciate the encouragement, thanks!

I will try to add a breakdown of my exact macros soon, but for now thanks for the comments all and looking forward to hearing more (or responses from those that have already posted) thanks!

6

ZMA would be my blanket suggestion for any athlete. Without knowing your history and medical records showing history of zinc and magnesium level, lets just say that zinc and magnesium levels seem to correspond to total training effort [(WorkoutIntensityXConsistency)/(TrainingHistoryInYearsXsomeConstant)] in an inverse manner.

Read up on athletes and zinc and magnesium status if you want to know more, or I can explain further. Sometimes a gram or two zinc, and a bit more magnesium are sprinkled over the applicable “supplement period,” say 2weeks-2months, but again it depends on your status, and without knowing more, it’s impossible to guess whether or not you show history/symptoms of suboptimal-ness.

7

Ok so i’ve finally looked at the nutritional content of this. values are as accurate as i can get them.

3615 calories, 350g protein.

I’m thinking the protein is probably high enough, but it’s a little low on the calorie side of things. to bump it up i propose to add something to my post workout meal as that’s when my body will be able to put the extra calories to the best use. it currently stands at:

500 calories, 43g protein

So i need some suggestions about how to get it to about 800 or 900 calories without adding a lot of “bulk” to the meal. i think anything over and above that is just going to go to my waistline.

would appreciate any suggestions, thanks!

8

diet is working well :slight_smile: getting fuckin’ yolked lol