My Diet

I get a lot of requests to share my diet and meal plan with others. The first thing I say is that my nutritional goals are for ME and I don't suggest that anyone follow them exactly. You should always consult a physician or nutritionist before drastically changing your diet.

There are some suggestions I would be more than happy to share though and hopefully you can do your research and find what works best for you and your lifestyle. Exercise and nutrition has become a TOP priority for me so I make it work and I really spend a lot of time and energy with the planning, prep and execution.

1. Clean Eating; I eat foods that are not processed, do not contain white flour or sugars and do not have preservatives, additives or hormones. That doesn't necessarily mean organic, it just means "whole". I don't eat clean 100% but I would say about 80%90% of the time, if it comes in a bag or a box...its not for me. Clean eating is tricky when eating out, so I make sure and order sauces on the side or without the sauce entirely, fresh salads (oil and vinegar dressing only) and meats and fish that are grilled and only seasoned with salt and pepper.

2. I eat 6 times a day. Breakfast, post workout snack, lunch, afternoon snack, dinner and evening snack. I NEVER skip breakfast. That's the kickstart to my day and it gets my metabolism running as soon as I get up! My meals aren't very big, but they give me enough to provide me with the energy and fuel that I need to get me through my day until my next meal. I do feel like I eat all day but doing this keeps me from over eating at my next meal. It really helps with portion control and also keeps my body on an efficient fuel burning schedule.

3. Macronutrients. Each meal consists of Carbohydrates, Fats and Proteins. The ratio of those macronutrients depends on what I'm doing and when I'm doing it. I aim for about 75-125g of carbs a day, 150-200 g of protein, and 50 g of fat. That sounds like low carbs and high protein, but I'm someone that bloats easily from carbs and I don't naturally have a lot of muscle mass. My goals are to build muscle and keep a lean physique...so I UP the protein and lower the carbs. I do NOT ELIMINATE carbs; that's a big diet/health NO NO. I simply cycle them so that I burn them efficiently and give them to my body when I need them. On low activity days, my body requires fewer carbs, on highly active days I'll take all the carbs I can get! I don't usually eat starchy carbs (rice or sweet potatoes) after 5pm. Fats are important to help keep your metabolism moving. Not having enough fats in your diet will only destroy your efforts in losing weight, not to mention it will mess with your digestive system. That's no fun at all...

4. Water water water! I drink about 3-4 L of water each day. I add a BCAA called "XTend" to half of my water intake and that gives me essential vitamins that I need to maximize my workout results; it also helps with muscle recovery and digestive health. Many times, if you feel hungry, you're really thirsty. Stay hydrated. The benefits are endless. Stay away from sodas, juices and other high calorie drinks. Those are empty calories that really don't help your hydration. Stick to water :) I will admit that coffee is my weakness. I do have one cup of coffee every morning. Not the best thing...but hey, we all have that ONE thing, right?

Here is a sample menu for my day:

Breakfast:
16 oz coffee
half and half
2 splendas

Oatmeal pancake
1 tbsp natural peanut butter
1 tsp strawberry perserves

Post workout snack:
High 5 protien shake

Lunch:
1 c jasmine rice or sweet potato
5 oz chicken or 5 oz fish
steamed veggies

Snack:
Greek Yogurt
Fruit
Nuts

Dinner:
Large salad oil and vinegar dressing
6 oz chicken or fish

Evening snack:
Almonds
or
Muscle Milk Light

I'll keep posting ideas. I know that sometimes the diet can get boring if you are running out of ideas. Tosca Reno's cookbooks help tremendously! Happy Eating!