Group: Specific Diets & Nutrition

Created: 2012/01/01, Members: 104, Messages: 22775

With so many diets and nutritional plans out there, you can get lost. Find out what works best for others and share your experiences!

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Off to a shaky start but hangin in

xpmcse
xpmcse
Posts: 8
Joined: 2001/12/29
United States
2002/01/05, 02:48 AM
I have to say I am so thankful for this website! The on-line tracking and message boards do the trick. It has been almost exactly one week since I started and I see it is a real challenge to eat right. Not due to wanting to eat bad things but just not knowing what good things I should be eating more of. This week I think I will try making a menu for the entire week at the start to work from and see if that may help. Does anyone else (that is trying to loose fat) do that and would you care to share?
Philia2
Philia2
Posts: 4,078
Joined: 2001/10/19
France
2002/01/05, 03:41 AM
You see xpmcse it's a life style change and not only a diet or a special exercise program to follow.....

I also try to make a diet plan for the coming days, but I must admit that I don't always follow it. But since I'm very determinated about loosing fat, I just change the thing with another healthy food, so it's not that bad.... (I guess!! lol)
ltroisi
ltroisi
Posts: 764
Joined: 2001/11/06
United States
2002/01/05, 07:28 AM
Steven Yes its tough isn't it...but if you made it thru week one HOORAY!! I also visit the message board to keep me motivated, answering others post plants in my mind what I need to do!
I HAVE to plan my meals ahead cuz I leave my home at 10 am and return at 10 pm, and I am on the road alot. That means a days worth of food in a cooler. I follow the same general diet for 2-4 weeks. Then change to another as my goals change. Example I was eating a little more than usual the last month while training with heavy weights. Now I go into my lean down season (bikini time around the corner) This week I lowered my calories and increased my protein. ANYWAY I have an archive of about 20 weekly meal plans. There are for a female but I can probably e-mail you a few and you can look them over and modify them to suit your tastes.I have a few for my husband I think. Let me know I'll locate and zip to ya!
rev8ball
rev8ball
Posts: 3,081
Joined: 2001/12/27
United States
2002/01/05, 11:23 AM
making a menu ahead of time is a great idea. a friend of mine who is a chef actually got me into doing that. he told me that once its written down, it is much easier to plan and much more difficult to change. it was great for a weightlifting diet because with a normal hectic, everyday schedule, already having our meals laid out and your calories counted was a wonderful advantage.

what will also help with your diet is cooking some meals ahead of time. most of the sloppy meals that we eat when we break our diet is due to lack of prep time. so if its already cooked and all you have to do is pop it in the microwave, you're much more likely to stay on target.

good luck.............michael
BillK
BillK
Posts: 361
Joined: 2000/12/26
United States
2002/01/05, 11:38 AM
Very good advice "rev8ball". Preparing your meals ahead of time is a great help. Just another thought. If your new to bodybuilding don't go to extremes right from the begining because that could possibably set you up for failure. I suggest that you get your training down first and do it for a couple months before you start worrying about your diet. Of course you could make some small changes in your diet in the mean time (like don't eat 3 hours before bedtime). But don't try doing a full bodybuilding diet from the begining. Trying to do it all at once is very hard mentally and leads meany newbies to failure. It is best to do it in steps. Don't worry you will get great gains and before you know you will have a complete "life style change".

~billk~
ltroisi
ltroisi
Posts: 764
Joined: 2001/11/06
United States
2002/01/06, 03:06 PM
If you don't eat 3 hours before bed and you have breakfast 8 hour later thats 11 hrs no food! I think its ok to have a pure protein drink befor bed in fact for us hard gainers it is a must!
rpacheco
rpacheco
Posts: 3,770
Joined: 2001/12/13
United States
2002/01/05, 02:33 PM
Planning ahead is good...of course, it always doesn't happen, especially if you work in a job that confines you either time wise or little choice in food selection due to limited number of eating places. Well, you can take lunch everyday if you're ambitious and have the time the night before, but if you're a single parent, it's even tougher! One small suggestion, buy lots of pre-made salads at your local grocery store and bring that to work. Low-calorie, frozen dinners will also help.

Stay motivated...there's plenty of people here that can help!
Philia2
Philia2
Posts: 4,078
Joined: 2001/10/19
France
2002/01/06, 02:54 PM
Oh Bilk, I cannot see anything bad of having a protein shake just before bed time......
Actually, I can only see good things about that!
ltroisi
ltroisi
Posts: 764
Joined: 2001/11/06
United States
2002/01/06, 03:24 PM
check out the diet in the competition section for a sample diet. Modify it if you aren't competing.
Alorle
Alorle
Posts: 196
Joined: 2001/10/07
United States
2002/01/06, 08:34 PM
Kiowawills told me about the body-for-life program, and it has an amazingly simple diet to use for weight loss. There are 3 catagories of allowed foods, protein, carbohydrates, and vegetables. You eat 6 meals a day, and for each meal you choose 1 protein and 1 carbohydrate from the list, then for 2 of those meals, you add once vegetable. The lists are made up of healthy, unprocessed, common foods, and you plan your meals the night before. For example: Meal one could be a portion of ham, and a portion of oatmeal, with 2 cups of water; meal two could be cottage cheese and strawberries with 2c of water; meal three could be baked chicken, sweet potato, green beans, and 2 c of water; meal 4 could be a portion of turkey breast on whole wheat bread with 2 c of water; meal 5 you could have steak, a baked potato, asparagus, and 2 c of water; and meal 6 you could hae a protein bar or shake, or another protein/carb meal.

The most important thing is to plan before what you will eat, so you don't get stuck standing in front of the fridge, and just picking any old thing. The next most important thing is to remember your portion size. A portion is the size of the palm of your hand, or your clenched fist. The third is to drink your water. 64 ounces is not enough if you are trying to lose fat. Ideally, you should drink 64 ounces plus 1 oz for every pound you need to lose plus 8 ounces every 15 minutes you are exercising. I believe asimba.com has a calculator to determine how much water you should drink a day.

Now, please remember when you read my advice, that I myself am almost 50 pounds overweight, so I am not necessarily a weightloss expert :).