A while back I heard a guy asking one of our trainers about nutrition. He wanted numbers. How many calories? What should my macros be?
Discussing nutrition numbers usually doesn’t drive true change. But you could tell he was serious, and I had about 5 minutes to jump in and give a fun crash course.
The most effective approach for me has been creating a plan, linking positive reinforcement to the required behaviors, and removing as much thought and emotion as possible.
My senior spring of college was the first time I really tried to lean out. I built a plan that fit my life. I ate five times a day:
- Egg white wrap in the morning
- Protein shake between classes
- Two turkey sandwiches for lunch
- Protein bar at work
- Two turkey burgers for dinner
Same thing every day. If the day went sideways, I found a close swap.
Seeing results kept me going. I liked the food. I was not starving. I did not miss anything I cut out.
It was also easy. I lived alone and barely cooked. My biggest problem was washing the egg pan so I could cook the burgers at night.
I have used some version of that plan ever since. I am down eighty pounds.
Here is why it works. You make the hard calls when you are calm and thinking clearly. Not when you are tired and hungry at 8pm.
How to build yours:
- Calories. Goal body weight times twelve is a good starting point.
- Protein. Goal body weight in grams.
- Meals. Pick a number that fits your day. Three, five, whatever you will actually do.
- Split it up. 1,500 calories and 150 grams of protein over five meals is 300 calories and 30 grams each. Prefer a big dinner? Try 400 at breakfast, 400 at lunch, 700 at dinner. Whatever looks good on paper, try it.
- Pick the foods. People want variety, but it becomes difficult to know what works when constantly switching things, just like exercise. Same foods every day is fine and you will get used to it and learn to enjoy it as you see better results.
- Plan for the odd days. Going out Friday night? Take 250cal off breakfast and 250cal off lunch. Now you have an extra 500cal for dinner and you still hit your numbers.
- Write it down. When you go off plan, note why. Stress. Boredom. A rough day at work. Food is usually not the real problem. Finding the real problem is the useful part.
This is simple to build. It is hard to follow.
James