Group: Experienced Exercise

Created: 2012/01/01, Members: 50, Messages: 19484

For intermediate and advanced individuals. Share and learn how to take your fitness to the next level!

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IF EATING IS THE KEY TO ANY PLAN?

gene6
gene6
Posts: 25
Joined: 2005/11/05
Canada
2006/08/24, 08:34 PM
eating really is the only thing that has every worked with me.
I have lost weight dramatically when i ate nothing but fruits, vegetables, and protein shakes- and of course had a regular building and cardio routine.

Eating by far is the last/biggest hurdle for me- i need help with some important questions.
Its impratical to live off of nothing but fruit/etc but without that sort of black and white thinking dont you find you tend to allow yourself too much leeway? I really dont know the first thing about proper nutrition, and i really wanna get my fat % down.
fyi as an aside there is an advantage to having the extra fat is that i go up in what i lift very fast, on the other hand i can't see my results at all- which have been quite significant.
1. How did you guys learn to eat properly? i really have no idea, have never found any solid or useful advice. Where can you learn what you need to know? I have the habit of living off of just one food item until i get bored of it and move on to something else. How do you guys use variety effectively?/where/how did you learn to do so?
2. Do you have to end up rediculously planning? like ill eat x amount of y at this time, and that time? Is this really necessary for success? its not much fun to live your life under that sort of milataristic regine is it? then again if thats what it takes....
3. What method of eating/nutrition did others who have found results.

Eating right/well allowed me tremendous gains, however what is really required is knowledge of what you are doing, and permanent sustainable lifestyle changes (my changes where too extreme and very impractical to go on indefinitely).

Id appreciate whatever help/direction could be offered.
asimmer
asimmer
Posts: 8,201
Joined: 2003/01/07
United States
2006/08/25, 07:17 AM
gene - try reading some of the many posts on nutrition and healthy eating.

You need to figue out your curent caloric intake and work up or down from that to increase/decrease your bodyfat.

Once you know how much you should be taking in, you can figure out a macro-nutrient ratio and then figure out your amounts of Carbs/Protein/fat. Once you figure that out, you can count for a while until you basically know how much you need to eat and when and then you don't have to count all of the time. A lot of people find that once they are used to the amounts they need to eat, they really only need to measure and count if their weight changes unexpectedly.

I think that if you are talking about competing, the rigiditry is a given. If you are just aim ming for a healthy lifestyle - learn to relax a little and enjoy eating a wide variety of healthy foods.

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Always bear in mind that your own resolution to succeed is more important than any other one thing.
-Abraham Lincoln
asimmer
asimmer
Posts: 8,201
Joined: 2003/01/07
United States
2006/08/25, 07:19 AM
Oh, and there are tons of good books on sports nutrition/healthy eating. That is agood place to learn, also.

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Always bear in mind that your own resolution to succeed is more important than any other one thing.
-Abraham Lincoln
gene6
gene6
Posts: 25
Joined: 2005/11/05
Canada
2006/08/25, 08:13 AM
- can you reccomend any good books? its hard to find anything good and scientific. trick is anyone can write a book- books are written to make money and catch attention, and much more rarely do they contain good info.

ya the more and more i read the more i learn that you really do have to plan your eating. This takes effort, energy and relative to eating whatever whenever, quite a bit of rigidity.

my current plan is to make a complex list of what i can eat and when. that way im guaranteed not to go overboard. Conversely its better than living off of nothing but fruits/stuff that definitely wont cause you to put on fat.

I like your idea- do the planning in the short term and eventually it should become internalized- this seems to make very good sense to me.

Question:
do you guys set specific times/schedules? like 1am eat lunch meal, 3pm shake, 6pm dinner?
or just plan for meals- ex dinnner, lunch, breakfast, maybe a snack?

i see the advantage to planning it out to specific times as being an important limiter, in terms of number of meals/etc, however its improtant not to go overboard this can sabotoge your own success.

ive had a bad habit of black and white thinking, so in a sense going at it full heartedly is easy for me, at this point my body actually perfers healthy food and has lost interest in greasy stuff altogether, wierd eh? my problem here is that i still probley eat too much of the medium healthy food, and too much of anything is never good.
wrestler125
wrestler125
Posts: 4,619
Joined: 2004/01/27
United States
2006/08/25, 01:46 PM
At the moment I'm gaining weight for teen nationals, so I eat whenever I can, at least every 3 hours. Usually once I realize that it has been 2 hours since my last meal, I start foraging for food again, but it's not scheduled.

As for eating healthy, use some common sense. It's not rocket science. You know what foods to avoid, and which ones are good for you. It doesn't have to be rigid, unless you are competiting or trying to achieve something extreme.

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Iron and chalk.
bb1fit
bb1fit
Posts: 11,105
Joined: 2001/06/30
United States
2006/08/25, 02:17 PM
Bodybuilders have notoriously come up witht thing that if it doesn't taste like crap, or if they are not miserable, it cannot be good. This is such a fallicy. To gain weight, even muscle, exceed your maintenance level. To lose weight, be below your maintenance level. Do this on a contiunous basis weekly overall average for as long as you need. There is the notion that you need 2 gr. of protein per lb., or 1.5, or such. Fact is, if you are eating above maintenance, you may need far less. Remember, the body will use what you give it. If you are eating a higher carb than protein diet, you will still gain. Carbs are protein sparing, this meaning the protein you do take in can be utilized more efficiently for muscle than for glycogen and other needs.

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Maximus from Gladiator....Strength and Honor!
jeon
jeon
Posts: 26
Joined: 2006/08/20
United States
2006/08/26, 03:29 AM
bb1fit, you must know what you are talking about. And you must be the only person I feel I can trust on this forum so far, as for fitness and heath.
So, can I ask a question about eating and sleeping habits. I get right at 10-11 hours of sleep everyday except the one day I work. I eat about 2 times a day first time around 12noon last time around 7-7:30pm. I start working out around 5:30pm. I alternate days one day I workout the next I ride the bicycle total exercise time 1hour and 30minutes. When I exercise I drink quite abit of water. Lastly I may have a sandwich and some milk an hour before I sleep but not always. Does all the sleep have a big effect on my muscle loss or gain?
asimmer
asimmer
Posts: 8,201
Joined: 2003/01/07
United States
2006/08/26, 10:44 AM
gene6 - Susan Kleiner has written some good books on sports nutrition. Look it up online.

jeon - you only eat twice a day?

Sleep definitely has an effect on your progress. You do your growth and repair at night while you sleep.

But since you only trust bb1fit, I will let him answer in more detail.

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Always bear in mind that your own resolution to succeed is more important than any other one thing.
-Abraham Lincoln
7707mutt
7707mutt
Posts: 7,686
Joined: 2002/06/18
United States
2006/08/26, 12:18 PM
LOL

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Less Talk, More Chalk!
The Men and Boys are Separated by one thing: The Squat Cage!

7707mutt@freetrainers.com
bb1fit
bb1fit
Posts: 11,105
Joined: 2001/06/30
United States
2006/08/26, 12:23 PM
Isn't that special....I feel trusted. :big_smile:

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Maximus from Gladiator....Strength and Honor!
7707mutt
7707mutt
Posts: 7,686
Joined: 2002/06/18
United States
2006/08/26, 12:25 PM
Yes the sleep will effect your muscle gains. But not as much as eating only 2 times a day. Frankly you are starving your self and at that rate you will not see much if any in terms of muscle gains.

Now for the sleep factor, it is good to get enough sleep but that will only matter if and when you get your diet under control.

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Less Talk, More Chalk!
The Men and Boys are Separated by one thing: The Squat Cage!

7707mutt@freetrainers.com
jeon
jeon
Posts: 26
Joined: 2006/08/20
United States
2006/08/28, 01:45 AM
It's obvious that I'm not straving I stay at a steady weight if not gaining. Let's take today for an example I just ate my first meal of the day at 2pm. It was 2 eggs, 3 small hotdog franks, 3 slices of bread and some strawberry jam with 2 glasses of orange juice. For the most part of the day I watch tv and drink water occasionally then at 5pm I'll ride my bike for 10 minutes, then hike up a small mountain for 10 minutes to get to the outside gym where I workout. I do my workout for 1hr 30min. then back down the mountain and ride the bike home. It's usually about 7:30pm now and then I eat dinner with my wife usually a bowl of rice some fish, kimchi, water, and sometimes a fried egg. That's my typical day. Except for Tuesday's. Sorry about that trust thing but I'm picky and bb1fit's pics and acheivements say alot to me. and he has 9650 posts. And I find what he says ties with what I believe. But 7707mutt thanks for repling to my post.
7707mutt
7707mutt
Posts: 7,686
Joined: 2002/06/18
United States
2006/08/28, 07:51 AM
Whatever

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Less Talk, More Chalk!
The Men and Boys are Separated by one thing: The Squat Cage!

7707mutt@freetrainers.com