Clean my diet up, attempt #99 :)

[Hockey Playa]

Id like to think that i had a little revelation, and decided to stop wasting time, and concentrating only on self improvement activities. Lately ive fallen into the trap of too many computer games, and eating whatever i felt like. this is very counter productive condsidering im in a high profile university program, and am going to the gym 3 times a week.

Today i decided to purchase the upgraded version of Fitday.com(the site where you track your meals, calories, everything possible). So instead of wasting time playing games, i have decided to update my food log every day. You can become very precise with this program, and add new foods, customize foods, and it tracks your weight, goal weight, progress, daily intake, moods, exercises..almost anything.

Like i mentioned im university, and you guys all know the whole deal, with classes, less time, stress....its difficult to eat as well as youd like to. But that is no excuse to eat out 1-2 times a day. Im going to have to study cooking some more, but thats a whole different thread. My main question for this thread is in line with the Fitday program. I need you guys to refresh my memory what my daily intake shoulds be for the carbs, protein, fat...

MY stats: age:20
height: 5'11
weight: 180 lbs

Please note that i do not want to be on an insane bodybuilding diet with 400 g of protein a day. I want to eat clean, and have enough protein to build muscle, and not become too fat.

These totals are probably totally off, i vaguely remember i need about 3000 calories, 300 g of protein, and no idea for carbs, and fat. Please help Thanks guys

 

[Rampage1]

if you want to build muscle I assume your doing weights? then take 250 g protein, if not you don't need anywhere near that amount

 

[Hockey Playa]

yes my goal is to build muscle, respectable body fat

 

[DarkShade]

Yeah like the two previous folks have said, lots of protein, stay AWAY from lipids and simple carbs. I haven't tried it but my buddy suggested some protein whey and strength workouts.

I dunno what exactly you look like, but I am also a hair under 6' and 180lbs. with a tinge of flab covering everything, and I'm trying some new stuff out.

 

[useless]

simple carbs arnt bad if you use them right, like directly after working out to raise your glucose levels and help recovery.

with that said you should eat lots of lean protein sources like chicken, turkey, fish, and protein shakes dont hurt either. its better to full up on protein cause protein makes you feel more full which is key so you dont over eat and store fat.

for carbs id recommend slow digestion carbs like oatmeal, brown rice, sweet potatoes or yams. lots of green veggies like spinach and broccoli.

i got a killer diet that i use when im cutting weight for my fights. i get down from 154 to 125lbs in 7 weeks.

wither you goal is to gain weight or lose weight its simple math. calories in vs calories out

 

[Quiksilver]

The best way, from my experience, to remedy an unstable diet is to get the right systems in place.

Buy lots of good sized tupperware containers, more than you think you'd need(trust me youll find a use for them) and then sit down for an hour or two and count calories/decide exactly how much protein/fat/carbs you want in your diet. Once you've done that, go to the supermarket and decide how many days food you want to buy at once(to get the quantities right), then just buy the food. Bring it home and cook it all up/throw it all in tupperware. If you're doing 3+ days at a time, do this:

day 1 food, eat it.
day 2 food, refrigerate it
day 3+ food, throw it in the freezer. Say you follow that, the day before you get to the freezer food, chuck it back in the refrigerator to thaw it out slowly. By the time you get to the next day, the food isn't as hard as hockey pucks.

I spend an hour shopping and 2 hours cooking per week, no hassles. Vegetables I leave aside and cut up on the spot as im about to eat a meal, they're better when fresh.

I also have 3 shaker bottles. Every morning I spend 5 minutes and prepare all the protein shakes for the day and throw them in the refrigerator.

It's really easy and fast if you just get the right systems in place.
i.e. I shop and cook every 4th day.

So you spend that 3-4 hours a week preparing all your meals and you don't have to think about it at all. Just reach in the fridge and grab a meal.

If you have a car/job, buy a good sized cooler and few of those refreezable ice packs. Pack a few meals in there and throw it in the trunk. I did that in my final year of HS and between classes and lunch I'd duck out for a few minutes to get something to eat.

The excuse of "less time, studying" is bull**** because doing it this way is a zillion times faster and much cheaper than what most people do(unless you're on the KD and pepsi diet ).

If you have the money, I'd also buy a bar fridge(the small ones) so people don't start eating your stuff when they come over. I share an apartment with 2 girls and 2 guys right now and there's only 1 fridge between us, it's packed out wall to wall with garbage food and milk. Needless to say, once I have a little extra money to throw around I'm forking out for a bar fridge to put my **** in. Had one in back in canada but it's a little big to be carting around the world.

like most things though, the time you put into making stuff happen is what makes it happen, so getting your diet nailed down isn't gonna happen just daydreaming about it.

 

[Hockey Playa]

Thanks for the replies guys!
NO one had answered yet what i should be look for in my Daily Breakdown:

FAT = ?
PROTEIN = ?
CARBS = ?
CALORIES = ?

What should i be averaging in those catergories, in line with my goals, and weight, and age outline in the first post

 

[I-tallionStallion]

Everyone is different. There is no 'set' amount for anyone. But there are some guidelines we all can follow. Basically if you are trying to gain muscle without fat you need to limit carbs. Now depending on how carb sensitive you are will determine how much you can have.

I would do this basically

Protein: 1.5-2.0 x bodyweight

Calories: 3500 or more

Carbs - limited to veggies, brown rice, and fruit and PWO - cut-off in the evening unless thatis when you workout

Fat - I wouldn't really care about counting, I'd take in as much as I need with protein to reach my calorie and protein amounts with as little carbs as I need for gym performance and energy to keep off fat. Good fats being things like eggs, fish oil, olive oil, flax oil, ect.

Really what would be best for you is to figure out what you are going to eat everyday, and then eat the same thing everyday. And then you can make changes depending on how your body reacts.

Also even if you do eat excess carbs, morning cardio can help you lose fat or sustain your bodyfat level as you gain muscle.

Looking for a chart is not something I would do, I would not be caring about precise percentages, but i would care about getting the food down and getting in the gym every time I'm suppose to. Make a schedule of the food your going to eat everyday, and then do it. Btw...the Simple Starting Diet in the vault on here is a great simple diet for someone who has problems sticking to a diet. It's fast, easy, transportable, and can be tasty with little effort and nohow of cooking (although it def helps). Add a little fruit and brown rice to the diet and your on your way to some awesome noticeable changes. Just keep in mind, building a good body takes a lot of time and patience.

 

[useless]

Thanks for the replies guys!
NO one had answered yet what i should be look for in my Daily Breakdown:

FAT = ?
PROTEIN = ?
CARBS = ?
CALORIES = ?

What should i be averaging in those catergories, in line with my goals, and weight, and age outline in the first post

you could do

fat = 20%
carbs = 40%
protein = 40%

for calories in really depends on how active you are. the more active you are the more calories you would need to maintain life