The warrior diet: Thoughts?

[cola]

Ok, so been using the warrior diet (Its not really a diet, because I think of a diet as temporary, this is a permanent change in eating habits.) for two days and it definately works as far as energy goes, increased energy is something I can attest for as in the last 2 days i have had crazy energy.

For those who don't know the Warrior Diet basically is a 20 hour a day fast(Or if you can't handle a 20 hour fast, no more than 300 calories in 20 hours) then the last 4 hours of the day you pig out (preferably on healthy food) .. And you also workout on a empty stomach 4-5 days a week.. Suppose to do wonders for fat loss, and slow muscle gains.

Any opinions? And please: Refrain from the "You have to eat 6 times a day" stuff, because i have researched it and its no scientific proof that it benefits people trying to lose fat.

 

[marmel75]

Any of the IF methods will help with body composition. I am running a program by John Romaniello right now where you cycle through the various methods. I can tell you compared to other IF methods Warrior Diet makes mr hungrier. I have been doing some method of fasting for several months now. I am training in the morning fasted with 10g of BCAAs...so far I have dropped 10 lbs in 12 days...chewing through fat.

It works, isn't the easiest thing in the world but very effective...also fasting has been show to significantly increase the ratio of fat to muscle loss...normally people lose 75:25 fat:muscle but with IF its 90:10...

 

[MikeBrown30]

Any opinions? And please: Refrain from the "You have to eat 6 times a day" stuff, because i have researched it and its no scientific proof that it benefits people trying to lose fat.

Yeah, try and explain that to other people. Fvck they can be so stubborn.

 

[pinhas]

I did this diet for 4 months and it was awesome. I felt energized, happy, and extremely clear minded. It felt great not being a slave to food and schedules, and I just ate berries all day (which can get pricey).

I had to stop when I went on vacation, and didn't pick it up after becuase frankly I love food (and alcohol) too much and cant see myself living without it. I do see myself trying this again in the future though.

And I agree, when I tried explaining the concept behind this diet, I got stupid doubtful remarks, saying that "not eating all day is bad" and that they dont see how this can possibly be beneficial. Oh well.

 

[Taistelukalkkuna]

You are talking about Ori Hofflesomething´s Warrior Diet? Can you give a short version about what´s so special about it? Understand that I ask this because of cynisism about everything that has words "Warrior", "Spartan", "Commando", "SEAL/SAS/Delta/Spetsnatz/Tzanhanim/Insert special forces unit in vogue".

If it is, what it sounds, it might suit me better, since my work schedule does not permit long food brakes.

 

[marmel75]

Basically the gist of it is you undereat in the morning, a small piece of fruit and a protein shake or small amount of protein, then at the end of the day you consume the majority of your calories. So if you are taking in 2500 cals per day, you would eat 200-300 in the mornibg, then eat 2200-2300 in a 2 or 3 hour period at night. Consider that every meat eating mammal eats a huge meal right before going to sleep but scientists in their infinite wisdom somehow decided this wasn't the right way to eat for humans, which despite our intelligence, are still meat eating mammals.

I am on a program by John Romaniello where you cycle through various fasting days consisting of a 36 hour fast, 16/8 leangains style fasts and warrior diet fasts. One 36 hour fast directly following a cheat day, 2 warrior diet days and 3 16/8 IF days...

I can say my least favorite days are the warrior diet days...I am hungrier on those days after eating a small meal than if I ate nothing at all and I am stuffed at night and usually still full til almost noon the next day....for instance last night I ate 2 15 oz cans of mackerel, 8 oz of chicken, 6 eggs, a handful of nuts, 2 yogurts and a large portion of asparagus all in about an hour period...

Tough to get all that food down and this is on a cut...can't imagine how I would add another 800-1000 cals to that if I was bulking...

 

[Nik TPT]

Personally, I tried the warrior diet and it never worked that well for me. I prefer to have smaller meals when cutting and larger meals when bulking. In the end i still get under 6% when cutting and I still manage to put on some lean muscle mass when bulking.

 

[konmai]

Smaller meals just didn't work me. I felt like it was a hassle and was never satisfied. Warrior diet is a better fit. Only fault is I'm still weak, when it comes to fasted workouts. My moves aren't as powerful.

 

[typical]

Wow might work for a quick drop in bf% but if your an athlete you gotta keep that engine running.

I have to eat a minimum of 5 times a day to keep my body at 80kgs and I train everyday with sparring sessions on the weekends.

Bottom line is though if you want to look and feel good there are many many many quick fix's but in the end you have to change your lifestyle to achieve and maintain a decent body.

I've been doing the old boring and tested 6-8 meals a day with morning cardio on an empty stomach at 6am and then the old boring and tested weights in the mid arvo for the last 10 years since I was 17. Today I can still run a 11.5sec 100m sprint my max bench is 150kg my max squat is at 205kg and my max deadlift is 185kg. I've gotten stronger each year and I haven't lost my speed at all. Its something my trainer and cornerman (a croation kickboxer) taught me since 17 and I stuck to it and it worked.

I will tell you right now that it's not easy its very very very fu(ken hard, I can't stay up all night watching tv or playing video games as I need sleep, I can't eat rubbish foods, I can't drink alcohol because it slows me down ............... BUT I can bench press double my bodyweight, I can squat nearly 3x my bodyweight, I can step into the ring and know for a fact that I can rape the other dude with a quick combo and knee to the head.

Every single guy (school boy or office worker it doesn't matter) that comes to our gym gets the same program, which is wake up early and run 3-5 times a week, eat 5-8 times a day and weight train whenever you feel your well rested which maybe once or twice a day if you have the time. Fat, skinny, slow metabolism, fast metabolism it doesn't matter within 3-6 months all these guys are big and shredded and super fast and all willing to get their first fight under the belts.

So your asking for scientific proof I have none but I can put forward around 50-100 guys that do the same boring training system as me all from different walks of life all with different body types and they ALL are big shredded mothers.

So you can look for a quick fix and feel good diet or you can suck it up and do the hard yards thats worked for many many guys your choice.

 

[typical]

Also we don't ever concentrate on gaining muscle or losing fat for us its just about eating clean and getting stronger and faster, the size and low bodyfat comes by itself after a few months of solid work.

If its worked for me and countless others from around the world it should also work for you.

Keep it stupidly simple because it works.

 

[DanZy]

^You have missed the point entirely

 

[marmel75]

^You have missed the point entirely

Yeah pretty much. But its the same as can be expected I guess. Some people can get away with eating that many times a day without having insulin/fat loss issues but a lot of people are wondering why they can't lose fat and its because the body cannot lose fat with insulin present. Some people can get away with smoking and not get cancer but that doesn't mean its necessarily good for you. Research continues to show the body is not designed to be in a constantly fed state.



As for the whole "I have to eat all the time or I will lose muscle", well whatever. John Romaniello, Elliot Hulse and Rob Regish are all probably bigger and stronger than the majority of people here and they are all big proponents of not only the warrior diet, but also other forms of intermittent fasting.

No point to arguing with people about it, I am big thick and muscular and have been fasting for months now, and have seen no ill effects on muscle size from it.

 

[typical]

............ sigh where do I even begin.

Okay I'm not saying that these diets don't work but most guys that are thinking about doing these diets are not athletes mma fighters powerlifters or seasoned body builders. They are average people looking for a quick fix without having done the hard yards.

It doesn't work like that, I've tried these so called "fasting" diets and yes they do work but thats because my body has been hammered for so many years that a few days with little to no food does not do any harm as my mind and body know that sooner or later it will get hammered again. Thus it preserves muscle tissue and burns fat.Having said this though I'm at a stage where I don't need to do these weird diets as I'm already at a decent bodyfat level.

The bottom line is always going to be the same though ......... eat clean lift hard and in TIME you will get results. They do not happen in a few short weeks (unless you have decent muscle mas under the fat and are on a strict cut).

Yes they all work but why put your body under that much stress when you can just eat 5 times a day with clean food and train really hard ?

I see this type of attitude from all the new guys that want a "easy" way out because they can't be stuffed to change their eating and training habits. But these are the guys that keep yoyo-ing with fat issues and never really achieve a decent body for sports or looks.

Also you dont have to eat 5 times a day its just what we do to all the new guys wanting to get into mma, and that is to change their habits in such a way that they are forced to adapt and learn, you could eat 3 times a day and still train hard and achieve the same results. But forcing the new guys into making a proper training and eating plan teaches them much more then eating and training habits, it teaches them to plan their lifestyle around the sport rather then plan the sport around their lifestyle. It also forces people to make time to eat and train and not neglect their body.

Also the guys you listed did not get big and buff while on the so called warrier diet they spent years training the hard way to build up decent muscle mass which allowed them to easily shred any fat that had creeped up on them. Today they can do whatever they want as their bodies are conditioned to stay in a lean fit state, something which takes years. Hell I know I can go eat donuts and drink beer all month long and I won't gain any fat but I will lose some strength and muscle, and thats why I stick to my boring clean diet as I'm always getting stronger.

Also from just a training perspective what is the Warrior Diet ? Looks just like an extreme Cutting Cycle, wow who knew that under eating and lifting heavy would result in massive fat lose.