Training Day/Off Day diet

[jab1234]

You guys have helped to tweak my plan previously but I wanted to make sure that my plan is right for my goals. My questions are below my stats/diet...

Age: 29
Height: 5'10"
Weight: 180 lbs
BF: ~12%

Meal 1: (Upon Waking ~6 am)
1 scoop Protein Shake
2 TBSP Honey

Train: ~45 minutes

Meal 2: (On the drive home from the gym)
1.5 scoop Protein Shake

Meal 3: (10 - 20 minutes after workout - PWO shake)
1/2 cup oats
1 banana
1 cup fat free lactose free milk
tsp cinnamon

Meal 4: (lunch)
lean protein
Veggies
rice or potatoes

Meal 5: Midafternoon
Protein bar

Meal 6: Dinner (meal eaten no later than 8 pm)
lean protein
veggies

Meal 7: Pre-Bed (10 pm)
1 scoop protein shake
2 TBSP Flax Seed oil (or other EFA)

This gives me roughly:
255g Protein
223g Carbs
73g Fat
= ~2600 Calories

My BMR = 2900. My macro split: 45P/35C/20F

According to the numbers I am short of my BMR needs by:
70g Protein
30g Carb
and over on Fat - 9g
However I haven't had a problem gaining weight eating less than this...

1. So what do you think of me continuing my diet short of my BMR needs and gauge how I gain weight and the quality of it?

2. Also how do I adjust for my off days? Should I just eliminate the PWO/PPWO meals?

3. I tell you I am hungry as hell all of the time as I type this I am starving, but I already had my dinner and the only thing I have to look forward to is my pre-bed meal. Should I succumb to my cravings? Are they indicating that I need more nutrients, or should I just ignore them?

4. Are my macro splits ideal for lean bulking, I found that in the past I was doing more along the lines of 35P/45C/20F for the sake of bulking but that stored more fat than I was looking for (but it worked, I'm up 20+ lbs from that split)

Alright thats alot of info to disseminate I appreciate your insight and comments.

[eatrainrest]

to answer number 2. i eliminate my pwo of course on off days. also, off days depending on goals, you should be eating according to your BMR + ACTICITY. ON OFF DAYS DO NOT ADD ACTIVITY IF YOU HAVE NO ACTIVITY.

[eatrainrest]

diet needs tweaking as well, protein bar as a meal and a shake as another... you could add in real foods, turkey, chicken, beef.. as well as include all the macros in each food/meal that you eat.

[jab1234]

Yeah you're right I need to recalculate BMR for off days...thanks

Protein shake for a meal is only first thing in the morning as soon as I wake up prior to going to the gym...eating any real foods at that time would be a waste of time. They wouldn't be digested in time to be utilized in my workout. I need something quick therefore a protein shake is the best option along with some honey for added carbs.

The other protein shake can be considered apart of my PWO meal, as I take it on my drive home from the gym....keep in mind that I train first thing in the morning....

The protein bar is out of convenience. My job at times doesn't allow me to get in an extra midday meal, so I have to settle for a protein bar. The days I do have time, I will put down my leftovers for lunch.

[eatrainrest]

Yeah you're right I need to recalculate BMR for off days...thanks

Protein shake for a meal is only first thing in the morning as soon as I wake up prior to going to the gym...eating any real foods at that time would be a waste of time. They wouldn't be digested in time to be utilized in my workout. I need something quick therefore a protein shake is the best option along with some honey for added carbs.

The other protein shake can be considered apart of my PWO meal, as I take it on my drive home from the gym....keep in mind that I train first thing in the morning....

The protein bar is out of convenience. My job at times doesn't allow me to get in an extra midday meal, so I have to settle for a protein bar. The days I do have time, I will put down my leftovers for lunch.

yea sorry i forgot to read when you went to the gym, good thing you have some quick carbs with protein so your not forcing your body to cannibilize muscle tissue...

[jamyjamjr]

your diet and split actualy doesn't look that bad bro.... except i'd do the rice or potatos at your first meal after your workout

[jab1234]

thanks for the input guys...as far as the other questions.

Is my macro split conducive to lean bulking: 45P/35C/20F?

And how do you guys curb any cravings in the evenings before bed?

[makod]

thanks for the input guys...as far as the other questions.

Is my macro split conducive to lean bulking: 45P/35C/20F?

And how do you guys curb any cravings in the evenings before bed?

Pot of Tea (2 cups) or small handful of nuts. Any other suggestions?

[eatrainrest]

thanks for the input guys...as far as the other questions.

Is my macro split conducive to lean bulking: 45P/35C/20F?

And how do you guys curb any cravings in the evenings before bed?

this looks fine, see how it works for you. i have sucess at around a 40/40/20 but everybody is different goodluck man .. self discipline!

[eatrainrest]

Pot of Tea (2 cups) or small handful of nuts. Any other suggestions?

you need protein there most definately for the fast your going to put your body through. plus tea?? green tea is caffeinated so wont help yyou sleep. last meal keep to EFA's and a slow digesting protein

[makod]

you need protein there most definately for the fast your going to put your body through. plus tea?? green tea is caffeinated so wont help yyou sleep. last meal keep to EFA's and a slow digesting protein

His question was "And how do you guys curb any cravings in the evenings before bed?"

My assumption was his cravings are between meal 6 & 7 i.e. Between dinner and bed. I was definatly not saying have tea or nuts as meal 7.

Meal 6: Dinner (meal eaten no later than 8 pm)
lean protein
veggies

<<<<<what to have in this time.

Meal 7: Pre-Bed (10 pm)
1 scoop protein shake
2 TBSP Flax Seed oil (or other EFA)

[eatrainrest]

His question was "And how do you guys curb any cravings in the evenings before bed?"

My assumption was his cravings are between meal 6 & 7 i.e. Between dinner and bed. I was definatly not saying have tea or nuts as meal 7.

Meal 6: Dinner (meal eaten no later than 8 pm)
lean protein
veggies

<<<<<what to have in this time.

Meal 7: Pre-Bed (10 pm)
1 scoop protein shake
2 TBSP Flax Seed oil (or other EFA)

i would add another half scoop to one scoop more protein, and the efa's to a tbsp (depending on how many efa's you consume a day)

[makod]

i would add another half scoop to one scoop more protein, and the efa's to a tbsp (depending on how many efa's you consume a day)

OP - are you getting hungry between meal 6 & 7?

[jab1234]

OP - are you getting hungry between meal 6 & 7?

yeah my hunger pains are horrible between meals 6 and 7 (dinner and bed)...I figure its because I have no carbs in my dinner meal, so its just not as filling.

I'll give the almonds, nuts, etc a try....thanks!

[makod]

Thats what I thought. How much meat and veggies are you eating at dinner? I have half a breast with about 1-2 cups of green beans, broccoli and sometime cauliflower. It holds me off all night.

If you can handle tea (i don't have any problems at all with sleeping) 1-2 cups is pretty good with a small handful of nuts. Other than that i cant think of anything that is low/no cal and will fill that void.

[Phate]

Thats what I thought. How much meat and veggies are you eating at dinner? I have half a breast with about 1-2 cups of green beans, broccoli and sometime cauliflower. It holds me off all night.

If you can handle tea (i don't have any problems at all with sleeping) 1-2 cups is pretty good with a small handful of nuts. Other than that i cant think of anything that is low/no cal and will fill that void.

i would watch the tea as it contains caffeine and could keep you up

a couple idea for when you get cravings follow(other than the fibrous veges he mentioned)

1) metamucil powder(sugar free)
2) sugar free jello
3) sugar free freezer pops
4) diet coke(chug it, the carbonation will build up in your stomach causing it to expand, though this might make you a little nauseous

there are of course some physical activities you could do to keep your mind off food, but those i won't mention on here

[jab1234]

Thats what I thought. How much meat and veggies are you eating at dinner? I have half a breast with about 1-2 cups of green beans, broccoli and sometime cauliflower. It holds me off all night.

If you can handle tea (i don't have any problems at all with sleeping) 1-2 cups is pretty good with a small handful of nuts. Other than that i cant think of anything that is low/no cal and will fill that void.

I normally get about 6-7 oz of protein (chicken, steak, salmon) I dont mind this meal being a little more fatty due to the low carb intake so sometimes I'll even go for darker chicken meat and of course the salmon is pretty fatty as well.

As for veggies only about 1/2 cup of green beans, asparagus...

I'm rather sensitive to caffeine so I will probably not opt for the tea remedy. I'll try and kick up the veggie content and I got some almonds that seem to work great, but I've got to be careful not to eat the whole bag in one sitting!!

[jab1234]

i would watch the tea as it contains caffeine and could keep you up

a couple idea for when you get cravings follow(other than the fibrous veges he mentioned)

1) metamucil powder(sugar free)
2) sugar free jello
3) sugar free freezer pops
4) diet coke(chug it, the carbonation will build up in your stomach causing it to expand, though this might make you a little nauseous

there are of course some physical activities you could do to keep your mind off food, but those i won't mention on here

hahahahaha....emoticon #3 already looks like my typical evenings

Wow the diet coke bit seems kinda extreme, but i think I may give the jello a go, and the metamucil doesn't sound bad seeing how it gives me the extra benefit of some more fiber in my diet

[makod]

Definitely up the veggies @ dinner

[jab1234]

Guys I've evaluated my results after roughly a week on this diet and found that I am slowly losing weight.. I weigh myself the same way first thing every morning.

So simple, I just need to add ~500+ calories to my overall meal plan and ration it according to my macro split. To do this I'm going to adjust my PWO shake to not include oats/milk/banana and just go with 50g whey/100g dex

This will free up a meal for me to take mid-morning (I work out first thing in the morning), so my question is how soon after my PWO shake can I have another meal. I know general rule of thumb is 2-3 hours but can I eat another high protein high carb meal within 30 minutes or so of my shake?

[eatrainrest]

Guys I've evaluated my results after roughly a week on this diet and found that I am slowly losing weight.. I weigh myself the same way first thing every morning.

So simple, I just need to add ~500+ calories to my overall meal plan and ration it according to my macro split. To do this I'm going to adjust my PWO shake to not include oats/milk/banana and just go with 50g whey/100g dex

This will free up a meal for me to take mid-morning (I work out first thing in the morning), so my question is how soon after my PWO shake can I have another meal. I know general rule of thumb is 2-3 hours but can I eat another high protein high carb meal within 30 minutes or so of my shake?

nah, i would say general rule is between 1-2 hours. i take mine 1-1.5 hours after my PWO adding in a low GI carb with protein source. thats about that ime they whey has traveled through your sytstem