Do I need a serious diet?

[KidBosnian]

I have recently just started going to the gym and I love it, but I don't like the fact that a diet is always the thing you "need" alongside it.

I'm not looking to be this huge guy with exposed abs and stuff. I just want to change my body shape into more of a lightly leaner look, if that makes sense?

I will definitely eat healthier and stay away from the obvious things, but do I really need to eat 5 times a day, just to have a moderately better looking physique?

[magician27]

you dont have to eat healthy to get lean physique. you just need to eat right amount of calories.

[EVendettaP]

Diet is a MAJOR factor in body comp. Put simply eat more calories gain weight, eat less lose weight...but macros are important too (protein and fat have minimum targets that you need to hit every day). Check out the calculating calories and macros sticky for the best advise

[jayareohh924]

you will meet your goals quicker with a proper diet, no doubt. but is it NEEDED? not necessarily. Like they've stated above, eat more to gain weight, eat less to lose it. Search here for IIFYM or Flexible Dieting. "dieting" is not all salads and fruits like some think it to be.

[InItForFitness]

You don't need to eat 5 times/day. You don't need to avoid anything.
Neither of these items hold any relevance to body composition.

What you need to do is focus mainly on meeting calorie & nutrient requirements on a consistent basis and simply eating when you're hungry and selecting a variety of foods you enjoy that are macro- & micro- nutrient rich.

Or...
If you really don't want to hassle with tracking at all, it really can be as simple as eating 3-4 well balanced meals every day that are varied in overall nutrient composition and don't skimp on your fruits & veggies.

[ShyGuyXS]

^ IIFF nailed it.

For serious muscle development, body composition, and performance, you'll probably need a more structured nutrition plan. (Even then, there's no need to eat 5 or 6 meals a day to do it.)

However, if your goal is to start building muscle and get into better overall shape/appearance, then simply training hard while enjoying a diet of various nutrient-rich foods can work.