Newbie with a simple question

[Jamoo1992]

Hi,
Newbie here. Im trying to cut down to 10% BF before i start a clean bulk.

I am the type of person that can eat the same foods each day and it doesn't phase me as i recently have lost most of my sense of taste. (Pro's of a bad situation)
So over the past 3 weeks i have been eating:
7am / Breakfast - Porridge / Wheat & Fruit based Cereal w/ Semi skimmed milk // 200 - 250KCAL // 2.7g Fat , 37g Carbs , 6.6g Protein
10am / Break Time - Fruit of choice (usually strawberries) // ~100kcal // 22g Carbs (Could add a protein shake here aswell???)
1pm / Lunch - Quinoa (Chicken or Steak) Salad & Choice of fruit (Usually Pineapple / Blueberries) // 475 - 500kcal // 14.4g Fat , 59g Carbs , 32g Protein
3.30pm / Snack - Nomadic Oat & Fruit Cereal Pot // 290kcal // 9.0g Fat , 41g Carbs , 10g Protein
6pm - Gym - Run for 45-60mins on treadmill + Compound lifts (following Wendler 5/3/1)
7.30pm / Dinner - Quinoa (Chicken or Steak) Salad // 392kcal // 14.2g Fat , 38g Carbs , 30.6g Protein
9pm / supper - Casein & semi skimmed milk shake // 188kcal // 3.5g carbs , 24g Protein

Totals: (using steak to calculate with lunch and Dinner instead of chicken)
Kcal - 1695kcal
Fat - 40.3g
Carbs - 200.5g (Carbs seem high from sugars in fruit, should i reduce the amount of fruit in my diet?)
Protein - 103.2g (could increase with a post workout & morning protein shake... Thoughts?)

Supplements: CLA, Multivitamin, Creatine MH, Thermopure

I have repeated this exact regime / diet every weekday for 3/4 weeks.
I have read that eating the same foods frequently helps your body adjust to those foods and process them better.
Im just wondering if this diet is appropriate for my goals or if i am making a mistake.

So far iv lost about 2%BF in 3 weeks last time i checked but obviously this will slow down so id like to perfect my diet sooner rather than later.
Total calories consumed per day - ~1500-1700kcal

Thanks for your time, iv read the stickies so sorry if i'v made any stupid mistakes in this post.

Jamie

Stats
H- 6"0
W- 88kg
BF%- ~16%

[sevenhm]

Please refer to:
Calculating Calories and Macronutrients
Nutrition For Newbies & Must Read Threads
Discretionary Calorie Allowance

[snorkelman]

I have read that eating the same foods frequently helps your body adjust to those foods and process them better.

Is that ^^ the basis for you limiting your food intake to the items you listed above?

[Jamoo1992]

Is that ^^ the basis for you limiting your food intake to the items you listed above?

Well it is one positive i have read, but also the diet seems (to me) to be full of nutritious foods and quite clean, I mean, if i can just repeat a diet it keeps everything straight forward and reduces confusion around macro's and micro's. I could throw in some fish every so often but i don't really see any flaws but of course i'm naive being a newbie and all..

Basically i want to know if there is anything wrong with eating this diet each day? of course i can increase and decrease calories by altering portion sizes, but as far as types of foods i'm eating every day, are there any major flaws i'm making?

[SuffolkPunch]

Variety is important to avoid deficiencies and for psychological reasons.

Being flexible with what you eat and realising there is no such thing as "clean" and "dirty" foods, only foods with varying levels of essential nutrients is also important for adherence long term.

Think in terms of calories and macros. Eat mostly whole or minimally processed foods, eat plenty of fruit and veg. Job done.

[Jamoo1992]

Variety is important to avoid deficiencies and for psychological reasons.

Being flexible with what you eat and realizing there is no such thing as "clean" and "dirty" foods, only foods with varying levels of essential nutrients is also important for adherence long term.

Think in terms of calories and macros. Eat mostly whole or minimally processed foods, eat plenty of fruit and veg. Job done.

Thanks for the reply, As i stated before though, psychological reasons don't really bother me considering i don't have much taste.
Im trying to strive towards a 1 day meal-plan i can eat everyday without any deficiencies that can't be well supplemented for easily.

Basically i would like to have a bulk amount of food and preparation to buy and cook. Keeps me from eating a pile of crap if i can't think of anything to make.
Know what i mean? :/

[ShyGuyXS]

Thanks for the reply, As i stated before though, psychological reasons don't really bother me considering i don't have much taste.
Im trying to strive towards a 1 day meal-plan i can eat everyday without any deficiencies that can't be well supplemented for easily.

Basically i would like to have a bulk amount of food and preparation to buy and cook. Keeps me from eating a pile of crap if i can't think of anything to make.
Know what i mean? :/

@first bold - Unfortunately, it's nearly impossible to construct such a meal plan, especially considering your current calorie intake.

IMO, look at the big picture. Your calories and fat intake are really low considering your height, weight, and daily activity. You want to have a caloric deficit to lose weight, of course, but it's also important to make sure that your deficit is not too large, or you risk losing significant muscle mass and other effects of malnutrition. More likely than not, you'll just go back to square one or look even worse afterwards.

Using the stickied threads in post #2, you can estimate your TDEE (maintenance calorie needs), then drop 10-20% from there as a starting point. Calculate your macros for protein and fat based on the thread guidelines, then fill the remaining calories with whatever macros you prefer.

Also, you don't need to restrict yourself to exclusively the foods you picked out in your plan. You can enjoy other foods (i.e. burgers, ice cream, pizza, etc.) in moderation on those occasions where you are out and about and don't have access to your usual foods, and that's perfectly fine. They may even help you reach your calorie needs - especially when you begin bulking again.

[Jamoo1992]

@first bold - Unfortunately, it's nearly impossible to construct such a meal plan, especially considering your current calorie intake.

IMO, look at the big picture. Your calories and fat intake are really low considering your height, weight, and daily activity. You want to have a caloric deficit to lose weight, of course, but it's also important to make sure that your deficit is not too large, or you risk losing significant muscle mass and other effects of malnutrition. More likely than not, you'll just go back to square one or look even worse afterwards.

Using the stickied threads in post #2, you can estimate your TDEE (maintenance calorie needs), then drop 10-20% from there as a starting point. Calculate your macros for protein and fat based on the thread guidelines, then fill the remaining calories with whatever macros you prefer.

Also, you don't need to restrict yourself to exclusively the foods you picked out in your plan. You can enjoy other foods (i.e. burgers, ice cream, pizza, etc.) in moderation on those occasions where you are out and about and don't have access to your usual foods, and that's perfectly fine. They may even help you reach your calorie needs - especially when you begin bulking again.

Thanks for your reply, I have looked at the TEE calculations but i cannot make my mind up which category i fall within, main reason is because my job is very sedentary (sitting at a desk all day) but then again i do work out at least 4 days a week so im not too sure if they even each other out to a moderate activity level ?

[loganhart]

Variety is important to avoid deficiencies and for psychological reasons.

Being flexible with what you eat and realising there is no such thing as "clean" and "dirty" foods, only foods with varying levels of essential nutrients is also important for adherence long term.

Think in terms of calories and macros. Eat mostly whole or minimally processed foods, eat plenty of fruit and veg. Job done.

^ This