Are you willing to trade monotony in eating for a great body?

[the iron addict]

Are you willing to trade monotony in eating for a great body?

If so, you will find once you get a basic caloric and macro-nutrient profile pegged, AND, are willing to stick with a basic format and make your protein mostly shake based--you are SET! Yes, you will have to make adjustments as you grow, and if you are dieting to strip bodyfat, you will need regular changes as bodyfat levels go down and you get into single, and particularly low-single digit numbers. But aside from the situations listed above, if you are willing to eat a simple, basic format diet, that does not vary a lot, you will find it incredibly simple to add muscle at a "real world" pace, while keeping bodyfat levels in check year-round.

This doesn't mean every meal need be the same, nor every day be the same as the previous day. It does mean that you structure your diet within a basic format, and around foods that do not vary a lot in overall caloric or macro-nutrient structure from what you usually eat. And it also means you pre-plan to a degree, those "cheat" meals or days that are needed for sanity purposes. I work with many people that are long-term training clients that between us have dialed in diet to the extent that once we have them lean, we keep them there within a few percent bodyfat year round, and allow them to add quality muscle on an ongoing basis. I keep myself a between 6-10% year round and would never in a million years go back to bulk/cut dieting. Yes, it takes a bit of juggling to get everything setup, but once there you are set, and changes that need to be made as you grow are simple and basic "no brainers". If you are not using a similar approach, you are probably a t-shirt bodybuilder, you know, the guys who only look good with a loose fitting t-shirt and are ashamed to take it off.

Iron Addict

[brake]

diet is where i mess up, i cant get my diet right, i was going to see a dietician but its to expensive

[the iron addict]

Go check out my site, there is info posted there.

Iron Addict

[aZn PEC-age]

There's plently of tasty food that is clean. No problems. And if it is too high GI, just throw in some fiber and clean fats to lower it. Saturated fats- the taste of foods high in this stuff is overrated anway.

[miltoney]

95% of my diet is oats, tuna, cottage cheese, bread, milk...I know there is some controversy over the bread and milk, but I have no problem gaining with them while keeping fat in check. These foods are not exciting to eat by any means, but I am eating them for a reason. Today at work I'm sitting there choking down a tuna sandwich while the guy next to me has a hershey chocolate bar all broken into pieces in front of him, suckin down each piece as fast as he can while giving me diet and training advice...I never noticed how horrible other people eat untill I started eating right myself. But anyway, yes, I will gladly eat monotonously for better health and a great body...easy choice.

[BigStinger80]

I'm willing to trade monotomy, a good degree of social life, considerable coin, my good friend the cold beer, and mom's cooking.

That makes me cool, right? Come on, it's 11pm friday night and I need validation!

[brake]

yeah im willing to do the trade.... i do already. but im slowly slacking off, its starting to seem "not worth it" cuz i cant, for the life of me get my diet sorted

[MCconditioner]

You have to wonder if it is necessary to make this trade. I find eating a very clean diet is a useful tool for figuring out how much food your body needs and what adequate portions look like. Of course it is also useful for getting optimal results.

However, as long as you are staying within your caloric limits and eating nutritious food, there is not necessarily a need to be so strict. Once you have a basic feel of what you are supposed to eat: how much, when, and what... you should be able to veer slightly off a regimented diet.

You can still incorporate a lot of BB foods without being super strict.

That being said, cheats can mess you up. Sometimes having a regimented diet plan will help you attain your goals. However, as most of us are athletes eating crap every once in a while will not hinder our progress too badly.

[j00tel]

For me, precise meal plans are used for cutting or bulking to guarantee consistent results. When simply trying to maintain weight, I find it much easier to eat within the limits without using a meal plan. I too find it true that using meal plans over time does lead to a much better understanding of portion control.

In my opinion, everyone's diet, regardless of cutting, bulking or maintaining, should consist of "clean foods" i.e. whole and unprocessed.

[Brosef]

Actually, it is much tastier and un-monotonous to eat healthy and right. It's so easy to make your own food and choose a different dish every time that life should instead be as much of the opposite of monotonous as you can make it.

[brake]

so how long did it take u guys to get ur diet right?

[sidewinda]

A lot of reading, experimenting, and changing... and it's definitely still far from great, 6 months later. However, it improves all the time, and will continue to do so for many years to come.

[adrenalinejunky]

Body Building for me is a lifestyle. It's not about being on a "diet" year round. It's about understanding how you body reacts to food and eat accordingly. I have been training for 23 years straight and eating healthy the whole time. Is it a diet, NO, it’s experimenting enough to understand how different foods affect my body. I average about 10% through out the year, maybe 2% higher in the winter and 2% lower in the summer depending on my training needs at the time.

I consider a diet of counting calories and nutrient manipulation only relevant getting ready for a show. Other than that I know I can enjoy pizza and beer a couple times a month. What I have found actually works well for me is I eat almost the same thing for a week straight then on Saturday and Sunday I can eat what ever I want within moderation. You can't just figure out what works over night, be patient it takes a little time. Remember Body Building is a lifestyle.

[Actual Size]

Here is a very old thread that needs to be bump.

[jked4life]

Personally, I have struggled with my weight all my life. One of the things I love about bodybuilding is the diet for one reason, I get to eat!!!!!!!! I don't mind eating healthy, if I can eat. Other diets to maintain my weight in the past all failed miserably, because I like to eat. Once I started bodybuilding, my bodyfat has been under control and I get to eat. Granted, it;s oats, tuna, chicken, ect. I am never hungry because I have 6 meals a day. I also don't get so hungry that I **** up and eat everything in my kitchen because I went 6 hours without food.

[Never2cut]

I do what the guy who posted does. No bulking, no cutting. And I don't really like to use the word "dieting" or "diet". I just take it as eating healthy, being healthy and knowing what i'm eating. I definitely wouldn't call it monotonous though. I personally am always finding new ways to prepare my food to make it different and tasty each time. If what you are eating is boring and its keeping you from reaching your goals. Definitely step back and reassess your goals and how realistic they are. Thats my little shpeel..

[Dosquito]

I keep myself a between 6-10% year round

In my opinion this is not healthy at all unless you are genetically like this, and you would probably be diagnosed with some sort of eating/mental disorder that many bodybuilders have. Just saying, don't get angry.

[JMillion]

In my opinion this is not healthy at all unless you are genetically like this, and you would probably be diagnosed with some sort of eating/mental disorder that many bodybuilders have. Just saying, don't get angry.

I'm interested to see if others share this view.

[Dosquito]

I'm interested to see if others share this view.

Just ask Scivation (Marc). He'll give you a list of things that were all messed up when he was trying to maintain <10 % body fat all the time

[Jackbklyn01]

In my opinion this is not healthy at all unless you are genetically like this, and you would probably be diagnosed with some sort of eating/mental disorder that many bodybuilders have. Just saying, don't get angry.

I totally disagree. I would say that below maintaining sub 5% bodyfat is unhealthy. Then you are un the brink of not having enough fat in your system to surround and protect your organs and tap into for daily use. Above that though i say you're fine and i'm pretty sure im not alone in my opinion.

When i had 1.3% bf for a comp i knew it was extremely dangerious and unhealthy but i did it for a reason, to win at any cost but i upped my bf to 6% within like 2 weeks. I've had 5-10%bf levels for yrs w/no problems whatsoever and plenty others i know have the same levels.

[Dosquito]

I totally disagree. I would say that below maintaining sub 5% bodyfat is unhealthy. Then you are un the brink of not having enough fat in your system to surround and protect your organs and tap into for daily use. Above that though i say you're fine and i'm pretty sure im not alone in my opinion.

When i had 1.3% bf for a comp i knew it was extremely dangerious and unhealthy but i did it for a reason, to win at any cost but i upped my bf to 6% within like 2 weeks. I've had 5-10%bf levels for yrs w/no problems whatsoever and plenty others i know have the same levels.

ROFL!!!!!!!

[Jackbklyn01]

ROFL!!!!!!!

What's so funny, the organ comment?????? Well it's true! =)

I guess it wouldn't hurt to have 10-15% but what's the biggie if you have 5-10%, it's still above the levels you need for survival...........

[hokiehokieVT]

What's so funny, the organ comment?????? Well it's true! =)

I guess it wouldn't hurt to have 10-15% but what's the biggie if you have 5-10%, it's still above the levels you need for survival...........

I think he's laughing at the 1.3% BF comment. I gotta tell ya, it gave me a chuckle too.

I shouldn't even ask this, but are you serious.

[GJWrestle878]

I eat completely clean yet by no means do I have a regimented diet plan. Basically this is how I do it. For breakfast I always have oats and eggwhites b/c I love my oats and its like a traditional b-fast. Then at my next meal I always just look for a good protein or carb source that I "feel" like eating. I never have to look hard cause I always have something like salmon, chicken, eggs, or whey at my disposal. I also always have oats, PB, cottage cheese, apples, and veges in my kitchen so I always have choices. Along with the help of fitday.com I can look at my caloric breakdown and determine whether I need some more fat or carbs or protein. I never have a truly planned day and I have the love of eating everytime. The only thing that sucks is when i go out with friends b/c none of them eat like I do. That is the one area in my life I have yet to conquer.

[bodybuilder45]

i havent been above 10% in years. its fine to stay at a lower bodyfat (between 6-9%) and be perfectly healthy. every time i bulk, ill make sure not to get past 10%. if i do, i cut back for about 2-3 weeks and get bulking again. this process is repeated until i need to do my competition cut which usually lies between 3-4% bodyfat. there is no way i could handle my cutting diet for longer than 12 weeks so i make sure my bodyfat never gets out of control. 1.3% is going a little crazy, dont know if its possible. i would like to know how he got it tested cause i dont trust calipers. dunk tank is very accurate though.

[Dosquito]

I eat completely clean yet by no means do I have a regimented diet plan. Basically this is how I do it. For breakfast I always have oats and eggwhites b/c I love my oats and its like a traditional b-fast. Then at my next meal I always just look for a good protein or carb source that I "feel" like eating. I never have to look hard cause I always have something like salmon, chicken, eggs, or whey at my disposal. I also always have oats, PB, cottage cheese, apples, and veges in my kitchen so I always have choices. Along with the help of fitday.com I can look at my caloric breakdown and determine whether I need some more fat or carbs or protein. I never have a truly planned day and I have the love of eating everytime. The only thing that sucks is when i go out with friends b/c none of them eat like I do. That is the one area in my life I have yet to conquer.

Yep, I do it exactly like this. Except if my friends and I go out to eat I just pick something moderately healthy. It doesn't effect me much since I'm a bulking ectomorph. Don't let your diet rule you, take control of your diet.

[Dosquito]

i havent been above 10% in years. its fine to stay at a lower bodyfat (between 6-9%) and be perfectly healthy. every time i bulk, ill make sure not to get past 10%. if i do, i cut back for about 2-3 weeks and get bulking again. this process is repeated until i need to do my competition cut which usually lies between 3-4% bodyfat. there is no way i could handle my cutting diet for longer than 12 weeks so i make sure my bodyfat never gets out of control. 1.3% is going a little crazy, dont know if its possible. i would like to know how he got it tested cause i dont trust calipers. dunk tank is very accurate though.

I doubt the accuracy of your measurements, but yes there are definitely some people who are genetically between 6 and 9 percent body fat. I have a friend that's pure mesomorph, he looks great year round, and it's really a waste of genetics. BTW, I promise you you're not at 3-4% body fat in your competition stage, most pros never get here.

[Dosquito]

I think he's laughing at the 1.3% BF comment. I gotta tell ya, it gave me a chuckle too.

I shouldn't even ask this, but are you serious.

Yep, 1.3% BF is completely impossible, you'd be dead. If you ever get there please send me a picture, LOL.

What's so funny, the organ comment?????? Well it's true! =)

I guess it wouldn't hurt to have 10-15% but what's the biggie if you have 5-10%, it's still above the levels you need for survival...........

10-15% is optimal for 99% of the population. Once most people get below there, certain bodily functions that aren't necessary for survival will shut down/become slower, etc. When Marc (scivation) was constantly below 10%, for example he had no libido. Most people can't be at 4-5% for extended periods of time without dying. Many people will never be able to get to 3%. I don't think anyone has or will in the near future get below 3%.

[Jackbklyn01]

Yep, 1.3% BF is completely impossible, you'd be dead. If you ever get there please send me a picture, LOL.


10-15% is optimal for 99% of the population. Once most people get below there, certain bodily functions that aren't necessary for survival will shut down/become slower, etc. When Marc (scivation) was constantly below 10%, for example he had no libido. Most people can't be at 4-5% for extended periods of time without dying. Many people will never be able to get to 3%. I don't think anyone has or will in the near future get below 3%.

Dude, i did it, i had the bodyfat tested by a $1500 bf machine at a hardcore gym. As soon as i figure out how to make photos the right resolution i'll post to a thread, i'll try to email you the pics i think that would work better, check your mail

I know i'm not the only one man, i looked shredded but no more shredded than some of the stars in the INBF. This natural federation is full of shredded people who go sub3% for competitions, you can see it in their conditioning.

As for the above 10% necessary for normal body function, i'd love to see your sources, i've never heard of anything like that before......

[Dosquito]

Dude, i did it, i had the bodyfat tested by a $1500 bf machine at a hardcore gym. As soon as i figure out how to make photos the right resolution i'll post to a thread, i'll try to email you the pics i think that would work better, check your mail

I know i'm not the only one man, i looked shredded but no more shredded than some of the stars in the INBF. This natural federation is full of shredded people who go sub3% for competitions, you can see it in their conditioning.

As for the above 10% necessary for normal body function, i'd love to see your sources, i've never heard of anything like that before......

Sure, PM sent.

I have nothing but anecdotal evidence for >10% for normal body function.