Would my diet be considered a lean bulk? Anything I can change to make this better?

[dreye47]

Hello Everyone,

This is my first post here on bodybuilding.com but I've been a long time lurker. I wanted to post my nutrition plan I've been on for the past month and see if I can get any advice on anything I may be lacking.

First of all I want to tell you I train 5 days a week with two rest days at about 45 min to 1hr of lifting each session. I am 170lbs, 5'11 with low body fat and 20 years of age. My goal has really been to gain lean muscle while putting on very little additional body fat. So now let me get into the most important part of lifting weights.. nutrition. My meals aren't really planned out I just make sure I eat enough calories and hit my macros throughout the course of the whole day. I do measure my foods to make sure I am getting adequate portion sizes and staying lean while gaining muscle. The only things I time are pre and post workout nutrition.

Morning before work:
- 1/3 cup traditional quaker oats
- 1 cup 1% low fat milk
- 2/3 cup non fat greek yogurt
- 1/2 cup 2% cottage cheese
- 1 cup blueberries
- 5 small strawberries
- 1 2.6 oz banana
- 1 rounded scoop gold standard whey
- 2 tbsp jif creamy pb
- 2 cups spinach

that is all blended in a shake btw..

Lunch:
- 2 cups broc****
- 2 cups brown rice
- 4oz albacore tuna

My snacks I dont really time I just eat whenever I want but here is usually my day to day snackage:

- 2/3 cup greek yogurt with 1/2 cup blueberries and 5 strawberries and 1/2 oz of dry roasted peanuts
- 2 large eggs
- 2 mozz string cheese
- 1/2 cup traditional quaker oats


Dinner:
- 4oz chicken breast
- 1 1/2 cup brown rice
- 2 cups broc****
- 200g sweet potatoes
- 1 cup 1% lowfat milk
- 1 rounded scoop gold standard whey protein

After all that my calories come out to 2800-2900 a day with 50% carb/ 30% protein/ 20% fat. Like I said the only meals I time are my post and pre workout. So before I lift I usually will have the 1/2 cup of oats with some peanuts for good energy. And post workout will almost always be a protein shake with 8oz of milk. ( I use my fitness pal to keep track of cals and macros).

Please only positive advice, thank you!

[AlexKolonasRD]

Hello Everyone,

This is my first post here on bodybuilding.com but I've been a long time lurker. I wanted to post my nutrition plan I've been on for the past month and see if I can get any advice on anything I may be lacking.

First of all I want to tell you I train 5 days a week with two rest days at about 45 min to 1hr of lifting each session. I am 170lbs, 5'11 with low body fat and 20 years of age. My goal has really been to gain lean muscle while putting on very little additional body fat. So now let me get into the most important part of lifting weights.. nutrition. My meals aren't really planned out I just make sure I eat enough calories and hit my macros throughout the course of the whole day. I do measure my foods to make sure I am getting adequate portion sizes and staying lean while gaining muscle. The only things I time are pre and post workout nutrition.

Morning before work:
- 1/3 cup traditional quaker oats
- 1 cup 1% low fat milk
- 2/3 cup non fat greek yogurt
- 1/2 cup 2% cottage cheese
- 1 cup blueberries
- 5 small strawberries
- 1 2.6 oz banana
- 1 rounded scoop gold standard whey
- 2 tbsp jif creamy pb
- 2 cups spinach

that is all blended in a shake btw..

Lunch:
- 2 cups broc****
- 2 cups brown rice
- 4oz albacore tuna

My snacks I dont really time I just eat whenever I want but here is usually my day to day snackage:

- 2/3 cup greek yogurt with 1/2 cup blueberries and 5 strawberries and 1/2 oz of dry roasted peanuts
- 2 large eggs
- 2 mozz string cheese
- 1/2 cup traditional quaker oats


Dinner:
- 4oz chicken breast
- 1 1/2 cup brown rice
- 2 cups broc****
- 200g sweet potatoes
- 1 cup 1% lowfat milk
- 1 rounded scoop gold standard whey protein

After all that my calories come out to 2800-2900 a day with 50% carb/ 30% protein/ 20% fat. Like I said the only meals I time are my post and pre workout. So before I lift I usually will have the 1/2 cup of oats with some peanuts for good energy. And post workout will almost always be a protein shake with 8oz of milk. ( I use my fitness pal to keep track of cals and macros).

Please only positive advice, thank you!

Hello dreye47,

Your diet seems to be on point. The macronutrient split is well balanced and the calorie intake is a good starting point but you will most likely need to bump up the calories to over 3000 down the road.

I would change the pre-workout meal, though. Having a high fat (I'm talking about the peanuts) preworkout meal is not a very good idea as it can cause gastrointestinal problems and it does not benefit your performance at the gym at all. Instead, I would opt for a high carbohydrate, moderate protein meal for maximum performance. Specifically, based on your stats, I would consume 40-50 g of moderate to high glycemic index carbohydrates, such as bananas, rice cakes, cream of wheat or white bread and I would aim for 15-20 g of protein (preferably high in leucine), such as egg whites, whey protein or low fat greek yogurt. So, an example pre-workout meal would be: 7/8 cup of 0% fat greek yogurt (215 g), 1 banana and 2 rice cakes (1-2 hours before the workout).

Hope that helps!