The six small meals a day...

TerrorFirmer

I'm just wondering what everyones six meals a day are actually compromised of. I've been wanting to switch (properly) to having six small meals a day, but to be honest I'm finding it hard to actually work it in - due to work mostly, and people are recommending things to me like Chicken breasts as the core of my meals - all well and good except for the fact I can't afford to be eating several chicken breasts a day! In a normal day I would eat:

7:30 - Porridge with honey, 2 slices wholegrain bread with butter
11:00 - Banana
1:30 - Plain Chicken wrap with pineapple
3:30 - Some Mandarins or a banana
5:00 - a banana
6:00 - Usually chicken and potatoes with veg or similar
10:00 - Protein shake and sometimes fruit.

I really feel I need to work in more carbs and protein and more importantly more small meals into my day - I never feel hungry but I know i'm kinda of a calorie deficit here - but I just can't seem to do it succesfully - any hints on how to break down my current intake and how to add to it? Thanks.

Oh - long term goals are just to have general good fitness and toned physique.I do (light) weights and cardio on alternative days, I'm currently 6ft and 75kg but I also want to lower BF which, while I'm not sure what it is, I know its probably high.

cousin_borat

HavoK wrote:

I'm just wondering what everyones six meals a day are actually compromised of. I've been wanting to switch (properly) to having six small meals a day, but to be honest I'm finding it hard to actually work it in - due to work mostly, and people are recommending things to me like Chicken breasts as the core of my meals - all well and good except for the fact I can't afford to be eating several chicken breasts a day! In a normal day I would eat:

7:30 - Porridge with honey, 2 slices wholegrain bread with butter
11:00 - Banana
1:30 - Plain Chicken wrap with pineapple
3:30 - Some Mandarins or a banana
5:00 - a banana
6:00 - Usually chicken and potatoes with veg or similar
10:00 - Protein shake and sometimes fruit.

I really feel I need to work in more carbs and protein and more importantly more small meals into my day - I never feel hungry but I know i'm kinda of a calorie deficit here - but I just can't seem to do it succesfully - any hints on how to break down my current intake and how to add to it? Thanks.

Others will give you better answers. However have you read the sticky? Basically you're starving yourself. You also need more protein and maybe some more fibre in your diet.

At 10:00 I'd try and have some eggs.

1:30 - 5 you are not eating near enough. Nuts are great and I would keep them for the afternnoon, have them with the fruit you have at 3:30. Perhaps some cottage cheese or some cold meats or a tin of tuna as well.

Save your protein shake for post workout. Then dinner another hour later.

Have cottege cheese, meat or a casein protein shake before going to bed. Ditch the fruit at night, you don't need the sugars.

TerrorFirmer

Thanks for the reply, appreciate it. I usually do drink protein shake post workout - regarding dinner, the sad thing is that being 19, I still live at home where my mother insists that I eat dinner literally the second I'm in the door - so dinner is always before workouts.

Nuts I can't eat, but I'll try eating some cold meat around that time combined with my fruit...applying the same to nighttime as well. What would be a good source of protein that is a quick fix, other then nuts? I would go with the egg idea but where I work its not practical for me to start snacking during the day, let alone being able to remotely have time to prepare anything before eating it...although that said, I'm finishing up there soon so diet wise I'll have alot more freedom, so I suppose I will keep the egg idea in check until then.

Thanks for the help.

jester77

What I do for a protein quick fix is get a packet of sliced turkey and a packet of mozzerlla. Slice the mozerella into strips and roll it up in a slice of turkey, sort of like a wrap. Great source of protein and fat plus very tasty and only takes 2 mins to prepare.

rubadub

Tescos & dunnes do cheap slices of processed ham, about €2.10 for 400g, think it is about 17% protein (it is about 15-20% water). I eat it on ryvita with low fat cheese spreads.

I got some frozen diced/strips of ready cooked chicken fillets in dunnes, only €3 for 400g, I will be eating these from now on. Only something like 0.2% fat, and it is not reformed chicken. It works out at €7.50 per kilo, normal fresh fillets are about €11-16 per kilo. Very handy for work.

10 is a bit late to be eating (though I do it myself the odd time too), but certainly dont plan it for 10. Try and have evenly spaced, evenly calorific size meals. Ask you mother to put some dinner aside for later for you, explain what you are at.

Start doing heavy weights too, why are you only doing light? My fat fell off after doing heavy weights, why would you want low BF only to be scrawny.

Have you calculated your calorie intake? I aimed for 1800, 300x6. Now I am on about 2000-2200.

Smellyirishman

10 chicken breasts cost €10 that's not too bad for a week.

(I spend €20 each Sunday for my work meals)

Your plain chicken wrap with pinapple, are you getting that in Spar or Centra or some place like that? If so, your probably throwing away money buying from them, how much does that cost you? I would be inclined to throw in a chicken breast at 11 and at 3:30, it's only a tenner, perhaps ask your mam/dad to buy them in the shopping.

TerrorFirmer

ok, firstly, I did not realise meat could be that cheap - if it indeed is that cheap then I've no excuse not to be eating well really! I don't normally eat anything overly subtansial at 10 but I do often have a protein shake or some meat at that time.

Regarding the weights, I do alot of light as opposed to few heavy ones because at the immediate moment I was looking more towards INSERT APPROPRIATE WORD HERE rather then gaining. At the moment all I'm using is 12kg dumbell and benching a mere 30kg for that purpose (in fact the most I can bench even for a single rep is about 50kg...). I probably will buy more weights soon enough...

Calorie wise I am probably about 1600-1800 a day at the moment but thats more because thats all I eat, as opposed to intentionally aiming for it, so hence I'm trying to up my intake - but in such a way that it doesn't feel like I'm forcing it all down, wherein lies the problem.

Oh, the chicken wrap does come from mace, but its normally only about 2.20 so price wise its not too bad (relatively speaking), especially when I'm busy at work and need a quick fix...I tend to eat alot of meat though when its available, usually in one sandwich I would eat 200g+ of chicken.

Ok, right- looks like I needed more financial advice as well as fitness then I thought, thanks lads appreciate it.

daveirl

This post has been deleted.

TerrorFirmer

Ah balls, how did I forget that golden rule. By toning, one might say -

Ah forget it, never mind, what the hell am I talking about....:D

Lets go with "Building limited muscle".

And this phrase I can accept I think because my arms are definately more well shaped then they used to be, without a doubt.

Smellyirishman

Dear God Havok for your own sake turn that into "building muscular endurance and stamina" at least!

TerrorFirmer

Yeah, I knew there was some fancy fitness word for it....stamimina...whatever

Ok - endurance and stamina sounds good. whilst my credibility is probably in tatters, to be honest I do the light weights for that reason, even if I called it under the guise of limited muscle...

I haven't won any awards for my outrageous phrasing yet. But seriously...I prefer to do a light weight program for the moment while I'm still trying to shed excess fat before I start lifting heavier.

rubadub

Lifting heavier will make the fat fall off you, I see no reason not to do it now. It increases your metabolism so you dont have to worry about eating too much.

You seem to have the same worry most women have, going to the gym, lifting the wrong weight up once, then waking up looking like schwarzenegger. It ain't gonna happen, even if it did you simply stop lifting weights and the muscle will go.

Cheap weights are constantly on sale in buy and sell. A guy was giving them away free the other day on that site I linked in the thread about free threadmills a few days ago.

I have been lifting heavy weights for since march, have put on a bit of muscle but not one person has even noticed, everybody mentions my weight loss and ask how, I say it is mostly down to weights, they expect you to look like a hulk or something. I am doing it to loose weight, not to be strong or look muscley, but once I am thin I dont want to be a scrawny runt. You are on a calorie deficit, while loosing fat you also risk loosing muscle, FACT. doing heavy weights will boost the metabolism, fat will fall off and you will maintain and possible gain a little muscle. While on a calorie deficit you cannot put on lots of muscle, you are not overweight to begin with.