Diet/Training advice

Noxin

Hi,

Just looking for a little diet advice here. I'm a very fussy eater. Not great at eating veg (if I ever do...) Fruit is not really a prob but could do with eating more.
I'm looking to lose BF overall really. I've got my gym schedule set out overall and am pretty happy with it. I tested it for two weeks before Christmas and both enjoyed and felt what I was doing.

Anyway, my diet at the moment consists of:

Breakfast: bowl of either Branflakes, Cheerios or Porridge & some orange juice. The odd time I might just go for 2-3 poached eggs with 1-2 slices of toast.

2nd meal: 1x Chicken Breast (sometimes with a small bit of brown rice)

3rd meal: Protein shake & sometimes a banana.

Usually train shortly after this.

Post Training meal: 1x Chicken Breast, Pork Chop or small steak /w 1/4 cup of brown rice.

Before bed: Protein Shake & maybe something small if very hungry such a few Tuc biscuits

The training I am doing is more or less the same as HERE
with each off day (Tues & Thurs) spending around 20-45 min swimming.
I usually end up going for a 20 min or so walk after breakfast each day too.

Any pointers, tips or mistakes you could point out to me with this would be greatly appreciated.

==edit==

I suppose I should add that I'm 5'9'' and about 185 pounds with a good about of BF (mostly around that horrible mid-section)

corkcomp

Noxin wrote: »

Hi,

Just looking for a little diet advice here. I'm a very fussy eater. Not great at eating veg (if I ever do...) Fruit is not really a prob but could do with eating more.
I'm looking to lose BF overall really. I've got my gym schedule set out overall and am pretty happy with it. I tested it for two weeks before Christmas and both enjoyed and felt what I was doing.

Anyway, my diet at the moment consists of:

Breakfast: bowl of either Branflakes, Cheerios or Porridge & some orange juice. The odd time I might just go for 2-3 poached eggs with 1-2 slices of toast.

2nd meal: 1x Chicken Breast (sometimes with a small bit of brown rice)

3rd meal: Protein shake & sometimes a banana.

Usually train shortly after this.

Post Training meal: 1x Chicken Breast, Pork Chop or small steak /w 1/4 cup of brown rice.

Before bed: Protein Shake & maybe something small if very hungry such a few Tuc biscuits

The training I am doing is more or less the same as HERE
with each off day (Tues & Thurs) spending around 20-45 min swimming.
I usually end up going for a 20 min or so walk after breakfast each day too.

Any pointers, tips or mistakes you could point out to me with this would be greatly appreciated.

==edit==

I suppose I should add that I'm 5'9'' and about 185 pounds with a good about of BF (mostly around that horrible mid-section)

ok, here goes:
breakfast ok except for cheerios
why do you reckon you need protein shakes? based on your goals you dont need em IMO.
lack of veg and fruit ... veg are pretty essential as almost calorie free and good you aswell! overall, way too many protein shakes

InKonspikuou2

If you are looking to cut your body fat you will have to make some sacrifices and be strict on your diet. Otherwise you'll be pissing against the wind.

I'm not sure of the content of cherrios but i imagine that wheatabix would be better. Or stay on oats mainly and mix it up when bored. Oats allow you to to mix some fruit, peanut butter, honey, seasame seeds, etc in with them to add some extra protein. You could try include an egg or two on top of that instead of a replacement on some days. In the morning you want carbs and protein. Eggs being a good source.

Most of everything seems decent but you could do with another meal to get some more protein in. If you train late try eat another meal before your pre workout one. Or if you train in the afternoon try eating something after your post workout meal. But keep the carbs low.

Also straight after training or as close as you can you should try drink a PWO shake. Whey with water so it gets in your system quick.

Drop the tuc biscuits. Before bed you could try putting cottage cheese in with your shake. And mix it with milk instead of water. A spoonful of peanut butter isn't a bad idea and nor is flax seed oil.

You seem to be missing EFA's from your diet. As you are veg. You said you are a fussy eater. So if you don't like oily fish you could try taking fish oil. As for veg you could try mix some in with the rice. Throw some soy sauce or something on top. It will all benefit you so it's worth trying to expand your taste. Also if you like tuna you should try that a few times a week as it's a great source of protein and quick to prepare and eat.

Nic'name

I am no expert but you most definitely need more veg. There are easy ways to hide it in meals at no extra calorie cost.

Tomato based pasta sauces

• 4 cups roughly chopped tomatoes
• 1/4 cup basil, cut into ribbons
• 3 medium garlic cloves, minced
• 1 cal spray oil
• 1 tsp table salt
• 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

1. In a glass, stainless steel or other non-reactive mixing bowl, mix together all ingredients; let stand at room temperature for 15 minutes.
2. Yields about 1/2 cup per serving.

You could add any other veg you have lying around. To serve stir it into pasta or maybe your rice. The fact that this is a raw sauce means that it has more nutrients.

Mushroom sauce

2 cups mushrooms
1 onion (red or white)
1 stock cube
1 litre of water

1. "fry" mushrooms onion in a tsp of water
2. Add 1 litre of beef, chicken stock made with oxo cubes then blend.
3. This can be simmered and reduced and added to your chicken or rice as a nice mushroom sauce or simply eaten as a soup.

Soups (in particular weight watchers 0 points soup)

Garden Veg Soup

Cooking spray
Stock cube
2 carrots, peeled and diced
1 large onion, diced
4 teaspoons garlic (from a jar or substitute four cloves minced garlic)
1/2 cabbage, chopped
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon salt
1 large courgette, diced

1. Boil the ingredients in stock of your choice then blend

I put the left over soup into casseroles too which is very healthy, low fat and ups the nutrient content.

You could use any variation of veg for soups. I also make a really nice asian style soup.

Handful of beansprouts
1 litre beef stock
Chinese 5 spices
Scallions 1 or 2
Garlic 1 clove
Ginger one small piece chopped

1. Fry the scallions and bean sprouts in the garlic and ginger...use one calorie spray if it's sticking.
2. Add the rest of the ingredients and simmer.

You could add that to your chicken and rice and it's similar to a chinese takeaway.

I'm on weight watchers and all the above recipes have 0 points.

I cannot advise on the rest of the diet. I'll leave that to the pros but that's a few tips on how to add veg.

Noxin

corkcomp wrote: »

ok, here goes:
why do you reckon you need protein shakes? based on your goals you dont need em IMO.

I suppose I should have added that I want to bulk up a bit as well. The training I do makes me push to failure on most sets. It takes alot out so the protein is simply for recovery.

As for Breakfast, yea I kinda figured the Cheerios might be a bad idea so ill skip them. I know my lack of fruit n veg is a problem but as far as i know, the work canteen has mixed fruit cups for sale so I'll grab one of them each morning.

If you train late try eat another meal before your pre workout one. Or if you train in the afternoon try eating something after your post workout meal. But keep the carbs low.

My training changes from week to week. Some weeks it will be early afternoon say 1.30ish, other weeks like this I dont get to the gym until around 6.30-7 but i'll try take up your advice and get in another one where needed.

You seem to be missing EFA's from your diet.

I suppose I can try throwing some fish into the mix. I've not had fish in some time so might make for a nice change.

I do take vitamin suppliments to make up for not eating veg but I guess they are not a great sub for the real thing.
I'll try out some of the recipes you posted Nic. Cheers & thanks all for the tips.

Nic'name

No prob I love fish but if you hate it you can get your EFAs from Optimum Oil blend...I got it in Holland and Barrett before. It's omega 3,6 and 9. With those recipes....most can be frozen so if you hate cooking then you could ask someone to make em fer ya

ragg

My 2 cents on weight loss

protein shakes - move them to after your workout and have some complex carbs before hand.

Dump the cereal for breakfast full of sugar - have eggs instead.

eat veg - seriously how can you say you dont like veg - there is literally hundreds of different types. Maybe start off with something like Mixed salad, green pepper, onions and chillis - covered in olive oil, drop of balsamic vinegar and add caujun spices. Veg are more important then just vitamins, they help digest and metabolise protein and keep your gut healthy. Grow up

Fats - you need more - add eggs in the morning, eat more salad covered in olive oil, eat fish a couple of times a week & that should cover you.

Training - if you are looking to lose fat - train your entire body per resistance session - it gives you more bang for your buck each time you hit the gym. Some thing simple like

Squats
Deadlifts
Chin ups
Military press
Bench press
Rows (single arm, upright, Bent over )

Thats a great full body workout that you can keep at for quite a while and will knock the bollocks out of you.