I thought that I would check in on the Well, for the most part it fits in with my lifestyle, my routines and my habits. I have been trying to have portion control with frequent small meals. Let me review for just a second – the diet, it is basically five 400 calorie meals no more than 4 hours apart and with a MUFA (monounsaturated fat). That is it – nothing more to it. Oh yeah, there are a lot of recipes in the books that make it pretty easy to have a variety of meals. But I am a creature of habit and I tend to eat the same things over and over. I have starting doing this on this program as well – however, I am getting more variety than I have in the past.
I mean, if I follow the plan I really am not hungry and I am satisfied most of the day. However, I still get into trouble when I get into a huge calorie deficit. This happens a lot because of the exercise. The 2000 calories are fine to survive, maybe even a little bit more than I absolutely have to live. But when you add in a couple of hours of exercise each day, well, that is where the cravings start. I have tried to offset this with eating additional calories for each exercise session but invariably I don’t eat enough. And then by Wednesday or Thursday I am ravenous. At home during the evening I start to grab anything I can get my hands on – it is fortunate that there is no bad food in the house. But you can make bad stuff – cheesy bread, peanut butter (mixed with sugar), lots of almonds. I have decided that I need more than five 400 calorie meals at my activity level. I think I need closer to seven 400 calorie meals (7 x 400 = 2800 calories). Now eating that much health food really is difficult! This is not even considering the timing. I am awake around 17 hours a day. I get up at 5AM and drink some coffee and then do some form of exercise (run / bike / swim). I do not eat breakfast until 8AM. Then I am in bed by 10PM. So that gives me 14 hours to eat 7 meals. I guess that means I need to start eating every 2 hours. I just worked that out in my head. I think I will try that next week.
Don’t get me wrong, it is not like I have packed on a ton of weight in the last month. In fact, I think I may have lost some body fat but I need to follow the diet more closely and eliminate these unaccounted for calories.
The new game plan: The Seven 400 calorie meals every 2 hours Program.
I need to come up with a better name for this ‘new’ diet plan.
What are some of your diets / programs that have been working you you?
I been reading "Racing Weight" by Matt Fitzgerald, alot of it is about what you put in and imprtantly when to eat it. Its an interesting read.
ReplyDeleteI eat often, with lots of fruit and vegetables, and limited starches. I have really been working hard this summer on portion control during meals, especially supper.
ReplyDeleteI have also been working hard at not eating night times. It's been really hard, but It has paid off.
I'll probably do a post on it later on. Stay tuned.
I try not to eat after 7 pm. I try to pack healthy snacks for the day.
ReplyDeleteUltimately I am a yo yo. I get a bad day once a week typically but this allows me to be healthy the rest of the week. As long as we cook our dinners I eat healthy dinners. If we go out I do my best to order well but if its a pub, sloppy burger and beer for me please.
I have consistently lost 3 pounds a week listening to advice of Bob Seebohar, the nutrtionist/triathlete. He is the nutritionist for the US olympic team and frequent presenter for USAT. His book "Metabolic Efficiency: Teaching the Body to Burn Fat" has been right on my money for me and some of the people I coach. He recommends lots of veggies, moderate lean protein and healthy fat, and minimal starch/sugar. Down another 10 since getting back on the wagon these last 3 weeks!!
ReplyDeleteI'm on a diet where I eat 300 calories 3 times a day and eat 100 calories inbetween. So I'm eating every 3 hours or so. It's seems to be wrking for me.
ReplyDeleteI have the book coming in the mail next week :)
ReplyDeleteAs soon as Tri season ends and I focus only on running, I will only run in the morning so no more mid day preworkout calorie loads anymore, which will allow me to relax and eat a more controlled and sensible diet throughout the day. Looking forward to it and thanks again for sharing this diet/lifestyle with us!
James - what about a few calories before you first workout like 200? If you can learn to "stomach it", it will fuel your workout and help you with getting some calories early. I have to eat prior to running or I get nauseous.
ReplyDeleteCounting calories works best for me, but I typically "try" for portion control because the counting is so tiresome.
Weekends are the worst for me.
Ginny – No doubt about the weekends. I really need the structure of a routine. As far as eating in the morning, I can stomach it. But it seems like I am in a hurry to get out the door. But I should get in the habit of grabbing something easy.
ReplyDeleteMostly I eat what my wife puts in front of me, and she's a really good cook. When I started all this tri stuff I promised my body I wouldn't be trying to short it on nutrients or calories. It's worked out well, I've been gradually losing weight, and building muscle mass. Even with the peanut butter and Nutella sandwiches that are my fave after workout snack.
ReplyDelete