General Diet Thoughts
I’ve been quite busy making cringe YouTube videos and doing my day job, so I’ve neglected posting here as often as I’d like. But, someone asked me a question via Twitter, and I thought you might be interested in my response.
The question was basically: “Can you share about your diet?” This person wanted to get back in the flow of things after some time off and extra pounds from the winter.
I’m sure we can all relate. I’m definitely a few pounds heavier than I’d like to be and will probably do a mini-cut here before a two week vacation coming up. Anyway, here was my response on general diet thoughts.
Diet: What Do?
My diet today is tracking the calories that I eat and trying to hit the number I need to maintain my weight and also hit 1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight at a minimum. 1 gram of protein is 4 calories, so 660 calories a day come from protein. The rest of the calories I can get from carbs or fat, I don’t care really.
- Protein: 4 calories per gram
- Carbs: 4 calories per gram
- Fat: 9 calories per gram
- Water and coffee: priceless
What I do care about is seeking foods that are low calorie density and that fill me up with lots of volume for less calories. Like an entire bag of smart pop popcorn has 240 calories vs a few spoons of peanut butter. 200 calories of carrots would be a mountain.
My diet usually includes a protein ice cream recipe that provides like 8 full cups for less than 400 calories. I also eat anabolic French toast frequently, which is low calorie bread dipped in egg whites with a dash of vanilla and some cinnamon. Find some good anabolic recipes at my recipe page that’s still a work in progress.
I eat probably 150g daily of baked chicken breast. A lot of baby spinach and carrots for snacking, but those can add up too. I chew a lot of gum and drink a lot of coffee.
When I was first starting this fitness thing back in like 2014, I had read Tim Ferris four hour body and listened to a podcast on fasting, so I really got into daily intermittent fasting. Shutting off of food at a certain time really helped me establish the discipline and confidence to stop eating when I hit calorie target and then hold off for many hours. I don’t do that anymore, but if I was cutting I might save it as a trick for late in the cut.
Calories In, Calories Out
The most important thing is to understand what you’re eating, which requires some form of tracking or monitoring. You don’t have to be super intense about it, but by manipulating a few things, you can still eat out and enjoy meals with friends by being smart and saving calories for later.
When it comes to low carb or keto diets or whatever diet you find out there, they all work by doing something that forces you to reduce your calorie intake. But as you’ve probably heard and know deep down, the best advice is to eat less and move more.
Hope this helps. Share below what works for you!
