Nutrition is a topic I do not cover a lot on this blog, which is stupid since nutrition is a cornerstone of making progress in training. Here is the CREATURES method to write a diet made quick and simple.
Firstly, this diet is mainly inspired by my own research, as well as the work of Stan Efferding in the Vertical Diet and Shethar Training on Youtube. Secondly, this diet assumes you are a performance-based lifter who wants to bulk up and increase their bodyweight in order to see boosts in physical performance (I will make a post later on cutting).
So, if you want to bulk up, I would say you should have 4-5 solid, cooked meals a day. You should start of with 4 meals, and if this still doesn't help you gain bodyweight at a reasonable pace (~0.5% of bodyweight gained a week), then you can graduate to 5 meals/day. You should only go more than 5 meals a day if you have a SERIOUS problem with gaining weight ie. an eating disorder. Weigh yourself on the same day and same time once a week; this will help track progress.
Let's talk about macros. As an athlete, you should mainly be focused on carbohydrates, proteins, and eating enough micronutrients to not get any deficiencies. As far as protein is concerned, 1g of protein per pound (lbs) of bodyweight is plenty. The best protein sources are those which come from animals, since these will have sufficient bioavailability. The best protein sources (in order of best to worst, IMO) are: salmon/any fish, eggs, beef/bison, lamb, milk and its derivatives(ie. yogurt), pork/bacon, chicken.
I do not track carbohydrates, I just aim to get in enough carbs with every meal. The best carb source is undeniably rice, since it is very easy to digest. Second to that comes potatoes, which are good for potassium. I recommend you work potatoes in to at least one of your meals. Finally, bread, which isn't really optimal but you can work it in once a day. I prefer sourdough bread since it sits well in my stomach and is more nutritious than fucking white bread.
As far as micronutrients are concerned, I love eating fruits. Fruits are a great source of micronutrients, my favourite of which are; orange juice, cranberry juice(HIGHLY UNDERRATED), apples, bananas, blueberries(also underrated), kiwis, papayas and pineapples. Vegetables also play a part here, but in my opinion are slightly overrated. I would stick to broccoli, carrots(great fibre as well), tomatoes(are they a vegetable?), lettuce and spinach as my main vegetable sources since they are readily accessible to most people and they offer unique nutritional benefits.
As far as fats go, I really don't think that they are that useful for athletes and so don't need to be tracked. But to source your fats, I recommend olive oil, avocados and nuts(mainly almonds) as the most healthy options.
So what should a typical meal look like? Well, I think you should divide your daily protein amongst all of your meals since protein is quite satiating and you don't want all of your daily protein in just one or two meals. Secondly, have a serving of fruit with each meal, as this constant liver stimulation is beneficial. Finally, make sure to hydrate well. Drink 1 ml of per calorie expended. You can track how many calories you expend using an online calculator or app like Cronometer.
As far as other liquids go, I only drink coconut water during hard workouts and fruit juices. If you need coffee in the morning, you suck at life. Tea is acceptable but not necessary. I will make a post later regarding supplements.
- Prem
