A little update on what I’m doing with my diet. I kind of made one last push at the whole bodybuilding thing last fall. I got up to an all-time high weight of 301lbs before a vacation over Thanskgiving. I’m sure I was up at least a few more lbs while I was on vacation too.
After the vacation I kind of decided I just wasn’t enjoying being that size anymore. It’s too uncomfortable, too unhealthy, and I just have too many other things going on in my life for me to have the “want” to be that size…so I went on a downsize kick.
My lowest weight was 253lbs in mid-June (after a nose surgery I had that finally fixed some old nasal/orbital fractures so I can actually breath again).
Right now I’m sitting in the 265-270lb morning weight range.
The hardest part about getting older in this sport for me has been the f’n metabolism drop. I never had a great metabolism, but it was far better than it is now. I NEVER had an issue with appetite, and even at my largest, I’ve always eaten very clean (chicken and rice) and never really even got to eat as much as I wanted to eat in the offseason.
Working with clients I’m always interested when I hear clients complain about eating, or how it’s hard to get food down….because for me…even while growing, I never got to eat as much as my appetite asked for. And I never got to eat “junk” food or not weigh out my portions.
Anyway…here’s my current diet.
My current goals are to be as healthy as I can at this size, look somewhat lean on the boat while there’s still summer left, and not binge on sushi too frequently.
I eat this exact diet more-or-less every day. My life is like the movie groundhog day, so it’s just process of routine.
Meal 1: 6oz chicken, 1/2 cup rice, veggies, guacamole
Meal 2: 6oz chicken, veggies, guacamole
Meal 3: 6oz chicken, veggies, guacamole
Meal 4: 1 cup oatmeal w/ almond milk, 1.5 scoops protein powder
Meal 5: 6oz chicken, 1 cup rice, guacamole
Meal 6: 4-5 eggs or 6oz chicken with guacamole
The guacamole is measured out to be 10g of fat.
So my base macros (not counting incidentals from the veggies) is roughly:
Meal 1: 50g protein, 25g carbs, 10g fat
Meal 2: 50g protein, 10g fat
Meal 3: 50g protein, 10g fat
Meal 4: 40g protein, 60g carbs
Meal 5: 50g protein, 50g carbs, 10g fat
Meal 6: 30-50g protein, 10-20g fat
I was using an intra shake with 25g carbs and 5g EAAs up until about a month ago, but my weight was climbing up into the mid 270s and the easiest way to cut more calories for me was to drop that shake.
Justin, do you still program in low or high carb days (ie carb/calorie cycle)?
Not really in my current diet–but that’s because my current goals aren’t necessarily to improve as a bodybuilder.
If I were looking to add size and improve my physique for bodybuilding, I would cycle calories still–but that’s not currently my goal.
The general approach I’m taking is this:
I eat the above diet on days I train.
On days I don’t train, I don’t have carbs in meals 4 and 5.
We recently bought a boat, so on at least one day a week I’ll plan on eating a low day…..but also include a lot of booze while on the boat….which then leads to snacking on chips and other various snacks in addition to my chicken and green beans
Good email to contact you at ?
justin.harris.wmich@icloud.com
jesus that aint a lot of food at all for a guy your size
nice and simple though
Tell me about it–my metabolism sucks lol
That’s really the reason I got interested in nutrition in the first place. If I ate like a normal person, I just look like a fat guy. I always had to be very precise with my nutrition to look like a bodybuilder–which is why I became so interested in the subject.