The Easiest Way to Plan Your Day of Eating
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How many times will you eat today?
How many grams of protein do you need to eat today?
Divide the grams of daily protein by the number of meals (if you know you’ll have a protein shake after a workout, subtract the amount of protein in your shake from the daily grams of protein before you divide).
I take Swolverine Whey Isolate. You want your protein supplement to have 20+ grams of protein with 3 or less grams of carbs. That being said, you need to hit 2/3rds of your protein through food. And if you could get there entirely with food that is preferable. Supplements should help close the gap, not be the bulk of it.
EXAMPLE DAY FOR ME
Daily Grams of Protein: 200g
Protein Shake: 30g
Daily Meals: 4
Protein Per Meal: (200g-30g) / 4 = 170g/4 = 42.5g p Meal
Now that you have your grams of protein per meal, pick the food sources that will help you get there at each sitting.
Below is a short list of high protein foods with the amount of fat that accompanies each 4 ounce serving.
I do not want you stressing about fat content, but the less fat per serving the better because we do tend to enjoy cooking with butter and olive oil which are all fat.
PROTEIN CHEAT SHEET
4 Ounces of Chicken Breast 35g Protein/4g Fat
4 Ounces of Chunk Light Tuna 26g Protein/3g Fat
4 Ounces of Chicken Thighs 27g Protein/10g Fat
4 Ounces of 85/15 Turkey 23g Protein/8g Fat
4 Ounces of 85/15 Beef 21g Protein/17g Fat
1 Large Egg 6g Protein/5g Fat
4 Ounces of Greek Yogurt 4g Protein/0.5g Fat
4 Ounces of Pinto Beans 24g Protein/1g Fat
4 Ounces of Tofu 9g Protein/5g Fat
IMPLEMENTATION
When planning your meals, keep it realistic.
What are you able and willing to prepare or purchase? The perfect plan is worthless if you are completely unable to do it.
My breakfasts are easy because Greek Yogurt comes in the tub, and we buy already boiled eggs.
My lunches are usually based on leftovers from pervious dinners whereI just cook more than we need each night.
And then I usually have 1 or 2 meals a day from My Fit Foods to plug any gaps. I am not a big meal prepper meaning I do not cook food for later in the week (outside of leftovers for dinners).
But meal prep obviously makes this easier as well. Pick a meal you enjoy reheating and cook it in bulk on a day where you have time. Then divide it up into single meal containers and there you go.
EXAMPLE DAY FOR ME
Breakfast
12 Ounces of Greek Yogurt 12g Protein (1.5g Fat
4 Eggs (Boiled) 24g Protein (20g Fat)
First Lunch
4 Ounces of Chicken Breast 35g Protein (4g Fat)
Second Lunch
8 Ounces of 85/15 Beef 42g Protein (34g Fat)
Dinner
8 Ounces of Chicken Thighs 54g Protein (20g Fat)
TOTALS
167g Protein (79.5g Fat)
If you do this you immediately remove one of the primary hurdles our brains put up the moment we want to change our nutrition: But what do I eat?!
Focus on your daily protein
Protein satiates meaning it keeps you full longer.
It also provides invaluable vitamins and minerals.
It helps build muscle and repair tissue.
It requires more energy to break down (burn calories).
And it does not store as fat if eaten in excess.
FILL IN THE GAPS
When you aim for your daily protein you stay full and prevent yourself from feeling hungry. And when we don’t feel hungry our cravings for junk food are reduced.
Add your 1-2 vegetables and 1-2 fruits to your day. Then add whatever you feel is missing if there’s still room. My addition would be rice or potatoes for me. These provide the carbohydrates I need to be active and to workout.
Add your daily water intake and see how it goes!
Try this out and let me know if it works for you. And if you still would like some help or if you simply would like more personalized accountability, schedule a 45 minute Lifestyle & Nutrition Consult here.
Let me know if you have any questions!
- Ben