any nutrition experts?

[ShiWarrior]

Is there a dedicated nutrition thread anywhere ? (couldn't find one)

anyway, i would like some advice from the fitness experts



even thought i do some fitness, i'll add that bit at the end of this post as i want to get the "base" done first so to speak

anyway, i now strongly believe I don't eat enough calories / best food for my daily work and im looking for some advice and what i can possibly change/add to my daily food intake

Currently I work in a labor intensive environment in warehouse doing lots of manual work in a 7.5 hour day (9 hours total at work) (i feel like im a builder!)

so a work day looks like this :

5am - Eat a Large bowl of Alpen NAS Muesli with probably about 1/2 pint of semi skimmed milk and a cup of Tea (white, 2 sugars please)

6am - start work

8:30am - 9am - Large bowl of Kellogs Fruit N Fibre with a 1/2 pint of Semi Skimmed milk and a cup of Tea (white, 2 sugars please) and a banana

13:00 - Cooked meal (home made from the staff canteen) and a cup of Tea (white, 2 sugars please)

5pm - 4 slices of white bread toasted with Red Leicester cheese and a Cup of Tea (white, 2 sugars please)

Evening - Banana (sometimes with snacks if im hungry)


Days off I swap Muesli for Porridge and add a banana and i dont eat another bowl of cereal




Not to mention i go swimming every Tuesday evening and try and do running 2-3 times a week !

I was thinking of swapping out the Kellogg's cereal for something else

 

[tom_e]

That's a lot of empty carbs, next to no healthy fats and no real protein intake.

I'm impressed you can function on that without feeling like rubbish.

This from @Steedie https://forums.overclockers.co.uk/t...nd-calories-what-do-you-really-need.18299646/ is a good read to get you going. There's also some nutrition stuff in here https://forums.overclockers.co.uk/threads/gordyrs-beginners-guide-to-bodybuilding.17401146/ from @GordyR

 

[ShiWarrior]

thanks Tom

I do feel like rubbish hence why i posted

 

[ShiWarrior]

oh and i should add, high metabolism, i cant gain or loose weight !

 

[tom_e]

thanks Tom

I do feel like rubbish hence why i posted

No worries, have a read and come back with any questions and I'm sure someone helpful will be along shortly to answer them.

oh and i should add, high metabolism, i cant gain or loose weight !

Going from the diet you've posted you're simply not eating enough to gain weight while being active. Metabolisms outside of the norm are relatively rare unless there's an underlying condition, people simply vastly underestimate or overestimate the amounts they eat.

 

[ShiWarrior]

even when i was growing up, used to it burgers chips and pizza a heck of a lot , and i never gained weight lol

 

[Haze]

I would replace the white bread with brown/wholemeal

 

[Haze]

even when i was growing up, used to it burgers chips and pizza a heck of a lot , and i never gained weight lol

I can eat like a horse and gain no weight, always been like that, people kept telling me as I get older it would change, 37 now and still the weight as when I was 17

 

[ShiWarrior]

I can eat like a horse and gain no weight, always been like that, people kept telling me as I get older it would change, 37 now and still the weight as when I was 17

same but im 41

 

[neoboy]

Well from that current diet, can see why you're not gaining weight

I'm one of those people that's basically a bottomless pit and if I ate until I stopped being hungry, I'd be close to 30 stone probably! Not that I'm light at under 19 at the moment

One of the best things that has helped me recently is logging my food. Couldn't be easier nowadays with your MyFitnessPal/Cronometer where you can just quickly scan what you eat.

I would actually recommend that you don't change anything but simply log your food for a week and do so strictly and honestly. You can then get a good idea of calories and macros (carbs/fats/protein) that you're ingesting. You can also post it here for us (non)experts to look over.

Just from looking at that though can tell that your diet is very heavy in carbs and not even the good kinds, not to mention high sugar intake. That would definitely cause a lot of energy crashes and you're then in a vicious cycle where you're eating more carbs to compensate for last crash.

 

[ShiWarrior]

When i was googling for advice/ideas, i came across an article about the Pyramid way
anybody heard of this ?

I think it good because, in the morning you want to fuel for the day, and the last thing at night, you want to be eating "less"

 

[neoboy]

Pyramid thing basically just looks like, "eat more fruit and veg" with low calories system?

Let's start with the basics, what are your goals, lose/gain weight or just want to maintain it but eat "better"? There's plenty of calorie calculators online so you can work out your maintenance/loss/gain calories and go building a plan from there.

Also I've noticed everything is vegetarian apart from the cooked meal which could be anything? Once I'm done with the gym tonight, I'll throw a few recipes out of my book to replace some of your meals so you can see if you like them.

 

[tom_e]

When i was googling for advice/ideas, i came across an article about the Pyramid way
anybody heard of this ?

I think it good because, in the morning you want to fuel for the day, and the last thing at night, you want to be eating "less"

It's based on the wrong thinking that you need less food at night because you're burning less. Your body doesn't care when it gets the fuel it'll use it. It won't just magically send it all to your fat stores because you eat a big meal and then go to bed.

 

[ShiWarrior]

It's based on the wrong thinking that you need less food at night because you're burning less. Your body doesn't care when it gets the fuel it'll use it. It won't just magically send it all to your fat stores because you eat a big meal and then go to bed.

ok thanks Tom
so basically ignore it completely then?

 

[ShiWarrior]

Pyramid thing basically just looks like, "eat more fruit and veg" with low calories system?

Let's start with the basics, what are your goals, lose/gain weight or just want to maintain it but eat "better"? There's plenty of calorie calculators online so you can work out your maintenance/loss/gain calories and go building a plan from there.

Also I've noticed everything is vegetarian apart from the cooked meal which could be anything? Once I'm done with the gym tonight, I'll throw a few recipes out of my book to replace some of your meals so you can see if you like them.

thanks mate, appreciate that

i can't cook, but at 5am i have to "be quite" so I don't use the microwave (otherwise id have my porridge instead)

 

[tom_e]

ok thanks Tom
so basically ignore it completely then?

As with most other "fancy" diets it's just another way to lower your calorie intake but they dress it up as some magical diet that works through voodoo rather than calorie restriction.

This sums it up pretty well.

 

[Somnambulist]

snip

Firstly, calorie intake is going to be relative to your goals: if you're not eating enough, you'd be losing weight, which would be counter to a goal of building muscle mass or just maintaining your weight. You might be eating enough calorie-wise, but the content of your diet might not be conducive for health, maximising muscle gain and those sorts of things and certainly from your food diary I can see why you might not feel 100%.

A very active manual labour job is going to mean you have a high degree of non-exercise activity, which is going to contribute a lot more to your caloric needs than the actual running or swimming you do. We have a guy at work that eats like an absolute pig but was skinny as a rake when he joined because he was on his feet all day in his old job. Lo and behold after a few months at a desk here he's developed quite the gut as his energy expenditure has gone down the toilet but his caloric intake has remained the same.

So from reading it sounds like you just want to feel better per se, in which case...

Examples of the canteen meals? The rest of your diet is low variety, high in processed stuff, and largely devoid of plant-based stuff (vegetables, salad stuff etc) bar the lonely bananas - which is where the majority of vitamins and minerals in a diet are going to come from.

You're obviously getting some dietary protein in from the milk, cheese (and to a lesser extent the breads/gains) but it's typically a good start for each meal to have a good balance of protein/fat/carbs which is going to require a bit of education as to what foods contain what. Milk and cereal isn't necessary a bad thing, but when it's making up a big chunk of your daily intake...

Also, are you eating when you feel like you want to eat, or when you feel like you 'should' eat? Meal timing is largely down to personal preference and convenience, outside of specific circumstances. You should certainly be eating after running or swimming.

What things don't you like eating? What things do you like eating? What have you tried before? Etc etc.

 

[ShiWarrior]

Thanks guys, good information there

Just started using my fitness Pal app.
3000 calorie target
1800 to go and it's 9am

 

[tom_nieto]

I think I need to get back on MyFitnessPal... lack of exercise and maintaining calorie intake = gut. Maybe I’ll start tomorrow... or Monday...

OP - replace the branded cereals with porridge. Alpen is basically just cardboard and wood shavings. Porridge will keep you fuller for longer and you’ll be able to get more calories in.

Eggs - eat them for breakfast for one of the two that you have.

Replace your evening cheese on toast with grilled meat or fish and some green veg if you can.

How much water are you drinking a day?

 

[booyaka]

Drop the sugar in the tea if possible as well - that's a lot of sugar. As other have said - no real protein/fats in there either.

I try to hit around 3500 cals a day - This works for me - I don't bother with any fancy timings etc

Generally (with some changes here and there)

B - porridge (mainly water and a splash of milk) with peanut butter/few berries and black coffee
S - 2 scoop whey shake with 1 slice wholemeal toast/peanut butter/half banana
L - 2 wholemeal chicken/tuna/egg wraps with salad
S - Usually some nuts and half a protein bar or alike
D - chicken/turkey, veg, rice (sitrfry etc) or 4 eggs, 4 turkey sausages, 2 wholemeal toast or chicken satay (homemade) with wholewheat noodles
S - Fage 0% yought with 2 scoops whey mixed through it (tastes like angel delight)

3 litres of water/sugar free diluting juice

Generally hits around 3200 cals so up portions a little depending on training.

I put on around 7lbs in the last 3 months - train 5-6 times a week at crossfit.

I ain't no expert but generally this has worked for me based on coaches recommendations etc