Nutrition Plan
My first couple attempts at losing weight were unsuccessful, so I tried the easiest method I could find – SlimFast. I actually like the taste, and thought the plan was easy to follow. I stuck to the plan for 3 months, then gradually moved on to healthy fueling options as I lost weight and exercised more. It was extremely simple to stick to the routine, and results became apparent after only a week or so. If I'm starting over again, why the heck not go with a similar type of “meal replacement” program that I know worked?
The SmashPlan
One of the biggest problems with a nutritional plan is having the right food with you at the right time – otherwise, you'll have (bad) choices to make. “Improvise” rhymes with “side of fries”
Last summer, I received a few samples of SmashPack in the mail, and fell in love with the taste and convenience of a pouch that doesn't need refrigeration and can be thrown in a gym bag or backpack. One of the biggest problems with a nutritional plan is having the right food with you at the right time – otherwise, you'll have (bad) choices to make. “Improvise” rhymes with “side of fries” or at least it does with me. I'm a 100% in or 100% out type of guy; if I start bending the rules – even rules I made up myself – then it's a slippery slope to failure. In order to keep on-track, I write up exactly what I'll be eating for the day and plan it out ahead of time. When getting ripped for photo shoots a few years back, I carried around baggies of food with the exact time to eat them written on each with sharpie. Seriously.
I'm a 100% in or 100% out type of guy; if I start bending the rules – even rules I made up myself – then it's a slippery slope to failure.
While the SmashPack packages are waaaay easier to carry around or toss in my car than a SlimFast can, I also need to prepare for the “other” items on my plan – a salad at lunch, a couple snacks throughout the day, and a 4-6oz. protein & veggies for dinner. If only those things were as simple to tote around as SmashPack.
Nutritional Gameplan:
I'll be focused on calories and protein, not overly concerned with carbs, macros, timing, etc. The key word is simple. As you can see by the final numbers, this is a reduced calorie “diet” for 30 days. The food options are light on calories, and you can see by the meal choices I'm not starving myself by crash-dieting, I'm choosing healthy, low-calorie options and sensible portions of things I actually like to eat.
Me – by the Numbers
My goal is to lose 10 pounds in 30 days through diet and exercise, this requires at least a 1200 calorie reduction/day, here's how that looks in a bullet list:
- Starting weight: 168
- Goal Weight: 158
- Height: 5′ 8″
- Age: 45
- Daily Caloric Requirement: 2200
Of course we're all different, and I have very strong willpower when it comes to food, and 30 days is a pretty short span – I know I could survive on barely more than baby spinach with a squeeze of lemon and drizzle of olive oil for a month and drop 10 pounds quickly; this exercise is meant to re-develop my motivation for maintaining an active and healthy lifestyle, not crash-dieting to hit some arbitrary number, then ballooning up again next month. I've created this SmashPlan to be effective, yet relatively easy for me to follow – your plan may look significantly different. Like to burn more calories doing cardio? Be my guest! My plan is to reduce 66% of mu calories through my diet, and 33% through additional exercise. If I like it, I'll continue for another month or so while training a little more aggressively and upping my daily calories to get back into “race shape.”
Breakfast
- (1) SmashPack Protein pouch (180 calories, 14g protein)
- Black coffee (0 calories, 250mg of awesome per cup)
Mid-Morning Snack
- (2) hard boiled eggs (200 cal, 6g protein)
- more coffee, I'm sure.
Lunch
- (1) SmashPack Protein pouch (180 calories, 14g protein)
- Large Salad, oil and vinegar dressing (120 calories, 3g protein)
- 20 oz water
Mid-Afternoon Snack
- Carrots/Celery & 6 tsp. Hummus (200 cal, 8g protein)
- 20 oz water
Dinner
- 4 oz lean beef or chicken (Beef: 325 cal, 28g protein Chicken: 300 calories, 31g protein)
- 1/2 sweet potato (80 cal, 1.5g protein)
- Vegetable (1 cup broccoli: 50 cal, 4g protein, 1 cup green beans: 31 cal, 1.5g protein)
- 20 oz water
Total Calories: ~1400
Total Protein: ~80
Daily Calorie Deficit from Nutrition: 800
That leaves my required daily deficit for additional exercise to be right around 400 calories/day, that's roughly 1 hour of activity per day, which I will break up into walking, running, bike riding, and bodyweight exercises in tomorrow's section
About SmashPack
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