Diet & Nutrition gets a lot of press
IIFYM, Clean Eating, Paleo, Low Carb, 40-30-30, Moderate carb low-fat. Just trying to understand all of the diet options out there is enough to drive anybody crazy. So I don’t. I’ve
come up with a simple approach that works most of the time. I like to think of it as an adult approach to nutrition.
- Earn your food
- Calories + weights + = muscle-building
- Physiques are transformed at the pillow
- Protein builds muscle, fat protects joints and carbs provide fuel.
- Make water your main beverage.
Need more details? Well scroll down, they’re down there waiting for you.
To be honest, I didn’t come up with any of these “rules”. I’m also not saying that those other diets don’t work. I think what we need more than anything else is a way to eat 90% of the time. For millennia people who wanted to stop being fat ate less and moved more. And that should be your long-term focus; a lifelong approach to food that is easy to follow, lets you maintain the physique you want and doesn’t make you a jerk at family gatherings.
Earn Your Food
Burn more than you consume if you want to lose weight. Easiest way to accomplish this is to always earn your food. Do some physical activity before and after every meal. Our ancestors couldn’t just microwave their meals and flop on the couch, they had to cut wood, kill and prepare the food, sometimes drag it back to a campsite. You don’t need to do a full Zumba class before every sandwich but you need to move around enough to increase your metabolic demand before you put the fork in your face. When I was on active duty in the Marine Corps we walked to and from the chow hall. It was easy to maintain a healthy bodyweight. Why not take a 10-15 minute walk while your food’s in the microwave? Go up and down the stairs about ten or fifteen times, do some push ups or bodyweight squats, just move around. Experts like Kelly Starrett say we need to about 15 minutes of movement for every 30 minutes of sitting to counteract the negative effects of sitting on our posture anyway.
More Calories = More Mass. More Calories + Weights = Good Looking Mass
By this time, we should all be aware that putting on weight means eating more. If you want that weight to be visually appealing; you should lift progressively heavier weights as part of a sensible, structured plan. This has worked since the Greeks decided statues should be naked. But what if I get too big? Well, Steve Rogers, if you don’t like how you look when you come out of the Vita Ray Machine, refer to my first tip to begin losing weight. For everybody else, this is a gradual process so just pay attention to how your clothes fit and what the mirror says and adjust accordingly.
Physiques Are Transformed At The Pillow
Being in a constant sleep deficit causes testosterone production to decrease, encourages eating sugary snacks to stay awake and leads to body fat storage. I have an odd schedule but I still make a habit of sleeping seven hours out of every 24 hour. When I can, I add a short nap to that number.
Protein + Carbs + Fat
As IFBB pro bodybuilder Roman “Rex” Fritz has said, “Every meal needs to be based around a protein source. Carbs/fats are to be considered sides. Never have a meal without protein”. Every meal includes 
something that used to move around on it’s own and something that started its life as a seed surrounded by dirt.Yes, you could do some food combining to get your protein from plants but this is supposed to be a simple plan. I’m a wordsmith not a nutritionist.
Make Water Your Main Beverage
I first heard Dan John say this in an interview with Mark Rippetoe. Don’t like water? Here’s a fact that might help: What goes in must come out. Water makes this process less painful.
You will eventually reach a point where this plan isn’t enough. You’ve plateaued or you’re trying to get from good shape into excellent shape for a special event. Don’t pick something out based upon a casual read of something you snagged from the Wal-Mart book section. It’s time to hire somebody. I’ve said it many times and I liked how it sounded whenever I did so I’ll say it again: You don’t need to be an expert in everything. In fact, trying to be an expert in everything is an excellent way to become sorry at most things. Expensive? Bruh, that’s what comparison shopping and setting money aside in a savings account is for. Think of all of the other b.s. you waste money on all of the time; you could probably cut out most of the worthless supplements you buy and all of the fast food and be able to afford a decent nutritionist for six weeks. Then once you’re in shape, you can go back to the common sense approach to maintain your new physique. Unlike most of the Biggest Loser contestants, you’ll find that because you already have a basic eating philosophy (the one I mentioned in the beginning) you won’t put all of the bad weight back on because you’ve probably addressed all of the issues that led to your issues with food during this process.