Eating clean

[Lynnne]

I know there have been many posts already about this but - I have additional questions.

I notice that bodybuilders eat lots of oatmeal - do they sweeten it with honey? Without a sweetener on it, to me, it tastes like cardboard.

Also - they seem to eat lots of chicken - how is it flavoured? with spices?

And - how do you know how much protein to eat, oatmeal, carbs? do you need to find out how much body fat you have?

I know this is a lot of questions - but I guess I'm in the dark about what to do about nutrition to really build muscle and be able to show it off.

ONe last thing - i've been weight training since last July, started on Cathe at Christmas time and have seen little results on my legs even though I work on them the hardest! IS it because my diet isn't clean enough?(I try to eat food in its natural state, fresh fruit and veges as snacks with protein shakes and oatmeal for breakfast.)

I'm seeing results in my abs and upper body - but lower body sucks - there's still sagging going on in the back ( if you know what I mean!)
Anyone help!!!!

 

[FitnessGoddess]

Hi Lynne,

I eat oatmeal every day. I sweeten it with honey or artificial sweetner. I also use a sprinkle of nutmeg or cinnamon to give it more flavor.

Chicken is generally flavored with spices of personal taste. I like mine blackened or use McCormick's grill mates. I do use oil in the McCormick's marination process because it only marinates for 15 minutes & you only use 2 tbsp so there isn't that much absorbed. And you are using 2 tbsp of oil to marinate an entire pound of chicken so how much would you be adding to one serving anway, right?

As for knowing how much protein/carbs or whatever to eat, it is recommended by some sources to eat at least 1 gram of protein per pound of body fat. Carbs--as long as we're talking about vegis you should try to eat 10 servings per day. If you are talking sugar--eat very limited quantities.

It's not necessary to know how much body fat you have. Most body fat measurements are in accurate anyway. Go by the way your clothes feel & how you look in the mirror to yourself.

As for your legs--when you say you are working them harder than any other body part, remember you CANNOT spot reduce. You may be one of those people that carries their body fat in their legs. For most of us, getting that lift in the fanny is the hardest thing to accomplish.

I hope that helps.

 

[Lynnne]

Thanks - that helps a lot! I get lots of conflicting information about how much protein to eat.

Also - in terms of the back of the legs - I guess they are really hard to tone to perfection! I have seen some before & afters with great results - maybe it will just take longer for me. Lifting the fanny is tough - the hardest thing I've ever tried to do!

 

[lorrayne]

Serious body builders don't use any types of sugar (with the exeption of sugar substitutes such as stevia or splenda). In fact, the serious bodybuilder doesn't eat any fruit (with the exection of an occasional granny smith apple) as they want to lower their body fat percentage as much as possible before a competition.

With this said, bodybuilders love oatmeal (and sweet potatoes). One cookbook I have indicates that you can sweeten the oatmeal with some maple extract (delicious!) This doesn't have any sugar so doesn't cause any spikes in your blood sugar.

Don't be afraid of using spices for your skinless chicken breasts. Use lemon juice, corriander, garlic, tomatoes, chili powder, parsley, etc.

You may want to order Cliff Sheats' Lean Bodies cookbook. This is written for body builders. The recipes are excellent! I made homemade chicken enchiladas the other day (uses corn tortillas). I even brought a couple in for a co-worker to eat. He loved it!

Regarding your lower body, it may be what you're eating or it could be that you need to go heavier on the weights. I remember Cathe mentioning that her upper body is easier to show definition than her lower body.

Hope this helps.
Lorrayne

 

[Lynnne]

It helps a lot. I'm going to look into that book. My follow up question would be - how far do I have to go with my diet - do I need to go to the extreme like bodybuilders or not? Have you been on this type of diet or do you bend the rules a bit?

 

[lorrayne]

He also has a companion cookbook that goes over his program. Basically, it's a cleaner version of the Zone by Barry Sears.

I bend the rules all of the time. I do know that when I cheat too much that I can quickly see the bloating appear. I, however, can't give up my fruit so I eat at least two portions per day.

You shouldn't have to go to the extreme of a body builder. You want to reduce body fat to see the muscle, but you don't need to go to the body builder extreme.

Lorrayne