There’s no denying that calculating & planning food, meals and calories can be a nightmare! But nutrition is an integral part of training and getting fit, so you simply cannot leave it to guesswork when your progress depends on it.
To achieve results and hit goals, you need to follow a strict eating plan. If you leave your meals to chance, then you are leaving your results to chance. There’s no point undoing all that hard work in the gym by being lazy with your diet.
Build the Bulk
Many of my clients say they don’t have the time to prep meals every day and a great way to stay on track is to batch cook. This saves the time and headache of planning meals every day. It also means you won’t be tempted to give in and order a takeaway or cook up a ready meal. Bulk buying and bulk cooking also saves money.
Take any recipe you like and multiply it by the number of meals you need to prep. Think of delicious meals that are also healthy and focused on weight/fat loss.
I emphasise the word ‘delicious’ as too many trainers and nutritionists seem to think that healthy eating means plain eating. If I see another trainer or nutritionist pushing plain rice, plain chicken and plain veg again, I might explode.
Eating half a dozen chicken breasts a day with microwave rice is certainly not my idea of healthy eating. For me, healthy eating means a balanced and varied menu that provides you with not only the nutrients you need but also the taste and variety to stay on track and feel happy.
All about the Balance
I’ll be honest. I love my food more than I do my training. But I don’t sacrifice my food for results. Or results for food for that matter. I have been doing this long enough to know that balance is crucial! That’s why for me to achieve the results I achieve, I have to train hard and smart and eat healthy. But I also ensure my food is delicious, varied and keeps me happy and excited for every meal.
You might be surprised by what I eat even in the week prior to my fitness shoots. But the results speak volumes for the fact that you can get great results with an interesting and fun food plan. Not only do the healthy and amazing ingredients I use add flavour, they also have fantastic health benefits.
Herbs and spices are a great example of the kind of thing I mean. If you’re considering how you can incorporate them into your plan, you may want to check out my BetterSelf service where I provide amazing and delicious recipes that are goal-focused. As part of the plan, you can choose from hundreds of amazing recipes calculated precisely for you and your goals.
Give this sample BetterSelf recipe a try. You won’t be disappointed!!
SOUTHERN BAKED CHICKEN WITH SLAW
CARBS 33% / PROTEIN 33% / FATS 33%
INGREDIENTS
Almond flour – 27g
Red Cabbage – 72g
Carrots – 72g
Chicken Breast – 120g
Cider Vinegar – 2 tsp
Eggs – 1 medium
Garlic powder – 1.5 tsp
Lemon juice fresh – 7 tsp
Mustard Dijon – 2 tsp
Red Onion – 10g
Paprika – 1 tsp
Pepper cayenne ground – to taste
Sweet potato – 122g
Yogurt greek plain 0% fat – 1 tbsp
COOKING INSTRUCTIONS
- Slice the cabbage, carrots, and onions. Then mix the lemon juice, mustard, vinegar and greek yoghurt.
- Combine all these ingredients to make the slaw. Pre head oven to 200 °C
- Slice the sweet potato into cubes, season and bake in the oven for 25 mins
- Cut the chicken into strips, mix the paprika, garlic powder, almond flour and cayenne pepper. Mix the egg.
- Coat the chicken in teh flour, dip in the egg then the spice mix. Put on abking try and gook for 15 – 20 mins until cooked through.
- Serve the chicken together with the sweet potato and slaw. Enjoy!!
Calculating & Planning food can be a nightmare! Don’t leave it to chance when your progress depends on it. I’ve spent years figuring this stuff out to produce the best bodies in the business. With hundreds of personalised recipes, it’s yours on Beyond or BetterSelf
