How Figure Competitors and Fitness Models Eat

Okay girls. Have you ever wondered how the fitness models in the magazines get in such great shape? Of course they train 6 days a week but that is only 30% of the battle. Here is the diet, straight from the horses mouth, my friend Diana Johnson sent this to me to pass along.

Figure Diet
Yes, correct training is a requirement for building lean, shapely muscle, but it’s only 30% of the battle. If you’re like me you won’t be satisfied with just 30% effectiveness. I just can’t overemphasize how important proper nutrition is. Honestly, your nutrition is at least twice as important as your training. It accounts for the other 70% of the results you’ll achieve. To improve your nutrition the first step is to clean up your diet and make better food choices. This is the time to remove processed foods, high fat fast foods, sugar, white flours and pastas. A diet consisting of approximately fifty percent lean protein, twenty percent quality complex carbs and thirty percent healthy fat works best. You should consume 10-15 calories per pound of bodyweight (depending on your metabolism, age and current condition). You should consume closer to 15 calories per pound of bodyweight if you have are already in decent shape, if not, you’ll want to start in the 10-12 calories per pound range. Eating enough calories in the proper macronutrient proportion will help you build muscle, increase your metabolic rate, and ultimately lose more fat. It will also set a solid foundation for your body and help it adapt properly to each new phase of contest dieting. Here’s an effective nutrition plan to get started.

BREAKFAST: Start most days (or every day) with egg whites and oatmeal. Yeah, it’s boring but it’s also effective and pretty easy to prepare. You have to stick with regular Oatmeal; the flavored packets won’t get the job done. You can add Splenda and Cinnamon for flavor though. For the egg whites, you can crack your own eggs and throw away the yolks (and don’t worry if some yolk gets mixed in, it won’t hurt anything at this point). The easiest way is to buy a carton of egg whites or egg beaters. One of the fastest ways to get breakfast is to mix four or five egg whites in a blender with half a cup of oatmeal, a couple of packets of Splenda and some cinnamon, then pour the mix into a skillet and cook them like pancakes.
It’s okay to add three or four ounces of 95% lean ground beef or ground turkey breast to your egg white – oatmeal breakfast a couple of mornings each week. Maybe one day eat egg whites and a ground beef patty, but no oatmeal. A couple days later have egg whites, a ground turkey patty and oatmeal. The rest of the week it’s egg whites and oatmeal only.

MIDMORNING: There’s no doubt that the most convenient midmorning meal is a quality protein shake. If you like thick and creamy shakes mix a scoop or two with eight ounces water for each scoop of protein. You can use a blender or simply shake it up in a shaker bottle. If you use a blender try adding a teaspoon of no sugar added raspberry preserves. A couple of frozen strawberries makes a shake into an awesome low-carb smoothee. You can also add diet red pop, Crystal Lite, or other diet drinks to the mix to get any flavor you’re craving. Protein powder also makes a perfect pudding. Again, mix one to two scoops powder in a bowl with a little less than half the water you’d normally use for a shake (just enough water to make a pudding texture). I know it sounds too easy, but it really is. Some people even use coffee instead of water for a mocha dessert. Top it with a Tablespoon of Cool Whip and pinch yourself. No, you aren’t dreaming; and Yes, it is good for you! You may also add a little low carb fruit (one-half peach, three strawberries, or one-fourth cup blueberries) or a teaspoon of nut butter in your pudding (or shake) for variety.

LUNCH: Lunch is going to almost always be chicken or turkey breast with brown rice or a sweet potato. Sounds bland, but believe me, this is what just about every figure competitor you’ve seen in the magazine eats for lunch in one variation or another. Now I’ve found some ways to make it easy to prepare and pretty tasty to eat. Chicken tenders fresh or frozen in the bag are great. They’re about an ounce per tender, so it’s easy to determine how much you need even without a scale. Warm up the grill, throw the whole bag on the rack, and in 15 minutes or less you have enough chicken to make five or six meals. If you don’t have a grill, just bake them in the oven. If you like turkey better, ground white turkey breast is great. You can make patties to cook on the grill or just "fry" it up in a pan like you’re making taco meat (you can even use a little taco seasoning for flavor.) Having tuna, shrimp or chicken packets handy is another way to assure you always get your protein in. Cooking a lot of rice at once is a cinch. Get a big pot and a box or bag of rice and cook away. Even more convenient though, are pre-cooked rice packets. They contain about two servings and you’ll find them in the grocery right by the boxed rices. Just open the packet, pop in the microwave for about a minute and voila. Eat half and save the other half for later. Most grocery stores have sweet potatoes or yams wrapped individually in plastic that are convenient and the plastic wrap helps the potato cook faster. These usually weigh six or seven ounces; a great size for a lunch carb. Canned sweet potatoes are also an option, but be sure they are canned in water, not syrup. If you are tired of rice and sweet potatoes, try canned black beans or red beans. They offer a good change of pace and a great source of fiber too. Eat half the can and save the other half for another meal. Remember, your food doesn’t have to taste bad to be good for you. Play around in the spice, herb and seasonings isle to find flavors that will help you make your food more enjoyable. As long as they aren’t loaded with fat and sugar, you will be fine. You can always add a small serving of any of the vegetables I’ve listed as "Free Foods" to your lunch without hurting your diet.

MIDAFTERNOON: Half your day is over, but your tank is running on empty. Don’t wait until dinner to eat. That’s a bad idea, as it puts too much time between meals and may cause your body to use protein stores. Here is a great place f0r a protein shake or a can of tuna.

DINNER:Many days this will be your last meal and should consist of either rice or a sweet potato again and chicken, turkey, fish or a couple of times a week you can do some very lean ground beef or a small steak. I recommend skipping the starchy carb two or three nights each week. You can add a double serving of vegetables from the "Free Foods" list on these nights. This will rotate your calories a bit, keeping them high enough for muscle building, but low enough to still burn fat. On the "no carb" night, don’t stress out, you can still have a tasty and satisfying meal. Try making a stir fry with chicken or lean strips of beef and a bunch of peppers, onions, broccoli and mushrooms. A leafy green salad with veggies on top and a piece of grilled fish is tasty too. Some nights I put veggies in a foil packet, spray with Pam and cook them on the grill for about 20 minutes. Toss those on the plate with a nice piece of grilled sirloin and I’m in heaven.

BEFORE BED: I know you’ve heard that you shouldn’t eat before going to bed if you want to lose fat. Well, that’s true for the most part. But remember, you’re also trying to build muscle, especially during the first two months of your four-month figure competition project. So I’m going to tell you it’s okay to eat an hour or so before going to bed, but you have to eat what I tell you and only if you feel like you have to have something. Egg whites with some tomato (and green peppers or onions if you like them) is one option. . There’s a very important reason why you should stick to egg whites or protein shake pudding before bed, both sources of protein will give you an extended release time so that the protein slowly breaks down into amino acids helping you build muscle all through the night.

FREE FOODS:You can add any of these foods to your nutrition plan during the first two months without compromising your results. Most important is water. You should drink at least one-half gallon each day. That’s the minimum, drink all you want. Other beverages you can drink are diet sodas, Crystal Light, coffee (no cream or sugar) and unsweetened ice tea. (It’s okay to use Equal or Splenda to sweeten your coffee or tea.) Low carb vegetables are fine with any meal. I like broccoli, green beans, bell peppers, zucchini, cauliflower, asparagus, onions, cucumber, lettuce, and spinach. Seasonings are fine also. I rely on vinegar, mustard, relish, salsa, hot sauce, and just about any dry seasoning. Sugar-free gum is a life saver; a pack of gum a day is about right for me.