Lose Weight By Eating More?

Before anyone jumps down my throat, yes, I know well that to lose weight you have to be in a calorie deficit - eating less calories than you burn.

However, anyone who's followed a diet will notice that consuming less food can often result in lower energy levels throughout the day, negatively affecting our mood and most importantly, our activity levels.

NEAT (non-exercise activity thermogenesis)

Represents all the physical activity throughout the day that isn't considered exercise - walking, fidgeting around, work, etc. When you restrict calorie intake, it can cause you to move less outside of the gym in your daily life. This decrease in NEAT can ultimately cause your fat loss to plateau. Although this is doesn't happen 100% of the time, it's smart to and monitor your physical activity using a basic activity tracker like the FitBit for example and see if your activity levels drop when dieting. It's also smart to be more aware of your mood from day to day and how it affects your motivation levels and your ability to get up and move.

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I've written in detail about NEAT and daily calorie expenditure, what they are, and how to use it to your advantage to help your weight loss and fitness goals. Click here to read.

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I am in no way advocating for ridiculously high calorie intakes and trying to catch up on your weight loss by performing hours upon hours of exercise. Most people do not have the time nor energy to do so. What I'm advocating for matching the positive mood and motivation levels that comes with a more moderate calorie intake, with higher NEAT levels throughout the day.

If you feel groggy and unmotivated eating 2000 calories a day, it may be smart to increase it to 2250 or a number you'll feel more comfortable or happier at. From here reach a calorie deficit by an extra 5000 steps a day or by staying more active outside of the gym.

Go for a walk on the beach. Go for a bike ride. Move more around the house. Keep yourself active, but keep it simple. The main goal here to is develop a more active lifestyle and making small tweaks to our diet to better accomodate it. Hope it helps!

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Nutritional Periodization: Diet Periodization for Better Performance

When it comes to the discussion of improving performance and fitness, one can't forget about the role of a proper diet and how much our day to day nutrition affects how we feel and perform. I've been going into detail about training periodization in my last few articles, and periodization for nutrition is something I've been planning to bring up as well.

So what is nutritional periodization, or periodized nutrition? Simply, planning and structuring of a diet based on the goals and demands of a trainee or athlete. Since training variables like intensity, volume, competition schedule and practices change from season to season and one training cycle to the next, nutritional periodization must be used and adapted according to the demands of practice, training and competition.

Scientifically, we know nutrition has a large impact on training outcomes and adaptations. 

• Consistently working out, but still consistently eating too many calories? You're not going to lose weight.

• On a hypertrophy program but you're not consuming enough protein? You're not going to get big!

• Not drinking enough water? You'll become dehydrated and performance will suffer.

• Going low carb and constantly training with high intensity? You're not going to achieve the high intensity endurance you want.

• etc....

How exactly it affects all these training outcomes and their subtle nuances,are still not clear as research in this field is still relatively new.

There's a review article on this topic that just came out yesterday (Mar 22nd 2017), titled "Periodized Nutrition For Athletes" by Asker Jeukendrup, a respected nutrition-researcher and Professor from the Netherlands. In the article, Jeukendrup discusses the historical aspects of nutrition and diet as they relate to training and exercise, and also lays down the foundation on what periodized nutrition means and what it's role is. He reviews an impressive list of various nutritional methods such as training on low carbohydrates, high carbohydrate diets, ketogenic diets and also a few supplements.

Here is the list below:

Without trying to repeat too much of what Jeukendrup says in the review paper (I highly urge you to read it if you're serious about improving your knowledge on nutrition - again here is the LINK : OPEN ACCESS), I wanted to talk about a few of the methods, particularly the more popular ones related to mainstream nutrition and dieting.

Some of the methods listed above might be considered "fad diets" in some circles; there has been a lot of talk about fasted cardio, is which essentially training low - training fasted, and ketogenic diets lately. Specifically, how they don't work and how they're bullshit and no one should be on them. While they might be right in some circumstances, its always good to have a change of perspective and see in which scenarios these nutritional methods can be beneficial. It's all about context.

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fasted cardio (Train low - training fasted)

Fasted cardio, or performing a cardio-endurance activity in the morning without having breakfast, has been touted to help burn fat and help trainees lose weight by forcing your body to use more of your "stubborn" fat as energy during exercise. Unfortunately, consistently working out with an empty stomach can be a terrible choice.

For most trainees, fasted cardio will simply feel terrible and their workouts suffer, causing them to exercise less intensely and expend less calories than they would normally. Since we know that weight and fat loss is primarily driven by calorie balance, the form and method of cardio that allows us to consistently burn off a high amount of calories and can be sustainable for the trainee, is the best form of cardio. For a lot of people, this means a snack or light meal prior to a workout, and exercising at various different intensities to keep things fun and interesting.

Fasted cardio is popular amongst bodybuilders, and people still do lose weight performing fasted cardio, does this mean fasted cardio is useless at best?
For the fitness and weight loss demographic, yes. But remember, context matters. Fasted cardio can be a nutritional method for amateur and professional endurance athletes to improve their endurance.

The sleep low method is a good example of a fasted cardio method (sleep low method studies - study link #1 here, #2 here), where the objective is to eliminate carbohydrate intake prior to sleeping, and fasting up to your morning training session. Training in the absence of carbohydrate (almost) or with a low-carbohydrate availability in your muscles or your liver, can promote the expression of certain genes like AMPK to amplify the adaptations from endurance training, like increaesed mitochondria and oxidative enzymes. However, there's a caveat.

These adaptations are amplified only if training is done at the lower intensities, the aerobic zones in which fat is the primary fuel source.  The sleep low method does not work and can be detrimental if the morning fasted cardio session consists of prolonged moderate intensity exercise or high intensity intervals, as carbohydrate/glucose is a much more preferred source during harder efforts of cardio training. Sleeping low or performing fasted training sessions will greatly reduce the quality of your workouts and the progress you'll make. Since not all training sessions will be high-intensity in nature, training fasted or on low glycogen can actually be applicable in some scenarios.

Proponents of fasted cardio believes training while hungry will help improve mental toughness, this is particularly popular in combat sports. I believe there are other ways to improve mental toughness without reducing the effectiveness of your training sessions though.

Now we start to see the carryover and the synergy between training periodization and nutritional periodization.

Doing block periodization and you're in a very high-volume, low-intensity endurance block? It might be effective to try out low-carb methods for the training block. 

Peaking for a competition that requires high intensity intervals? Probably a smart idea to carb up.

Certain methods work for certain groups of people. Just because a diet works for you, doesn't mean it'll work for someone else, and just because a diet DOESN'T work for you, doesn't mean it won't be effective for someone else. 

Ketogenic diet

Picture taken from Precision Nutrition.

We just talked about low-carbing or fasting before workouts. How about going low carb for a few months? For life?. Enter the ketogenic diet.

By significantly reducing the amount of daily carbohydrate intake (<50g), we go into a state of ketosis, where our body utilizes fats and ketones as your primary fuel source. Sounds similar to the fasted cardio method, but this takes an athlete several weeks to become fat-adapted, therefore affecting exercise and body composition on the longer-term. Is it useful? Is it effective?

We can look at it from different angles:

Keto for someone looking to lose weight:

In this situation, we have to take into consideration their ability to sustain a diet with low-carbs. Many of the foods today world contain carbohydrates and it is often hard to skip meals with your friends and family. Consuming a bit too many carbs can bring you out of ketosis and make you feel worse. You don't want to be in no-man's land - where you're not consuming enough carbs to fuel your daily life and exercise, and where you're consuming too many carbs to be in a ketogenic-state.

Diet sustainability is a big factor, paired with the fact that trainees still have to be eating in a calorie deficit. Knowing what fat and protein sources to eat is also something that must be learned if a keto diet is to be sustained in a healthy manner. Many people can't effectively lose weight and keep that weight off with a ketogenic diet. The ones that can, great for them. Find what works for you in terms of weight loss. I recommend reading or buying "The Ketogenic Diet" by Lyle McDonald, he has written extensively on this topic and how to properly go on a ketogenic diet for fat loss, performance and body composition goals.
 

Keto for a competitive athlete:

Jeukendrup's review paper and numerous other studies state that a keto athlete has dramatically increased fat utiliziation ability and upregulated enzymes involved in fat oxidation. However, some of the same studies that showed there was no improved performance effects regardless of the fact fat oxidation potential was increased.

There are a lot of successful keto athletes though, it just depends on the type of sport. 

Like I alluded to earlier, exercises or sports that utilize lower heart rates and intensities will pair best with a low-carb method or approach. While fat isn't a quick source of energy like glucose and phosphocreatine is, it can provide a lot of energy, 9kcal/g. This is viable for sports that are low intensities in nature but require a lot of energy, such as ultra-marathons and other long endurance events. 

This is not to say a calorie-matched high carb diet won't be more beneficial. Ketogenic athletes have shown to have a reduced ability to utilize carbohydrates as the enzymes related to carb metabolism are compromised when going on prolonged periods of carb restriction. Not so great for many team sports or endurance events that require repeated short bursts of high-intensity. 

edit: A 2017 study looking at race walkers on a ketogenic diet showed reduced economy, impairing performance. <Study here>

Supplements and drugs

By far the most popular method to improve fitness and performance goals. Supplements are the first thing many people and athletes turn to as they are marketed to quickly improve performance, help build muscle and shred fat. 

There are a lot of ergogenic supplements that have been studied extensively (have to plug Examine.com here, best website for information and research regarded supplements) to be shown to have health and fitness benefits, protein supplements, creatine, Vitamin D3, beta-alanine, to name a few.

There are also many supplements that have been shown to underdeliver, and are ineffective. Some of which are used incorrectly, but most of which flat out don't work as claimed to.

Supplements and drugs can also reduce training adaptations and be detrimental to performance, like antioxidants and anti-inflammatory drugs.

Everyone should always be skeptical when it comes to supplement, to due it's unregulated nature and often times skewed research results. Take everything with a grain of salt and remember to master the basics before considering taking a shelf full of pills and powders.

From my article on pyramids in fitness and nutrition.

Supplement usage should be considered on a case by case basis, with context in mind. 
 

Concluding thoughts

Fitness and performance is not 80% training, 20% nutrition, or whatever.

It is 100% training and 100% nutrition, they work synergistically and are co-dependent. Training outcomes depend on the fuel you're putting into your body as much as nutritional interventions and methods depend on the your training goal and demands. 

The better sport nutritionists understand training periodization, the better nutrition can be provided according to the demands of the athletes. The more well-versed strength & conditioning coaches are in nutrition, they better they can influence the performance and recvoery of the athletes.

Keep this in mind when evaluating and considering supplements and diets. Be on the look out for more interesting research papers on sports nutrition in the years to come!

5-Part Periodization Series Links:
Read Part 101: Introduction
Read Part 201: Training Variation
Read Part 202: Training Effect & Phases
Read Part 301: Review of Periodization Models
Read Part 401: The Complexities and Problems of Periodization Theory

How To Maintain Strength And Muscle Mass While Losing Weight

Many competitive strength athletes and recreational lifters are under the impression that strength and muscle loss is inevitable when losing weight or undergoing a fat-shredding phase. This is often NOT the case, as strength can be easily maintained or even improved when proper dieting and training adjustments are made. Here are 2 nutrition and 2 training tips to implement the next time you plan on losing fat:

Conservative Calorie Deficit

Whenever muscle and strength retention is of concern during periods of weight loss, a conservative calorie deficit should be used. The idea is that rapid bouts of weight loss created by large calorie-restrictions hinders our ability to perform hard training sessions and our ability to recovery from them. This may result in a loss in lean body mass and subsequently, decreased performance.

In 2011, a group of researchers studied the effects of 2 different weight-loss rates on male and female athletes' body composition and sporting performance. The slow weight loss group lost ~0.7% of their body weight per week while the fast weight loss group lost ~1.4% of their body weight per week.*  At the end of this weight loss period, it was found that the slow weight loss group retained more muscle mass and performed better on upper body strength tests compared to the fast weight loss group. This could have been from consuming more calories for muscle repair and recovery and lower mental stress from dieting more conservatively, which results in a smaller disruption to their bodies' homeostasis. 

Simply put: a slower weight loss rates helps maintain muscle and strength. 

Using the example study above (0.7% bw loss per week), most people will want to lose no more than 1lb of bodyweight per week to better maintain their fitness and performance.

*it should be noted that both weight loss groups lost the same amount of the weight. The slow weight loss group dieted for longer to achieve the same weight loss as the fast weight loss group.

Protein Timing and Distribution

Granted you're already consuming an adequate amount of protein to support recovery and muscle growth, implementing good protein timing and distribution practices is the cherry on top of the sundae. 

Effective protein timing and distribution practices revolve around the concept of the touted "anabolic window". The anabolic window concept states that there is an optimal time period where our muscles are more sensitive to protein intake, where protein consumption during this time will result in better recovery, and increased muscle growth. While the importance of the anabolic window is sometimes overhyped by the bodybuilding and supplement industry, it DOES exists. Hours following a hard training session, when our muscle's receptors are hypersensitive and there's a surge of hormones and growth factors. This hypersensitivity returns to baseline anywhere from 12-36 hours and is dependent on several variables:

• Volume and intensity of training

• Duration of the training session

• Modality of training (resistance training will induce more micro-tearing of muscle fibers and a greater hormonal response vs. endurance training)

• Training status of the individual

It's because of this anabolic window that many fitness professionals recommend drinking a protein shake immediately post-workout. While this is a good practice, many nutritionists and trainers forget or simply do not put enough emphasis on pre-workout nutrition.

Why worry about pre-workout nutrition if the anabolic window exists post-training? Protein transit and digestion time. 

A serving of protein consumed prior to training will still be in the process of digestion and absorption HOURS following a training session. In order to fully take advantage of the anabolic window, an adequate amount of protein (>25-40g, more if you're heavier or possess more muscle mass) must be consumed pre-workout in conjunction with a post-workout shake. 

Why does this matter and how does it affect muscle retention?

Our body is in a constant state of building, and destroying, anabolism and catabolism. During a calorie-deficit, its crucial to keep net positive muscle protein synthesis (where total protein synthesis > total protein degradation) in order to facilitate proper muscle repair and growth. Evenly distributing your protein intake around the clock helps increase protein synthesis. Think of it as stoking a fire, constantly feeding the fire fuel or wood. Again, none of this will be effective without consistently hitting your daily protein needs (total amount of protein per day).

Increase lifting frequency

Let's get into the the training side of things.

An unwanted side effect from losing weight (for strength athletes anyways) is a change in leverages and biomechanics. When you lose thickness in your thighs and hips, squats, cleans and lower body movements feel different. When you lose thickness in your lats or chest, bench pressing and overhead pressing feels a bit different. Whether its from an altered stretch-reflex or reduced proprioception, losing weight can negatively affect lifting technique, often resulting in a loss of strength.

To combat this problem, I recommend increasing your lifting frequency. Does your squat feel a bit different after losing 20lbs? Start squatting more frequently. Does your overhead press feel a bit iffy since your weight loss? Start overhead pressing more frequently. Much like the stoking the fire analogy used earlier, the more frequently you spend practicing a movement under your new biomechanical circumstances, the more improvements you'll make. Increased frequency and exposure to an exercise will do wonders in terms of motor learning and familiarity. 

stick to your training plan

Aside from increasing training and lift frequency, nothing else should really change.

Lifters often take unneeded preventative measures when dieting by overhauling their whole training plan. If you're losing weight via a conservative calorie-deficit, there is no good reason to significantly decrease volume or intensity of training. You should still be able to perform and progress on your training plan despite eating 200-300 calories less each day. 

For athletes looking to rapidly lose fat however, the best line of action would be to slightly reduce training volume by either reducing the total amount of sets and reps BUT maintain or even increase intensity. Lifting heavy (relative to your own strength levels) is crucial for stimulating your high-threshold muscle fibers responsible for maximal strength production. Many studies have shown that high intensity training can help maintain muscle mass and strength weeks and even months after detraining/periods of reduced volume.

Ultimately, have trust in your training plan and stay consistent. Don't let dieting stress prevent you from training and avoid the nocebo effect or any preconceived notions that you'll be weaker and smaller after your weight loss diet. Use these 4 tips, train hard, and train smart. Good luck!

Studies discussed:

"Effect of two different weight-loss rates on body composition and strength and power-related performance in elite athletes." Garthe et al. (2011).

"Nutrient timing revisited: is there a post-exercise anabolic window?" Aragon & Schoenfeld (2013).

"Less Is More: The Physiological Basis for Tapering in Endurance, Strength, and Power Athletes." Murach, Kevin, and James Bagley. (2015) 

"Physiological and Performance Responses to a 6-Day Taper in Middle-Distance Runners: Influence of Training Frequency." Mujika, I., A. Goya, E. Ruiz, A. Grijalba, J. Santisteban, and S. Padilla. (2002)

"The Effects of Tapering on Power-Force-Velocity Profiling and Jump Performance in Professional Rugby League Players." Lacey, James De, Matt Brughelli, Michael Mcguigan, Keir Hansen, Pierre Samozino, and Jean-Benoit Morin.(2014)

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What Type Of Dieter Are You?

Weight and fat loss can be achieved using different styles of dieting depending on your personality, eating habit, tendencies as well as how much knowledge you possess about nutrition and dieting itself. Are you a trainee motivated by quick results or are you a person that likes to take it slow and ensure sustainable weight loss? 

1. The Shotgunner - Quick Weight Loss

The shotgun method is what I like to call diets that start out with a large calorie deficit, with that deficit decreasing as bodyweight drops. Why did I name this the shotgun method? Because like a shotgun, the initial blast is strong (large calorie deficit - ensures initial weight-loss) and can hurt the person if they're ill-prepared to handle the consequent recoil (junk food temptations, binge eating, etc).

This method works well for people who are motivated by quick results and find it difficult to adhere to a more conservative approach. For example, a person looking to lose a large amount of weight (eg: 30lbs) will start off with a 500+ calorie deficit (daily) and slowly reduce that to a 400, 300, 200 calorie deficit as the weeks progress and as body fat is being lost. As I believe protein intake should stay at an adequate level, most of the reduction from calories should come from partial elimination of carbohydrates and fats.

Pros

• Very effective for short term weight loss
• Initial stages can be very motivating for some individuals and help them adhere to future weight loss diets

Cons

• Large calorie deficits can be very mentally stressful
• Initial low energy and decreased performance in the gym or at a physical job
• The chance of the rebound effect is much higher, some dieters will use the initial weight loss to justify stuffing their face the following weeks... AVOID THIS AT ALL COSTS!

2. The Turtle - Slow And Steady

One of the more popular methods used in the past few years due to increasing research on food intake habits, willpower and weight loss sustainability. In contrast to the "shotgun" method, this style of dieting employs a conservative calorie deficit throughout the entirety of the weight loss period.

The caveat here is that dieters must be aware of their maintenance calories (I've talked about how to find out that number through estimations or tracking right here under section #3: Learn How To Count). So what's a conservative calorie deficit? A daily reduction of 200-300 calories coming from carbohydrates has worked well for me and my clients. Depending on your metabolism, expect to lose about 0.5-1lb per week. Trainees who employ this diet must be persistent and consistent with their calorie intake. If weight loss stagnates, consider increasing the amount of physical activity you do or further increasing the calorie deficit.
 

Pros

• The conservative calorie deficit allows dieters to lose weight without feeling the initial low energy that comes with large calorie deficits
• A small calorie deficit can sometimes be unnoticeable given the composition of your meals are healthy and based around nutritious and satiating, whole-foods.
• Paired with adequate protein intake, this style of dieting ensures maintenance of your hard-gained muscle!

Cons

• May not be suitable for beginners new to counting calories and portion controls
• Tests dieter's patience, weight loss may not occur for the first weeks either due to inaccurate tracking or using the wrong maintenance calories as a baseline

The Bottom Line

Both types of dieters can see success as long as they plan out their diet and adhere to it. Don't be quick to dismiss large calorie deficits and diets like the "shotgun method". While it doesn't always fit the modern dieting narrative that everything should be done conservatively to ensure long-term success, I've seen first hand that people can succeed with more daring weight loss methods. Pick the right dieting style that suits your goals and current level of experience with nutrition. Good luck!

How To Pack On Muscle - Diet Tips For The Hardgainer

Forget those gross weight-gainer shakes that taste like concrete. Fuel your muscle-building workouts by eating lots of whole foods and developing dietary habits that are sustainable for YOU. Here are 5 tips to help you create good eating habits to pack on size. 

1. first, Create A relationship with food, not numbers.

You can count calories and protein all you want. As a matter of fact, I'll teach you how to do so later in this article. But first, you need to create a good relationship with food or your journey to being jacked will not be a sustainable one. What do I mean by "creating a relationship with food?" I simply mean:

• Enjoy the foods you're eating - One of the easiest ways to eat more is to eat delicious foods. Even if you're a "picky eater", there's no excuse. Find the foods you love eating, eat them often.

• Learn how to cook - There's nothing like a home-cooked meal made by mom but when you're trying to become self-sufficient and take control of what nutrients go into your body, learning basic cooking skills and recipes is a must (plus it saves you money!!). Youtube and find easy recipes to make at home. Use ingredients you're familiar with but don't be afraid to try new things.

Create a good relationship with food before worrying about calories. Gradually eat more, your exercise and activity should fuel your hunger. If you already have a good relationship with food and have done all of the above, then its time dive into the details like maintenance calories, and optimal protein intake levels.

2. Rethink The Term "Hardgainer"

“A hardgainer is an arbitrary label that describes a person who practices bodybuilding but finds it challenging to develop musculature regardless of the amount of effort put in.”

— Wikipedia

There are most likely no genetic factors preventing you from putting on size, nor are there anyone stealing your muscles overnight. The term hardgainer really just means your appetite and the amount of calories you consume day to day is not up to par with your metabolism. In other words: YOU'RE EATING LESS THAN YOU BURN. Simple as that.

Aside from height and weight, our metabolism is dependent on the amount of physical activity we perform and our NEAT (non-exercise activity thermogenesis). Any energy we expend outside of exercise is considered NEAT: How much are you walking a day? Do you have an active or sedentary job? Are you doing chores around the house?

All of these factors contribute to the amount of calories you burn in a day. These are factors we can control. 

3. Learn how to count

The amount of calories it takes to maintain your current bodyweight is often referred to as maintenance calories. We can find out what this number using 2 methods:

Estimation: The Calorie Maintenance Level Calculator

Enter your weight, height, and activity level to instantly receive an estimate of your maintenance calories. While this method may be quick, it may be  inaccurate for some. Which leads to the second method:

Tracking: Using MyFitnessPal (or similar app)

Weigh yourself in the morning everyday for one or two weeks. At the same time, eat your regular diet and input all your food into the MFP app. Granted you've maintained the same body-weight, find your average calorie intake by adding up all your days and dividing by 7 or 14 (days). Congrats, you've found your maintenance calorie level. 

I recommend using the tracking method right off the bat, and comparing that number to the calculator's estimation. Unless you have abnormal levels of physical activity or have tracked your food inaccurately/inconsistently, there shouldn't be a huge discrepancy.

Now that you've found your maintenance calories, increase your calorie intake in order to see bodyweight changes and muscle gain. I recommend increasing your intake by ~300-500 calories (start off at 300 and keep it consistent for several weeks and go from there). There are 2 ways to increase calorie intake:

1) Increase Meal Frequency: Add a meal to your current dietary habits. Whether its a peanut butter and jelly sandwich with a protein shake, or eating an extra lunch, the point here is to eat more often.

2) Increase Portion Sizes: Maintain your current number of meals, increase the portion size for 1 meal or all your meals/snacks.

Increasing calorie intake does not mean stuffing your face with whatever you see in front of you. Where will those ~300-500 calories come from then? For most of you, a combination of high quality carbohydrates and protein.

4. Increase protein intake to 0.8g+ per pound of bodyweight a day

Proteins are the building blocks of our muscles, and the nutrient responsible for repairing our muscle tissues after exercise. The current protein recommendations set out by health organizations and our government target sedentary populations so if you're looking to build muscle, increasing protein intake is a must! I wrote a detailed article on optimal protein intake for people looking to pack on muscle, read it here.

For the beginner trainee and the hardgainer, increasing daily protein intake to 0.8g/lb of bodyweight while eating ~300-500 calories above your maintenance calories is a fail-safe method of gaining weight and packing on muscle. For a 145lb person, aim to consume ~115g of protein a day.

While carbohydrates ultimately fuel our work outs, there should be no shortage of carbs in your diet. Like I alluded to earlier, the extra calorie surplus should come from high-quality carbohydrates like sweet potatoes, rice, bread, pasta  and high-quality protein like egg, whey (milk), chicken, fish and red meats.

5. Acknowledge personal preferences

While meal distribution, protein intake frequency and other minutia may be important, its not a detail a hardgainer should be worrying about.

Whatever schedule allows you to more easily and more enjoyably consume the food required for you to reach your health or aesthetic goals, is the schedule you should stick to. For me personally, I like to backload my calories: eat most of my big meals in the evening and night. I'm simply just not as hungry in the day, and you know what? That's okay, it's not the end of the world if you skip breakfast. It may become a problem if you struggle with maintaining proper energy levels and it impedes your ability to stay productive in your work, school or social life. Address those issues if you run into them.

For now, stick to the basics:

1. Create a good relationship with food
2. Learn how to cook and become self-sufficient
3. Increase calorie intake and protein intake
4. Prioritize whole foods and high-quality nutrients before you satisfy your sweet tooth or dive into that box of cookies.

Happy gaining!

How Much Protein Do You Really Need?

Protein is an essential macronutrient used to build, maintain and repair tissue in our body. There are different recommendations on protein intake, this article will touch on the factors that should be considered when determining an "optimal" amount.

The current Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) for protein is 0.36g/lb of bw (equates to 0.8g/kg of bw). Following these guidelines, a 185lb person is only recommended to consume 67 grams of protein!! Quite far off from the 1g/lb of BW recommendation we often hear from the fitness industry.

The RDA for protein was created for non-exercising individuals to consume enough protein for bodily functions and overall tissue health. However, this amount is not sufficient to meet the needs of athletes undergoing rigorous training . There are several variables involved in calculating protein intake values:

• Body composition (total body weight, especially lean body mass)
• Mode of training (strength vs. endurance vs. mixed)
• Frequency, intensity and volume of training
• Specific body weight goals (losing weight vs. gaining weight)
• Dietary Preferences

For The recreational and Dedicated Strength/power Athlete

Strength athletes want to consume adequate protein for one main reason: to maximize muscle protein synthesis (MPS) in order to to increase muscle mass (hypertrophy). Another benefit of protein consumption is to promote recovery in between training sessions. Supplying enough amino acids to repair our damaged muscle fibers from training is essential to health and making short and long term progress in the gym and on the platform.

Often in the strength training circle, we hear about being in a "anabolic state". What this really means is a positive net protein balance. A positive net protein balance is achieved when dietary protein consumption is greater than protein loss. For strength athletes, many lifters have success with anywhere from 0.8-1.5g of protein per Lb of bodyweight (some even higher, we'll touch on this in a bit). This means a 185lb lifter will consume anywhere from 148g to 278g of protein a day.

So why the large range? It really comes down to dietary preference, training age and current lean body mass. 

Dietary Preference: Lifters that love steak, chicken and fish among other protein sources will have no problem consuming these foods on a regular basis. Their protein intakes will be high, by habit/dietary preference.

Training Age & Current Lean Body Mass: The more experienced of a strength athlete you are, the more likely you'll have greater amounts of muscle mass. The more muscle mass you have, the more protein you'll need to consume to match the demands of you body. A muscular, lean, world-class strength athlete may grativate towards the higher end of protein intake recommendations (1.5g/lb of bw), while a beginner trainee on starting strength or other beginner programs will make great progress consuming 0.8g/lb of bw.

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High Protein Diets

This naturally leads us to the question, are high protein diets safe? Opponents of high protein intakes will argue high protein diets impair kidney function and decrease bone density. However, it is found that high protein intakes are not detrimental to kidney function in individuals with healthy kidneys to begin with and high protein diets are actually positively correlated with increased bone mineral density (elderly).

There is a series of research studies carried out by Jose Antionio et al, on the effects of the very high protein consumption on health and body composition(1.5-2g/lb of bodyweight). They conclude that there is no evidence a high protein diet is harmful, and that they were favorable for body composition goals and body fat control (even at a calorie surplus; very interesting).

Link 1
Link 2
Link 3

"I'm already consuming protein at 1g/lb of bw, in what scenarios should I further increase my intake?"

Periods of Moderate-Large Caloric Deficits

For most lifters in a 300-400+ kcal deficit, I suggest increasing daily protein intake slightly, perhaps to 1.25g/lb of bw. (please note these numbers are far from concrete, these can vary from individual to individual). Doing this will help maintain lean body mass while losing weight/body fat.

Increasing Satiety During Caloric Deficits

Protein is known to be more satiating and has more of a thermogenic effect (takes more energy to digest) compared to carbs and fats. After a high protein meal, individuals usually feel fuller for a longer. For individuals that struggle with hungry during calorie deficits, eating a plentiful amount of protein-rich sources (and a huge salad of course) may be your answer.

Enhanced Recovery

Do you struggle with muscle soreness, and decreased recovery time in between training sessions? Try increasing your protein intake. 

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The protein - carbohydrate trade off

More protein in your diet means less room for carbohydrates. Luckily, recreational lifters and dedicated strength/power athletes do not require a high amount of carbohydrates to fuel performance; with the exception of high-volume training. Before you increase your protein intake, consider the following:

• Is your current carbohydrate intake adequate for performance?
• Do you have to prioritize performance in the gym or do you need to improve your rate of recovery in between sessions?
• Are you in a isocaloric state (maintenance)? Are you in a calorie deficit? Calorie surplus?
• *Can you afford to decrease your carbohydrate or fat intake in order to increase protein intake?*

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the bottom line

Benefits of protein

• Support overall health
• Support muscle growth
• Repair muscle tissue in between training sessions and in times of muscle injury
• Hunger control and satiation
• Controlling body composition and body fat
   

0.8 - 1.5 grams of Protein per pound of bodyweight is sufficient

• The lower end 0.8-1.0g/lb of BW for:
  Beginners and (maybe) Intermediate Strength athletes
  Recreational Lifters
  General health and fitness (if you partake in strength and cardio training)
   
• The higher end 1.0-1.5g/lb of BW for:
  Intermediate and advanced athletes
  Hunger control and satiation
  Athletes in a caloric deficit
  Athletes with a dietary preference for protein sources

Protein Distribution 

• Multiple meals consisting of >20-30g of protein from high quality sources (whey, egg, beef, fish, soy protein)
   
• Aim for protein sources with high amounts of Branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs), this is often what determines protein quality (optimal amount is 3-4g of Leucine)

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