My Meal Plan(s)

[JimNAZ]

Hi everyone,

I just thought I would post my meal plan(s) that we have been following the past 4 weeks to get your thoughts. We started Insanity on 1-11 and today (2-6) was the last day of week 4!
Now I dove into the deep end headfirst when we started. I went from no exercise and bad eating habits to Insanity and (I hope) good eating.

Some of the “Bad Habits” were:
I ate a lot of white bread & butter with dinner
Glass of wine every day
Dessert daily late at night (Not a piece of fruit!)
Large portions
Processed frozen dinners 4+ times a week
Cooked/ate with a lot of oil & butter
Etc etc . . .

We started by following the nutrition guide that came with Insanity and kind of got the idea of good eating. (At least much better than before!)

Here is our new way of eating. I know there is not a lot of variety with most of the meals during the day. Unfortunately we do not have a lot of flexibility and time to run with scissors. We get up at 4:45 to workout and are gone for work by 6:45. Plus, I do not do well with liquid meals. I need to feel like I am eating something.

Breakfast:

Proatmeal (my version)
2 packs of Original Quaker instant oatmeal
1 scoop protein (92 cals/18g protein/2g carbs)
Some sort of fruit chopped up in cereal

Or

2 eggs
2 egg whites
2 strips turkey bacon
veggies (mushrooms or peppers in eggs)
1 slice of cheese (sorry Dave)
½ multi-grain English muffin
1 tbsp preserves

and

coffee
1 Tbsp Udo’s Oil

Morning snack:

1 cup Kashi Go Lean
1 cup soy milk (8th Continent – 7g sugar)
1 banana

Lunch:

2 oz of turkey breast
1 slice multi-grain bread
slice tomato/lettuce
1 slice of cheese (Sorry Dave)
1 snack bag full of baby carrots (2 oz ???)
1 cup V8
½ apple or pear

or

Replace turkey with tuna and 1tbsp mayo

Afternoon snack:

Used to be non-fat plain yogurt and fruit but body was rebelling! Plus trying to cut out dairy (Yeah Dave!)
So now it is:
2 tbsp almond butter
1 tbsp preserves
1 slice multi-grain bread
½ apple or pear

Dinner:

Some form of protein (4 oz turkey/chicken breast, shrimp or salmon)
Brown rice (not all the time)
Veggie
Salad with more veggies

Wednesday is pasta night!
2oz multi-grain pasta
1 cup sauce (seasoned up good)
4oz ground turkey breast

1 tbsp Udo’s oil

On Saturday nights we have 1 glass of wine!

So my desired daily calorie intake is 2000-2100 cals. Some of the smaller meals are under 400 calories and a couple of the dinners are 500+ so it usually falls into my desired amount.
** When we first started I was following the nutrition guide word for word and was not even getting 1500 calories a day. It was brought to my attention that I risked my body shutting down so since then I have increased the meals. Some meals it feels like I am forcing the food down because I am full. Not sure if this is OK or not (?).

Also I sometimes do a homemade recovery drink of juice and protein powder. And, lately I feel burned out and muscle fatigue during workouts. It was suggested that I did not have enough fuel in the am since we do not eat before workout. The past few days I have tried drinking some protein during the night (have it made up and if I wake up I drink it). Not sure if it helps much or not yet . . .

Anyway . . . what are your thoughts?

Thanks

Jim

[JimNAZ]

WOW! My meal plan was so "spot on" I left everyone speechless . . . :confused:

[Dave]

Hey Jim - Sorry. This somehow escaped my eyes. I'm going to nitpick here, so keep in mind that this is a nitpicky comment based on a book I'm reading right now. You have a lot of grain based carbs in your diet. Kashi, bread, pasta, etc. The good news is that stuff is all whole wheat, which is probably on top of the grain based carbs food chain. I'd much rather see you get your carbs from fruits and veggies. Let me explain further. I start with the premise that we all have an ideal amount of carbs in our diet. That really depends on your activity level. A sedentary person needs less carbs than someone doing Insanity (e.g. you) and someone doing Insanity needs less carbs than someone training for a half ironman (e.g. me). Carbs create an insulin response and excess insulin creates a whole host of problems. High glycemic index foods, like most grain based carbs and starchy carbs (and sugar) increase the insulin response associated with carb intake. If you accept the premise that there is a perfect amount of carbs to get in your body, then you have to look at the sources of carbs. You can get them from grain based foods, starch roots (e.g. a potato) or fruits and veggies. When you stack those thing up against each other the fruits and veggies come out so far ahead of the others. Fruits and veggies contain micronutrients (vitamins, minerals, fibe,r etc.) and the other carb sources are virtually devoid of micronutritents. These are key in reversing the oxidative process associated with free radicals (huh? http://www.thefitclubnetwork.com/2009/02/free-radicals-not-so-rad-after-all/). In fact, many grain based carbs contain anti-nutrients like gluten and lecithin.

I want to point out that I'm nitpicking here, because you have clearly made great strides in your nutrition. Making big changes like that is not easy, and you really should be applauded for making the changes you have. I also know, the Insanity Elite Nutrition Guide recommends these foods. So, bravo for doing what you've done. To the extent you can, try to eat more fruits and veggies and less grain based carbs. The book I'm reading is called The Primal Blueprint by Mark Sisson (http://www.marksdailyapple.com/primal-blueprint-101/) and this is now the fourth week that I've followed what it has to say. I've never felt better. I've lost 2 pounds (at 5'9" 164 I'm the lightest I've been since high school) and my endurance training seems to be getting easier. I just stopped eating grain based carbs and increased my consumption of fruits and veggies.

[JimNAZ]

Hey Dave . . . I was just teasing about the post. I figured someone would get to it in time . . .

Thanks for responding. I pretty much expected the grain carbs info, and thanks for the kudos. It was not easy going "cold Turkey" on all my bad habits! I have to admit that some of the whole grain stuff kind of taste, well like grains. Not as enjoyable to me. So to continue to eat it instead of white flour products is a challenge. But, at least I know that although not great, it is better than my old ways.
I have and continue to give thought on cutting back on my grain carbs. I have been reading your thread on PB (BTW you have not posted in a while :)) and ordered the book. I received it yesterday and looking to dive in it today. In the past, my challenge has always been that I do not feel satisfied (or full) if I do not include some sort of bread/pasta/rice in my meals. I guess some things will have to come with baby steps . . .

Thanks again for the advice and comments. I am glad that I am heading in the right direction!

Jim

[Dave]

Hey Jim - I have been remiss in my PB thread posts to be sure. We've been super busy this month. A bunch of people waited until Feb 1 to start P90X and more waited until after the Super Bowl. Crazy!!! I was reading it last night thinking that I should put together a summary of the chapter that I had just finished. At one point it gets fairly scientific and I'm afraid I got lost in some of the details. A summary would help us all get a grasp on it. Enjoy the book. I have really been into it.