Hey guys,

I've always been one to have an `on-the-fly' meal plan, but after reading some articles on the matter (like marcus' awesome guide), I want to take more control of my nutritional intake.
In the few months I've been following Max-OT I've had strength and size gains, but not nearly as much as I'd expect, which I put down to poor nutrition. I'm not exactly rich, either, I'm a 20yr old student (currently unemployed until I get off my :moon: and find a job), ~175cm, 69kg, no idea bf%, bulking, and I've calculated my BMR to be around 2,770. I'm not sure what that ends up being, but I drafted a meal plan, I'll try it tomorrow and record calories as I go;


Meal 1; * Multi-vitamin
* Oatmeal, w/ low-fat milk & tbsp(?) honey
* Orange/blackcurrant juice
* Toast w/ peanut butter
* Egg(s)?
Meal 2; * 50g can of tuna
* Whey protein w/ low-fat milk
Meal 3; * Steak/chicken pie
* Apple
* Glass of milk
Pre-w/o: Creatine monohydrate
Meal 4 (Post-workout); * Protein shake (Banana, pro. powder, honey, lite milk)
* a fruit/veg
Meal 5 (tea, changes around); * Meat (Chicken breast/Lean pork/Steak/Fish)
* Vegetables
* Potatoes/chips/rice/pasta
Meal 6; * Almonds
* Glass of milk
* 50g can of tuna?

I'm in a houshold where tea is the main meal, so filling in everything else is pretty much up to me for ideas. I don't think I'm eating enough, and my plan seems somewhat basic and inadequate in comparison to Stone's (which I've been using as a guide/example). I work out in the afternoon/evening, but when I return to university near the end of February my nutrition plan will change, and I'll be kicking around the idea of morning workouts.

btw, I want to clear up something of a `n00b question', that I never quite figured out (despite being around a while). During a bulk, you eat more and increase the protein intake to build muscle. Assuming you train with the same intensity & weight when bulking or cutting, during a bulk, is the body building muscle simply because it has more protein available to do so? If so, what happens at `normal' protein levels?


Thanks guys

It's a great start. Once you've been at it for a while, you are probably going to want to tweak it additionally and clean it up. There is plenty of room for improvement. For now, just going to 6 reasonably clean meals from nothing but drinking tea all day is going to be a major difference. I will offer this piece of advice: Get that question mark away from eggs. Whole eggs and egg whites are terrific sources of protein, some would argue the best. When in doubt, eat some eggs. Also, be in tune with your body. There is no one meal plan or accurate intake calculator. If you construct a diet and notice that after certain meals you feel uncomfortably full, bloat up, or are still hungry, adjust as necessary. That's the real secret.

Your second question could (and probably will) be answered in more detail by someone familiar with the exact science of nutrients, but you're essentially right, growth during a bulk comes from the extra nutrients you're providing your body with, not any changes in lifting parameters. It's actually not just the protein that builds the muscle; all of the macronutrients have their role.

growth during a bulk comes from the extra nutrients you're providing your body with, not any changes in lifting parameters. It's actually not just the protein that builds the muscle; all of the macronutrients have their role.

Not sure I completely agree. I think the intensity needs to be there to induce a hypertrophic response.

Is there limits to how much protein is going to build muscle. I don't doubt it, but there will never be a one size fits all answer. If your body can't use the cals floating around....it throws it into storage (fat). The more steady you keep your blood sugar, the better off you are. Even more critical on a bulk.


Chips? make sure their not fried.
Steak/ Chicken pie....homemade I hope
Orange juice...personally I'd just eat an orange and get the fiber benefits.

dodus: Heh yea, eggs aren't exactly on the top of my nutritional must-haves. Starting tomorrow I'll add a few to my breakfast list, they seem to be on everyone else's.
Although everyone else's plans seems to have two or three chicken breasts a day, MRPs, and half a dozen supps- maybe when I can afford it :)

Gordo: I can see there would eventually be a `protein saturation' point. Am I on the right track in saying you could either, a) bulk with a mild protein increase, with slower progress but no bf% increase, or b) bulk on the side of more, using all your work but with a slight excess of energy, ie bf%?

As for the protein question, it just seemed un-naturally simple that more protein = more muscle. It's like a car going faster the more fuel you put into it...

The bigger results are going to come from carbs and or fat than protein. As long as protein is sufficient....the rest is insurance....so I'm not sure what percentage of your body weight you've set your protein requirements for but 1g /lb - 1.5g /lb LBM are good targets.

Almost forgot:
Chips? make sure their not fried.
Steak/ Chicken pie....homemade I hope
Orange juice...personally I'd just eat an orange and get the fiber benefits.
- Oven or fried in olive oil, yea
- No, those frozen 4-pack pies you buy from the supermarket
- That's a nicely simple idea, but I was thinking of some sortof drink to go with breakfast. Does that plan have enough fibre?

So many requirements, foods, supplements, schedules, one can't help but feel somewhat overwhelmed, I feel like an air traffic controller when I try planning anything with food :)
This is, Biggoggs control, with an approaching workout in one hour, turn left to the kitchen to prepare high-protein, low-GI, preferably unprocessed, low-fat, high-fibre, low-cholesterol except in the form of HDL and unsaturated fats(?), on a budget meal, expedite preferably under an hour of preparation, x 6 x 7 x 52. :eek:

It's like a car going faster the more fuel you put into it

except with that analogy....carbs = gas....not protein.

- No, those frozen 4-pack pies you buy from the supermarket
:eek:
I haven't bought one of those in years. Aren't they completely full of lard? What does the nutrition information say on them?

If you want quick, try canned soup.

So many requirements, foods, supplements, schedules, one can't help but feel somewhat overwhelmed, I feel like an air traffic controller when I try planning anything with food :)

Don't worry about it...there's a LOT of information out there. You don't need to process it all right now to be effective. Every step you take in the right direction will eventually pay off.

To help ease the pain, here are two blanket suggestions that can almost never do you wrong. The first is to try to keep all the food and drink you put in your body as natural as possible. Most of the recommendations you get will be related to this principle. Hence the concern about chips, frozen food, and orange juice (usually more sugar than orange juice).

The second is that you will never know what works best for you until you've given it a trial run. Pay close attention to how your body responds to the diet you've chosen. Experiment and make changes as necessary. Yes, a lot of food can be ruled out because it has little nutritional value, but even "clean" food produces different results in different people. Some people eat whole grains all day; others can't touch a carb or they gain 10 pounds. It's a process, but eventually you will file down your regimen until it is perfectly suited to you.

except with that analogy....carbs = gas....not protein.
Carbohydrates provide energy, and the amino acids from protein provide the materials for muscle growth?
So carbs create 4 calories of energy, fat 9... but protein is only used as energy as a last resort, right?

I haven't bought one of those in years. Aren't they completely full of lard? What does the nutrition information say on them?
PCF 8.1:23.4:12.0. Now that I look at the nutritional information (http://www.sargents.com.au/nutritionalinformation/index.cfm), they don't seem too healthy. I've found many are packed with garbage, but these ones are actually premium, with lean chunks of meat and no fat.

dodus: I think consistancy is something else I have to work on, my sleeping habits in particular are all over the place, messing both nutrition and training around. I don't have much of a consistant regimen, just a bunch of `healthy' food I eat every two or three hours. At the moment at least, I'm not overly concerned about gaining bf%, gaining mass has always seemed more difficult than losing fat for me, so a slightly loose nutrition plan while I get my bearings doesn't worry me.

Thanks for the replies guys