Coach Steve prefers to keep things simple in a world where there's a new way to workout or stay in shape every week.
It's easy to believe I have a secret no one else in the fitness business knows about when you see some of the results my clients obtain.
The reality is that my success is due to my simplicity and ability to make clients completely obedient.
I don't follow any one nutrition philosophy because the needs of each client define the path I take them along.
However, we've discovered that our recommendations are usually always based on these five essential nutrition practices.
The level of precision and clarity with which these habits are followed is highly dependent on the client's stage.
A customer who wants to go from 30% to 20% bodyfat, for example, will have a lot "looser" strategy than a client who wants to go from 10% to 8% bodyfat, where every aspect must be considered.
Whatever your objective, sticking to these five behaviors won't let you down and will help you stay thin and healthy indefinitely.
#1: Eat a meal eve two to four hours.
While the exact hours aren't crucial, make sure you're eating regularly every day.
If you eat every two to four hours, you'll be eating three to six meals per day.
Where you lie on that range is determined by your lifestyle and, more importantly, what makes you feel the most comfortable.
This behavior is essential for maintaining blood sugar levels, which will lessen hunger and food cravings.
Eating far too little and leaving long gaps between meals is a prescription for disaster, as well as a recipe for bingeing on a box of Oreos. This will not happen if you follow Habit #1.
#2: Include a lean source of protein in each meal
Every meal must include a source of lean protein, which is one of the few unbreakable requirements I have with clients.
If you want to see actual changes in your body composition, you must stick to this routine.
This is a basic rule. Aim for 30-40g every meal for men, which is about 150-200g of raw chicken breast.
Aim for 20-30g of protein every meal for ladies.
Three main reasons why protein is essential for improving your physique:
1. It’s Satiating.
Returning to habit #1, eating enough protein will help you feel satisfied.
Consider the following scenario. When you eat a donut, how do you feel compared to when you eat a steak?
After an hour, the donut will probably leave you wanting more, whereas a steak will keep you satisfied for at least three or four hours.
2. High Thermic Effect of Food (TEF)
The expense of preparing food for usage and storage causes an increase in energy expenditure above resting metabolic rate, which is referred to as TEF.
Protein is far more difficult to break down and digest than carbohydrates and lipids. It's more metabolically costly, thus the body expends more calories.
Protein has a TEF of 25-30% according to some studies, while carbs (5-10%) and lipids (2-5%) have far lower TEFs.
3. Growth and Repair
Protein's main function in the body is to help the body develop and repair tissue. This includes everything from your hair and skin to your muscle cells.
If you're working out hard (which we assume you are), your protein needs will rise. We require a higher level of training frequency to achieve body compositional change, so protein intake should reflect this.
Muscle is metabolically costly, thus you must feed the beast!
#3: Eat vegetables with each meal
We all know that eating your vegetables isimportant…but why?
Here are three reasons:
1. Packed with vitamins and minerals.
No supplement can replace real food. Eating a wide variety of vegetables is best for making sure your vitamin and mineral needs are met. It’ll also help with detoxification and suppression of inflammatory markers. So if you want to look younger, eat more vegetables.
2. Healthy digestion
Vegetables (especially green vegetables such as green beans, kale, broccoli etc.) are typically high in fibre, which will help keep you ‘regular’. This may be particularly important if following a lower carbohydrate diet.
3. Satiety
Satiety is something we keep coming back to. A sustainable diet is one that keeps you compliant, year round. Staying satiated is the easiest way to do this, as it prevents cravings, hunger pangs and any diet ‘outbreaks’.
Vegetables provide this through their high fibre content and overall food volume.
A good rule of thumb with vegetables is to make sure it covers at least a third of your plate. If you’re on a low-carbohydrate diet, make half a plate protein and half a plate veggies.
#4: Consume a mix of healthy fats daily.
Out of all the macronutrients, dietary fat has arguably got the worst reputation. It’s been linked to the obesity crisis, high cholesterol and even heart disease.
While dispelling those myths goes beyond the scope of this article, numerous studies have now proven that fat isn’t the bad guy.
If you want to live a lean and healthy lifestyle, you need fat. It’s an essential nutrient for the body.
Here’s why:
1. Fat is important for the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins through the small intestine (A, D, E and K). If you want the goodness from those veggies you’re eating, you need fat in your diet.
2. Fat is needed to maintain cell membrane health. Cell membranes surround every cell in your body, and their health is critically important in managing inflammation and metabolism.
3. Fat is key in hormonal production.
4. Fat is a great energy source when on low carbohydrate diets.
So what determines ‘healthy’ fats?
Having a lot of different types of fats in your food is very important. There are three types of fats in the body: saturated fat, monounsaturated fat, and polyunsaturated fat. They all play a different role in the body, but they all help the body stay healthy.
Average people don't need to worry about how much of each thing there is.
Adding a healthy fat source to your diet a few times each day will keep things simple.
Trans-fats, which are man-made and have been linked to a number of health problems, are what we will try to stop people from eating.
#5: Ensure the majority of your carbohydrates are consumed either around training and/or at night.
Just like fats don’t make you fat, carbs aren’t the devil either. While not an essential nutrient in the body, there are some clear metabolic benefits:
1. Fuel high-intensity workouts.
Keeping some carbs around your training times can help boost performance, strength and recovery.
2. Increased muscle mass.
After training, muscle protein breakdown is at its highest. Providing the body with carbohydrates at this stage can provide glycogen replenishment when you’re most sensitive, as well as an increased insulin spike to create an ‘anabolic environment’ after training.
While some dismiss the window of opportunity that training provides, our experience with thousands of clients has shown us that having your carbohydrates post workout can really help with building muscle and losing fat.
3. Thyroid output.
Carbs can affect thyroid function directly due to the role insulin has in the conversion of the inactive T4 hormone, into the active T3 hormone (responsible for healthy metabolism).
4. Better sleep
It's a good idea to eat carbs after training and before going to bed, but not all the time.
Carbs can help you sleep better if you eat them at night. You can have 1-2 cups of basmati rice, sweet potatoes, or oatmeal for a good carbohydrate choice.
Meal plans, macronutrient goals, and strict diets all have a place in the world. These are important tools for making big changes to your body when you really need to get down to the nitty-gritty.
As a result, if we want to stay in shape for life, we need to teach ourselves good habits.
It's important to learn these five habits to stay lean and healthy for a long time. These are the habits I think are the best value for your money.