My Nutritional Journey - Part II by Coach Mike Ricci In the last issue I talked about the up and downs of nutrition – even for an athlete who doesn’t have too much to lose. If you read that article you would have seen my struggle to get below 165 and stay there. Even on a daily basis this was a battle. I am happy to say that I have been 160 LBS for two solid weeks now and I seem to have nailed my nutrition on a daily basis. Below you will see my body composition analysis. I would like to offer up a few tips of what to avoid and what to include in your daily nutrition to help you get where you want to be. Do’s: Eat a lot of fruit and vegetables (frozen is ok but organic and fresh are best) Eat lean meat, or Tofu or Tempeh Have some protein with every meal Drink plenty of water Eat right after a long or hard workout (within 30 minutes) Don'ts: Don’t eat processed foods Don’t eat cheese Don’t eat cereal Don’t eat before going to bed Don’t backload calories at dinner (meaning this should NOT be your biggest meal of the day) Don’t eat breads/pasta except before a race, big workout or immediately after a tough workout Those are the basic guidelines I followed. Here is a sample day in the life for me: Basic week structure: 14 hours total training broken down as 2.1 swim, 6.3 bike, 4.0 run, and 1.6 of yoga, core strength, and stretch cordz. Weighing in at 160, I estimate my caloric needs for the week to be 3,185. This would be less 500 calories (3,500 calories weekly) if I were aiming to lose a LB per week. The 3,185 I would break out to be around 50% CHO, 25% F, and 25% PRO.   % Calories: Grams: Calories from CHO needed per day: 50% 1,622 406 Calories from PRO needed per day: 25% 811 203 Calories from FAT needed per day: 25% 811 90 Total calories needed per day:     3,245     Here is a typical day for me: Breakfast  Pre-swim Amount Carb(g) Fat (g) Protein(g) Banana 1medium 30 1.0 8 Breakfast Amount Carb(g) Fat (g) Protein(g) Bread – 7 grain 2 pieces 30 1.0 8 boiled eggs 1 1 0.5 12 peanut butter 2 tsp 14 30 16 Grams   72 32 37.2 Cal/gram   4 9 4 Total Cal   288 288 148.8 Breakdown %   39.7 39.7 20.5     Snack Amount Carb(g) Fat (g) Protein(g) Hammergel 4 servings 90 1.0 8 Soy Milk 1 cup 10 3.5 6 Hammer Pro Whey 1 scoop 2 13 18.5 Grams   102 16.5 24.5 Cal/gram   4 9 4 Total Cal   408 148.5 98 Breakdown %   62 23 15     Lunch Amount Carb(g) Fat (g) Protein(g) Turkey breast 2 slices 0 1.0 18 Salad 4 cup 6 .5 3 Soy Milk 1 cup 10 3.5 6 Banana 1 medium 27 .5 1.2 Grams   43 5.5 28.2 Cal/gram   4 9 4 Total Cal   172 50 113 Breakdown %   63 11 25     Dinner Amount Carb(g) Fat (g) Protein(g) Pork Chops 2 pieces 2.6 7.3 21 Penne Pasta 2 servings 200 45 60 Grams   202 52.3 81 Cal/gram   4 9 4 Total Cal   810 470.7 324 Breakdown %   50.5 29.3 20.2     Daily Totals Carb(g) Fat (g) Protein(g) Goals (in grams): 406 90 203 Actual: 447 106 171 Over/Under: -41 -16 32 Goals (in calories): 1622 811 811 Actual: 1786 957 684 Over/Under: -164 -146 128 Actual %: 52.1% 27.9% 19.9% Daily Goals in %: 55.0% 25.0% 25.0% Actual Calories: 3,427     Goal Calories: 3,245     Although I didn’t hit the numbers I wanted to exactly, I came close. There is no perfect meal plan out there, unless you want to wrap your life around it. This was pretty intensive- even for me. I am no longer logging my food, but generally if I see my weight slipping back up, I will start logging my meals again and try to figure out where I am going wrong. The point of this article was to give you some knowledge about how simple nutrition really is. It all comes down to one thing – if you expend (burn off) more calories then you consume, then you will lose weight. If you want to gain weight, then obviously you should consume more then you expend. Below are my Body Compositions tests from this year. Body Composition Analysis: Test Dates: Weight Lean Body LB Fat LB Body Fat % March 16, 2003 169 144.8 23.2 13.8% June 24, 2003 159 147.6 11.75 7.3% The lighter you are does not necessarily mean the faster you will go. A fit person at more then ideal weight when properly fueled will beat the underweight athlete that doesn’t eat properly. This is even more true as the distances go longer. Focus on Body Composition, your body fat (not weight) and you will see improvement. Eat right, train smart, and go like a rocket! Michael Ricci is a USAT certified coach. He can be reached for personal coaching at mike@d3multisport.com. Back to D3 Tips