This Sport diet guarantees success
We are fitness experts. But when it comes to losing weight or building muscle in a sustainable and healthy way, other factors are just as important as training. One of these, along with a good night’s sleep, is your diet. That’s why we’re going to look at some of the basics of nutrition and show you a sample day from Marc’s life and his sport diet.
Why I love sport. Because it helps me to…
- switch off
- burn off pent-up energy
- find out my limits
- improve my self-esteem
- have fun with friends
- prevent injuries
- stay fit and healthy into old age
- slow down the ageing process
- eat a pizza without feeling guilty
and there are many more reasons. But…
- it won’t give me a six-pack
- I won’t build muscles
- I won’t lose love handles
…if I don’t watch what I eat!!
Which sport diet is best?
Several studies have shown that different diets work. This is also the case in this study, which looked at 4 different groups with 4 different macronutrient distributions (the 3 macronutrients are proteins, fats and carbohydrates).
However, there are other studies, such as this one, that show that a high-protein, low-carbohydrate diet is “more successful” than the other way around. We will explain in the next chapter why we tend to agree with this. We have also written articles about intermittent fasting (German only) and other forms of dieting. But the name already tells you why we are not big fans of them. We want a long-term dietary change based on the Pareto Principle, which allows you to do justice to all facets of life. You do not have to go hungry, you do not have to give up social events or certain products, but you are allowed to make a healthy amount of conscious exceptions and on the other hand you can also enjoy healthy food.
However, one thing applies to all forms of nutrition: if you want to lose weight, you should have a calorie deficit; if you want to gain weight, you should have a calorie surplus.
Not all calories are created equal
It has long been known that not all calories are the same. 300 calories from French fries or a soda are not the same as 300 calories from vegetables or meat. Why is that? Although the energy from the 300 calories from the different foods would heat 1 kilogram of water to exactly the same temperature, they have different effects in or on the body. For example, fructose, which can only be processed in the liver, has a significantly more negative effect on hunger, satiety, and insulin secretion than glucose. Similarly, the digestion of these substances itself consumes energy. Depending on the macronutrient, this energy expenditure for digestion varies. While only 2-3% of the energy is needed to break down fats, as much as 25-30% is needed to break down proteins! This means that a quarter of the energy consumed is never absorbed. For carbohydrates, the figure is 6-8%. In addition, proteins provide a greater sense of satiety. A study showed that the same number of kilos could be lost with foods with a high glycemic index as with those with a low glycemic index, but the second group lost more fat.
The studies on muscle mass loss or maintenance and protein intake during a “weight loss program” clearly show that a minimum amount of protein is needed in addition to strength training to keep muscle mass loss as low as possible. What is unclear is whether a higher amount of protein can maintain muscle mass better than a diet low in protein. This meta-analysis looked at 1542 abstracts and 20 trials that met the required criteria and found that higher protein intake was associated with less muscle mass loss. You can read more about the optimal amount and type of protein in this article.
Based on these examples, it should be clear that how and with what foods you consume your calories does matter.
Micronutrients – why they matter
Food choices are not only important for losing weight or building muscle. It also affects the levels of micronutrients, such as vitamins and minerals, which in turn are responsible for our energy, immune system and recovery. Micronutrients cannot be produced by the body, so it is important to eat a varied and healthy diet to get the full range.
This study shows just that, as well as the fact that more micronutrients are consumed during times of physical (training) and mental (stress) demand, especially vitamins B and C, as well as calcium, zinc, iron and magnesium. A section on pages 7 and 8 shows how complex the whole thing is (unfortunately cannot be copied for copyright reasons).
Important for us is the statement about the connection between vitamin C and acetyl L-carnitine. Fats can only be transported into the mitochondria and burned with sufficient vitamin C and acetyl L-carnitine. We often recommend both supplements individually or in combination (with many other substances) via Beef Liver.
For those interested, the micronutrients are listed in the link above, along with their function and where they occur.
In summary, macro and micronutrients affect our performance, our immune system, our hormonal system (cortisol, estrogen, testosterone, etc.), and even our genes (epigenetics sends its regards!).
How food can affect your digestion and sleep
Foods that cause digestive upset, such as diarrhea or bloating, should be avoided. These can vary greatly from person to person. Some people are intolerant to gluten, others to dairy, and still others to fructose from fruit. Special attention should also be paid to FODMAPs.
There are also foods that you may not have a problem with, but that can affect your sleep. These include foods that are difficult to digest, such as raw vegetables, or very fatty foods, such as fondue, as well as alcohol. Anyone who claims that alcohol helps them sleep deeply and well has never tracked their sleep with a wearable.
The following should apply to everyone:
Food should be consumed as unprocessed as possible, free of pesticides (thus organic quality) and other things like emulsifiers, artificial sweeteners, dyes and preservatives. For example, since there was no such thing as a protein bar, we made our own. Here you can read more about the PwVr bar from Personalworkout with over 20g of protein in 60 grams.
A day in Marc’s food diary
And what does that mean for everyday life? A typical day in Marc’s diet looks like this:
- Breakfast: 4-egg omelet with grated cheese and pepperoni, 3 fried eggs or 4-minute eggs with one to two slices of bread or a cup of high-protein cottage cheese with berries or a passion fruit. During a cutting phase (to reduce body fat), there is no bread for breakfast.
- Snacks: protein bars, cottage cheese, dried meat, fruit, nuts
- Lunch: Meat or fish with vegetables or salad. If you are in a muscle-building or maintenance phase, you can also eat carbohydrates such as rice, potatoes, or gluten-free pasta. If you are in a cutting phase (reducing body fat), you should not eat carbohydrates with this meal.
- Snack: Whey protein shake. If you are in a mass building phase, additional snacks to meet caloric goals.
- Dinner: Same as lunch. However, carbohydrates are always part of this meal because they are beneficial for sleep (serotonin, melatonin).
You can also check out this blog post for snacks.
Conclusion
Nutrition is not complicated. Nutrition is complicated by those who have something to sell, or by ourselves, because we cannot handle too much freedom. But we have to learn, because restricting food (unless it causes problems) or times of day or working with restrictions is a first step in the wrong direction. This may work in the short term, but in the medium and long term, such forms of nutrition rarely work because they are not suitable for everyday life. A yo-yo effect is then likely.
Want to learn more about an ideal sport diet? Discover more valuable information in our free nutrition guide (German only). Our Kitchen Workout cookbook (German only) is also packed with delicious and healthy recipes that are easy to follow
So what are you waiting for? With the right workout plan, there’s nothing standing in the way of your six-pack!
SOURCES
- https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9273773/
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15941879
- https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/6-reasons-why-a-calorie-is-not-a-calorie
- https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3735822/
- https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5421125/
- https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4892287/
- https://www.researchgate.net/publication/368146972_Increased_Micronutrient_Requirements_during_Physiologically_Demanding_Situations_Review_of_the_Current_Evidence
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