When people see me take down a whole pizza and still have a six pack, they assume that I have great genetics. I wish that was the case, but it isn’t. My genetics are awful, so what’s my secret? The secret to me staying in shape all year long is consistency. You might see me eat some pretty epic cheat meals on social media, but I make sure to walk our dogs twice a day, garden every day, go to the gym at least five days a week, and most importantly, eat clean about 95% of the time. For me, that combination is a very healthy lifestyle.
Clean eating is a very relative term. You might read what I eat below and be shocked by the number of carbohydrates that I consume. Carbs are the most popular energy source for endurance athletes. They allow me to succeed in my hardcore training sessions. When I swam in college, I’d consume over 4,000 calories in carbs alone every day. This means that I don’t want you to steal my plan below and eat it for yourself. It probably wouldn’t work out well for you. You’d gain a lot of weight and your energy levels would be thrown way off. You’d need to make some adjustments, or rather, you’d need a qualified professional to help you make those adjustments.
On that note, I don’t believe in cookie cutter programs. (Not naming any names here.) Why? There are many factors that need to be taken into consideration when creating a routine (nutrition & exercise) for a unique individual. (That’s you!) Make sure that you’re not trying something because it worked for your friend. You are not your friend. That could result in wasted time and money. Also, please don’t take advice from Joe Somebody on this topic. What you put into your body is very important!
One last note… this is not what I want to eat, by any means. While I enjoy all the food below, I’d rather eat pizza, sushi and ice cream all day, every day. I love brownie sundaes, milkshakes, and massive BBQ platters. Also, this isn’t my cleanest eating. If I was competing right now, whether in a certain sport or looking right for a photo shoot, I’d have to make adjustments to my macro-nutrient intake based on some time consuming calculations. This is a balance of what is: affordable, convenient, tasty, sustainable, healthy, fuels me, etc. (If you have any questions about that last sentence, please feel free to ask in the comment section below.) This is how I stay hungry and fit!
Meal 1: (~5:30 am, before AM dog walk)
- Protein Bar – Optimum Nutrition Protein Wafer (Chocolate Raspberry Creme)
- 24 oz Tap Water
- Allergy Pill – Aller-Tec
Meal 2: (~6:45 am, while prepping food for our 4 pets)
- Preworkout – 2 Heaping Scoops, 12 oz Tap Water, 7 Ice-cubes ; Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard Pre-Workout (Blueberry Lemonade)
- 4 oz Beef Jerky – Don’t Have a Brand I Absolutely Love (Feel free to recommend…)
Meal 3: (~8:30 am, home from the gym)
- Protein Shake: 12 oz Silk Original Soy Milk; 2 Scoops Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard 100% Whey (Double Rich Chocolate)
- 12 oz Iced Green Tea (We have a huge stash, but I love Celestial Seasonings)
- 24 oz Tap Water
- My Pills: Multi-Vitamin, Joint Supplement, Fish Oil, BCAAs
Meal 4: (~10:30 am)
- Kimchi Scramble: 1 cup ground chicken, 3 large eggs, 8 oz kimchi, 1 handful spinach, 1 tablespoon green dragon sauce, 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 32 oz Tap Water
Meal 5: (~1:30 pm)
- Sesame Tuna Rice Bowl: 1.5 cups jasmine rice, 1 can chunk light tuna, 1 tablespoon sesame oil, 1 teaspoon sesame seeds, 1 tablespoon Ponzu sauce, 2 tablespoons pickled radish
- 32 oz water
Meal 6: DINNER (~5-7 pm)
- I usually eat this with Alana so it is something different and very flexible. we either make a “normal” dinner at home, a fancy dinner at home or go out to eat. I know, this isn’t very helpful! We might have our one cheat meal a week here.
Meal 7: (~9 pm, an hour or so before bed)
- 4 Kodiak Cake Power Pancakes, 2 tablespoons maple syrup, 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon, 1 cup Chobani greek yogurt
