Summer Shape is a special article for FactorySupplements.co.uk, written by yours truly, Nathan Smith.
These articles include a 4 week workout plan, full diet and supplement guide to get you your best results. These dieting plans are loosely based on Intermitted Fasting, which I believe to be the best form of diet, publicised by Martin Berkhan, found on www.leangains.com
We all want to look our best on the beachs, women want to wear bikinis with confidence, guys want 6 packs on their bellies and 6 packs in their hands. We all just want to have fun in the sun, we all want to look good for the beach and above all else...we all leave it until the last minute.
I'm not here to guarantee any miracles, but if you can stick to these basics routines, one for guys and one for girls, with the dieting plan I have mapped out for you all then I can guarantee you will lose weight, tone up, feel healthier and look your best for the beach. I won't pretend it's going to be easy but hey, you left things until the last minute so get down to it. Accompanied with a few gym visits a week ladies, you will lose a dress size at least following this, and guys if you're at the point where you can see like a 4 pack but it's pretty faded, then be prepared to see 6 staring back at the mirror. Just stay committed, if you cheat this diet then don't be surprised if you don't lose weight.
Summer shape is above all convenient, the diet is easy to follow made from 3 meals per day and none of the "6 meal a day metabolism racing" fads, with a wide selection of foods and even a time where snacking and indulgence is encouraged to an extent.
The Diet
If you don't know already then you should know, dieting is the most important part of getting in shape. Whether you're bulking up, cutting down, competing in any event - it's diet. You won't get in good shape unless your body is being provided with the nutrients it needs, and you won't lose body fat without getting rid of the nutrients your body doesn't need. Summer Shapes diet is easy to follow, with an easy to follow formula and food selection ideas, let's get into it;
Carb cutting myth
You always hear of people cutting out carbohydrates completely when trying to lose weight, such as is famous by the likes of the aitkins diet. This is simply a horrific way to diet, your body requires carbohydrates in order to function properly, your hormonal levels, cholesterol, your digestive system, your ability to just think properly and perform to your optimal levels require carbohydrates. Ask any body out there who is a real athlete to cut out their carbs completely and watch them crumble. In fact the only reason why people initially lose so much weight on carb-less diets is due to the amount of water retention they initially lose, since carbohydrates can hold onto water weight. So congratulations if you managed to lose 8lbs of water weight and remain with the same levels of bodyfat, I'm going to sit on here and keep devouring carb after carb and keep enjoying my fine 6 pack.
So what are we going to do?
We are going to structure carbohydrates purposefully. Carbs are a fuel, and as a fuel they should be used accordingly. You will eat what you need in order to perform in the gym, and eat what you need in order to recover sufficiently. We will prioritise protein as the main food group because protein is the most filling nutrient, so hunger cravings will be reduced. A high protein diet is also essential for those looking to keep hold of muscle (and maybe even gain) whilst cutting body fat. We will eat our fats accordingly, consuming what we need in order reap the health benefits without the caloric excess. Obviously every one comes in different shapes and sizes and we all need different amounts of nutrients, so I've made a nice little formula;
Get on the scales, weigh yourself and if you can do pop down to your local gym and get your body fat tested by a personal trainer there. Most lifestyle gyms in the UK have bodyfat testing machines, and certainly any decent personal trainer will be able to caliper you for a small fee. If not, add us on facebook at www.Facebook.com/FitnessFactoryLiverpool and send us a picture via message if you wish, our experienced staff have a pretty good eye for body fat. I promise it's purely professional, your picture won't be replacing any of the fitness models we have on the wall any time soon.
Get your weight in lbs, minus your body fat and then work from there;
i.e 150lbs with 10% bodyfat = 15lbs of bodyfat, 150 minus 15 = 135. Simple enough? If you actually can't be bothered, most people will lose weight perfectly fine just following the template dieting plan.
Women; (Sally can be the example athletes name)
1g protein per lb of lean body mass = (135 x 1 = 135g protein for example athlete)
0.7g carbohydrates per lb of lean body mass = (135 x 0.7 = 95g carbs for example athlete)
Fats are limited to 30g per day no matter who you are.
Men; (Greg can be the example athletes name)
1.5g protein per lb of lean body mass = (150 x 1.5 = 200g protein for example athlete)
0.75g carbohydrates per lb of lean body mass = (135 x 0.75 = 100g carbs for example athlete)
Fats limited to 30g.
Womens Diet Structure (scroll down for mens)
Ideally how it will go for your day ladies is;
Meal 1 whatever time of day
Meal 2 whatever time of day
Training
Meal 3 immediately after training
However it kind of doesn't matter. The important thing is that meal 3 is after training, remember these are just numbers and not times to eat. You could train at 8am, have meal 3 at 10am, then meal 1 at 12, meal 2 at 5pm. See, just numbers, nothing that important =)
So Sally, our example athlete has to fit in 135g protein, 80g carbs and 30g of fats in per day. We're only going to focus on protein and carbs though, because fats will be taken in additional supplements and any that falls in from food, well we just won't worry about it too much. Bare in mind all suggested foods are there for those who do not know macronutrients, if you know your macros you can eat any food you like as long as it fits the nutritional brackets =]
Important note; Salads and steamed veggies that you find in frozen packs do not count towards calories. Use that knowledge wisely.
Meal 1; 40g protein, 20g carbohydrates
Meal suggestions; 2 scoops of PHD Diet Whey with water + 1 Slice of wholemeal toast / (200g tin drained, from brine or water NOT sunflower oil) 135g Tinned Tuna + 2 slices of toast made from Weight Watchers wholemeal bread / 300g cottage cheese + handful of blueberries.
NO SIMPLE CARBOHYDRATES, absolutely not. No mars bars, no cream cakes, none of that stuff.
Meal 2; 40g Protein; 30g Carbohydrates
Meal Suggestions; 1 sachet of CNP Pro M.R or EAS Myoplex / 150g cooked chicken with salsa sauce + 1 cup of mixed vegetables / 150g turkey + 30g rice (which when cooked, will be plentiful) + mixed salad.
NO SIMPLE CARBOHYDRATES, absolutely not. No chocolate bars, no galaxy caramels or muffins. Leave it!
Then you will work out, you can find your work out on this page (coming very soon).
Meal 3; 50g Protein + 45g carbohydrates
This is where things get nice, that 45g of carbohydrates isn't much, but you can get this from whatever the bloody hell you like. My favourite for this has been some chocolate eclairs I found in my local supermarket that only contained 20g of carbohydrates each. Look and you shall find some wonderous things, which means you can have a nice meal and a nice little desert to go with it.
However other meal suggestions are plentiful, 50g of protein is 200g of lean chicken, or 2 tins of drained tuna, 200g lean turkey, 200g beef steak (cut the fat off) just to name a few. Why not try making yourself a chicken curry, or beef stew, or you cook have a great chinese style stir fry and absolutely load your wok full of turkey and mixed vegetables with a wee slice of cheesecake for dessert.
Mens Diet Structure
Right guys, let's get lean and lets do it right. Our example man 'Greg' had the the following needs; he weighted 150lbs at 10% bodyfat, he needed 200g protein per day and 100g of carbohydrates.
Men; (Greg can be the example athletes name)
1.5g protein per lb of lean body mass = (150 x 1.5 = 200g protein for example athlete)
0.75g carbohydrates per lb of lean body mass = (135 x 0.75 = 100g carbs for example athlete)
Fats limited to 30g. Fats will most likely be consumed throughout the foods you eat anyway, but do yourself a favour and purchase some Flaxseed Oil to make sure you're getting your essential healthy fats in.
Ideally;
Meal 1; 70g protein + mixed veggies
Meal 2; 50g protein + 25g carbohydrates
Workout
Meal 3 (post workout meal); 80g protein + 75g carbohydrates
However when you have these meals and when you workout doesn't hugeeely matter, the only set in stone rule is meal 3 IS ALWAYS YOUR POST WORKOUT MEAL. You don't eat Meal 3 and then go "Oh look at the time, I should go the gym", NO! Get your ass to that gym, lift some heavy weights and then eat all of that massive meal that is going to wait you when you get home. If you don't like this, then I guess you don't like having a 6 pack either!
Meal 1; 70g protein + mixed veggies
By mixed veggies I mean the kind you find in the frozen section in your local super market. Trust me, a load of those in a bowl and whacked in the microwave for 2 minutes comes out totally fine and edible, chuck a bit of salsa sauce on there and you have a side dish fit for a king. A king of abs.
I advise only getting 50 at most from food. Your 50g protein serving can come from anything that contains 50g of protein, this includes; 2 tins of drained tuna (brine or water based, no sunflower oil here), 200g cooked chicken, 250g cooked red meat (cut the fat off your steak), 200g turkey. The other 20g should be consumed in the form of Whey Protein. Reflex Instant whey contains 20g per serving, which includes BCAA's. This is for performance as well as recovery, performing the high intensity workouts you will be doing is hard when dieting, your muscles being fueled with a high amount of BCAA's will make this much easier, as well as giving you a nice little drink with your meal.
Meal 2; 50g protein + 25g carbohydrates
Your 50g protein serving can come from anything that contains 50g of protein, this includes; 2 tins of drained tuna (brine or water based, no sunflower oil here), 200g cooked chicken, 250g cooked red meat (cut the fat off your steak), 200g turkey.
The 25g of carbohydrates I am aware isn't much, it isn't supposed to be. This kind of meal I'd advise just having 2 slices of wholemeal toast with, it's easy to remember, easy to cook, easy to consume and won't lay heavy on your stomach whilst providing you with low GI carbs, good for performance and making sure you don't gain any fatty weight.
Then you will workout ideally, but like I said you can workout any time of the day, as long as this following meal is always your post workout meal.
Meal 3; 80g protein + 75g carbohydrates.
Tough one to get in! for this one guys I recommend having half of this liquid style. A 50g serving of any good whey protein powder such as Reflex Instant Whey should give you 40g of protein, put in 25g of oats into the shake and blend it, theres a nice thick shake with complex carbs and quick release protein ideal for after the workout. Having that alongside another 40g of protein and 50g of carbohydrates means you can afford to have;
200g cooked chicken / 200g cooked turkey / 200g beef steak / 2 tins of tuna, if you're thinking what I'm thinking (probably not) then a nice curry can always fit in well here with any one of those meats, or any two or three or those for that instance. No need to limit yourself to one kind. Do yourself a favour and have this as a curry or with salad, so that you can enjoy your 50g of carbohydrates to the full extent. Your carbohydrates due to them being POST WORKOUT, can be simple if you wish. By simple I mean get it from 50g of carbs that come in the form of a slice of cake, or some ice cream, whatever it is you've been putting off all day. Just don't go over 50g of carbohydrates, which so long as you can actually read the back of a packet shouldn't be hard.
