Eating schedule?

[spartan300]

How often do you eat? Every 2 hours? 3? or do you eat indiscriminately throughout the day? Maybe you just eat when your hungry. How do you stoke your furnace?

[LayzieBone085]

How often do you eat? Every 2 hours? 3? or do you eat indiscriminately throughout the day? Maybe you just eat when your hungry. How do you stoke your furnace?

Stoking the furnace is more important on focusing on overall calories and not meal frequency.
There will be devience if you are enhanced or not enhanced in this equation because of an increased P-Ratio if you are "Taking Gear" and those who are not.
At the end of the day your total caloric intake is what is important and meal frequency should be of lesser importance. That is not to say pre/intra/post are still very important for optimal performance. But there is research showing less meals (4) are better then 6 for Muscle Protein Synthesis.

Some great research to show this:
https://academic.oup.com/nutritionre...3/2/69/1820875
Effects of meal frequency on weight loss and body composition: a meta-analysis

They found that having high quality protein available (20-40 g depending on body size) within two hours post-workout will maximize the anabolic response. Now, how much difference it will make on overall muscular growth is very slim, because the findings didn’t quite reach statistical significance.

Further, they found that you don’t necessarily have to drink that protein shake directly post-workout (as often advertised). If you ate a large meal including a lot of protein 2-3 hours pre-workout, you already have protein in these amounts available to maximize muscle protein synthesis post-workout.

“Pre-and post-exercise meals shouldn’t be separated by more than approximately 3-4 hours, if however, protein is delivered within particularly large mixed-meals (which are inherently more anticatabolic), a case can be made for lengthening the interval to 5–6 hours.”
https://thinkeatlift.com/improve-fat...le-growth-cut/

They also looked at the timing of carbs, and even though they lack data to form any concrete recommendations, the assumption can be made that carbohydrate availability before, during and after exercise is of greater importance for endurance as opposed to strength or hypertrophy goals.
Furthermore, the widely claimed notion that you should combine protein and carbs post-workout for optimal gains have been challenged by recent studies.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/...?dopt=Abstract
Found that adding carbohydrates in quantities of (0.15, or 0.6 g/kg/hr.) post full body resistance training to amplify the protein intake didn’t increase whole body protein balance during a 6-hour post-exercise recovery period, compared to the protein-only treatment.



They found no significant difference in body composition changes from eating 1-2 times a day to 5+ times a day. Their conclusion was:
“Given that adherence is of primary concern concerning nutritional prescription, the number of daily meals consumed should come down to personal choice if one’s goal is to improve body composition.”

Here is a good graph


When it comes to setting up your diet for changing body composition, this is basically what you need to know about nutrient timing and meal frequency:

Nutrient timing and meal frequency is much less important than the previous steps of calories, macros and micros.
Timing of nutrients (protein) around training maximizes anabolic response. However, the benefits are small and if food is ingested in medium to large quantities anywhere within 3-5 hours around the workout, muscle protein synthesis will be maximized.
For the average person, there seems to be no significant difference on body composition between different meal frequencies. It might be for more lean and muscular individuals.
Follow a nutrient timing and meal frequency that you enjoy and can stick to.

[spartan300]

Stoking the furnace is more important on focusing on overall calories and not meal frequency.
There will be devience if you are enhanced or not enhanced in this equation because of an increased P-Ratio if you are "Taking Gear" and those who are not.
At the end of the day your total caloric intake is what is important and meal frequency should be of lesser importance. That is not to say pre/intra/post are still very important for optimal performance. But there is research showing less meals (4) are better then 6 for Muscle Protein Synthesis.

Some great research to show this:
https://academic.oup.com/nutritionre...3/2/69/1820875
Effects of meal frequency on weight loss and body composition: a meta-analysis

They found that having high quality protein available (20-40 g depending on body size) within two hours post-workout will maximize the anabolic response. Now, how much difference it will make on overall muscular growth is very slim, because the findings didn’t quite reach statistical significance.

Further, they found that you don’t necessarily have to drink that protein shake directly post-workout (as often advertised). If you ate a large meal including a lot of protein 2-3 hours pre-workout, you already have protein in these amounts available to maximize muscle protein synthesis post-workout.

“Pre-and post-exercise meals shouldn’t be separated by more than approximately 3-4 hours, if however, protein is delivered within particularly large mixed-meals (which are inherently more anticatabolic), a case can be made for lengthening the interval to 5–6 hours.”
https://thinkeatlift.com/improve-fat...le-growth-cut/

They also looked at the timing of carbs, and even though they lack data to form any concrete recommendations, the assumption can be made that carbohydrate availability before, during and after exercise is of greater importance for endurance as opposed to strength or hypertrophy goals.
Furthermore, the widely claimed notion that you should combine protein and carbs post-workout for optimal gains have been challenged by recent studies.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/...?dopt=Abstract
Found that adding carbohydrates in quantities of (0.15, or 0.6 g/kg/hr.) post full body resistance training to amplify the protein intake didn’t increase whole body protein balance during a 6-hour post-exercise recovery period, compared to the protein-only treatment.



They found no significant difference in body composition changes from eating 1-2 times a day to 5+ times a day. Their conclusion was:
“Given that adherence is of primary concern concerning nutritional prescription, the number of daily meals consumed should come down to personal choice if one’s goal is to improve body composition.”

Here is a good graph


When it comes to setting up your diet for changing body composition, this is basically what you need to know about nutrient timing and meal frequency:

Nutrient timing and meal frequency is much less important than the previous steps of calories, macros and micros.
Timing of nutrients (protein) around training maximizes anabolic response. However, the benefits are small and if food is ingested in medium to large quantities anywhere within 3-5 hours around the workout, muscle protein synthesis will be maximized.
For the average person, there seems to be no significant difference on body composition between different meal frequencies. It might be for more lean and muscular individuals.
Follow a nutrient timing and meal frequency that you enjoy and can stick to.

DAMN BONES! Thanks for taking the time brother! GREAT STUFF!

[Rex]

I´ll just post up this meal plan from somewhere in the middle of my last contest prep.

It´s a lower carb day:

Meal 1 (12:30 – 12:45 pm)
Eggwhites (65g protein)
Rice based pancake mix (120g carbs)

1 hour later Training (no intra)

Meal 2 (4:30pm)
Egg Whites (65g Protein)
Rice Pancakes (120g carbs)

Meal 3 (6:30pm)
Lean Red Meat (65g protein)
Ricecakes (120g carbs)

Meal 4 (8:30pm)
Chicken (65g protein)
Rice Cakes (90g carbs)

1 hour later Training (no intra)

Meal 5 (midnight)
Egg Whites(65g protein)
Rice Pancakes(70g carbs)

Meal 6 (2:00am)
Chicken (65g protein)
Rice Cakes(70g carbs)

Meal 7 (4:00am)
Egg Whites (65g Protein)
Rice Cakes (30 carbs)
eat 1c of Greens

[spartan300]

I´ll just post up this meal plan from somewhere in the middle of my last contest prep.

It´s a lower carb day:

Meal 1 (12:30 – 12:45 pm)
Eggwhites (65g protein)
Rice based pancake mix (120g carbs)

1 hour later Training (no intra)

Meal 2 (4:30pm)
Egg Whites (65g Protein)
Rice Pancakes (120g carbs)

Meal 3 (6:30pm)
Lean Red Meat (65g protein)
Ricecakes (120g carbs)

Meal 4 (8:30pm)
Chicken (65g protein)
Rice Cakes (90g carbs)

1 hour later Training (no intra)

Meal 5 (midnight)
Egg Whites(65g protein)
Rice Pancakes(70g carbs)

Meal 6 (2:00am)
Chicken (65g protein)
Rice Cakes(70g carbs)

Meal 7 (4:00am)
Egg Whites (65g Protein)
Rice Cakes (30 carbs)
eat 1c of Greens

Hey Rex really cool of you to share this with us! Thanks!

[Rex]

Hey Rex really cool of you to share this with us! Thanks!

I appreciate you thanking me.

You are very welcome, Spartan.

[ChrisTuttle]

I´ll just post up this meal plan from somewhere in the middle of my last contest prep.

It´s a lower carb day:

Meal 1 (12:30 – 12:45 pm)
Eggwhites (65g protein)
Rice based pancake mix (120g carbs)

1 hour later Training (no intra)

Meal 2 (4:30pm)
Egg Whites (65g Protein)
Rice Pancakes (120g carbs)

Meal 3 (6:30pm)
Lean Red Meat (65g protein)
Ricecakes (120g carbs)

Meal 4 (8:30pm)
Chicken (65g protein)
Rice Cakes (90g carbs)

1 hour later Training (no intra)

Meal 5 (midnight)
Egg Whites(65g protein)
Rice Pancakes(70g carbs)

Meal 6 (2:00am)
Chicken (65g protein)
Rice Cakes(70g carbs)

Meal 7 (4:00am)
Egg Whites (65g Protein)
Rice Cakes (30 carbs)
eat 1c of Greens

You sleep from 5am until noon?

[ChrisTuttle]

I have 6 meals per day at these intervals in my current day:

6am Meal 1
10am Meal 2
1pm Meal 3
330pm Meal 4
6pm Meal 5
9pm Meal 6

[Rex]

You sleep from 5am until noon?

Yes... :D

[MR.TeachFreak]

How often do you eat? Every 2 hours? 3? or do you eat indiscriminately throughout the day? Maybe you just eat when your hungry. How do you stoke your furnace?

Mine depends on what periods I teach and what period I have for planning. Currently, I eat breakfast at school (7:15am), then a snack meal at the end of first period (9:15am), lunch around 11:30am, then a meal after school, after football practice, then something near bedtime. If I am training after practice I eat a smaller meal near the end of it and a protein shake during my workout.

Next semester planning moved to second period and lunch to second lunch which gives me a better schedule for eating. My meals can be a bit closer to 3 hours inbetween and I wont have to have a snack meal, instead have a full one.

[spartan300]

Mine depends on what periods I teach and what period I have for planning. Currently, I eat breakfast at school (7:15am), then a snack meal at the end of first period (9:15am), lunch around 11:30am, then a meal after school, after football practice, then something near bedtime. If I am training after practice I eat a smaller meal near the end of it and a protein shake during my workout.

Next semester planning moved to second period and lunch to second lunch which gives me a better schedule for eating. My meals can be a bit closer to 3 hours inbetween and I wont have to have a snack meal, instead have a full one.

=)