Maybe no one told you.
It's an honest mistake.
But now it's time to help you eat like a man should.
To get rid of this awful named "dad bod".
It hurts me to even type that.
I feel for you, really I do.
And it's my duty to give you the right information to change this problem.
So take notes and TAKE ACTION!
Best Diet Tips for Men to Destroy the “Dad Bod”
Let's start with a basic grocery list for the week. Keep it simple and stick to the outside of the store. (meats, produce, dairy)
1- Grocery Shopping is VERY VERY VERY Important
Sample Grocery List for a week of eating
Protein – chicken thighs, eggs, protein powder, greek yogurt
Carbs- sweet potato, oats, bananas, apples
Fats- natural peanut butter, coconut oil
Veggies- broccoli, salad mix, peppers
Snack – popcorn (plain)
Now that you have a week's worth of foods you need to prep some meals on Sunday. Make sure you have containers for the meals to store in the fridge and try to portion them evenly.
2- Cook Your Own Food 90% of the Time
Learning to cook, even just some basic meals, will help you tremendously. If you absolutely hate cooking and won't do it then get a meal prep service that cooks healthy food- like BBG2GO which I wrote a review on HERE
Cooking doesn't have to be complicated. Learn the basics. You should be able to cook 4-5 quality meals that will satisfy your macro-nutrient needs and also your taste-buds.
By cooking, I don't mean taking some box from the freezer and throwing it into the microwave. Cook from scratch.
Grab a protein source and a vegetable. Cook the protein either on the grill or in a pan with coconut oil or olive oil spray. Steam the veggies or cook them in the oven/on the grill with some salt and pepper and extra virgin olive oil.
That's it. One solid meal done. Now, just cook up double or triple and have a few leftover meals.
For carbs you can cook up some rice or potatoes once or twice a day depending on your caloric needs. Keep these portions small.
Most of your plate should be vegetables and protein. Save carbs to post workout mainly or just dinner meals.
3- Be Boring (Eat the Same Meals Often)
Of course you want variety. It would be so boring to eat the same foods all the time.
But listen up. The more you can streamline this process, the better results you will get.
Now I don't mean you have to eat chicken and broccoli four times a day. Limit the amount of variety for 2 weeks.
Just try it.
Pick out 2 meals for breakfast to vary each day. Then pick out 2 meals for lunch per week and 2 dinner meals. These are interchangeable by the way. You can have your dinner meal for breakfast and vice versa. That's another trick to make things easier/add some variety.
So if you have different options for each day, that's enough variety to keep you on track and not feel like you are just eating the same thing over and over.
You also have enough of the same meals to eliminate wasting time trying to come up with recipes last minute, or ordering take-out.
After two weeks you can choose 6 different meals. What you will find is that the meals are often quite similar to each other with slight modifications.
4. Cook For A Football Team (make extra for "leftovers")
For best results getting rid of the dreaded 'dad bod', cook in bulk as much as possible.
Have leftovers ready to go in the fridge so you don't even have to think about it.
You know what you are going to eat. The temptation to order out/eat junk is reduced. Plan for success. If you fail to plan you make it that much harder on yourself. Don't do that.
5. Carbs Are Not the Devil (Fats Aren't Either)
Don't be afraid of any macronutrient, (protein, carbs, fats) or any food.
It's amazing to me how powerful marketing is. A company can put 'low carb' or 'low fat' or 'low calorie' on a product and it's instantly a healthier option.
I know how confusing it can be to make sense of all the healthy options out there. Every day there's a new report on what's bad or good, how can you keep it straight?
Here's what you do. Disregard any marketing messages on the product.
When you stick to foods with one ingredient (meats, rice, potatoes, fish, eggs, fruit, veggies) you don't need to worry about 'low fat low carb'.
If you have a protein shake try to find a protein with minimal ingredients, although this can be a challenge.
6. Have a Snack Then Get Back on Track
For your snack each week, don't worry about it. Just pick whatever you want and have that one day a week.
If you stick to the plan for 5 days then you can enjoy your favorite snack and don't feel guilty doing it.
This plan, along with strength training/high-intensity cardio 3-4 times per week will destroy that dad bod.
7. Adjust When You Hit a Fat Loss Plateau
Your nutrition needs are unique to you and your goal.
Find out an estimate for your maintenance calories. Adjust up or down depending on your goal. If you want to cut body fat then drop the calories per day by 300-500. If you want to build muscle, add 300-500 per day.
8. You Don't Need to Waste Money on Supplements
Take vitamins/minerals to supplement. Not pre-workout/ post-workout junk that you don't need.
Supplement companies want you to believe you need all their junk to get the body you desire.
You don't.
You really don't even need protein powder.
It's a nice way to get protein into your diet without having to cook and it's quick but there's nothing about the protein powder that's any more miraculous than a meal of eggs or tuna or steak.
The real offenders are the pre-workout stimulants and the post workout recovery supplements.
Most of these are just garbage. A waste of money. Better off spending that $60 on a massage and a cup of coffee. The coffee is just as effective and the massage is much more enjoyable.
9. Men Need More Vitamins and Minerals
One area I do think men can improve upon is the intake of certain vitamins and minerals.
Since our way of life has depleted the soil and water and our diets aren't chock-full of tons of veggies, it's beneficial to take some extra vitamins and minerals like magnesium, zinc, vitamin c, fish oil, vitamin d.
Eating fruits and veggies and meats/seafood will provide a good amount of vitamins/minerals but you can add in some supplements if you desire.
Or you could get a "Greens" powder supplement which has a ton of vitamins/minerals. Just for healthy insurance, I like to say.
So there you have a nutrition plan to attack your "dad-bod".
Don't forget the most important part of all this... you must TAKE ACTION!
All the information in the world won't do anything for your gut and man-boobs! Now get to the grocery store and start your week off right.
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