I’ve received several e-mails during the last week asking for examples of my daily planning and the “OP Lean Bastard” menu. Well, it’s not actually that exciting; it’s mostly lean meat, veggies and vegetable oils.

To make it as easy as possible, I’ll take you through an ordinary day with all the meals, its ingredients and some comments.

This is how a regular day may look like:

7.00 AM: 2 Ergogin pills with about 1 liter (0.26 gallons) of water.
8.15 AM: 5g BCAA and 3g creatine.
8.30 AM: Training session.
9.00 AM: Mid-session: 5g BCAA and 3g creatine.
9.30 AM: Doing some HIIT for 15 min or go home.
10.00 AM: Meal 1 and 1 Multivitamin and mineral pill.
2.00 PM: Meal 2.
4.00 PM: 5g BCAA and 3g creatine + 2 Ergogin pills.
6.00 PM: Meal 3 and 1 Multivitamin and mineral pill.
8.00 PM: 5g BCAA and 3g creatine.
10.30 PM: Meal 4.
11.00 PM: Zink, Magnesium, Vitamin-B6 and B12.

Examples of my meals for the day (calculated for a total of about 1740 kcal):

Meal 1 - liquid shake:
Whey and Casein protein powder: 35g
Natural Yogurt: 150g
Blueberries and blackberries: 100g
Whipping cream 40% fat: 50g
Omega-3: 2g (taken separately)

I mix the above ingredients with water and ice-cubes in a blender. This meal is very high in antioxidants, potassium and a bit higher in carbs than the other meals. It’s perfect after a workout. The whipping cream adds great taste and gives me some saturated fats. The yogurt gives some friendly bacteria for my intestines.

Carbs: 19g
Protein: 36g
Fat: 27g
Energy: 463 kcal

Meal 2 & 4:
Minced meat (beef) 4% fat: 100g
Cheese 23% fat: 40g
Vegetable mix: 250g
Olive oil: 4g
Flaxseed oil: 6g
Omega-3: 2g (taken separately)

My vegetable mix contains: spinach, broccoli, cauliflower, tomatoes, carrots, cabbage, green and red peppers, haricots and various onions.

The minced meat is usually grilled as small hamburgers or simply fried in a coated frying pan. Most of the carbs are from vegetables and in the form of fiber, which is crucial in any diet. This meal is also high in vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and phytochemicals. Most of the fat comes from vegetable oils with a slight favor for the Omega-3 rich flaxseed oil. The cheese is in there for flavor, protein, some saturated fats and for the calcium.

Carbs: 7g (mostly fiber)
Protein: 34g
Fat: 26g
Energy: 397 kcal

Meal 3:
Tuna: 125g
Vegetable mix: 250g
Olive oil: 12g
Flaxseed oil: 10g
Omega-3: 2g (taken separately)

This is only a variation of the above meal.

Carbs: 7g (mostly fiber)
Protein: 36g
Fat: 26g
Energy: 406 kcal

Total for the day:
Carbs: 40g (9 E%) (about 20g fiber)
Protein: 160g (38 E%) (including 20g BCAA)
Fat: 105g (53 E%)
Energy: 1744kcal

On off-days, my morning meal contains less yogurt and berries, and thus less carbs. It’s also a bit lower in fat. My energy intake on off-days tends to be around 1600 kcal. The BCAA and creatine are taken between meals with the last serving right before bed.

As you can see, it’s not that exciting. However, all the meals taste great and are as healthy as possible considering the low calorie and high fat intake. And remember, this is an extreme diet and it’s only followed for about 6 to 10 weeks.

Since you consume a lot of veggies, pretty much protein and a lot of fat, you’re never hungry on this diet. With very little carbs, my blood sugar is stable. When I work on programs, articles or other things that occupies my mind, I actually tend to miss meals with an hour or two; simply because I’m not hungry and my energy levels are stable. The BCAA do help a lot though; it keeps you sharp and focused (pretty much, anyway.)

And that reminds me, it’s time to eat. Thanks for reading!

Most athletes today still consume too much carbohydrates, too little protein and usually too little or about the right amount of fat, but from the wrong sources. Now, I’m not advocating a low carb diet for athletes, only a more sensible approach with a more balanced macronutrient breakdown combined with proper nutrient timing.

My first encounter with separating and timing macronutrients (apart from post workout nutrition) was in 1998 when I discussed this topic via e-mail with Don Lemmon (rest in piece, my friend). Don had a lot of ideas; some crazy and some good. In 2000 I wrote about separating fats from carbs and to consume meals containing lean proteins, vegetables and fats during the day with carbs only around the workout. This article got a more detailed follow-up in Exhale Magazine in 2003 (it’s called “Att äta på rätt sätt“, and is still available in Swedish on this website).
In that article I laid the foundation for sensible healthy nutrition and I still build my nutrition programs from that same foundation. We all have the same basic needs, but how we live and exercise calls for individualization of that foundation.

When I meet with endurance and/or performance athletes they usually get between 60 to 70 percent of their energy from carbohydrates, and most of those carbs come from high-starch and high-sugar foods. That’s just plain mad! But that’s not all; they don’t know zilch about nutrient timing either.
Actually, those athletes will perform much better, and improve their health considerably, when they adjust their carb intake to 40 to 50 percent of their total daily calories.

Usually, I start most of them out on 40% carbs, 30% protein and 30% fat. After that I might increase the carb up towards 50% or even 55% if they have excellent carbohydrate tolerance. If someone does, I might bring his fat down to 20%, but most of the time fat intake will stay between 25-30% with proteins filling up the rest.
It’s also important to understand that protein (especially BCAA) is needed for recovery. By consuming high amounts of protein (compared to the old outdated recommendations), athletes can rapidly reverse the breakdown of muscle and thereby reduce recovery time and train at a greater intensity at the next training session.

Now, the key here is nutrient timing. Most of these carbohydrates should be consumed around your training. Your body can handle carbs much better during and after a workout. Your muscles can refill and build up all the glycogen they need when they get starch and sugar in the immediate post-exercise window following a training session. Eating carbs all day long will not result in better filled glycogen stores. It will only contribute a high insulin load, fluctuating energy levels and several modern diseases such as diabetes, inflammation, obesity and other chronic diseases.

During the rest of the day, all meals should be built around lean proteins (lean meat, fish, poultry, eggs etc), colorful vegetables and healthy fats (equal parts from monounsaturated, polyunsaturated and saturated fats). Add one or two pieces of fruit a day and your all set.

Guess what? This is actually the same underlying concept I use when I design nutrition program for bodybuilders and power athletes as well.

For more information about nutrition during and post workout, please read my blog article “Workout drinks“.