Critique my diet



tom718

New Member
Jun 11, 2012
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Hi, I'm new to these forums and have been browsing around a bit regarding diet and supplement advice. It seems like there is quite a bit of conflicting info out there, so I would be interested to see the various responses to my specific situation.

About me: 23 years old, 5'11", 145 lbs. I'm pretty lean and would like to stay that way, but I would like to increase strength and muscle tone without gaining a lot of mass. I used to do only distance running, and took up cycling in addition about a year and a half ago. About two months ago I suffered a stress fracture, so for the time being I am doing only cycling. As I've begun to ride a lot more I've found that I burn significantly more calories than during my former running regimen, and I've been trying to adjust my diet accordingly. I'm also trying to become more conscious of nutrition than I have been in the past, and have been experimenting to see what works for me. For the past month or so this has been a typical weekday for me:

7:00am
-hot cereal (oatmeal, grits, or cream of wheat) w/ hemp protein powder mixed in
-glass of 1% milk w/ one scoop of whey powder
-piece of fruit
-some veggies
-can of tuna if I'm extra hungry

10:00am
-plain non-fat Greek yogurt
-piece of fruit
-maybe a few Triscuits (reduced fat, whole wheat)

12:30pm
-footlong oven-roasted chicken from Subway on whole wheat bread, no cheese, no dressing, loaded w/ veggies including avocado
-piece of fruit

3:45pm
one of the following:
-energy bar (I like Balance the best of the ones I've tried)
-two whole wheat organic waffles
-bowl of cheerios or Grape Nuts (no milk)

5:00pm
25-35 mile ride

immediately post-ride: piece of fruit, sometimes a protein shake (maybe 2-3x/week)

immediately after post-ride meal: abs/core (3x/week) or weights (1-2x/week)

about an hour post-ride (~8:00pm):
-either whole wheat pasta/quinoa/brown rice with low-sodium tomato sauce and hemp protein powder mixed in w/ sauce OR some frozen appetizers from Trader Joe's (chicken tacos, fish sticks, etc., I make sure to pick out the low-fat ones)
-glass of 1% milk w/ scoop of whey
-piece of fruit
-veggies
-can of tuna if I'm extra hungry

If I'm hungry again right before bed I might have a protein shake

This usually ends being about 3000 calories/day, which I thought seemed like a lot, but I have actually lost about 3-4 pounds since taking up cycling full time.

I also take a multivitamin, vitamins C, D, E, iron, and calcium supplements, plus flax seed oil and fish oil.

So that's about it. I'm constantly making small tweaks and adjustments, and am eager to hear what others may suggest. Some specific questions would be:

-Am I taking in too much protein?
-How is my timing with regards to carb and protein intake (before vs after ride, morning vs evening, etc)?
-Which protein shake/bar brands do you recommend (if any?)
-Should I do more/less core and weight workouts?
-Should I ditch the vitamins/supplements?
etc, etc

Thanks a bunch if you took the time to read this!
 
Burning more calories biking than running sounds a little off, but if that's what you've noticed, so be it.
Careful with the concentrated protein products, you may not notice the effects until 10-20 years down the road, but kidney failure isn't pretty......
The milk, eggs, chicken & tuna ought to provide all the protein your body needs and then some.
Don't worry about 'bulking up'. Significant increases in muscle mass beyond your genetic potential are very, very difficult to accomplish without using steroids.
Drink plenty of water and eat when you're hungry.
Duh, right?
Riding 20-30 or more miles a day, you're unlikley to gain weight almost regardless of what you eat, but the diety sounds pretty good overall
 
Originally Posted by Nukuhiva .

Burning more calories biking than running sounds a little off, but if that's what you've noticed, so be it.
Careful with the concentrated protein products, you may not notice the effects until 10-20 years down the road, but kidney failure isn't pretty......
The milk, eggs, chicken & tuna ought to provide all the protein your body needs and then some.
Don't worry about 'bulking up'. Significant increases in muscle mass beyond your genetic potential are very, very difficult to accomplish without using steroids.
Drink plenty of water and eat when you're hungry.
Duh, right?
Riding 20-30 or more miles a day, you're unlikley to gain weight almost regardless of what you eat, but the diety sounds pretty good overall
Hey, thanks for the reply!

The burning more calories thing was just a guess, since I've been dropping weight and I figured biking 1.5-2 hours/day (3-4 hours on the weekends) would burn more calories than running 30-40 minutes/day. But I have also stepped up my core routine and gotten much better about cutting out junk food, so that could be it.

You may have a point about the protein. I could see myself giving up the whey and the shakes, but I seriously love the hemp powder. I've been adding it to almost every hot dish I make, it makes everything much more rich and filling. And there's only a modest amount of protein per serving, I think it's like 11g. Plus it's also got carbs and fiber.
 
There are some bodybuilders in their 30's, 40's and beyond who can tell you what it feels like to have spears stab your lower back and genitals every time you go pee-pee.
Never mind the hospital bills.
Just read the labels and pay attention to the cautions and warnings.
Cutting out the junk food is probably why you lost more weight biking than running.
On the METs chart (energy cost of activities), cycling rates between a 4.0 (leisure) and 16.0 (Tour de France, last stage, you're 0.23 seconds behind Contador, he didn't dope and you can see the Arc de Triomphe), running between 8.0 (jogging) and 18.0 (trying to get away from the maniac with the chainsaw).
1.0 would be sitting.
 
You've become so accustomed to powders, pills, potions, and [snake] oils.... maybe you've forgotten that to be healthy.... people need to eat food. You don't seem to be supplementing your diet... your eating a diet of supplements.

Why not try a few days of actual... nothing from a box, can, jar, or mix... actual food. You know real meat, eggs, nuts, fruit, a glass of milk, a piece of pie. Fish that looks like fish... not hunks of meat packed in "spring water" in a can. Subway isn't a bad quick meal. Particularly if you're on the run and need a healthier fast food. But living on a diet of mostly unregulated overly processed "pretend food" sounds risky.... and dull.

If you can't cook buy yourself a Betty Crocker Cook Book. Learn to feed yourself... or find someone to prepare food for you. But people need real food.
 
Originally Posted by Dave Cutter .

You've become so accustomed to powders, pills, potions, and [snake] oils.... maybe you've forgotten that to be healthy.... people need to eat food. You don't seem to be supplementing your diet... your eating a diet of supplements.

Why not try a few days of actual... nothing from a box, can, jar, or mix... actual food. You know real meat, eggs, nuts, fruit, a glass of milk, a piece of pie. Fish that looks like fish... not hunks of meat packed in "spring water" in a can. Subway isn't a bad quick meal. Particularly if you're on the run and need a healthier fast food. But living on a diet of mostly unregulated overly processed "pretend food" sounds risky.... and dull.

If you can't cook buy yourself a Betty Crocker Cook Book. Learn to feed yourself... or find someone to prepare food for you. But people need real food.
Hi, thanks for your input. It's true that I never really learned how to cook properly, although as I mentioned in my post I often make pasta or rice dishes for dinner (albeit with store-bought tomato sauce, but I make an effort to pick the healthiest ones I can find, and I add my own veggies). I would be interested to learn more advanced cooking, although my day is already pretty packed, not a lot of extra time.

I'm curious if you count things like oatmeal and hemp powder as "pretend food"? If there's only one ingredient on the label I'd say that's a pretty good sign, even if it comes in a box. Also I would think plain non-fat Greek yogurt is pretty good for you. Plus I eat tons of fresh fruits and veggies. So, basically I should cut out the whey powder, energy bars, protein shakes (I've been using these less and less lately as I've found them unnecessary), canned tuna, and Trader Joe's frozen foods (usually I only go with these if I'm crunched for time)? Did I miss anything? Oh, I guess the vitamins...I think I may try stopping these for a while (except maybe C and D) and see if I notice any difference. I've been in the habit of taking them since I was a kid.
 
Taking a multivitamin supplement isn't a bad idea, just to make sure you've got all the bases covered.
Other than that, the more fresh/raw stuff you can fit into your diet, the better.
The less ingredients, the better.
Oatmeal rules, so do fresh fruits & raw veggies.
For protein, boil some eggs, cook a chicken, you don't need a cookbook for that.....
Fresh fish is better than canned, if you have a reliable source.
 
I am going to make an effort to start incorporating some of those tips into my diet. Maybe I will learn how to cook chicken this week. One step at a time, haha. Otherwise I get overwhelmed. If I can master the chicken, then maybe I will start thinking about fresh fish (a quick google search gives me the impression that fresh fish is a bit more of a challenge to prepare).

Question about eggs: aren't they very high in cholesterol? You say boiling them is a good idea, is that the healthiest way to prepare them?

I wish I could eat nuts but unfortunately I'm allergic. Also allergic to most legumes, so my healthy protein options are somewhat limited. Chicken, fish, eggs, turkey, ....? I would prefer to avoid red meat.

Thanks for your responses, I really appreciate it!
 
Originally Posted by Dave Cutter .

You've become so accustomed to powders, pills, potions, and [snake] oils.... maybe you've forgotten that to be healthy.... people need to eat food. You don't seem to be supplementing your diet... your eating a diet of supplements.

Why not try a few days of actual... nothing from a box, can, jar, or mix... actual food. You know real meat, eggs, nuts, fruit, a glass of milk, a piece of pie. Fish that looks like fish... not hunks of meat packed in "spring water" in a can. Subway isn't a bad quick meal. Particularly if you're on the run and need a healthier fast food. But living on a diet of mostly unregulated overly processed "pretend food" sounds risky.... and dull.

If you can't cook buy yourself a Betty Crocker Cook Book. Learn to feed yourself... or find someone to prepare food for you. But people need real food.
His description puts him eating healthier than about 90% of the country.

Yes, processed foods should be minimized but the Trader Joe stuff is above average on the processed foods scale as far as additives, preservatives, and saturated fat go. The diet sounds laden with fresh fruits and veggies, whole grains, and low sugar cereals/oatmeal. Nothing wrong with that. Yogurt with active cultures, even though most are destroyed by digestive enzymes, is great for intestinal health. Granted fresh fish, if you can find it is healthier than canned tuna. But canned tuna is fine.And milk? Milk is great, for babies. Drink it if you like it, heck I eat cheeze out the wazoo, but pimping it as some kind of healthy option, high in saturated fat and with a poorly absorbable quality of calcium, is questionable.

A variety of foods and regular intake of fruit/veggies make all the vitamins unessesary imo. Cook your sauce in a cast iron sautoir and forget about the iron supplements. Or eat a piece of steak once in awhile.

I'd be ecstatic if this is what my kid was eating when away at college.
 
Originally Posted by danfoz .

His description puts him eating healthier than about 90% of the country.

Yes, processed foods should be minimized but the Trader Joe stuff is above average on the processed foods scale as far as additives, preservatives, and saturated fat go. The diet sounds laden with fresh fruits and veggies, whole grains, and low sugar cereals/oatmeal. Nothing wrong with that. Yogurt with active cultures, even though most are destroyed by digestive enzymes, is great for intestinal health. Granted fresh fish, if you can find it is healthier than canned tuna. But canned tuna is fine.And milk? Milk is great, for babies. Drink it if you like it, heck I eat cheeze out the wazoo, but pimping it as some kind of healthy option, high in saturated fat and with a poorly absorbable quality of calcium, is questionable.

A variety of foods and regular intake of fruit/veggies make all the vitamins unessesary imo. Cook your sauce in a cast iron sautoir and forget about the iron supplements. Or eat a piece of steak once in awhile.

I'd be ecstatic if this is what my kid was eating when away at college.

Hah, if only I ate like this in college...before 2010 I subscribed to the "I'm a skinny distance runner so I can eat whatever I want" school of thought. Then senior year I quit running and gained 25 pounds in a semester...whoops. It was a good lesson, though. I don't understand how the millions of obese Americans fail to learn this lesson. Don't they feel like **** all the time? That post-running period was awful for me, I had no energy and could barely even get through the day. I don't get it...

I've heard a lot of arguments against milk. What would you recommend as an alternative calcium source? I've actually tried going without milk for a few days, but the yogurt started giving me intestinal issues. I've been drinking Lactaid for a while now (my dad is lactose intolerant and he drinks it, so I do too since it's already in the fridge), and that seems to resolve the problems with the yogurt. I guess I might be at least slightly lactose intolerant also, although I've never had problems with cheese. But, I love the Greek yogurt so I keep drinking the Lactaid (always either 1% or skim).
 
Originally Posted by danfoz .

I'd be ecstatic if this is what my kid was eating when away at college.

After I submitted the post... I wondered if I would come off as critical... I didn't mean to. The OP should be applauded for the desire and commitment to live a healthy athletic lifestyle.

Whatever diet anyone chooses... sooner or later someone will decide it is/was wrong. I [myself] don't trust powers and mixes. I worry the ingredients are not of a fit quality. With whole foods... at least you can see what your eating. Many, many foods have been the known food sources of humans for thousands of years. It would seem logical that those traditional foods must work OK. Why experiment.
 
Originally Posted by Dave Cutter .



After I submitted the post... I wondered if I would come off as critical... I didn't mean to. The OP should be applauded for the desire and commitment to live a healthy athletic lifestyle.

Whatever diet anyone chooses... sooner or later someone will decide it is/was wrong. I [myself] don't trust powers and mixes. I worry the ingredients are not of a fit quality. With whole foods... at least you can see what your eating. Many, many foods have been the known food sources of humans for thousands of years. It would seem logical that those traditional foods must work OK. Why experiment.
I didn't think it was critical but I do know like the OP that I wish I had eaten that well when I was younger, and his diet put mine back then to shame There's no doubt that the more "real" the food the better. At his age it's easier said than done. /img/vbsmilies/smilies/wink.gif

OP, some people do better with dairy than others. I can usually tolerate up to a glass of milk before the gurgling noises start. And to be honest I have a severe weakness for chocolate shakes. Green leafy vegetables are a great source of calcium: Kale, cabbage, broccoli has some too (also a great source of VitC). Yogurt is good - I guzzle Stonyfield french vanilla like it's going out of style (but it's pretty high in sugar). I drink a lot of calcium fortified OJ. Eggs, soybeans, and apparently poultry are good sources too. Vitamin D is important for it's absorption, but as cyclists we don't have to really worry about that cause we are out in the sun a lot.
 
Whenever you can prepare a meal without adding extraneous fat, that would be the 'healthiest' way to prepare it.
Put eggs in water, bring to boil, turn off heat, cover, let sit for 10 minutes or so, put in fridge.
Cook a whole carton like that and you've got protein for days.
Chicken has lots of its' own fat, just put it in the oven or pot, 1 1/2 - 2 hours later, it's done.
Being lactose intolerant sucks, but, as others have mentioned, there are other good sources of calcium.
Don't worry too much about cholesterol, with an active lifestyle, it is unlikely to give you problems.
 
Originally Posted by danfoz .


I didn't think it was critical but I do know like the OP that I wish I had eaten that well when I was younger, and his diet put mine back then to shame There's no doubt that the more "real" the food the better. At his age it's easier said than done. /img/vbsmilies/smilies/wink.gif

OP, some people do better with dairy than others. I can usually tolerate up to a glass of milk before the gurgling noises start. And to be honest I have a severe weakness for chocolate shakes. Green leafy vegetables are a great source of calcium: Kale, cabbage, broccoli has some too (also a great source of VitC). Yogurt is good - I guzzle Stonyfield french vanilla like it's going out of style (but it's pretty high in sugar). I drink a lot of calcium fortified OJ. Eggs, soybeans, and apparently poultry are good sources too. Vitamin D is important for it's absorption, but as cyclists we don't have to really worry about that cause we are out in the sun a lot.
Ya, I do already eat most of that stuff, so I would guess I probably get enough calcium without the milk. I enjoy having a glass with breakfast and dinner though. Vitamin D is a tricky one. I tend to struggle with depression a bit, especially in the winter, and I've found that taking an extra Vitamin D tablet in the morning helps noticeably with that. However I recently started taking meds (Wellbutrin) which has helped tremendously, so I wonder if I would notice anything if I stopped taking the D. Also I tend to do my rides late in the day when the sun is low, and from 8-4 I'm cooped up in a cubicle, so unfortunately I don't get as much sun as I would like.

Originally Posted by Nukuhiva .

Whenever you can prepare a meal without adding extraneous fat, that would be the 'healthiest' way to prepare it.
Put eggs in water, bring to boil, turn off heat, cover, let sit for 10 minutes or so, put in fridge.
Cook a whole carton like that and you've got protein for days.
Chicken has lots of its' own fat, just put it in the oven or pot, 1 1/2 - 2 hours later, it's done.
Being lactose intolerant sucks, but, as others have mentioned, there are other good sources of calcium.
Don't worry too much about cholesterol, with an active lifestyle, it is unlikely to give you problems.
That sounds like an extremely convenient way to cook eggs, I might try that. But the reason I worry about cholesterol is my grandfather died suddenly at age 42 from heart issues. Granted this was back in the 60s and he presumably ate a ton of red meat and didn't exercise, but still. My other grandfather only made it to 65, so I'm guessing my genes aren't exactly top notch.