My Bodybuilding Diet

Most of what you see in the media (Pinterest, online search, “personal testimonials”, etc.) about bodybuilding diets is nothing but plain oatmeal, egg whites, skinless chicken breast, protein shakes, and broccoli.  Plain, plain, PLAIN!!!  So boring.

And I thought to myself… NO WAY.   No fruits??  No banana oat cookies??  No green smoothies?  No CHOCOLATE?? And everyone knows I can’t live without my beets, ha ha.  I just cannot. So if that’s what it takes to build muscle and get a lean and cut physique, then it’s just not for me.

But thanks to my wonderful coach at Next Level Bikini Prep, I see that there’s a whole different (and reasonable!) way of doing things.  Phew!  I do eat a very (much more, even!) structured diet than I used to, with MUCH more protein than I ever have.  I’m not “mostly vegan” anymore… I eat animal protein every day.  And SO. MANY. CALORIES!  I’m actually kind of shocked by how much I can eat and not even gain weight yet.  I say “yet” because I’m supposed to gain some muscle weight so that when I lose fat for the stage I’ll wind up right back at my starting weight.  I’ve never in my life been able to eat this much and not get a belly… it’s the weight-lifting, I tell you!

Wanna see some of my meals?  This is a random assortment of what I’ve eaten over the past few weeks…

Pumpkin cranberry oats, green protein smoothie

I still always have my green smoothie in the morning…with spinach, mint, cucumber, pineapple or papaya, & protein powder.  I have this with a big bowl of oatmeal (not plain!) … I add pumpkin, cranberries, almond butter, & sometimes chopped apple.

Blueberry dragonfruit smoothie bowl with cacao nibs & walnuts

This smoothie bowl is one of my favourite meals- I eat it every day, usually after my workout.  It’s made with with tofu, fruit, & protein powder.  I top it with cacao nibs (my daily chocolate fix!) and walnuts.  Dessert… mid-morning!

Pumpkin applesauce cookies

Along with the smoothie bowl, I eat either a baked sweet potato, or one of these pumpkin applesauce cookies… they’re basically the first cousin of my beloved banana oat cookies.  If you make them, just replace the banana with equal parts mashed cooked pumpkin and unsweetened applesauce (throw in some cinnamon & nutmeg too.)

Spinach salad with roasted pumpkin & beet

My lunch varies, but always includes a beautiful spinach salad, often with roasted beets & pumpkin.  I love my roasted veggies! I also have some type of protein with this- sometimes grilled salmon, sometimes a chickpea pancake made with chickpea flour, eggs, & seasonings like garlic & curry powder.

Sweet potato pancakes

In the afternoon I have another meal/snack, like these sweet potato pancakes.  I make these with mashed sweet potato, eggs, cinnamon, stevia (an herbal sweetener), & a little baking powder.  This is a meal I wouldn’t normally eat if I weren’t training, but hey, I have to shove in the calories somewhere.  And who could resist these cute, fluffy pancakes?  I don’t even try…

Fish & rice, salad, broccoli, avocado

Dinner has changed from being my biggest meal to my smallest… good thing, because I’m pretty dang full by the time 6pm rolls around.  We very often have some type of fish with rice & veggies.  I usually dress mine up with salsa & avocado to make it fancy, because my coach also “gets” good food.  I love that about her!  That’s it… no dessert… and to be honest, I don’t miss it that much.  I’m amazed that I’m not rumbling around for chocolate after dinner like I normally do, but I think I’m just too full of healthy food to care about sweets! Lucky.

Bex 5 weeks training

So here’s a photo I snapped of myself today… after 5 weeks I think there’s beginning to be some pay-off…

It’s only 5 days until Christmas, friends!  May your season be merry and bright… and may you enjoy your yummy food too!  In my next post I’ll give you my recipe for vegan pecan turtles… truly my favourite Christmas candy.  They remind me of my mother… not because she loved them, but because she knew I did, so she made them every year.  So I’m going to pass it along to you, my lovely readers.  Happy Christmas to you all!

 

10 thoughts on “My Bodybuilding Diet”

  1. Good on you!!! Fantastic!!!
    Becca, I am considering to start some body building program myself (non-competitive – just to gain body mass).
    I recently lost 2 kg and can’t put them back, so look too skinny – I know many people would tell you that it’s a good problem to have, but too much it not good! I am aware of the fact, that as we age, we loose muscles and yoga and running don’t make me look even leaner. Any advice? I am not big fan of gyms and would much prefer work – out outside. I have small dumbbells, resistance belts , even heavy ball (use it for boys training) and bosu ball. Any idea where I can find a good program to do on my own? Wish I had you close by!!!
    XXX

    1. Hi dear Sharka, thank you so much and I’m really enjoying it! 🙂 For you… I know it’s as difficult to gain as it is to lose! I’ll PM you some advice… it might take some time but you can do it. You will need to be in calorie excess, probably 300-500 per day consistently, along with some good resistance training. I can send you some exercise routines similar to what we do in bootcamp, and that is all outside using common equipment. You can do it, friend!! 🙂 xoxo

  2. Eileen Palsgrove

    Rebecca,
    As always I think you are amazing!
    You do inspire me and I can use inspiration! Cooking for one is no fun and I just tore another tendon in my right ankle, either on the treadmill or the leg press at HealthBridge–discouraging!
    But you give me great ideas for keeping on with my quest toward good health.
    Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you and your beautiful family.
    Love,
    Eileen

    1. Hello dear Eileen, I know it must be difficult to cook for just yourself after cooking and eating together with Mike all these years… a hard thing to bear. My prayers continue for you as you walk this road. And I’m so sorry to hear about your torn tendon… will pray for your quick healing! It makes me so happy to hear that you get inspiration from reading my blog! Thank you for that. 🙂 Wishing you peace and love this Christmas. much love to you! xoxo

  3. Patricia Creekmore

    You are amazing! Keep up the good work. Merry Christmas to all of you from both of us. Wish we could be together! Pc

  4. Thank you so much for your informative post! Your recipes looks so delicious. I’m having trouble getting leane, I hope you can offer some advice. I’m 5’5″, 128 lb female with 36bust-26waist-37hips. I eat very clean with 1500 calorie restriction, heavy lifting with HIIT 3x a week. My macros: 40% protein (approx 130g of protein a day) 40 carbs & 20 fats. Afrer 3 months ood pure compliance I remained at 31%body fat. Yes I’m size 2 and obese. I thought I would some change but my muscle, fat was exactly before working out and increasing protein. I never lost nor gained. Please help!!

    1. Hi!! Thank you so much for your comment. It sounds like you are working SO hard without seeing the results you want and that must be so frustrating. Your calories are really low for the amount of work your body is doing. You may need a “refeed” to help your metabolism get going… increasing your calories to around 2000 or so to where you are maintaining your weight on that. Your body may be in conservation mode because you’re doing so much heavy lifting and HIIT without the calories to support it (especially muscle growth… and without muscle mass it is harder to get lean.) I would love to work with you more… wanna email me? rebeccalwin@thexpatdietitian.com xo

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