Critique of a womans diet...anyone?

[ironwings]

About weight and diet - Even though you are lean DIET is 100% key to seeing abs. Trust me - all competitors will tell you the same - even though it is frustrating as hell. I can see mine one morning and if I have a planned cheat meal I know the next morning I will not see them - it sucks but so true. You hold water and a thin layer of fat there all the time. It is hard to hear when you are already lean and think you can afford to not worry about diet so much. We've all been there. (speaking from a women's point of view - men typically don't have the same challenge us ladies do!)

Ideally you would add some lean muscle mass and drop body fat. Which may or may not mean you drop weight on the scale. If you go back to the beginning of my journal in the ladies forum you will see pics of before and after. Before I weighed in the low 120's and after heavy training I weighed much more (can't recall right off what my weight was then but it states it) but looked MUCH leaner. I wanted to show ladies that you can gain muscle and weigh more but look much leaner then at a lower weight.

Thandie is our diet expert and if you look at her pics - you'll see why. Her advice about protein and fat are right on. About ab work - you aren't going to bulk - I promise. The only thing that can make you a bit "squarer" are heavy (200lbs or more) barbell squats. They tend to bulk your mid section. I shouldn't say the "only" thing - but it is certainly the most obvious. Also, it is all about playing with your symmetry. If you want abs you have to work them hard. Working your shoulders and the V in your back will make your mid section appear thinner. A nice tight lower back and round hips also work.

Sounds like you are on the right track - welcome to EF and I hope to see you posting!! Good luck!

 

[hudfia]

Can I just say how grateful I am to all of you for giving me such good advice... I'm really impressed at how encouraging everybody is on this forum, I haven't found that anywhere else!!

I know deep down that great abs are made in the kitchen, but when that big box of chocolates are staring you in the face after a long week at work it's hard to stay motivated enough to grab for the chicken breast. Last summer I ate really well and only had on 'cheat' meal a week and my abs started to show really well, but then I thought 'they are showing now, I might as well reward myself with some ice cream, it's not gonna hurt' but I've realized that one glitch and you're on a downward spiral because I didn't stop eating junk until a week ago LOL!

Now I am sticking to my really clean diet and just going back to a treat a week. But what would you say is the single most important thing diet wise that is going to get me there? As in low carbs? No carbs after 3pm? No fat before bedtime?

Can anybody also recommend a good casein protein shake? I noticed Thandie told me to have one before bedtime and since you say she's the diet expert I think I will take her advice.

 

[Thandie]

Can I just say how grateful I am to all of you for giving me such good advice... I'm really impressed at how encouraging everybody is on this forum, I haven't found that anywhere else!!

I know deep down that great abs are made in the kitchen, but when that big box of chocolates are staring you in the face after a long week at work it's hard to stay motivated enough to grab for the chicken breast. Last summer I ate really well and only had on 'cheat' meal a week and my abs started to show really well, but then I thought 'they are showing now, I might as well reward myself with some ice cream, it's not gonna hurt' but I've realized that one glitch and you're on a downward spiral because I didn't stop eating junk until a week ago LOL!

Now I am sticking to my really clean diet and just going back to a treat a week. But what would you say is the single most important thing diet wise that is going to get me there? As in low carbs? No carbs after 3pm? No fat before bedtime?

Can anybody also recommend a good casein protein shake? I noticed Thandie told me to have one before bedtime and since you say she's the diet expert I think I will take her advice.

Hudfia,
What's going to get you there is a clean diet as you already know. No magic here. The tighter you have it the sooner you'll get there. Do not go too low on carbs because that's part of where you'll get energy (therefore higher metabolic rate). You need to have a balanced diet. Protein/carbs/fat. Once you go too high on any of these, you'll start retaining bb. Patience is the key. You'll not get there overnight.
Do your cardio, eat clean, drink plenty of water. As you go along, ask questions and I can tweek things around for you. There's no cookie cutter aproach, I'm afraid.

Casein you can have, but it has to be included in your macros. NOT extra protein. There's a pp called 100% casein,which is pretty good. I like the chocolate.