Eating for lifting

Protein intake

There are many different recommendations, depending on who you talk to and their goal.

The minimum amount of protein needed to prevent malnutrition is 0.8 grams per kilogram of body weight per day.

Dr Eric Helms recommends 1.6 to 2.2 grams per kilogram of body weight for lifters. He calls it a “better safe than sorry range”. For strength or muscle gain, its beneficial to be higher than the 0.8g/kg cited above.

 

Here’s an example of how to work it out for an 80kg person.

80 x 1.6 = 128g

80 x 2.2 = 176kg

So the recommended range is 128-176g of protein per day.

Note: For those who use pounds, 1kg = 2.2lbs.

Portion sizes

Precision Nutrition has excellent resources on using hand potions to measure food intake. This is great for anyone who doesn’t want to count calories and does not need accuracy. Here is a summary.

A serving of protein = 1 palm (~20-30g of protein)

A serving of vegetables = 1 fist

A serving of carbs = 1 cupped hand

A serving of fats = 1 thumb

 

Start with 1-2 servings of each per meal and adjust from there.

 

Counting cookies, ice cream, chips and other highly processed food?

One handful = A serving of carbs + A serving of fats

How to handle alcohol?

1 serving of wine, light beer or spirits = A serving of carbs OR A serving of fats

1 serving of mixed drinks, craft beer or dessert wine = 2 serves of  fat OR 2 serves of carbs