Wednesday, December 3, 2008

PSMF Day 2

Day 2 didn't go so well in terms of overall target. I ran on all of 40 calories from my post-9:30 a.m. workout blend of Emergen-C and BCAA till I got home at close to 9:00 p.m. -- it also meant that I only had time to have 2 scoops of whey protein, 4 fish oil caps, a tablespoonful of PB2, and 2 slices of whole grain bread before it was bed time. Going without food for a long time really doesn't bother me much, because I've been so conditioned to just keep going (esp. in the Army) with limited amounts of sustenance. In fact, it's odd. I never get hungry when I'm or away from food, but am stricken with the worst cravings whenever it's accessible. Pfffffffttt.

Oh, and yes, I know you must be saying -- bread???? Yeah, I know, that should've been eons away from anything that dares to call itself a PSMF, but it was from Whole Foods and aptly named "Seeduction Bread". Well, obviously, I was see-duced. (On that note, it's a very healthy bread and I recommend it wholeheartedly to anyone who isn't on Paleo/low-carb kind of eating plan. Dense, nutty, flavorful and packed with all sorts of Good Things).

But I used Fitday to total up my calories and macronutrients and it came up to 512 calories (alright, waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too low), 61.3 g protein, 43.6 g carbs, and 9.0 g fat. Alright. More protein today, no more Seeduction bread, and hopefully a better day! Although I'll have to do 50 burpees to make up for my transgression.

(Oh, and I don't mean to make you tumble from your low-carb/no grains wagon, but here's a recipe for the amazing Seeduction Bread. Look! Isn't it gorgeous?)

Monday, December 1, 2008

PSMF Day 1

Alright, so I'm going to religiously log everything that I ingest for the next 12 days on this blog! This PSMF diet is not going to be fun at all, but I guess there's no harm putting myself through this experiment for 12 days. For those of you who aren't aware, I'm following Lyle McDonald's Rapid Fat Loss Handbook plan. More information regarding this diet can be found on his site. Or you can just ask me if you're interested in finding out more about it.

This diet is unique because it doesn't provide any strict guidelines regarding caloric intake. It does, however, provide a recommendation on protein intake, based on several factors (% of LBM, activity level, etc.). So, basically, you shoot for the protein recommendation while keeping daily carbohydrate intake below 100 g (ideally, lower), and fat intake as low as possible (Lyle does recommend supplementing with 10 g of fish oil daily so as to ensure a decent supply of essential fatty acids). Obviously, there are going to be some tagalong fat and carbohydrate grams in most of the foods that you eat to meet your protein requirements, and you don't have to sweat those.

Using myself as an example, if I were to calculate my strict caloric intake using the recommendation of 204 g of protein, I'd be consuming 816 kcal per day (all from protein). And then I'll have to factor in calories from other sources -- fish oil (90 kcal, all fat), supplements (~50-70 kcal, protein mostly), and vegetables (I'm thinking probably around 100-200 kcal from an assortment of vegetables, since I have the ability to eat up to 8 cups of broccoli in any given day), as well as the tagalong calories that I mentioned earlier (100-200 kcal or so). That will bring me to somewhere in the region of 1,200-1,400 kcal a day. Low, but not insanely so, and sustainable for two weeks or so, I think.

And, for the record, I'll have to regretfully decline all meal invitations till this initial PSMF run ends. It's far easier to keep a tab on my diet when everything that I consume has been prepared by myself, just so I know what exactly's gone into it!

***
Body Composition
Weight: 127 lbs
Bodyfat %: 19.5%
LBM: 102 lbs
Your Fat Mass: 25 lbs

Diet Suitability
Diet Category: 1

PSMF Diet Recommendations
Protein Per Day: 204 g

Frequency and Duration of Free Meals, Refeeds and Full Diet Breaks
As a category 1 dieter, you should have a full diet break every 11-12 days, resulting in a 2-3 day full refeed. You are not allowed any free meals.

Other Dietary Recommendations
Essential Fatty Acids
10g per day of fish oil capsules or liquid fish oils.

Water
Drink sufficient water to stay hydrated.

Vegetables
Unlimited amount of vegetables except starchy vegetables such as peas, carrots and corn. (Alright, I'm going to town on broccoli...)

Limitless Food Choices
Lemon Juice
All spices
Vinegar
Mustard
Soy Sauce
Salsa
Diet Free Soda
Coffee (no cream or sugar)
Crystal Light or other sugar free drinks
Teas (no sugar)
Broth/Bouillon

Supplements
1 Multivitamin/day
3 - 5g of Sodium/day
1g of Potassium/day
500mg Magnesium/day
600-1200mg Calcium/day

Recommendations for Athletes
5g of a fast acting carbohydrate 5-10 minuts before workouts.
Possibly 15-20g of carbs (e.g. Gatorade) sipped during workouts.
***

I'm combining the PSMF with something along the lines of IF (intermittent fasting) because I think that'll work better for my sanity, due to the relatively low calories. I'm shooting for a 14/16-hour fast each day (lasting from 10:00 p.m. to anywhere between 12:00-2:00 p.m. the next day). That'll leave me with an 8-10 hour eating window.

PSMF Day 1 - Monday, December 1, 2008
0900
2 caps L-Glutamine (1500 mg)

0930
Workout (Charge)

1100
1 serving BCAA (5 g): 20kcal/5g P/0g C/0g F
1 serving Emergen-C: 20kcal/0g P/5g C/0g F

1215
9 caps Fish Oil (~10 g): 90 kcal/0g P/0g C/10g F

Uh-oh... I hope there aren't any nasty aftereffects that come from swallowing my day's worth of EFAs all at once. Haha. I'll definitely report back if I'm plagued by noxious fish oil burps. But I haven't ever experienced those before. They sound pretty gross.

1415
1 serving ON Whey Protein + 1 tsp cinnamon + 1/2 tsp vanilla extract: 120 kcal/24g P/3g C/1g F
1 egg white: 17 kcal/3.6g P/0.2g C/0.1g F

Subtotal: 267 kcal/32.6g P/8.2g C/11.1g F

1600
1 egg white: 17 kcal/3.6g P/0.2g C/0.1g F
2 tbsp PB2: 53.3 kcal/5.65g P/3.4g C/1.87g F)

Yes, it's powdered peanut butter. Who knew? This stuff is AMAZING for nut butter lovers aka. Nutheads like myself, since I have a tendency to go to town with a spoon in my hand when it comes to almond butter/peanut butter/general nutty, creamy, fatty goodness. I'll have to review it sometime.

And here is where the fun starts...

1800
1 serving ON Whey Protein + 1 tsp cinnamon + 1/2 tsp vanilla extract: 120 kcal/24g P/3g C/1g F
3 egg whites: 51 kcal/10.8g P/0.6g C/0.3g F

1900
4 cups shredded cabbage: 80 kcal/4g P/16g C/0g F
4 oz cooked chicken breast: 160 kcal/24g P/0g C/1.5g F
2 egg whites: 34 kcal/7.2g P/0.4g C/0.2g F
12 oz broccoli: 100 kcal/12g P/16g C/0g F
8 oz lentil dip: 88 kcal/8g P/16g C/0g F

2130
1 serving ON Whey Protein + 1 tsp cinnamon + 1/2 tsp vanilla extract: 120 kcal/24g P/3g C/1g F
2 tbsp almond butter: 190 kcal/8g P/3g C/12g F

Total for Day 1:
1280 kcal/157.05g P/69.8g C/29.17g F


Only managed to get in 3/4th of my protein requirement today. 204 g is a lot of protein (almost double bodyweight), and it's hard to take in that much protein without tagalong carbs/fats. Oh well. Will try again tomorrow. Overall, pretty pleased with Day 1! Hooyah!