Plan diet

Rob Sulaver’s The Nutrient Timing plan is all about eating the right foods, in the right amounts, at the right times (especially in relation to exercise.) That means our nutrition plan will be structured around our legit, hardcore training program.

What are we eating?

The Nutrient timing plan focuses on whole, unprocessed from-the-earth foods. That means a TON of vegetables, plenty of healthy meats, and balanced, natural fats. We’ll be baking carrot fries, grilling pork chops, roasting Brussels sprouts, and simmering steaks. Our plate should include a variety of colors and an eclectic mix of flavors: we’ll be GEEKING OUT about herbs and spices - cumin and cauliflower, basil and tomato, thyme and roast beef, cinnamon and pretty much anything. We’ll be eating FOOD….you know, real food. If you can’t pronounce it, we’re probably not eating it.

How much are we eating?

The Nutrient Timing Plan uses your hand as a measuring device. For women: 1 palm of protein, 2 fist of vegetables, and 2 thumbs of fat per meal. For men: 1.5-2 palms of protein, 2 fist of vegetables, and 3 thumbs of fat at every meal.

*These are recommended starting points and can be adjusted based on progress.

When are we eating?

Here’s when things get exciting. The nutrient timing plan highlights the relationship between food and exercise. Because our training is going to be so intense, we don’t want a lot of food in our system going into a workout. During exercise, a full stomach is uncomfortable and offers little benefit to immediate energy production. The goal is to be a tiny bit hungry going into a workout - feeling lean and mean - and then have a solid meal afterwards to help replenish hungry muscles. That means we need to be aware of our exercise schedule and plan our nutrition accordingly. Timing matters and will make all of the difference.

A few helpful tips and tricks:

• Surrounding yourself with nutritious food makes getting lean easy. Cook once, eat twice. Or better yet, do a big cook on Sunday, and have awesome-for-you, nutritious food available all week.

• The Nutrient Timing Plan is primarily about nutrition, but if you want to maximize results, supplements can help. Follow along as Rob explains the benefits of BCAA’s, Fish Oil, Vitamin D, Magnesium, and caffeine (in its most awesome form - coffee.)

• Don’t be afraid of fat. Eating fat will help us get lean and for many of us that even means eating more fat. But be careful, because a fat inclusive diet doesn’t mean fast food and Twinkies. Ideally 1/3 of your fat is saturated (animal derived fats - like 100% all-natural grass-fed butter), 1/3 is monounsaturated (olive oil, nuts, nut butter, avocado), and 1/3 is polyunsaturated (fish oil, salmon, walnuts, flaxseed, pumpkin and sunflower seeds). Zero thirds of your fat should be man made trans fatty acids. That means no hydrogenated vegetable oil, no margarine, no fast foods, and little-to-no packaged foods. Man made trans fatty acids are no bueno. They increase our risk of coronary heart disease, raise “ bad” LDL cholesterol, lower the “good” kind (HDL), cause inflammation and muck up our arteries. There is no intake at which there is no adverse effects.

• Understanding calories is awesome but counting them on the reg is not. It’s enslaving, inaccurate, and turns food into a math problem.

Let’s talk more about the training plan.

Because of the show’s emphasis on long term health, weight-loss, AND endurance, for exercise Rob will be focusing on a three-tiered approach:

• Lifting heavy weights (“the best ways to dramatically change your body, ” he says) with little to no rest. Think heavy, hard, compound exercises strung together in supersets or circuits.

• High intensity interval training. Think fan bike, row machine, or stepper - a series of aggressive, short sprints.

• A cardio/endurance running program to get ready for the half marathon - longer, slower running/walking to help build our cardiovascular capacity.

The Final Pillar

The unsung heroes of weight loss are sleep and stress management. Rob places a heavy emphasis on soft tissue work, massage therapy, Epsom salt baths, thoughtful nighttime rituals, and quality sleep habits.

Last Words

Food is complicated. Our nutrition choices sit at a complex intersection of health, finance, vanity, morality, politics, socio-economics, and a bunch of other stuff too. There’s A LOT to consider. Sometimes we want to be lose weight but sometimes we want to drink pink raspberry cosmos at the pool with Becky. Try to be kind to yourself and understand that eating well is a life-long pursuit.