As I’ve discussed the fitness pillar of Body for life in terms of weight training and cardio, I thought I’d touch upon the nutrition angle of it. The BFL eating plan promotes eating 5-6 small meals, containing one portion of lean protein and another portion of wholegrain carbohydrates in order to ‘speed up fat loss and maintain stable energy loss’. Ultimately your daily intake should be 40% carbs, 40% lean protein and 20% healthy fats. The 7th day is designed as a “Free Day”.
Although I’m not not following the plan to the letter, I am trying to follow the eating structure whenever possible and am overall eating much cleaner than before the plan. Like I mentioned a couple of recaps ago, I am making a conscious effort to eat more protein. Depending on individual needs, the daily protein intake requirement is 0.8-2.2g per kilogram of body weight. I am aiming for about 1.2g/kg body weight per day.
While opting for protein powder would be an easy way to bump my protein intake daily, I am limiting my consumption to 1 scoop a day and am instead focusing on eating as much real food as possible. Here are some of the protein-rich meals I have been consuming lately, but please note that the protein counts are rough estimates:
Disclaimer: I can vouch for my food being tasty…I’m not saying anything about the presentation/looks ;)!
Breakfast
- Peanut Butter & Banana Oatmeal with Egg-Whites Stirred In- 19.5g
- Overnight Oats with Sunwarrior Protein Powder – 22g
Lunches/Dinners:
- Dippy egg (1 whole egg, 2 egg whites) with Toast, Deli Turkey and Grilled Veggies- 19g
- Peanut Butter & Grated Carrot Wrap – 21g
- Grilled Salmon with Grilled Veg – 19g
- Brown Rice Seafood Pilaf -18g
- Cheesy Chicken & Marinara Sauce Bake With Greens: 24g
- Tofu Stir fry with hummus: 12g
Snacks:
- Chia Seed Pudding: 10g
- Greek Yogurt with Fruit: 14g
- Cheddar with Crispbread: 8.5 g
While I’m not sure I could follow (or advocate) high-protein diets such as Atkins or Dukan Diet, I am enjoying the BFL eating plan. Despite it being fairly high protein, I appreciate that it focuses on balanced meals and gives carbs equal importance. If anything, it’s realistic and definitely a style of eating which is maintainable beyond 12 weeks.
What’s your favorite source of protein?
Yum, Khushboo! This all looks delicious (but then again I wouldn’t expect any less of you)- especially that PB and carrot combo– really on a carrot cake, aren’t you? In terms of protein, my favourites are most certainly meat- chicken, a moist succulent lamb shank, lobster, prawns…you know what I’m saying 😉 otherwise it’s all about the greek yoghurt!
I definitely know what you’re saying..I only eat lamb in Dubai so you better believe I”m gonna make up for lost time this weekend 🙂
omg, the tofu stirfry and pilaf look incredibly good. i’ve tried doing the small meals, but i get so hungry during my meal, i end up eating the right amount, I don’t think i overeat my meals, except when i dine out.
And Khushboo, when you have some time, I would really appreciate you commenting on what aspects you love about India. I wanna hear it from someone who understands the western culture. Thanks. 🙂
I loved reading your post and could definitely resonate throughout! I think the key is being open-minded to cultural differences.
all your meals look great, and balanced well. I really love cottage cheese, and non cows milk cheese like goats, feta, halloumi etc.
Cottage cheese is one food that I miss in Mumbai as it’s not available- I go through pots full when I’m in London!
Looka like your doing great!
My favorite source of protein is probably eggs. I could eat them everyday! Easter was always my favorite time because I got to eat egg salad sanwhiches all day long! lol
Eggs are my favorite protein source too- it’s a given that our fridge has to contain at least 6!
Danngggg all of this looks SO good! Can you come be my personal chef? 😀
My favorite source of protein is definitely any kind of seafood!
Haha sure thing- as long as u bring the dessert 🙂
I should add that disclaimer to most of my recipes/food pics as well! Hey, as long as it tastes good to us, who cares! And that sounds like a great “diet” plan. I love that you’re not eliminating anything from your eats, rather focusing on adding the good stuff in. Great job, K!
I’m convinced that the uglier the food, the better it tastes…so I guess we make some pretty excellent-tasting food ;)!
I love oats with eggs!! It makes them so fluffy. My favorite source of protein is pretty much anything dairy. I love my milk, cheese, and yogurt!
After trying egg whites in oats, I can never go without! And I’m a dairy fiend too- I thank my lucky stars I’m not lactose intolerant :)!
It all looks so good! I love the idea of a carrot wrap, and I am obsessed with chia pudding.
I’ll be interested to hear if you notice a big difference in how your body responds to the program with the diet changes. I want to start tracking my macros better, but it seems like so much effort! 🙂
That’s why I’m not tracking religiously- I don’t want to get obsessed! I’m not sure whether it’s psychological or not but I definitely feel a lot better eating more protein as well as more energetic. Will definitely do a recap eventually :)!
All of these dishes look wonderful, nutritious and just great! I still have to try chia pudding… like now! Thank you for keeping us updated on the program, I really do like to read about your experiences with it 🙂
I’m glad you enjoy reading my recaps! The chia pudding is definitely worth a try…I won’t lie that it’s like eating a dessert but it’s tasty nonetheless!
You just know I am loving that tofu and hummus stir fry! And the pb + carrot wrap sounds delicious, I love dipping carrots in peanut butter so that would be right up my alley.
Fave sources of protein have to be hemp seeds, complete proteins like quinoa or buckwheat and of course beans/pulses (preferably in hummus form 😉 )
Ever since you’re post on quinoa the other day, I have been eating SO much of it! It must have spurred a craving but I seem to be making up for lost time..and you’ll be happy to know hummus is always involved 🙂
I love your views on protein powder 🙂 I think some people have wayyyy too much. I have two scoops a day, more than you, but I like to have after my workout and I just cannot give up my casein fugde at night! HAHAHAHA
Again, so proud of you girl! Everything looks so delicious! Great eats!
Thanks, Meg :)! This casein fudge sounds great- must look into it!
I have pics on my blog 😉 I think that will convince you 😉
I definitely have my reservations about Atkins style diets too. What I like about yours is that it does include carbs – I feel like a train wreck if I don’t eat any! All your eats look really yummy, too. What’s in the brown rice seafood pilaf?
Haha more than a train wreck, I’m just a moody b***h ;)! The pilaf is filled with veggies like broccoli, mushrooms, pumpkin as well as prawns and calimari!
PB and carrot is not a combination I ever would have thought of on my own, but wow. It makes so much sense now that I think about it!
Eggs are way up there are my favorite source of protein. So versatile!!
Ok you need to get on the PB & Carrot combo asap…even better if you throw in some raisins :)!
Mmm. My favorite way to get protein is by seafood…or cheese!!
Top choices of mine too 🙂
I am obsessed with adding egg whites to oatmeal! It tastes so good and keeps me noticeably fuller too. 😀
My favourite sources of proteins are Greek yogurt, tofu and fish!
Greek yogurt is a favorite of mine too…it’s a staple at home!
Peanut butter and carrots? Now that’s an interesting combo! I bet it’s delicious.
I love eggs and salmon. Those are pretty much the two things I eat daily. There’s something to be said about habitual eating. 🙂
Trust me on it Ameena, pb & carrots go GREAT together! And eggs & salmon are foods I eat on a repeated basis too..habitual maybe but if it ain’t broke don’t fix 🙂
I love the BFL way of eating – even though not officially doing it yet, I still keep it in mind. Biggest thing for me is making sure I have some sort of protein at each meal lol.
I love eggs, yogurt and chicken 😛 Also don’t mind the odd PP shake as well.
Looks so yum!!
I don’t feel like my meal is complete if there is no protein…otherwise I can’t stop eating ;)!
Great protein ideas! Thanks for sharing all of these. And I wouldn’t go for an all-protein Atkins-style diet, but it definitely can’t hurt to have a good (balanced!) protein intake. And mmm, I can vouch for the fact that chia pudding is WAY better than it looks!
Haha I was hesitant to put up that picture of chia pudding because let’s be honest, it looks pretty nasty ;)!
Haha, nothing like grayish gloop to whet the appetite…thank goodness it doesn’t taste like it looks…
Hmm the brown rice seafood pilaf looks good~
I agree with you about the importance of carbs. Ever since the low-carb diet fad became popular, carbs are seen as the bad guy. SO not true! You just need to choose the good carbs, you need carbs for energy and for your brain!!
Amen to that…if only I could meet Atkins and tell him where to go ;)!