Cutting Meal Plan Improvement
Following a structured meal plan isn’t always as easy as it seems. Maximuscle have pulled together some hints and tips to help you stay on track.
WHAT WORKS FOR YOU
For a cutting plan to be a success there needs to be a persistent calorie deficit over a number of days/weeks. Following a meal plan can be a simple way to help you structure your weekly diet, ensuring you stick to your goals of achieving a lean physique. Although, the water starts to get muddied when you analyse how you measure up against the person that the cutting plan was designed around. Most cutting plans are designed with a specific person in mind; weighing a particular amount and completing X type of training, which will determine their daily individual calorie requirements. If you’re heavier than this person or complete more training you will probably need slightly more calories per day. Conversely, if you’re lighter you may need fewer calories to reach substantial calorie deficit. It’s important to decipher your individual daily calorie requirements by using the nutrition calculator on the meal planner before you start.
HOW DOES YOUR BOWL MEASURE UP?
It can be only too tempting to free pour cereal straight from the box into your bowl, but without realising you may be eating far more calories that are on your meal plan. For the first few days of a cutting meal plan measure out your food on scales and dispense into your favourite mug so you can gauge how much you need for future meals. Another favourite cutting hack is to eat off smaller plates, limiting the temptation to load the plate.
CUT IT DOWN
If you require less calories than what’s on the cutting plan, an easy way to shave the calories is to switch snacks to protein shakes made with water. Protein shakes are a great way to get in your recommended protein with a relatively low calorie cost. A Maximuscle Promax Lean Chocolate shake offers 25 g BioMax True Protein, 137 calories per serve and is low in fat and sugar.
TRACK IT
When you see yourself every day it can be difficult to register your progress. Take weekly full body snaps at the same time of day to track the changes in your body.
NUTRIENT RICH
When you’re on a calorie restricted diet you need to be smart with the food choices you make. Opt for foods that are low in calories but are nutrient rich to give your body what it needs to stay healthy and perform. Pack in the fruit and veg, making sure you eat at least 5 portions of 80g serves over the day.
GIVE IT TIME
For cutting to be sustainable & successful don’t aim to lose too much too quickly. A maximum cut of 500 calories per day equates to a loss of 0.5kg per week. As a general rule of thumb; the more you have to lose the quicker you’ll see results from calorie restriction and exercise. If you’re naturally lean or are on the final leg of your cutting plan it will be more difficult to shed the extra fat mass. Don’t punish yourself if you aren’t seeing overnight changes. Give yourself time.
ACCEPT THE GRIND
Following a cutting meal plan isn’t going to be a walk in the park, but it shouldn’t be impossible. Remember that the first few days of a calorie restriction diet is generally the hardest, so grit your teeth and push through. Once you get used to the new routine and lifestyle it tends to get less sufferable as you’ve figured out what works best for your body.
SUPPLEMENT SUPPORT
Think about incorporating the following accessory supplements to your cutting plan.
Maximuscle Thermobol capsules are designed to help maximise your training. Thermobol combines the alertness effects of caffeine and additional B vitamins to support energy metabolism.
Maximuscle Thermobol Caffeine free capsules are high in B vitamins and chromium, suitable for use at any time day or night.
