diet while preparing for bootcamp

[ArtooDetoo22]

okay so i know the way im eating isnt healthy, but i still workout and run every single day. Is there any suggestions on what type of meals i should be having? or does what i eat even affect my workouts at all? i just want the best results from my workouts and i want to be prepared when i go to bootcamp. any feedback would be appreciated.

[warehimer33]

I'm in the same boat as you- pun intended. lol I need a good diet that will help get my body used to boot camp. I am the WORST eater. Ever since I graduated HS in June I've been doing nothing but eating fast food literally every night before bed(the worst thing you can do to your body, I swear). I can't run more than a mile and I can't run it faster than 10 minutes. I'm about to start P90x tomorrow and I also have to start getting used to eating breakfast. I HATE breakfast. It makes me so nauseous to eat in the morning, idk why. But yeah, does anybody have a good diet?

[maggio1994]

Same, since I graduated in December i've been doing pretty much nothing. I never liked working out, I hate breakfast and I don't eat really healthy haha. 2 months til I leavee.

[warehimer33]

lol. I have at least until January, according to my recruiter. I'm still waiting for a "waiver" to swear in but I am already starting to prepare. Y'all have no idea how much I hate running.

[ArtooDetoo22]

i mean, ive been running and working out now for at least 2 or 3 months straight and now i have less than 2 months before i leave, it's just putting me on edge and making me want to be the pt king everytime i workout lol and i can run pretty far without getting winded and i think ill be fine, i just need a new diet before i leave because so far its been nothing but pizza, hamburgers etc. and i dont eat breakfast either unless i get up at 5 am and workout, which hasnt been happening lately but im gonna get back into it

[rocky112]

I'd recommend counting calories for starters. I try not to exceed 1600 calories throughout the day, so even with light workouts I wind up losing a few pounds a week.

Also, don't eat within four hours of sleeping. Have a salad with dinner, and skip the high-calorie ranch, go for an Italian or balsamic. I also try to skimp on excess carbs, so if I feel like a burger I'll just wrap it in lettuce.

I try to leave one cheat day where I allow myself some kind of sweet or salty snack. Most importantly though, don't go too overboard and try to eat like 800 calories a day because if you can't maintain the diet you'll just rebound back to where you started.

[NavyPrincess]

Well at least I'm not the only one. I eat horribly also, I dont eat breakfast at all. I HATE running with a passion, I havent done alot since graduation in June. I do try to run during the day however most days I dont get to it because I've been so busy lately. I cant run a mile without stopping. Oh nevermind the fact that I usually dont fall asleep until 400 so I usually wake up around 1100, which i know is very bad. My only savior is that I dont leave until March so I have time to get into gear.

Oh and also, my mom accused me of starving myself today because I didnt eat anything all day until 1700 but I had woken up at 1200 so if i did eat anything it would have made me sick.

[warehimer33]

Well at least I'm not the only one. I eat horribly also, I dont eat breakfast at all. I HATE running with a passion, I havent done alot since graduation in June. I do try to run during the day however most days I dont get to it because I've been so busy lately. I cant run a mile without stopping. Oh nevermind the fact that I usually dont fall asleep until 400 so I usually wake up around 1100, which i know is very bad. My only savior is that I dont leave until March so I have time to get into gear.

Oh and also, my mom accused me of starving myself today because I didnt eat anything all day until 1700 but I had woken up at 1200 so if i did eat anything it would have made me sick.

ARE YOU ME?! lol. I used to go to bed around 2200-2300 and wake up around 0500-0630 now I can't go to bed earlier than 0300 and wake up before around 1100-1200. And because of this I end up eating lunch at like 1400, dinner at 1900, and then I pick up something after work at like 2300. I feel so obese hah. I'm actually staying up tonight and not going to bed until tomorrow night so I can reset my sleep cycle. I want to be able to wake up at 0500, eat breakfast, go on a run, and not crash on my couch when I get back... The only way I can run a mile without stopping is if I do it on a treadmill. I can run a 10 min mile on a treadmill but end up running a 5 min 1/4-1/2 mile at home and feel like I'm about to have a stroke lol. It's ridiculous. I'm sure once I PT at RTC it'll be better because when I run in formation I really push my self so I don't embarrass myself.lol My parents are also on my case about staying up so late and "not being productive"... I'm just waiting for when I start going to DEP meetings and we PT and my recruiter being all up on my ass for being "lazy". omg, I've got a lot of work cut out for me but I've actually heard of people who have never even walked a mile and they go to boot camp and are fine with all the PT... Idk. We'll see once I start my P90x if my motivation will spark. :clubhead:

[FutureND]

Cut way back on fast food, I would say try to get rid of it all together but that seems to be almost unrealistic to NEVER eat fast food. Cut out soda completely, start drinking a lot of water throughout the day. Buy fruits and veggies to snack on instead of chips and junk. Its all about having some will power and self control, if changing the way you eat is what you want then it is going to be a challenge for a while. You have to determine for yourself how bad you want to live a healthier lifestyle and how hard you are willing to work to get there, there is no easy way around it. There is no magic pill that is going to make you hate the taste of pizza or a greasy cheeseburger, those things are just always going to taste amazing.

Learn how to cook, if you already know how then do it. The majority of the food eaten at home is going to be better then what you will find at fast food joints and/or restaurants. If you are craving a cheeseburger then make one at home, use ground turkey (you wont be able to tell the difference) and cut out the mayo. Its all about learning and conditioning yourself to make healthier lifelong decisions.

[F/S-MARodriguez]

How can anyone hate breakfast????? Heck I have breakfast, brunch, and brinner almost every day. Haha kidding. Honestly I eat whatever I want I just eat less of it. For breakfast I'll typically have 2 eggs, 2 sausage links, some toast and coffee.

The trick I've found is to replace everything terrible with something not so terrible. I absolutely LOVE Taco Bell, now whenever I want it, I have Chipotle instead. It's the same taste but made with low-fat organic ingredients.

I've also replaced burgers with roast beef sandwiches.

[warehimer33]

How can anyone hate breakfast????? Heck I have breakfast, brunch, and brinner almost every day. Haha kidding. Honestly I eat whatever I want I just eat less of it. For breakfast I'll typically have 2 eggs, 2 sausage links, some toast and coffee.

The trick I've found is to replace everything terrible with something not so terrible. I absolutely LOVE Taco Bell, now whenever I want it, I have Chipotle instead. It's the same taste but made with low-fat organic ingredients.

I've also replaced burgers with roast beef sandwiches.

I think breakfast is so gross. I hate the feeling of a full stomach when I'm just getting started on my day- makes me feel groggy and nauseous. I never eat at McDonald's which is better I guess... Chipotle is so nasty to me haha. I like Qdoba.

[LT Guppy]

You should get used to eating breakfast (I hate it too), because you'll have to eat in the mornings at bootcamp.

[jdAECF]

I wish I had to diet for boot camp. Losing weight is actually easier for me than gaining it. When I swore in, I was underweight for my height. It's hard to have a high calorie high fat diet and pt as well.

[warehimer33]

I wish I had to diet for boot camp. Losing weight is actually easier for me than gaining it. When I swore in, I was underweight for my height. It's hard to have a high calorie high fat diet and pt as well.

I think it'd be hard to gain weight. All that eating and then PTing probably makes you feel like crap... I like being overweight, even though it's only by like 5 pounds. Gives me room to play but it sucks because I can only gain weight at the gym, I never lose weight when I work out, it's because of my build. It sucks but it's whatever. If you want to gain weight I would do it by swimming. Eat a lot of carbs and protein, like 2 PBJs then go swimming. That's what my polo coach made me do for my defense position so I could bulk up and be stronger. And it works.

[jzhaun]

Okay, so I eat fairly well and also read nutrition books and blogs and things like that, but I'm not a professional or anything.

Basically as far diets go you shouldn't be looking to restrict anything. If you're eating 10,000 calories a day and not training like an Olympic athlete then yeah, you should probably cut back a bit but going under 2000 calories isn't going to help you in the long run because a) if you go too far under your body goes into starvation mode and b) unless you keep eating that way forever, you'll gain the weight back once you stop.

So a better idea is to swap some stuff for healthier options and try to eat stuff in moderation. Add some vegetables, swap pop for water etc. Don't try to live on vegetables though, because most of them aren't that filling on their own unless you're eating an entire produce store. E.g. if you swap snacking on chips for celery, put some peanut butter on it, because celery by itself isn't going to stop your stomach from growling.

Stay away from stuff that says sugar-free or fat-free though. Fatty foods are okay in moderation. Most of the time they're adding chemicals that are worse for your body even if the calorie count is less. Diet pop isn't any healthier than the regular kind. Skim milk isn't better than whole. Try to get away from processed-foods-that-come-in-a-box too.

And as far as the breakfast haters go:
Try eating something small (like a small bowl of cereal or an egg) an hour or two after you get up. It doesn't have to be a huge meal.

[Ncnavymom]

Add more real food - veggies, fruits and lean meats. Cut out SUGAR! Also remember there is no caffeine at Boot so if you're highly addicted cut it out now and save yourself the crushing headache while they are depriving you of sleep the first few days.

For the breakfast haters. Remember anything can be eaten for breakfast - try dinner for breakfast - chicken breast, veggies, sweet potato. eat small - try all protien or all (good) carbs ( oatmeal, fruit smoothies etc) to see which works best for your system. Try making extra at dinner to have an easy breakfast in the am. Start small once you train your body to eat you'll start to be hungry every day.

Best of luck to you all.

[rocky112]

If you're eating 10,000 calories a day and not training like an Olympic athlete then yeah, you should probably cut back a bit but going under 2000 calories isn't going to help you in the long run because a) if you go too far under your body goes into starvation mode and b) unless you keep eating that way forever, you'll gain the weight back once you stop.

Diet is by far the most important aspect to losing weight. As far as getting in shape you will need exercise, but working out and not adjusting your calorie intake will make for a long road to weight loss. I started working out in December and didn't start losing weight until April because I didn't adjust my diet enough.

You need to figure out how many calories your body needs to maintain your current weight. There's a lot of fancy equations, but this site (http://www.calorieking.com/interactive-tools/weight-maintenance-calories-calculator/) should help you figure out how many calories your body needs to maintain your current weight.

Since a pound of fat is roughly 3,600 calories, and if you're looking to lose a pound a week, you're going to have to cut over 500 calories off your maintenance calories every day. Then you can add to that how many calories you burn from exercise. For most people, that number will be below 2,000 calories.

Most physical activities, even if strenuous, burn surprisingly few calories. For example, a healthy adult male only burns 124 calories running a mile. What is frustrating about exercise is that the more you do it, the more efficient your body becomes, and you wind up burning fewer calories.

If your maintenance calories are around 2,200 and you eat 2,000 and think you should lose weight running a mile everyday, it could take you two weeks to lose a single pound.

From personal experience, if you're trying to lose weight and you don't adjust your diet you're setting yourself up for failure. Since June I've lost 30 pounds by combining my P90X workouts with a 1,800 calorie diet. Have I felt hungry? You bet, but being a little hungry is better than getting tossed out of your DEP pool for being overweight.

[LT Guppy]

From personal experience, if you're trying to lose weight and you don't adjust your diet you're setting yourself up for failure. Since June I've lost 30 pounds by combining my P90X workouts with a 1,800 calorie diet. Have I felt hungry? You bet, but being a little hungry is better than getting tossed out of your DEP pool for being overweight.

I agree. I work out 6 days a week, but if I ate a 2000 calorie diet I would still gain weight.
Everyone's body is different.