The 3 main components for the perfect diet for you

The fundamental question of nutrition, much like its world-famous origin in Goethe's Faust, has an almost religious character. Even in the context of determining which foods and how many calories to consume for a specific goal, opinions sometimes diverge significantly. This has occasionally led to extremes, ranging from "just eat as much protein as you can" to "only eat foods from countries beginning with the letter A." The problem is that hardly any approach works universally for every athlete, as both physical characteristics and individual lifestyles differ. Since simply following a rigid pattern isn't enough, this article will introduce you to the three main components you can use to create a customized nutrition plan.

The problem

The main problem with nutrition lies in the fact that most trainees focus on the wrong things and set suboptimal priorities. In practice, for example, the quality of individual foods, as well as the discussion about the pros and cons of specific supplements, is often prioritized over meeting calorie needs or nutrient timing. Hopefully, we don't need to elaborate on how serious this is. Basically, you should divide your attention among the relevant aspects of nutrition as follows before you can begin optimizing it in later phases:

• Calorie balance: 40 percent
• Macronutrient distribution: 40 percent
• Nutrient timing: 10 percent
• Quality of individual food items: 5 percent
• Dietary supplement: 5 percent

Component 1 - Calorie intake vs. calorie expenditure

The Calorie balance Calorie balance is arguably the most important component when it comes to building muscle or losing body fat, as the amount of nutrients you receive naturally determines whether your body has the opportunity to build or break down tissue. Consequently, you must also give top priority to your calorie balance. To determine your calorie balance, a simple rough calculation is sufficient, which can be refined further as needed. You can approximate your basal metabolic rate (BMR), i.e., your body's energy expenditure without you lifting a finger, by multiplying your body weight by a factor of 24. If you want to lose more body fat, you can gradually reduce this value down to a factor of 20, as the proportion of metabolically active tissue is lower. An athlete weighing approximately 80 kilograms with an estimated body fat percentage of around twelve percent would therefore have a BMR of 1920 kilocalories. Now you multiply this value by the so-called PAL value that best applies to you personally. The PAL value describes the average daily activity level. The following list will help you select the appropriate multiplication factor.

• PAL value 1.2 – primarily lying down lifestyle
• PAL value 1.3-1.5 – predominantly sedentary lifestyle (e.g. office workers)
• PAL value 1.6-1.7 – sedentary, standing, walking activity (e.g. students, laboratory technicians)
• PAL value 1.8-1.9 – mainly standing, walking activities (e.g., tradespeople)
• PAL value 2.0-2.4 – heavy physical work (e.g., construction workers)

In our example, our athlete is an office worker and therefore receives a PAL value of 1.3. Multiplied by the basal metabolic rate, this results in an average total daily energy expenditure of 2496 kilocalories. This corresponds to the calorie intake this person would need to maintain their weight. Additional physical activity must then also be added.

Component 2 - Nutrient distribution

The distribution of the food is then determined based on the calorie balance. three macronutrients fat, protein and carbohydrates. Naturally, a supply of high-quality protein is of central importance, as this enables your body to build new muscle and protect existing muscle mass from breakdown. An ideal intake is at least two grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per day, which means our office worker should consume at least 120 grams of protein. We proceed similarly with fat, as this is also needed by our bodies during both the bulking and cutting phases. An amount of around 0.8-1 gram per kilogram of body weight per day is sufficient in this regard. Our athlete, who weighs 60 kilograms more, now consumes 120 grams of protein and 60 grams of fat per day. The remainder of her calorie intake is then made up of the highest quality, i.e., complex, carbohydrates possible, so that our example athlete's energy and nutrient requirements are met.

Component 3 - Nutrient timing

If you want to maximize your potential, nutrient timing is crucial. We'll start with protein, as it's the least intertwined nutrient in terms of dependency. In this context, you should aim to distribute your total protein intake across five to seven meals to ensure your body is consistently supplied with protein throughout the day and protein synthesis can proceed optimally. Things get a bit more complex with carbohydrates, which not only serve as your primary energy source but also trigger the release of the highly anabolic hormone insulin. To maximize their benefits, you should focus on carbohydrates, especially in the meals surrounding your workouts. In practice, this means consuming a large amount of complex carbohydrates two to three hours before training to prepare for maximum intensity. After your workout, you should take advantage of the anabolic effects of the insulin released when consuming carbohydrates. This ensures, among other things, that your body initiates regenerative processes as quickly as possible and transports nutrients to the muscle cells. In strength training, in addition to the obligatory carbohydrate-rich meal, the so-called post-workout shake has become established. This shake should consist of 0.5 grams of whey protein and just over one gram of maltodextrin per kilogram of body weight. Since fat slows down the absorption of carbohydrates and dampens insulin release, you should also ensure that your workout nutrition contains as little fat as possible. You then allocate these fats to the remaining meals of the day.

Your nutrition plan

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