Restrictive meal plan from PT

JulsiePie

So a little bit about me. I have a lot of weight to lose (130ish pounds now) and have started with a PT. I love the workouts and I am great at getting cardio in as well.

All is good until now - I got a "meal plan" and it's very restrictive and I don't think it's doable. If any of you have experience with this type of plan, please let me know! I am starting in a week and I'm miserable just thinking about it.

Here's the plan:

Meal 1 - 4-5 egg whites with 1/2 cup cooked oats and 1/2 cup blueberries

Meal 2 - 1/4 cup almonds and protein powder mixed with water (ew.)

Meal 3 - 100-150 grams of protein and 1-2 cups green vegetables

Meal 4 - same as meal 3

Meal 5 - 1-2 cups of green vegetables and 7-8 egg whites

Protein - white fish, white meat chicken or turkey, tuna

Add in 5 fish oil pills a day.


And that's it. Everyday.

I know I have a lot of weight to lose and my training sessions have been awesome, so am I just being a baby about this? Is this a good/normal meal plan to follow? Obviously I have no idea, but it seems horrible.

I have been counting calories before and have lost some weight already, but I guess this is just a different approach?

libbydoodle11

Looks like your PT is trying to get your protein intake up and keep you from getting too hungry with all of the mini meals.

It also doesn't look like that many calories...Not enough for sustainability anyway. How many calories is it?

Oh my goodness, and 5 fish oils a day?! Fish oil burps are icky!

JulsiePie

Not very many I don't think....I didn't calculate that out. I guess it depends on the green vegetables and protein I eat?

Yeah. Not impressed about the amount of pills.

ndj1979

how often are you working out? days per week and hours per session? That "plan" is like barely 1200 calories, if even that. Sounds like a recipe to crash and burn …are you trying to lose weight, gain muscle, etc? If you are trying to lose weight, figure out your TDEE and cut 500 from it and eat that number…way more sustainable...

slvrsrfr

That's quite a strict nutritional plan. Something you might
do if you were bodybuilding and looking to cut.

Listen, you can lose weight so long as you eat fewer calories
than you burn. Eat what you want but be sure to weight and
measure and log everything.

The point with MFP is you're trying to develop a new lifestyle
that you can live with for the rest of your life. If you think you
can follow your PT's plan then that's one thing, but personally
unless you want to get serious about bodybuilding I think you
can eat what you want but just eat fewer calories.

Best of luck.

sympha01

How much experience does your PT have working with the obese? Can he provide references from clients who are or were obese who had good results from his methods?

As a former "super obese" person myself (current loss: 140 lbs down and counting), one thing I noticed a lot was that very few PTs, fitness professionals, coaches, etc., are aware of how things need to be modified for obese clients. The biomechanics of many exercises are quite different when you're very very large and your center of gravity is located somewhere different than on an average sized or slightly overweight person.

And that's on the exercise side. IMHO a lot of PTs are just full of absolute CRAP information when it comes to nutrition, even for non-obese clients. I mean: he's got you eating very little food, and taking pills and protein powder. That's a bit screwy for anyone. (Protein powder can be a good way to supplement, but start with a reasonable foundation of food). He seems to be part of the anti-carb brigade. If you want to be a low-to-no-carb dieter yourself, that's your decision. But that low a carb intake is simply not such a blindingly obvious good idea for everyone (i.e., the jury is frankly still out, what evidence there is for it is that it may be marginally helpful in the short-term, but not helpful in the long term, etc.) that anyone should follow such a plan because their PT makes them.

But I think any PT who has any sense of how to treat the obese would have you on a diet plan that is enjoyable and satisfying enough for you to be able to stick with it for the long term. Can someone who doesn't like that plan eat that way for 6 weeks? Sure. Will someone who's going to be dieting for at least a year (if you've got 130 lbs to lose, you're not going to lose it in less than a year) stick to a plan like that for that long? NO.

Conclusion: your PT is a bro, has clearly not taken any time to think about what is going to work FOR YOU, and is trying to shoehorn you into the same plan he gives everyone.

If you love your workouts, great. But you can probably find a better PT who will give you a much better overall plan.

ndj1979

slvrsrfr wrote: »

That's quite a strict nutritional plan. Something you might
do if you were bodybuilding and looking to cut.

Listen, you can lose weight so long as you eat fewer calories
than you burn. Eat what you want but be sure to weight and
measure and log everything.

The point with MFP is you're trying to develop a new lifestyle
that you can live with for the rest of your life. If you think you
can follow your PT's plan then that's one thing, but personally
unless you want to get serious about bodybuilding I think you
can eat what you want but just eat fewer calories.

Best of luck.

no way you can "body build" on that diet plan …you will be luck to maintain any muscle mass at all ….

LolBroScience

That's a cookie cutter "clean eating" meal plan that you would find a bikini chick prepping on. By that I mean, a coach who has no regard for individual needs, macros or calorie. Avoid imo.

ShannonMpls

Use him for workouts. Not diet.

Count calories diligently, get enough protein, and eat foods you enjoy to reach a reasonable, sustainable calorie goal. Keep up the strength workouts and do some cardio too.

Crazy diets are crazy.

- Signed, formerly obese person who lost 130+ pounds and has been maintaining for more than two years.


PS: some protein powders arent bad mixed with water. I mix optimum nutrition double chocolate and banana cream with water all the time out of convenience.

sun_fish

Did you hire your PT for training or diet help too? I would suggest being clear with him/her about what you have hired them for. If you asked for help with diet, then be clear that the plan they have given you is too restrictive.

SammieDQ37

slvrsrfr wrote: »

That's quite a strict nutritional plan. Something you might
do if you were bodybuilding and looking to cut.

Listen, you can lose weight so long as you eat fewer calories
than you burn. Eat what you want but be sure to weight and
measure and log everything.

The point with MFP is you're trying to develop a new lifestyle
that you can live with for the rest of your life. If you think you
can follow your PT's plan then that's one thing, but personally
unless you want to get serious about bodybuilding I think you
can eat what you want but just eat fewer calories.

Best of luck.

sun_fish wrote: »

Did you hire your PT for training or diet help too? I would suggest being clear with him/her about what you have hired them for. If you asked for help with diet, then be clear that the plan they have given you is too restrictive.

this

chadya07

that sounds like a horrible time. i wouldnt last a week. and not many people would. if you dont like food, go for it. but if you do, i cant imagine how you could stick with that and be satisfied enough to make it work.

people can be prefectly successful and eat things other than bland foods and fish oil.

LiftAllThePizzas

I've had workouts I regretted. Your avatar is a lie.

Unknown

This content has been removed.

canadjineh

We are assuming here that PT is personal trainer and not Physiotherapist?? Are you looking to lose fat weight, or gain muscle mass and strengthen, or recover from an injury. I'm a bit confused...
BTW for a short term fat loss plan, it's entirely doable, but your body will not be able to do much about building the muscles with a low calorie plan like this.
You can get Omega fish oils that don't stink or make you burp, try Red Krill. If the pills are very smelly - they are rancid.

TJP_

ndj1979 wrote: »

how often are you working out? days per week and hours per session? That "plan" is like barely 1200 calories, if even that. Sounds like a recipe to crash and burn …are you trying to lose weight, gain muscle, etc? If you are trying to lose weight, figure out your TDEE and cut 500 from it and eat that number…way more sustainable...

300g of protein in meals 3/4 alone so that 1200 calories already.

Add the oats, nuts, protein powder and last protein meal and the calories will be way over 1200.

That said, it's a dreadful diet.

Ridiculous amount of protein, barely any fat, completely impractical to stick to and therefore doomed to failure. Only bit I like is actually the 5g fish oils (I personally take more).

Find a new PT or just use this one for your training.

jenny3008

I worked out that its about 1350 calories if you take the maximum amount 'allowed'. I'm not sure what your height is so I don't know how much of a deficit that would be for you.

Did you trainer say how long you were supposed to follow the plan for? Had you suggested that you wanted to lose weight more quickly? I was given something similar but less calories to follow for 4-6 weeks, I had over 3 stone to lose and I wanted to get it moving.

To be honest I don't think the plan is that bad in its essence, lots of veg, lots of lean protein, some nuts for your healthy oils and some carbs. Its pretty similar to what I generally eat anyway.

That said if you feel massively restricted on it then you won't follow it and will likely then end up overeating.

Good luck with things

_Zardoz_

JulsiePie wrote: »

So a little bit about me. I have a lot of weight to lose (130ish pounds now) and have started with a PT. I love the workouts and I am great at getting cardio in as well.

All is good until now - I got a "meal plan" and it's very restrictive and I don't think it's doable. If any of you have experience with this type of plan, please let me know! I am starting in a week and I'm miserable just thinking about it.

Here's the plan:

Meal 1 - 4-5 egg whites with 1/2 cup cooked oats and 1/2 cup blueberries

Meal 2 - 1/4 cup almonds and protein powder mixed with water (ew.)

Meal 3 - 100-150 grams of protein and 1-2 cups green vegetables

Meal 4 - same as meal 3

Meal 5 - 1-2 cups of green vegetables and 7-8 egg whites

Protein - white fish, white meat chicken or turkey, tuna

Add in 5 fish oil pills a day.


And that's it. Everyday.

I know I have a lot of weight to lose and my training sessions have been awesome, so am I just being a baby about this? Is this a good/normal meal plan to follow? Obviously I have no idea, but it seems horrible.

I have been counting calories before and have lost some weight already, but I guess this is just a different approach?

Are you going to eat that for the rest of your life. As normal PTs giving silly and unsustainable diet plans. Take the training advice but ignore any nutrition advice the majority of PTs give terrible advice regarding nutrition and either perpetuate myths or just push needless products they're trying to sell. You should not need to take stupid amounts of pills either

Pinkranger626

My two cents... as a personal trainer myself. Personal trainers are not registered dieticians. Unless they are also a RD, it is outside of our scope of practice to provide meal plans, which means you are basically taking joe schmoe's advice on how to eat.

As a trainer we are trained to correct form and technique and create fitness programs (this could also be debated depending on the certification.... but that's a whole different topic) nutrition IS something that they would have a very small background on IF they have a degree in exercise science. If they just took the weekend training... or an online training course then there's no guarantee that there was any nutrition classes. However, meal planning is still way outside of what we are trained to do.

For my clients I tell them flat out, I am not an RD therefore I cannot provide you with meal planning. I can make suggestions on how to tweak your diet, and you are welcome to bring in a food diary and have me look through it. But I cannot, nor will I ever give you a written out plan for food.

Personally, I would find an RD to work with in conjunction with your PT if you are looking for a meal plan. Otherwise, work with your TDEE and pay attention to your macros. The plan that they gave you is not something that I could follow myself. Not only because it's just not enough food, but because it's so outside of what my husband would eat that I'd have to make two separate dinners for us, and I ain't got time for that!

TJP_

5g of fish/omega 3 oil isn't a stupid amount. Most people consume way to much o6 compared to o3. That's about the only decent bit of this 'diet'

Add713

What do plan on eating for meals 3 and 4 ? 100-150 G of protein is a lot for one meal ?

neanderthin

Short term low carb diets work well and as long as you realize that that is exactly how you should treat this particular diet, short term, then fine, use it to get started. Overall it's a pretty standard diet that many trainers use because they can't think of anything better, and I do mean "can't" lol

amy1612

So many questions-Whats your TDEE, how much training are you doing, what do you ususally eat etc.

However, it is restrictive IMO. Its doable, but not long term and doesnt look very fun. Theres nothing wrong with whey protein and fish oils-both are great supplements, especially the fish oil. The whey is good for getting protein macros up and an easy throw together snack-its actually ok with water if you use a decent brand, but obviously better with milk/coconut milk (my personal favourite is chocolate whey with coconut, like drinking a bounty).

You dont have to do a highly restrictive plan to make your goals. Be honest with your trainer, and if they are arsey about it find someone who isnt.

independant2406

Not sure what your height/current weight is? This is similar in calories/protein intake to what I consume. I'm 5ft 4 and 199lbs and on a very restrictive diet prescribed by my doctor. I eat tons of spinach and chicken and eggs etc because they fill my macros and give me lots of food volume for the calories. It helps to add spices to foods and mix up the flavors so things don't get too boring.

Some diet plans are set up based on what you should be eating when you reach maintenance...(They're doing this so the diet/calorie change happen 1x rather than gradually over time with multiple calorie intake drops like weight watchers or other plans) and that means its pretty drastic and hard to manage for the first few months.

Its pretty much a guarantee you'll lose weight doing this plan...and you might surprise yourself at how much better you'll feel eliminating processed foods after your body adjusts.
However, there is a risk of boredom and burnout. Have you asked your PT if there's a chance for a cheat meal 1x per week or an opportunity to add back in some other foods down the road when you reach a mini goal?

Have you been seen by a doctor recently to ensure this type of diet/exercise regimen is appropriate and healthy for you?

Francl27

Hell no.

TJP_

It's not actually that low calorie tbh, if you ate the full 150g protein in meals 3/4 (if you even could) and a reasonable amount in the shake/protein meal it could easily be over 2k.

It's still terrible though, would cost a fortune!

martyqueen52

Your PT is a "bro" ... with little knowledge, if any at all, on nutrition and fat loss.

Check for a registered dietitian in your area who knows what they are doing.

elisa123gal

JulsiePie wrote: »

So a little bit about me. I have a lot of weight to lose (130ish pounds now) and have started with a PT. I love the workouts and I am great at getting cardio in as well.

All is good until now - I got a "meal plan" and it's very restrictive and I don't think it's doable. If any of you have experience with this type of plan, please let me know! I am starting in a week and I'm miserable just thinking about it.

Here's the plan:

Meal 1 - 4-5 egg whites with 1/2 cup cooked oats and 1/2 cup blueberries

Meal 2 - 1/4 cup almonds and protein powder mixed with water (ew.)

Meal 3 - 100-150 grams of protein and 1-2 cups green vegetables

Meal 4 - same as meal 3

Meal 5 - 1-2 cups of green vegetables and 7-8 egg whites

Protein - white fish, white meat chicken or turkey, tuna

Add in 5 fish oil pills a day.


And that's it. Everyday.

I know I have a lot of weight to lose and my training sessions have been awesome, so am I just being a baby about this? Is this a good/normal meal plan to follow? Obviously I have no idea, but it seems horrible.

I have been counting calories before and have lost some weight already, but I guess this is just a different approach?

I know your PT means well. But are you this dedicated? Do you want to eat this restrictive? All I can tell you is one thing i've learned.. How you lose the weight is how you have to maintain the weight. And there is no way you could live like this. You can still lose by reducing your calories and working out. And something will happen along the way.. you will naturally want to eat better and do more along the way. But it will be real change..not imposed change.

BTW..good for you for taking the first steps to getting fit and healthy.

AnjaliSD

I agree with most other people in this thread. You say that you have 130 lbs to lose, so I feel it;s a safe assumption that you weigh atleast 250 lbs.
I did some quick fiddling around with online BMR/ TDEE Calculators, and using the conservative height of 5'0, and weight of 250, your BMR shuffled between 1600 and 1800, and your TDEE around the 2200 mark assuming you live a mostly sedentary lifestyle.

But since you're seeing a trainer, I'm going to assume you're doing at least some exercise a couple times a week, in which case the food plan you were given doesn't seem like it would even allow you to get through life without being seriously lethargic or hAngry.

Not only that, but the only way I could get a reasonable amount of fiber was if you ate 4 cups of broccoli. If you ate spinach or kale as your greens, you wouldn't get enough fiber in a day. Which is also bad.


LIke everyone else has said, Junk this person's food advice. If you have access to one, see a dietician. If not, try to look for diet plans which are lean protein and veggie heavy, that don't look as incredibly bland and boring as the one this PT gave you.

kommodevaran

If it's not doable - don't do it. Just eat food, but not too much, and you'll lose weight.

50sFit

OMG
Your PT is an idiot. You need to can him now!

Just follow the MFP recommendations for steady, safe and lasting results.