New here, looking for diet advice to help tone up!

JamesSawyer6
JamesSawyer6 Posts: 6
in Introduce Yourself
Hey so I am new here and as the title says am looking for advice as to what I should be eating. I am more looking for examples of the foods to eat not just 40% carbs or something like that. I am a 5'8" male that weighs 180 and my daily work out is the Insanity program. If you can help me out with this much information then awesome! Otherwise continue to read as I'll give more information.

So I am a 19 year old former athlete that used to be in great shape when I played sports. However, since going to college I have stopped playing organized sports and my activity levels continue to drop. I have done the first month of Insanity twice now (separate times) but both times I have given up before doing month two and I did not see any results from the first month. This is probably because my diet was not very good so that's what I am looking to change! I'm doing 2 months of month 2 from the program and hopefully will see some results this time. I'm not looking to lose a bunch of weight as much as I am looking to tone up and get "ripped" again if you will. Any help is appreciated!

Replies

  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
    Macros are important... getting enough protein paired with heavy lifting will is what will help maintain muscle while you lose weight. So make sure you're macros are set.

    Aside from that, what you eat doesn't matter a whole lot (from a body composition standpoint). Pick things that will make it easier for you to sustain long term. If eating a little chocolate every day helps you stay on track, then eat your chocolate. If a little chocolate is only going to open the flood gates to a lot of chocolate, then avoid it.

    It's really all about good macros, appropriate total calorie intake, and long term adherence.
  • JamesSawyer6
    JamesSawyer6 Posts: 6
    Thanks mate! I'll definitely try and stick to my macros and I'm trying to avoid as much fast food/sweets as possible which normally isn't hard. I'll find what works and stick to it, appreciate the help.
  • getfitcharles
    getfitcharles Posts: 78
    hey. unfortunately i don't have any advice i can offer you because you probably already know more than i do, since i was never even close to being athletic in school. my main goal too though is just to get fitter and increase muscle tone.
  • JamesSawyer6
    JamesSawyer6 Posts: 6
    Well, I can try and help you out with anything if you have any questions? I'm no expert but I know the basics. I'm a health and physical education major, I just never really seem to pick the right foods to stick to (in terms of my diet) and struggle to go out of my way to shop healthier.
  • ChrissieP80
    ChrissieP80 Posts: 112 Member
    I have 2 pieces of advice:
    1.) I don't believe you can tone by dieting
    2.) You can out-eat any exercise results
    So I think you need to keep your eyes on both, and find something (in both) that you can maintain for more than a month (to avoid going into reverse).

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