Some nutrition/diet questions.

[Jackd]

I've been reading here, bodybuilding site/forums and some other places, but I'm finding it really hard to get into what I should and shouldn't eat. I am thinking that I need to just set a plan and stick to it religiously. I mean, plan what I can eat and when I can eat it and then repeat it every day.. less confusing this way.

Firstly, breakfast..

Oats seem the way forward.. of the porridge variety.. is Ready Brek suitable?? (not sure if this is a uk only brand, but it's porridge oats you mix with milk (semi) and heat in a pan) I've been reading that most people have berries with it... not sure why, but should I put some berries on it?? what berries? how much?

Water... is water okay with squash? i.e no added sugar robinsons squash? I can't drink that much water on it's own, its just not gonna happen! According to bodybuilding.com site I've calculated that I need 2.5 litres of water per day. I can't do that unless I have some squash in it. I now know just how important water is to a diet, so am going to make a conceited effort to drink 2.5 ltrs a day.

Whey protein etc.. do I really need this? Will it benefit me? I'm currently 20.8 BF% and my target is 14% so I am looking to lose fat .. I do want to bulk up a bit and get stronger later, but for now my goal is to reduce my fat , get fit and healthier. A lot of peoples diets I've been looking at go breakfast, 10am - whey drink, 1pm lunch etc.. so I just want to know if whey or similar products are any use to me.

I have started running, well.. trying to stick at it anyway, finding it really hard. When I go to the gym, should I now just concentrate on weights with no CV? or still do 20 mins of CV then weights?

[Jackd]

Also, with the starting running.. my aim is to do 1 mile per night all this week.. I have done it saturday and today so far... 1 mile kills me, I can only just manage it, but its 10 minutes exercise.. this is better than nothing right? I know you're meant to do 30 mins per day but I can't physically manage more than 1 mile (at 10mins) at the minute.

My plan was to do 1 mile every night this week, then up it to 1.5 miles every night next week, then 2 the week after etc. this should gradually get me into it and build up into a 30 minute workout. is this ok?

[State_Property]

man plz go through that link again from the macro section downwards.

but ill give u some short answers cause im not gonna write pages that can be found elswhere.

ok now u got one big advantage of being a newbie and that is u will start off by being able to LOSE FAT WHILE GAINING MUSCLE take advantage of that while u can cause it will very shortly(2 or 3 months) become impossible to do, next don't worry about what u shouldn't eat but focus on what u should/need to eat to meet your goal. I also found eating basically the same meal plan daily worked best for me.

as a general rule u should think to urself is this what it looked like right out of the animal/ground, if not its been processed and should be avoided as much as possible. umm blueberry i think are the best choice cause they are very rich in anti-oxidents.

water and squash... never heard that 1 before i don't see a problem just dont forget to count it towards ur macros, i love water though and im gonna grab a nice cold glass right now mmmm, in north america things such as crystal light a no calorie, no sugar additive have become extremly popular.

IMO everyone should have a bucket of whey in the their cupboard, do u really think u can get 240 grams of protien a day with only whole sources like chicken and tuna good luck.

cardio should be put off for the afterburn effect after an intense weight training session, u can burn more calories in a one hour intense weight training session then u can in a one hour cardio session.

not to mention.,..... Most people only associate weight training with building muscle and increasing strength. Few people realize the impact weight training has on fat loss. Here's why: Weight training increases your lean body mass. Increasing your lean body mass speeds up your metabolic rate so you burn more calories at rest and the number of calories you burn at rest (your basal metabolic rate) is directly proportional to the amount of muscle. weight training always accelerates fat loss, although it happens primarily through an indirect mechanism. Muscle is metabolically active tissue that burns fat, and lifting weights builds muscle, therefore weight training must be a part of every fat loss program.

[mouse88]

Just a little piece of advice: the oats that you have to make yourself (not the instant type) are usually better for you, especially for diet purposes. I eat those raw, maybe with some honey for flavor and/or organic all natural peanut butter for a little extra protein if you are lifting weights.