Offseason diet logbook question

[mr.e01]

I wanted to know if any of you keep a logbook of what you eat everyday in the offseason. If you do, does it help? Does it make you aware of what you are consuming to gain lean mass? I would love some input about the pros and cons, because I would like to see if its smart to start doing this. Thanks

 

[PlateStacker45]

They don't have enough paper in the world for me to keep a log of all the shit I eat offseason.

 

[sup]

wouldn't hurt, just depends on how anal you want to be about this hobby

 

[mr.e01]

sup, true, but I think it comes my anal tendencies come out even more with time in this sport/hobby-
PS 45- I know what you are saying, but dont you think that if you keep tabs on what you eat, you have to write it down, and therefore be aware that you eating a lot of food and sometimes a lot of junk food- it could really put on the unwanted lbs along with some muscle-

I mean diet is so important in bbing, i wonder why I did not keep tabs before, but on the other hand it may be annoying when in offseason you need to eat to grow. btw i searched the topic but never saw any threads about this topic.

 

[sup]

FWIW... i have a hard enuf time logging my training.. busy job, wife, 2 kids, 2 dogs, 2 cats, fishtank..

plus my other hobbies..

but that being said.. i don't BB like some of these guys do.

If you have the time and inclination.. it can't hurt to know exactly what you are eating.. if for no other reason but to archive for each bulking cycle and modify your diet according to your goals

 

[Big Danny]

Off season word should be taken out of the vocabulary.

 

[Deansreturned]

If you have a detailed log of what your eating on a consistent basis during the off season then when you plateau it would be much easier to make changes within the diet because you would then have a rough estimation as to how many calories you need minimum per day to gain more muscle, and I'm sure something like this would come in handy as well when your dieting for shows, etc.

Overall I would think it would be a good idea, if you were willing to do it

 

[mrsoul]

JUST WRITE OUT YOUR OFFSEASON DIET LIKE YOU WOULD YOUR CONTEST DIET. MEASURE EVERYTHING, CALCULATE YOUR CARBS, PROTEINS AND FATS. EAT THE SAME THING EVERYDAY AND IF YOU ARE NOT GAINING LIKE YOU WANT, CHANGE IT UP.

 

[Dad]

mrsoul pretty much said it all.

I keep a record of what I eat, when I eat it, and grams of protein, carbs, and fat in each meal.

 

[bigmax]

Now I'm around 200 and I would like to put some weight on next year, lets say 30-40 in a decent state (10%bf max) so I'm curious on your mass diet too can you post some examples of your bulking nutrition?

How do you share the % of caloric intake between proteins carbs and fats? do you time this % during the day or pre and after workout?

 

[Dad]

Not to be discouraging, but putting on 30-40 lbs, AND staying at around 10% bodyfat, all in a year, is going to be a real (meaning just about impossible) trick.

Maybe over the course of a couple of years or better, or if yuo've never used AAS before and this is yuor first cycle, or if yuo're well over 6 feet tall at 200, or if yuo're brand new to lifting, but otherwise this is being less than realistic.

If yuo really know what yuo're doing when combining AAS, training, and diet, maybe, but probably not.

 

[swimm]

I absolutely keep a food log ... I use a free internet site, www.fitday.com to track my food intake, and also to track my activity, and I also keep a spreadsheet where I post the daily cumulative totals for both Calories in and Calories out, which helps me to monitor where my weight, bodyfat, and body composition should be mathematically if I am accurate in my tracking (assuming that my BMR assumptions are correct). After a week or two of using the tool, you should be able to pretty closely predict your body's changes week to week, understanding that 3500 calories are in a pound.

For foods that are not on fitday.com, you can go to dietfacts.com, find your food, and then download to fitday for free (up to 15 foods a day). I have had days of 10,000 calories in, and have yet to come close to using up my 15 available food downloads.

good luck

 

[bigmax]

Not to be discouraging, but putting on 30-40 lbs, AND staying at around 10% bodyfat, all in a year, is going to be a real (meaning just about impossible) trick.

Maybe over the course of a couple of years or better, or if yuo've never used AAS before and this is yuor first cycle, or if yuo're well over 6 feet tall at 200, or if yuo're brand new to lifting, but otherwise this is being less than realistic.

If yuo really know what yuo're doing when combining AAS, training, and diet, maybe, but probably not.

Dad, you don't discourage me at all, the point is that I'm planning to start a bulking cyle next year an that is my goal, that doesn't mean I'm going to reach it next year, started training 21 years ago, now i'm 38 and I think I have never "pushed" as I really could, so my bulking period will take what it will take, I guess 2 years, but I see it as a possible goal. I'm 5.8

 

[PlateStacker45]

There is a ton of different opinions on how lean you should be offseason. Personally I prefer the Less Preist/Stay-Puff Marshmellow man tactic. I bust my ass and kill myself dieting down inseason, offseason is a HUGE relief. I'd go nuts if I had to diet year round'. If it has some kinda of nutritional value to me, I'll eat it. That means no Cakes, Cookies, Soda.. but the hell if I don't take down 4-5 Double $1 Cheeseburgers for a meal! Another very important thing IMO is if you are natural or not. I know a lot of bulking agents also help you stay lean thruout your bulking period, therefore allowing you to loosen up on your diet a little. It's all personal preference of course. But my strength goes through the roof offseason, mainly because I have a little extra weight to help me throw around. Just a little food for thought.

 

[mr.e01]

Thanks for all the great replies, I see the ups and downs. I will try and stick it out and do the logbook so I can gauge my progress- I feel it is necessary to see why I am not gaining or gaining too much fat, as diet is probably the most important tool of this whole bodybuilding scheme. thanks for the replies, it really does help.