I have always been one to dismiss calorie counting as a waste of time, believing — when I focused on my eating habits — that portion size and balancing the food groups were the issue.
P90X places huge importance on proper diet (if it didn't, I guess I wouldn't have bought it), but it also structures food plans based on your level of fitness; as your fitness increases, your diet must change. Based on calculations using my body fat percentage and my current weight, the P90X plan helped me determine my resting metabolic rate, and from there determines which nutrition level I'm at according to their guidelines.
I am at level II, which calls for a an intake of 2,400 to 2,999 calories per day, factoring in the daily workouts for a 600 calorie burn.
And now I am counting calories.
Next was the food approach based on lifestyle and cooking ability. As I am not a confident cook, and my available time is so restricted, I chose the "portion" approach, which outlines basic foods and the food groups they belong to, and how many calories per portion. P90X also plots out how many servings of each portion I can have in a day to add up to 2,400 calories, my daily minimum which they recommend I shoot for, and can adjust if my energy levels cannot compete with the rigors of the P90X Extreme Fitness workouts.
Phase 1 is the Fat Shredder, so it's lower in carbs and higher in proteins. I can extend or shorten this diet phase depending on how my body responds to the exercise.
Phase 2 is the Energy Booster. It cuts back a little on the proteins and ups the carbs in order to provide the body with the energy it demands as fitness improves.
Phase 3 is the Endurance Maximizer. Carb intake outweighs the protein intake, as the body is now metabolizing everything much more quickly, and needs the energy.
So I spent a good portion of my Independence Day Sunday holiday reading the P90X Nutrition Plan, roughing together a generic daily eating plan, and trying to decide whether to start today or tomorrow...
And so I begin the Fat Shredder phase at Nutrition Level II in P90X Extreme Fitness!
Tony, I felt much the same way about counting calories. But, last summer, I broke down and did a "counting" diet. Ugh. BUT, you can't argue with results, and I definitely got 'em! Something that helped me was to get into a simple routine where I eat basically the same breakfast, lunch, and snacks everyday (making sure they're well balanced). Dinner is the only variant. Sure makes grocery shopping and meal planning a LOT easier when you already know 75% of what you're going to eat everyday!
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