Men’s Open bodybuilder Jason Lowe knows when to go heavy with carbs and cheat meals to fill out his physique. The additional calories fuel Lowe’s heavy back and leg training. Thus far in 2023, Lowe has competed in two contests, the 2023 Orlando Pro and the 2023 Toronto Pro Supershow, both of which he ranked sixth overall.
On Aug. 22, 2023, Lowe published a video that featured a full day of eating during his back day on his YouTube channel. Check it out below:
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Meal One
- “Anabolic” French toast — five slices
- One packet of instant oatmeal (banana cream flavor)
Lowe made himself “anabolic French toast,” 400 grams of egg whites battered onto five slices of low-fat bread. He apologized to his coach for eating five slices instead of four to accommodate soaking enough egg whites. Lowe pairs the French toast with sugar-free syrup and a single packet of sugar-full oatmeal.
Meal Two
- Rice crisps — half-bag
- Rice — 400 grams
- Chicken breast — five ounces
Lowe felt lightheaded before this meal, so he ate half a bag of Quaker rice crisps to up his blood sugar while he bought and prepped food. Meal two consisted of high-quality carbs and protein from the chicken and rice, a staple meal for Lowe. Hot sauce doused the dish, adding heat and flavor without any additional calories.
Meal Three
- Sushi — nine pieces
- Rice crisps
Lowe sought to replicate the same amount of rice as meal two. He ate rice crisps to cover the carbs that were not sufficed by the sushi rice. While lower in protein, this meal is more aimed at loading carbs.
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Pre-Workout Meal
- Cocoa Pebbles — 180 grams
- Egg whites — 400 grams
- One banana
Lowe’s pre-workout meal is typically 150 grams of cream of rice with 40 grams of whey protein powder. However, he replaces the meal with Cocoa Pebbles and egg whites when running low on whey protein. Lowe explained that the egg whites take on the flavor of whatever they’re paired with, so Cocoa Pebbles makes the egg whites chocolate-flavored.
Workout Supplements
- VasoMax Non-Stim Pre-Workout — two scoops
- Caffeine — one and a half scoops
- Creatine — 10 grams
- BCAAs — 10 grams
- Glutamine — 10 grams
- Carbohydrate powder — 100 grams
Lowe consumes additional carbs intra-workout, pre-workout, caffeine, creatine, and BCAAs to get his body primed for a massive back pump. He includes glutamine to remove excess ammonia and help with muscle soreness after the workout. (1)
Lowe performed cable pulldowns, lat pulldowns, chest-supported rows, chest-supported seated rows, and cable horizontal rows. He combined supersets, drop sets, and partial reps to maximize training volume and intensity. For each rep, Lowe prioritizes a deep stretch of the target muscle group during the eccentrics and a tight contraction of the lats, traps, and deltoids at the top of the concentrics.
Post-Workout Meal
- Frosted Flakes — 180 grams
- Whey Protein — 40 grams
Lowe ate cereal for his post-training meal — Frosted Flakes with a protein shake instead of milk. He says if he were to use actual milk, he would choose FairLife since it is lactose-free. Additionally, he favors the brand that doubles the protein and halves the sugar of traditional milk.
Meal Six & Seven (Cheat Meal)
- Sashimi sushi — Nine pieces
Lowe finishes his sushi from earlier as a snack, which is considered his sixth meal.
Cheat Meal
- Five Guys Triple-Patty Bacon Cheeseburger
- Five Guys Single-Patty Bacon Cheeseburger
- Cajun Fries
- Brookie
Lowe goes off on burgers and fries to end his day, followed by homemade brookies (brownies and cookies combos). With such a heavy back day, he doesn’t fear the excess carbs, even if they are mostly sugar. Replenishing muscle glycogen to fuel his future workouts, which will be equally intense, is welcomed. Lowe feels that as long as he trains hard enough, his diet can warrant delicious cheat meals, and is confident that the carbs won’t store as fat.
Reference
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Cooper, A. J., & Jeitner, T. M. (2016). Central Role of Glutamate Metabolism in the Maintenance of Nitrogen Homeostasis in Normal and Hyperammonemic Brain. Biomolecules, 6(2), 16.
Featured image: @ifbb_broku on Instagram
