Whether trying to build muscle or lose weight, a balanced diet is likely necessary to achieve a goal physique. Starting one’s transformation journey without a diet plan is akin to setting off on a road trip through unfamiliar territory without a roadmap; it is easy to veer off course.
Two-time Figure Olympia champion turned pro Bikini competitor Erin Stern has mastered tweaking her diet to achieve her muscle mass and conditioning goals. On July 19, 2023, Stern took to her YouTube channel to share her most-reliable diet planning tips to get in shape. Check it out below:
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Determine Daily Calorie and Macronutrient Goals
Stern shared a five-step approach to establishing ideal calorie and macronutrient objectives:
Begin with a Goal
Stern emphasized the importance of starting a transformation journey with a specific, measurable, realistic, and time-bound goal. She recommended setting goals, taking anthropometric measurements, progress pictures, and assessing body fat percentage using fat calipers. Stern encouraged taking a DEXA (dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry) scan to measure bone density.
The former Figure Olympia champion advised allocating three to four months to achieve your transformation goal.
Determine Maintenance Calories
Once a goal is set, establish maintenance calories. Stern suggested three ways of doing this. First, use an online calorie calculator that offers a suitable maintenance calorie goal based on age, weight, gender, height, and activity levels.
Second, track weight and food intake using a calorie-tracking app like MyFitnessPal for two weeks. Provided bodyweight doesn’t change over these 14 days, use the average daily calorie intake as maintenance calories.
Finally, for people who want a quick fix, Stern suggested multiplying one’s body weight by 11 through 15 to get maintenance calories. Highly active people with a high metabolic rate seeking to build muscle should multiply their body weight by the higher range (14 or 15). Those trying to lose weight should multiply their body weight by the lower range (11 or 12). Folks with a body recomposition goal should multiply their body weight by 13.
For example, maintenance calories for a 150-pound moderately active individual will be 1,800 calories (150 x 12). Stern used 1,800 calories as her base for the subsequent calculations.
Ascertain Protein Intake Goal
After arriving at your daily maintenance calorie goal, you must determine your macronutrient split. Stern suggested beginning with protein as it is the most important macronutrient for building muscle.
Stern doesn’t rely on ratios to determine her macronutrient targets. Instead, she recommends getting between 0.8 to 1.2 grams of protein per pound of body weight daily. Staying on the lower end of the spectrum will help you maintain your muscle mass, whereas eating a gram per pound of body weight or more will help you build muscle.
A 150-pound individual should consume at least 150 grams (150 x 1) of protein daily to build lean muscle tissue. Since one gram of protein contains four calories, 600 calories (150 x 4) from the 1,800-calorie target should come from protein. This leaves us 1,200 calories (1,800-600) for fats and carbs.
Establish a Fat Intake Target
For the fourth step, Stern suggested calculating daily fat intake by multiplying body weight by a factor ranging from 0.2 to 0.6. For people trying to maintain a lower body fat percentage, Stern recommended sticking to 0.2 to 0.3, whereas individuals trying to bulk should use 0.5 or 0.6.
A 150-pound individual trying to improve muscle conditioning should consume at least 30 grams of fat (150 x 0.2) daily. Since one gram of fat contains nine calories, 270 calories will come from fats.
Determine Your Carbohydrate Intake Goal
With 870 calories allocated (600 from protein and 270 from fats) with the total daily goal, the remaining 930 calories will come from carbohydrates. Since a gram of carbohydrates has four calories, the 150-pound individual should consume 232.5 grams of carbs to meet the daily 1,800-calorie target.
Goal Calorie & Macronutrient Target For the 150-Pound Individual
- Protein — 150 grams
- Fat — 30 grams
- Carbs — 232.5 grams
- Calories — 1,800
Stern recommended sticking to a new calorie and macronutrient goal for at least two weeks to allow the body sufficient time to adapt to the diet. If unsatisfied with the progress, readjust fat and carb targets while keeping protein intake consistent.
According to Stern, aim to lose one percent of body weight per week while following a calorie deficit. The same for those striving to gain muscle mass. Stern proposed increasing or decreasing one’s calorie intake goal by 10 percent or 100-300 calories to break through a plateau, should that arise.
Featured image: @2x_ms_olympia on Instagram
