Building a shredded bodybuilding physique requires more than hours of intense weightlifting. As the saying goes, “Abs are made in the kitchen.”
A balanced intake of macronutrients — protein, carbohydrates, and healthy fats — is essential, so what should you eat to meet nutritional goals? (1) Recently, bodybuilder Christian Guzman shared insights into his meal prep routine for maintaining his peeled aesthetics.
Christian Guzman’s Full Meal Prep
Over the past four to five months, Guzman worked to master the art of meal prepping, creating a week’s worth of meals in under two hours; time-efficient and practical. Here are some of his recipes:
- Sweet Potatoes
- Yellow Potatoes
- 973 grams of Ground Turkey
- 964 grams of Beef
- Chicken Tenderloins
- Bison
- Cauliflower
- Asparagus
- Carrots
Sweet Potatoes, Yellow Potatoes, & Carrots
Guzman meal preps by starting with the food that takes the longest to cook — anything destined for the oven. Setting the temperature to 450°F, the oven preheats while Guzman prepares his baking sheets.
Guzman sprays the sheets with non-stick spray, breaks a head of cauliflower into bite-sized pieces, and arranges them on the first tray. He prefers cauliflower to broccoli or asparagus, since it feels lighter and avoids the bloated feeling that sometimes accompanies other vegetables. Cauliflower can mimic the texture of white rice.
Guzman lays his carrots, sweet potatoes, and yellow potatoes on the second tray. While he used to rely on white rice as the go-to carb, he’s since discovered sweet potatoes’ satisfying flavor and nutritional benefits. Once prepped, he seasons the vegetables and roasts them in the oven for about an hour.
If you’re struggling with satiety, I would…give you sweet potatoes, then white or yellow potatoes. Volume-filled foods… feels like eating a lot more.
—Christian Guzman
Bison & Ground Beef
While potatoes and carrots roast in the oven, Guzman prepares his proteins. He seasons bison before mashing and frying it in a pan. He follows the same process for ground beef.
Bison is a breakfast staple for Guzman; he appreciates its richer fat content and often pairs it with cashews.
Putting them all in my first meal early on in the day has really helped me feeling full.
—Christian Guzman
Chicken Tenderloins, Ground Turkey, & Asparagus
Once Guzman cooks the ground beef and bison, he sets them aside to cool before proceeding to ground turkey. He seasons the turkey in the pan, adding beef bone broth to keep it moist as it simmers.
Rotating protein sources throughout the day has significantly improved Guzman’s gut health. “I feel like I’m responding better and growing more,” Guzman said.
For his final protein dish, Guzman prepares chicken tenderloins by seasoning the them before frying. He adds a splash of beef bone broth to enhance the flavor and moisture, then lowers the heat to a simmer for seven to eight minutes.
To complete the dish, Guzman chops asparagus into bite-sized pieces, seasons them, and gives them a quick sauté. “I don’t want to dry it out the asparagus…just a little crispy,” Guzman noted.
Guzman removes the roasted potatoes and carrots, peels the sweet potatoes, and transfers all the oven-roasted items into storage containers. He separates his proteins and vegetables into their containers and wraps up his meal prep for the week.
“This is exactly what I’ve been doing for four to six months. I have seen the most progress in my physique and health, and it’s been doing this once a week,” Guzman stated.
Guzman’s meal prep includes carrots, two tubs of cauliflower, asparagus, sweet potatoes, chicken tenderloins, turkey, beef, and bison. “Once I put the lids on these containers, I take an extra marker or Sharpie and write what they are because it’s easy to confuse the bison and the beef.”
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Reference
- Lambert, C. P., Frank, L. L., & Evans, W. J. (2004). Macronutrient considerations for the sport of bodybuilding. Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.), 34(5), 317–327. https://doi.org/10.2165/00007256-200434050-00004
Featured image: @christianguzmanfitness on Instagram
