Eating Like A Linebacker
January 17, 2009
Being a football linebacker is a position that requires a player to have some bulk and power. In order to bulk up most efficiently the ambitious linebacker would ideally skip breakfast, work out for 3 or 4 hours, eat nothing right afterward, then have a light lunch of carbohydrates followed by a huge meal for dinner and then dessert right before bed. I know many women who actually eat like this on a regular basis. They are not linebackers. They just think this is the way to Slenderville.
Skipping breakfast might seem like a good idea to save on calorie consumption, considering that you might not be hungry especially if you ate after 8pm the night before.
But the exact opposite is true. When you don’t eat breakfast your metabolism responds by slowing down and burning less, in spite of how active you are, and especially if you are athletic because the demand on your system is greater, so the conservation effort will accordingly be greater.
If you want to bulk up or take up Sumo wrestling, eat nothing early in the day and more and more as the day goes on, finishing with the junky carbs late at night.
Now if you’d rather NOT look like a linebacker,, eat a breakfast of protein (eggs come to mind and the new rules are that they are fine to have 5 times a week as long as your cholesterol level is in range) and some complex carbohydrate like whole wheat toast and some fruit. Lunch should be more lean protein and a cup of fiber-filled complex carbs. If you work out (and if you did not, lie to me and tell me tell me that you did) it’s important (to not storing fat) to consume some food within 20 minutes after your workout. This 20 minute window is the cut-off to keeping your metabolism revved up. The best thing to have would be a liquid protein, preferably whey, which is the most readily utilized protein by the body, but any other lean protein will suffice. It needs to be a 2-1 protein to carb (grams) ratio to restore what was lost in the workout session. You don’t need more than 200 calories. Think of a cup of yogurt, a banana with one tablespoon of peanut butter or a HEALTHY smoothie. I specify healthy smoothie because many smoothies that you see in stores or restaurants these days qualify as milkshakes, so don’t kid yourself. Know the sugar and calorie count and before you slurp. Then dinner. Dinner should be finished at least three hours before bedtime. Make it a big salad with a sprinkle of crushed flax seeds. Watch out for evil dressings that are fat-laden. Read the label. More lean protein and as much healthy veggies as you want. Then turn out the dining room light, close down the kitchen and avoid pre-bedtime eating like the plague. Make an announcement to your family. Tell them you are finished eating for the day. There’s something about saying you are finished with something that I like. It’s as if there was an allotted amount of something and now it is gone. Don’t say “I’m done.” Announce that you are finished. I bet you will like how it sounds too.
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thanks !! very helpful post!