When it comes to getting what you want out of life there is no substitute for focus and determination. But there is a catch. When so much focus, time, and energy are directed at one facet of life, sometimes others fall to the wayside. This happened to Erik Winegarden. The once-celebrated athlete who played baseball at the professional level, used his drive, and determination to work on his business so he could provide for a growing family. This determination brought Erik great success. His business was thriving, he was happily married and had two beautiful, energetic boys with another on the way. I’m sure you can guess what Erik soon realized.
Success At The Expense Of Personal Health, Is A Price No One Can Afford
When Erik came to me, he wanted a change. He wanted to get healthy, lose body fat, and ultimately attain a ripped up athletic look. At his heaviest Erik weighed 246 lbs. with 24% body fat, so his goal seemed far out in the future. But, after the initial stages of his training program went well, Erik began to thrive and was ready to go the next level. At the time, I was prepping for a physique competition. Seeing my dedication and physical results, Erik was dead set on achieving the same. From there, it was on! Erik adopted the diet, training, and overall lifestyle that it took to become a physique competitor under my guidance.
Get Your Nutrition Right, And Everything Follows
As a trainer and competitor my coaching philosophies are centered on high-quality nutrition. My program is a low tech/high concept method of eating foods at specific times throughout the day that help shift your body towards using more of its stored energy for fuel (like fat). This “Targeted Metabolic Meal Planning” (TMMP), a name coined by my friend Vince Andrich, because as he says it avoids running directly into a state of diminishing returns with the classic calorie reduced deadline diets. For Erik this meant, first getting his proteins, carbs and fats into proper ratio’s, then advancing to specific meals around training, and finally fine tuning energy intake to work out put.
How Erik’s Meal Plan Was Structured For Physique Success
In general, we kept Erik’s carbohydrates low in the morning, keeping insulin low throughout most of the day. This was our window of time to burn fat. Training came later in the afternoon, so we plugged in carbohydrates at the beginning with his Peri-Workout Nutrition. This consisted of a small amount of carbohydrates before training with a faster-digesting protein source; followed by Branch Chained Amino Acids (BCAAs) throughout the workout; and finished with a quality, whole-food meal shortly after training.
How Targeted Metabolic Meal Planning Played a Role
Daily, Erik’s meals focused on the consumption of high-quality, lean protein sources, green vegetables, healthy fats, and easily digestible starchy carbohydrate sources. The combined TMMP principles worked wonders with Erik’s body type, culminating in the ripped physique he wanted to achieve.
Erik’s Meal Plan Was Structured For Physique Success
6oz Cooked Extra Lean-Ground Turkey 2 cups Jasmine Rice Greens of Choice
Meal 1
10 Egg-White Omelet, Spinach, 1 tbsp. Extra Virgin Coconut Oil
Meal 2
1-Quest Bar 20-grams Whey Isolate, 2 tbsp. Raw Almond Butter
Meal 3
6 oz. Tilapia, Green Beans, 1 tbsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Meal 4
6 oz. Extra-Lean Ground Turkey, Green Beans, 28 grams Raw Almonds
When it came time for “peak week” of the competition prep, Erik was absolutely dialed in. After nine months, the aforementioned 246-pound workaholic with 24% body fat was now a chiseled replica of Adonis at 206 lbs. and 4.5% body fat. On competition day, Erik walked away with a third-place trophy and the gratification of personal accomplishment. Even better, there was a cheeseburger, fries, and other previously forbidden foods to look forward to that evening. I couldn’t have been any prouder.
Written byAdam Bisek, NSCA-CPT and Nutrition Coach
