Since I started this plant-based adventure, I have had lots of requests to share my daily nutrition plan and recipes that I enjoy. Those of you who have been following along with the BOOST Health Blog and Podcast, are probably aware that I have been on a plant-based nutrition plan for the past 4+ years. I have had amazing results including loss of 15 lbs., loss of 10% body fat, 5% increase in muscle, tremendous improvement in sport performance, and most importantly, I feel absolutely fantastic. Before starting on plant-based nutrition I was having all kinds of stomach issues and wasn’t seeing the types of gains in the gym and in sport that I should have been. You can check out the entire story here if interested.
In this daily nutrition plan that I am about to share, I am going to include some extra detail on my overall schedule, supplements, and training to give you a better picture and understanding. I also have created a new section on the website that will house all my favorite recipes and I will continue to add these.
I feel very strongly that a good, consistent, morning routine is key to success for overall wellness. Richard Whately, a theological writer from England in the 1800’s once said “Lose an hour in the morning, and you will spend all day looking for it”. I did an entire episode and post on 10 tips for the best morning routine you can check out.
You may be wondering why I am going on a tangent about morning routines when I am supposed to be giving you my daily nutrition plan. The reason is because the morning sets up the entire day because I do overnight/morning fasting, which is a type of intermittent fasting. Because of this overnight/morning fasting, I think of my days as less segmented or defined than typical diets, but rather a fluid 24 hour period that starts over each morning. For example typical diets call meals names like “breakfast”, “lunch”, “dinner”, and “snacks”. I just call my meals names like “meal”, “food”, or “training fuel”. I eat when I am hungry (and not fasting). It is the epitome of listening to your body and understanding your needs. It does take practice of course. Below is my daily nutrition plan and approximate timing in sync with my overall schedule. The meals always include vegetables, fruit, and healthy fat. A lot of the meals also include beans, nuts, seeds, olives, and nut butter. I always eat real food whenever possible but if I am traveling, out on a long bike ride, or out running errands I always bring bars in case I need fuel while on the go. Larabars and Zing bars are a couple of my favorites.
My Day:
04:30-05:00
(Fasting)
Wake, take Heart Rate Variability (HRV), and do miscellaneous morning prep
05:00-05:05
(Fasting)
Take master pattern amino acids with glass of water and ¼ tsp baking soda
05:05-05:15
(Fasting)
Sip black coffee and complete dynamic warm up
05:15-07:00
(Fasting)
Workout and/or teach group fitness class
07:00-08:15
(Fasting)
Get kids ready and dropped off at school
08:15-08:30
(Fasting)
Walk home from kids’ school and at the same time do gratitude journal, recent achievements, and daily strategy using Evernote voice dictation
08:30-10:30
(Fasting)
Work using “hardest thing first rule” for first 90 minutes and “2 minute rule” for the last 30 minutes. Sip black coffee and water.
10:30-11:00
(Break the fast at 10:30am)
This is when I typically eat my first meal. I suppose you could call this breakfast because, as my buddy Joel reminded me, the origin of the word comes from breaking your fast. This usually breaks about a 14 hour fast based on when I ate my last meal the night before.
Meal 1: Main dish such as vegetable curry, vegetable stew, mega salad, vegetable chili, vegetable spaghetti, etc. Also an apple or banana with peanut/ flaxseed butter. Glass of water. Also take daytime multivitamin.
11:00-13:30
Work. Sip black coffee and water.
13:30-14:30
Workout #2 if applicable. Note this is 3 hours after I ate my first meal so plenty of time for digestion of nutrients.
14:30-15:00
Meal #2: Main dish such as vegetable curry, vegetable stew, mega salad, vegetable chili, vegetable spaghetti, etc. Also an apple or banana with peanut/ flaxseed butter. Glass of water.
15:00-16:00
Pick up kids from school
16:00-18:00
Work and kids activities
18:00-18:30
Meal #3: Main dish such as vegetable curry, vegetable stew, mega salad, vegetable chili, vegetable spaghetti, etc. Also an apple or banana with peanut/ flaxseed butter. Glass of water with Creatine (creapure) supplement mixed in. Also take nighttime multivitamin.
18:30-20:00
Work and play with kids
20:00-20:15
Meal #4: Main dish such as vegetable curry, vegetable stew, mega salad, vegetable chili, vegetable spaghetti, etc. Also variety of berries such as blueberries, strawberries, blackberries, etc.
20:15-20:30
Put kids to bed. New round of fasting begins.
20:30-04:30
Sleep (Goal is 8 hours)
What about going out to eat?
Eating out at restaurants on a plant-based diet is not as difficult as it may seem. Most of the time there will be a few choices that are fine as listed on the menu such as salads, veggie burgers, fruit, rice, beans, etc. Other regular menu options can be made into a great plant-based meal with a modification or two. For example at one restaurant we go to here in Hong Kong they make a very nice red Thai curry with rice and vegetables but it also has chicken with it. I simply ask them to make it with extra vegetables instead of chicken and they are happy to do it. Another place we go to has a spicy spaghetti with meatballs and cheese. Here I just ask them to substitute vegetables instead of the meatballs and leave the cheese out. Worst case scenario I always have a few bars on the ready if there are not any plant-based options at a new restaurant or need a few extra calories in addition to their offerings.
Summing Up
Plant-based nutrition isn’t for everyone. But if you haven’t tried it before perhaps this “day in the life” will act as a map to help you get started. Or maybe you have tried a plant-based diet in the past but weren’t successful due to inadequate planning, willpower, or knowledge. My objective will be to continue to share tips and tricks to get the most out of a plant-based diet, including recipes that I enjoy. If you have had success or struggles with a plant-based diet it would be great if you could share in the comments below. I would love to hear your story.
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