My 3000 Calories Anabolic Diet Menu
Jul 13th, 2007 by Mehdi
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The problem beginners to the Anabolic Diet often experience is not knowing where to start. High Protein/High Fat/Low Carb. How does that look like in practice? This is my current Anabolic Diet Menu as example.
My Eating Habits. I’m the kind of guy who eats the same food every day for several weeks, until getting bored with it. Then I change the menu until I get bored again. Why? It’s:
- Cheaper. I buy most foods in bulk.
- Easier. It becomes a habit after a few days.
- Faster. Same meals daily: preparing food gets quick.
It usually takes 4 to 6 weeks before I change the menu. The only exception is the weekend carb loading. Which, as you can expect, has plenty of variation 
Personal Stats. My Stats again:
- Bodyweight: 70kg / 155lbs
- Height: 1m73 / 5′8″
- Body Fat: 8-10%
Calories required for maintenance: 18 x 155 = 2800 kcal daily.
Calorie Intake. To simplify things, I round up my calorie intake to 3000 kcal daily. Split:
- Monday to Saturday: 3000 kcal daily.
- Sunday: as much carbs as I can.
Carb loading sometimes starts Saturday evening, sometimes Sunday morning. I have no plan & don’t count calories. I just focus on eating as much carbs as possible. I often weigh 5kg (10lbs) more on Sunday evening compared to Saturday morning. This weight is gone by Friday.
Anabolic Diet Grocery List. The foods on my current menu:
- Ground. Beef/Pork Mix.
- Tuna Cans.
- Eggs.
- Emmental Cheese.
- Spinach Leafs.
- Garlic Bulbs.
- Salad Mix.
- Fresh Lemons.
- Frozen Berries.
- Flax Seeds.
- Butter.
- Olive Oil - Extra Virgin/Cold Pressed.
- Liquid Fish Oil.
- Whey.
Weekdays Anabolic Diet Menu. This is what I eat from Monday to Saturday:
- Breakfast: 6 eggs, lemon juice
- Post Workout: 1.5 scoop whey, 1tbsp fish oil
- 1h later: 250g ground in butter, 250g spinach with garlic, 1tbsp olive oil
- Lunch: 250g ground in butter, 250g spinach with garlic, 1tbsp olive oil
- Dinner: 1 tuna can with salad
- Supper: 150g Emmental, 1tbsp fish oil, 100g berries, 30g flax seeds
Sometimes I eat 100g ground or half a can of tuna with the eggs. Sometimes I add spinach to the eggs. Sometimes I eat the ground round & spinach in one meal. Little variety, ingredients stay the same.
Macronutrients. Macros for the above menu.
- Protein: 275g
- Fats: 215g
- Fiber: 26g
- Carbs: 20g
- Calories: 3100 kcal
Weekend Carb Loading. This is what I usually get on Sunday:
- Whole Grain Bread. 500g with jam or Brie.
- Oats & Raisins. 100g of both microwaved with water.
- Whole Grain Pasta. 500g with tomato sauce, cheese & meat or tuna.
- Fruits. Especially bananas & apples, as much as I can take.
- Junk Food. Cookies & chocolate.
I have an enormous appetite, reason why I do 24 hour carb ups.
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Hello there. I was just calculating my macronutrients for the anabolic diet (3-4 week initial maintenance phase), and here’s what it looks like:
Total calories = 18 x bodyweight in lbs = 18 x 220 = ~4000 kcal
55% fat = 2200 kcal = 244.4 grams = 48.8 grams of fat per meal (5 meals a day)
30% protein = 1200 kcal = 300 grams = 60 grams of protein per meal (5 meals a day)
5% carbs = 200 kcal = 50 GRAMS OF CARBS = 10 grams of carbs per meal (5 meals a day)
So the problem is that the ammount of carbs turns out to be more than 30 grams per day. Should stick to what the Anabloic Diet book says and consume a maximum of 30 grams of carbs per day, or should I go with my own calculations and consume 50 grams a day?
That’s the only problem I have so far. Other than that, does everything else look about right to you? Thanks in advance, and keep up the good work.
Everything looks ok, except for the carbs. If you want to force your body to use fat for energy, you must go zero carbs. That’s how the Anabolic Diet works.
You should do: 55% fat - 35% protein. Don’t attribute calories for carbs. Where do the carbs come from btw?
I read the anabolic diet book the other day, and it says carb consumption should be kept to a minimum of 30 grams a day, so that was a bit confusing for me. My understanding was that those 30 grams should come from starchy carbs since veggies can be eaten as much as wanted.
So what about the remaining 10%? Negligable?
The book says 30gram a day indeed. The reason why I write 0g on this blog, is that some people tend to take the 30g of carbs in one seating (by eating oats for example).
The 30g of carbs should be coming indirectly from veggies, eggs, flax seeds, …
Same question: how do you get 50g of carbs a day by eating veggies? I don’t think 50g is ok, especially for starters. Beginner must stay as close to 0g as possible. Only way to force your body to use fat for energy. If carb intake is too high, body doesn’t adapt.
I see. So there are no starchy carbs involved at all in this diet huh?
Another question. How am I supposed to count every gram of fat if I’m supposed to eat fatty meats? I mean, if I’m eating lean meat, I can easily add fat in the form of almonds or avocado for example and get the exact ammount I need. But if I’m eating non-lean meat (without knowing how much fat it contains), it seems that it’s very possible to go overvoard with the fat when I get additional fat from almonds and avocado.
Only starchy carbs during the weekend.
Check nurtritiondata.com for info on fat amounts in meats. Hard to know the exact amount, but it will give you an idea.
You need to eat fatty meats btw. Saturated fat is key to the Anabolic Diet. It’s good to add omega 3&9, but be sure that the bulk of your fat intake comes from saturated fat.
Cool. Thanks a lot.
BTW, is this diet good for endos? As an endo, it’s psycholagically hard for me to eat all that saturated fat.
Does the Anabolic Diet work? Yes. Will you like it? That’s personal.
I like it, but you might not. Give it a try, only way to know.
Mehdi,
I have a quick question. I’ve been reading a lot about the AD around the net and as of yet I can’t seem to find anyone who eats a standard 3-meal-a-day regimen on the AD. It’s always 5 or more meals a day. Now I know that in general the 5 or greater meals per day generally works better for your body, helps you avoid hunger, etc., but for those of us who the 3 meal-a-day setup is still the best thing, is there going to be any problem on the AD with the same intake numbers but just more intake per meal and less meals per day?
Thanks in advance and excellent site, BTW…
Thanks for the motivating words on the blog GoofballTexan.
Excellent questions. To tell you the truth, I was eating 4 meals a day just before I left for holiday. Breakfast, post workout, lunch, dinner. The reason: fits my lifestyle better. I’ll be experimenting more in this direction when I get back from holiday. I’ll post about this, don’t worry.
If you’re going to eat less meals a day, be sure you’re getting your total amount of calories at the end of the day. If you have a big appetite like me, that shouldn’t be a problem. However if you have problems getting to your calories, 6 meals a day might be easier. Experiment.
Remember: what counts is not the amount of calories in one sitting. It’s the amount of calories at the end of the day/week/month. That will be decisive in gaining/losing/maintaining weight.
I have a question about one food which is made of veggies but also has carbs and goes well with ground meat. Spaghetti sauce or marinara sauce. Would this be something that could be allowed to be eaten on this type of diet?
Thanks
Anything is allowed on the Anabolic Diet as long as your daily carb intake on weekdays is lower than 30g. Best is to make the food yourself, that way you go what goes in it.
For spaghetti sauce: watch out with tomato & oignons, which contain sugar. Lots of meat is allowed. Of course you can’t eat pasta on weekdays with the spaghetti sauce.
Isn’t 3000 kcal’s 3,000,000 calories? I wonder if King Kong eats that much…
“Calorie Intake. To simplify things, I round up my calorie intake to 3000 kcal daily. Split:
* Monday to Saturday: 3000 kcal daily.”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calorie
Maybe Big Foot, but not King Kong.
* Protein: 275g = 1100kcal
* Fats: 215g = 1935kcal
* Fiber: 26g = 104kcal
* Carbs: 20g = 80kcal
* Calories: 3100 kcal –> 3219 kcal I calculated???
I’m confused your total carbohydrate is actually 46g daily right, when we should stick to 30g. Or do you mean 30g carbohydrates, excluding Fiber. Also shouldn’t you add Fiber x 4 to the total calories as well, when working out the macronutrient ratios.
For example if I wanted to workout your macro of carbs a day.
Shouldnt I do
(104+80) / 3219 = 5% rather than
80 / 3100 = 2%??
So can I eat all the spinach I want during the weekday? Also what condiments can I use, can I use stuff like Ranch,and Ketcup? And can I eat any type of berries during the weekday?