-
7/22/2019 t-dawg
1/7
The T-Dawg Diet
Hey folks just though I put up another old and great addition.
Man you guys gotme going back and I mean way back. Some of the old
timers still use this sort
of thing today. its still an all time great. U.R
This is also great for endomorph or someone wanting to drop fat
fast as well.
The T-Dawg Diet: Version 2.0by Chris Shugart and TC
A Brief History of Supper Time
In the beginning, there was meat, and meat was good. A hungry
man would pick up asharp stick, sit quietly by a watering hole in
the early morn, and wait until breakfast
strolled up for a sip of water. Along with four-legged extra
value meals, there were tastysources of protein and healthy fats
swimming in the oceans and rivers. When thehunting and fishing
weren't that good, there were things growing in the ground
thatcould sustain a man and his family. Man's body adapted to this
simple diet and this wasalso good.
Fast forward to the 1980's and early 1990's. Things had gone
very wrong somewheredown the line. Diet experts railed against fat,
questioned the importance of protein, andtouted the benefits of
highly processed carb sources. Sugar and flour replaced meat
andveggies. People became soft and diseased. Grown men wore
stretchy pants. This wasvery bad.
Luckily, a few revolutionaries were able to look out at the
gelatinous masses and seethat something was very wrong. Man had
defied Mother Nature and that old bat hadstruck back. These brave
souls came forth and said that fat wasn't that bad, heck, someof it
was even essential. They said that meat wasn't evil and that
protein was vital. Most
importantly, they smite the bagels and rice cakes out of the
hands of the chubby, misledcarboholics, and reminded them that "fat
free" does not always mean healthy.
However, man's egotism struck again and some of these very same
revolutionariesdecided that all carbohydrates were bad. Sure
enough, they had swung the dietarypendulum too far and their
narrow-minded eating plans left us flat and mentallyincapacitated.
Our waists may have shrunk, but so did our muscles and our ability
toperform athletically. Not good.
Then from the smoky, corpse-strewn, dietary battlefield, two
warriors emerged, their
weapon common sense, their mission to help everyone be healthy
and look good naked.They were Chris Shugart and TC, and in their
hands was a tablet writ of stone. On it, theT-Dawg Diet.
Of course, we could be exaggerating just a little.
Just Dawg It
Our idea was simple. Take the prototypical low-carb diet and
improve it:
1) Tweak it so it worked better for bodybuilders.
-
7/22/2019 t-dawg
2/7
2) Make it healthier.
3) Make it easier both physically and psychologically to stick
with.
4) Modernize it so it included post-workout nutrition and
anti-catabolic supplementation.
In the end, we took all the good parts of several different
diets and combined them intoone ass-kicking fat loss plan: the
T-Dawg Diet. We called it that because the diet waskind of a mutt.
In the canine world, mutts tend to live longer, healthier lives
thanpurebreds because of their varied gene pool. The T-Dawg proved
to be the same. Of all
the diets we've presented here in T-mag, the ol' Dawg has
remained a favorite and hasestablished a proven track record. The
fat comes off pretty easily, workouts remainproductive, the mental
"blahs" are reduced, and many even report simultaneous muscle
gain to go along with the blubber loss.
That being said, the diet is about three years old and much has
changed during thattime. Not only do we now know more about the
science of fat loss, we've also had threeyears worth of feedback on
the diet. With all the new scientific and practical info, we
thought it was time to update and refine the T-Dawg Diet.
Version 2.0
In a nutshell, the original T-Dawg diet suggested you get about
70 grams of carbs on
training days and around 30 on non-training days. On training
day, most of the carbscame right after your workout in the form of
an MRP (meal replacement powder) withadded "simple" carbs.
Protein intake was just below a gram per pound of body weight
and the rest of thecalories came from dietary fat. Supplements like
folic acid, fish and flax oil, fiber and a
multivitamin were suggested to reduce any possible harmful
effects of a high-fat diet.
A high fat intake was suggested because dietary fat fills you up
quickly, satiates youlonger, ensures an even and subdued insulin
release, and optimizes hormone levels suchas Testosterone. Low
carbs were suggested to keep a rein on insulin, reduce
cravings,
keep physical and mental energy levels constant and, of course,
increase the oxidationof fatty acids. One day per week, usually
Saturday, you were allowed a couple of "freemeals" of any gosh darn
thing you wanted.
Everyone up to speed now? Good. Let's move on.
So how is Version 2.0 different? There are several refinements
and improvements:
1) More Carbs Allowed
There's nothing overly scientific about this. People on the diet
simply noticed they got
great results with more carbs than originally recommended. So
instead of 70/30 (70grams on training day and 30 on other days), we
now suggest 100/70. Why? Well, whydeprive yourself with fewer carbs
if your body can hardly tell the difference anyway and
fat loss is not effected?
By upping the carbs, you can plan your diet easier and have a
wider variety of foodchoices, ensure a higher fiber intake (a
problem with low carb diets), and perhaps mostimportantly, have
enough carbs allotted for a proper post-workout drink. (More on
thatbelow.) A diet too low in carbs also makes for a rough
transition to "normal" eating and
many people give in to cravings. Allowing for more carbs makes
it easier to come off thediet.
-
7/22/2019 t-dawg
3/7
So, the T-Dawg isn't really a low carb diet; it's a reduced carb
diet where carbohydrateintake is smartly timed.
2) Post-workout Nutrition Refined
When we wrote the original article, we knew what you consumed
after your workout wasvery important. Basically, we knew you needed
protein and simple carbs to replenishglycogen stores, lower
cortisol levels (the hormone that, in excess, causes
musclebreakdown), and increase muscle protein synthesis.
An MRP with added high GI carbs worked okay; it was simply the
best option we hadback then. Today we know exactly what's needed in
a post-workout drink to achieve all
of the things mentioned above: a fast acting protein, a precise
ratio of BCAA's, and theright high GI carb sources.
We don't have to guess anymore: to turn on anabolism and halt
catabolism, use BiotestSurge right after your workouts. (Even
cheapskate skeptics now agree this should be a
staple of any serious trainee's program!) Another option is to
sip half a serving startingimmediately before your workout and
continuing throughout the workout, then slam
back the other half when you're finished. Try it both ways and
see what works best foryou.
Now, every time we tell someone on a low carb diet that they
should have a big whollup
of carbs after training, they freak out. They shouldn't. The
advantages of a post-workoutdrink far outweigh the disadvantages of
being out of ketosis. In fact, we think ketosis isoverrated. In
short, don't sweat whether you're in ketosis or not!
Through a variety of mechanisms, pre- and post-workout drinks
will improve your rate offat loss! First off, the drink will
increase workout intensity (a problem for most low carb
dieters), increase muscle pump, and increase reps performed and
weight handled. Otherbenefits: better preservation of muscle mass
while dieting, improved metabolic stimulusduring training, higher
post-exercise metabolic rate, and a higher GH response toexercise,
to name a few. T-mag contributor John Berardi has written about all
this beforeso we won't belabor the point. Just get your
post-workout drink and stop worrying!
3) Modified "Free" Meals
When we first wrote the T-Dawg, we suggested one day of "free"
eating. Just havewhatever you've been craving during the week, even
pizza and beer. Throw the food logout the window for one day and
have all the carbage you want. The next day, get rightback on the
Dawg.
We suggested this mainly for psychological and social reasons
basically it's just easierto be "good" all week if you know you can
get that craving for chimichangas out of theway on Saturday. It
also made things like dates, business lunches, and dinner at
grandma's house easier to cope with. We also suspect that an
occasional cheat mealmay be beneficial for many reasons: increased
T3 and T4 output, decreased cortisollevels, increased serum leptin
levels, less "flat" feelings in the gym, etc. But really, who
cares about that? We still think the main reason a cheat meal
helps is psychological.
Anyhow, the results were largely good. Despite TBA (Total Buffet
Annihilation), most T-Dawgers lost fat and kept their sanity.
However, a few went absolutely insane, using the"free day" to
imprison themselves in a bunker built from Eskimo Pies and then
eatthemselves out.
As such, we needed to modify a couple of things. The "free"
eating options now include:
-
7/22/2019 t-dawg
4/7
Option #1: Eat one meal of any and all you want, one day per
week, usually Saturday.
Option #2: Have a healthy carb-up one day a week.
This last option would involve eating clean, but upping your
carb intake. In other words,
you're not gorging on pizza but you are eating more oatmeal,
more sweet potatoes, alittle pasta and rice, a slice or two of
dark, grainy bread per day, a small bowl of highfiber cereal,
etc.
Those are the basic changes. Now let's get into the details.
Calorie Guidelines
Yes, calories still count and you'll need to keep a food log
during the week. (See ourarticle here for info on how to set one
up.) Determining daily caloric intake can be ascomplex as you want
to make it, or it can be simple. We're going to keep it simple.
No
matter how scientific the formula is, how many calories to
consume always comes downto the individual and his or her
metabolism, activity level and lifestyle.
We suggest you multiply your bodyweight (in pounds) by the
number 15 and start fromthere. So a 200 pound man would eat 3000
calories a day. After a week, he'd drop thatby 500 calories. Now,
we used to say that the average person should lose about a
pound
or two per week without losing muscle, but it's a little more
complex than that. See, ifyou're really overweight, you'll be able
to lose several pounds per week safely (at leastat first). By
safely, we mean without losing too much muscle. But if you're
already fairlylean and are just trying to get super-shredded for
summer, then the fat won't come off
that quickly and the "pound per week" rule of thumb is about
right.
The "pound per week" rule can also be changed if you're using an
anabolic supplementalong with the diet. The supplements (legal or
otherwise) would allow you to eat fewercalories without the risk of
muscle loss. Our sample 200 pound man may be able to dropto as low
as 1500 calories a day with the right anabolic support. (More on
that later.)
In the end, you, your food log and the mirror are going to have
to be the judge when itcomes to caloric intake. You should not be
starving and your performance in the gymshouldn't be too hampered
by the diet. (Don't expect to set any new personal recordswhile on
any fat loss diet, however.) The only way to figure this out for
yourself isthrough experimentation. Weigh yourself every Saturday
morning before you eat. Modifyas needed based on your progress or
lack thereof. Occasional body fat measurements(using the same
method every time) would also be helpful, but the mirror should
be
your number one guide.
Protein Intake
The original T-Dawg diet was a little too low in protein. After
all, we not only want to losefat on this diet but preserve lean
mass. Many people exceeded the original protein
recommendations in the first diet and lost fat with no problems.
Therefore, we're goingto suggest you get about 1.5 grams of protein
per pound of bodyweight when on thisdiet.
New Break-in/Break-out Phase
If you've never been on a reduced carb/high fat diet before, we
suggest you ease into it
-
7/22/2019 t-dawg
5/7
with a break-in phase. It's simple. All you do is eat off the
food lists we provided belowand generally follow the guidelines
we've talked about, but you don't have to keep afood log for the
first week. That way you can adjust to the diet without
beingoverwhelmed by the details.
This is also a good way to come off the diet. You'll naturally
increase carbs and overall
calories a bit, but since you're sticking to the food and timing
suggestions, you won't gonuts and start stuffing down loaves of
white bread and Cheetos. You can think of thisbreak-in/break-out
phase as eating "instinctively" while still falling within the
T-Dawgguidelines.
Once you become experienced with the diet, you can also use this
type of plan to leanup a little when needed without having to log
food intake and read labels all day long.
However, if you're just starting, pay your dues read those
labels and log everything!
Timing
Okay, you already know that most of your carbs are going to come
after training in theform of a post-workout drink. On training day,
about 50 grams of carbs should be taken
in after your workout, or half before and half after as
mentioned previously. If you'reusing Biotest Surge, that simply
means taking about one scoop before training and onescoop after.
That leaves around 50 more carbs to consume on training day. Where
doyou put them?
A big chunk of them should come at breakfast. This is because
after the eight hour fastwe call sleep, your muscles are very
receptive to carbohydrate intake. In layman'sterms, the carbs "go
where they're supposed to go" and not to your love handles. The
rest of the carbs should come here and there throughout the day.
And don't fret if youovershoot the 100 grams a day guideline by a
little. For example, don't skip that night
time scoop of low carb protein powder just because you don't
want to go over by twograms of carbs.
Here's something else you may want to try: make breakfast your
biggest meal. This willreduce your appetite for the rest of the day
and squelch any overnight catabolism.
(Eating big in the morning and less as the day goes by was also
a technique used by LeeHaney, eight time Mr. Olympia. Hey, maybe we
can learn something from a pro-bodybuilder!)
Try to eat every three hours or so during the day. Don't skip
meals and don't fall for that"eating before bed makes you fat"
nonsense. Eat a small meal with fat and proteinbefore bed. This
bedtime snack should be your smallest meal of the day.
Food Choices
Here's a short list of suggested food choices for the T-Dawg
Diet.
Protein
Whole eggs and egg whites
Beef, chicken, turkey, pork (we'd keep pork intake limited,
however), and other landcritters
Tuna, salmon and other water critters
-
7/22/2019 t-dawg
6/7
Cottage cheese
Cheese
Low Carb Grow! MRP
Carbohydrates
Post-workout drink (Surge)
Old-fashioned oatmeal
Most vegetables (Those frozen bags of mixed veggies can be very
handy.)
Fats
Fish oil
Flax oil
Udo's choice oil blend
Biotest DHA/EPA supplement (This one isn't out yet as of this
writing, but it will blowaway all the choices above when it does
hit the shelves!)
Mixed nuts and natural peanut butter
Plus the fats found in whole eggs and beef
Note: While some saturated fat is okay on this diet, it's
healthier to keep intake in check.So we suggest using fat free
dairy products like cheese and cottage cheese, but don'tsweat the
"bad" fat in red meat and eggs. You may want to buy organic and
free rangeanimal proteins when possible however.)
Sample Daily Diet
Meal #1 (Big breakfast option)
Egg and cheese omelet
Oatmeal
Classic Grow!
Snack
Beef jerky, handful of mixed nuts
Meal #2
Tuna, boiled egg
-
7/22/2019 t-dawg
7/7
Meal #3
Chicken breasts
Mixed veggies
Meal #4
Pre and post-workout drink
Meal #5
Steak
Salad
Meal #6
Cottage cheese
Low Carb Grow
