How to eat for Combat Control training

 

Put a little thought into how you fuel your body for training

Simplicity makes our lives easier. Whenever I share information, I hope it's simple, accurate, and easy to understand.  I want to cover something that I never thought about in training, which is how to eat properly for maximum performance and recovery.

I had false expectations when I began training for this stuff because I had little knowledge about the importance of eating right.  I was young, like many of you are now and thought when I began running and doing lots of calisthenics that I'd become super lean and ripped.  That didn't happen, although I was a lot more trim and and had excellent endurance by the time I was done.  I had a little extra body fat, and a muscular frame and that was really good.  You don't want to show up to training ultra ripped anyway.  You wanna be strong and have high endurance. You wanna show up with some extra body fat on your frame.

Ideally, you want to show up with strong muscles and a little bit of body fat.  Yes, body fat can help you in this type of training, but not too much.  You obviously don't want to be a fat ass that can lift a tractor but also gets out of breath aerobically anytime you have to move your body any type of distance.  You want to carry some weight on you because you'll be carrying around a lot of weight during training.

Don't be afraid to bulk up a little because this ain't a beauty contest

I know from experimenting now that getting super lean is awesome.  I look great, feel light and agile, and can run with less stress on my joints.  But I noticed something the leaner I got.  I wasn't as strong  when getting close to 10 percent  body fat as I was around 15 percent or a little higher. That's because the leaner I got, no matter how heavy I lifted or how much protein I consumed, along with the body fat that disappeared, some of my precious muscle was lost.  It's just the way it is unless you use PEDs, which I'd never recommend.  You don't need them.  Also, having a little extra weight and mass helps your body handle heavy stress and loads because the joints and ligaments are stronger.  Think about the strongman competitions as an extreme example.

I could have been so much better and had more energy if I would have focused more on my diet and how much to eat.  My thought process was I could eat how much and whatever I wanted because I was running so much and doing so much physical activity, so I continued to drink a lot of beer and ate lots of pizza, potato chips and ice cream.  I didn't get fat but I didn't fuel my body well and I didn't feel the best when I was deep into the training cycles.  I wasn't giving my muscles the protein they needed to grow and recover and I wasn't eating quality carbohydrates to fuel my workouts.  I was getting fat in my diet, but it probably wasn't the good sources I needed.

What further made me second guess how little running makes you lean was while eating whatever I wanted was when I gained weight training for a marathon. I was afraid of looking like I was too skinny.  All the long runs and other runs during the week didn't compensate for the amount of food, a lot of it junk, that I was consuming, so I gained weight. I gained weight running 40 miles per week.

The basics for eating right in training

There are two things to consider when trying to fuel the body properly.

1. What type of food you're eating

2.  How much you're eating

The right types of food for training

There are three important categories of food to consider when you thing about fueling your body.  

Carbohydrates  We've all heard of carbohydrates, or carbs, but what exactly is the importance of this type of food, and what are quality sources of carbs?  You could live without carbohydrates and function just fine, but in this type of training they are vital.  Think of carbs as instant energy to fuel what activity you are doing. If you didn't eat any carbs, your body would convert fats into energy, which has many benefits.  Studies have shown people are more focused when they rely on the conversion of fat for energy, like the brain functions better while in the state of ketosis, but it can leave you feeling low on energy and sluggish until your body gets used to it.

In high intensity training, the best source of energy will come from carbohydrates and will give you plenty of instant energy for all the physical endurance your muscles need to get through training.  There are all types of carbohydrates out there, but the quality sources are the ones you should consume most of the time.  

 Quality sources of carbohydrates are: fruits, potatoes, pasta, oatmeal, rice, beans, barley, etc. and you should eat plenty of them during high intensity endurance training because they are instantly converted into energy for your body.  

Fats- Fats are not your body's enemy and won't make you soft and pudgy, unless you overeat. Carbs, protein, or fat eaten in excess will stored as fat. Fat also gives your body energy (when you've depleted your carbohydrate sources) keeps cholesterol and blood pressure under control, and help absorb fat soluble vitamins such as A, D, and E vitamins, and keeps the brain healthy. If your goal is extreme physical activity, relying on fat for fuel will not give the instant spark for energy, like carbs, but it is an excellent source when your activity eventually lowers and you want to lose weight.  Your body will use fat stores when carbohydrates are depleted.

 Even during intense training, it's very important to eat quality fats such as:  fats found in avocados and peanut butter; nuts, like almonds, hazelnuts, cashews, and pecans; and seeds, such as pumpkin, sesame, and sunflower seeds. It is also in plant oils, such as olive, peanut, safflower, sesame, and canola oils.

Coconut oil is a favorite of mine and it has tons of health benefits.   You can buy it refined, so it's virtually tasteless, or buy it normal with the flavor.  It is solid at room temperature so it's easy to store and have available to put on your food for some extra fat in your diet.  Coconut oil is a saturated fat, but I encourage you to eat some saturated fats in your diet, as long as you aren't overeating, saturated fats aren't bad in moderation.  But be be careful with fats, as they are very energy dense with 9 calories per gram compared to 4 calories per gram with carbs and protein.

Other quality fats abundant in walnuts, and fish like salmon, mackerel, herring, tuna, and trout.  You can also take Omega 3 and 6 supplements to get these types of fats.  

Fats get a bad reputation, but it's usually the saturated fats, such as fat found in fatty cuts of meat, sausage, biscuits, bacon, and cakes, that are targeted, but unfortunately all fats get lumped into the stigma of eating fat makes you fat. Again we are talking quality fats.  It's like processed sugar in the carbohydrate category.  You can still have all this, but make sure it is way less frequent than the quality stuff.  Remember, like training, consistency is the goal.

Protein-  We all know protein is used by the muscles for growth, and if you want to have muscle on your body, then you need to consume it regularly with every meal, like the fats and carbohydrates.  Examples of quality protein sources are: lean ground turkey and beef, eggs and egg whites, chicken breast, fish, ham and turkey breasts, cottage cheese, etc.  It's vital that you eat enough of these sources of protein because you won't build any quality muscle with protein so as you use your muscles, they can repair and grow larger. 

Don't forget vegetables- Try to consume quality vegetables in at least a couple of your meals everyday because they contain all the micro nutrients that supplement companies love to sell in pill form. examples of quality vegetables are: spinach, tomatoes, mushrooms, asparagus, green beans, peas, carrots, broccoli, etc.  Not only does your body needs these nutrients, but your overall mind does too, for well being.

How much to eat

Now that we've gone into what you need to be consuming, the other topic is just how much you should be eating.  The answer to this question, for most people, is enough to maintain your activity level to maximize your muscle mass and not be losing too much weight as you progress in training.

Eating enough to maintain how much your body needs will help you maintain good body fat levels, but the difference of  maintaining weight and building muscle, is what and how much you you are eating, and how much you train your muscles.

You will absolutely be training your muscles if you are training properly for training, but by eating enough quality protein, you will still have a chance to build some more muscle ( if you aren't already at a good level) As you progress into intense training, if you are eating enough ,you can always gain some more muscle, but building additional muscle is  a very slow process once you have built some, but you'll never gain more unless you eat enough.  You need enough to maintain your weight, even with intense exercise

Unless you are over weight, never completed any physical fitness routine, and need to add muscle and reduce body fat at the same time, you won't be losing fat and gaining muscle at the same time during your training routines that prepare you for special warfare training.  I discuss this topic in another article, but I'm focusing on people that are in decent shape, have some muscle already and are enhancing there workout routines.  I don't touch on building muscle while maintaining, but it can happen slowly.  Losing fat and building muscle are two separate processes.  If you eat enough protein,  you can slowly build muscle without a surplus.

If you are already in pretty good shape and at a good weight with muscle and some body fat, then you need to maintain the weight you have. As you start to prepare yourself for some of the toughest military training out there, then eating at a level you need on a daily basis will be a good approach.  With that perspective on your body, then we have an understanding that having as much muscle on your frame, which is a slow process if you already built some muscle, and a little extra body fat will help when pushing yourself carrying heavy weight and burning an enormous amount of calories.   

Having enough calories, even during high intensity training, is the key to feeling energized, having the opportunity to build muscle, and have a healthy amount of weight entering training.  When you are in a deficit, your energy levels will fall, along with your motivation.

If you are too small and need to gain some weight, eat in a small surplus everyday while beginning your intense workouts to maximize muscle gain, while gaining some body fat.  Once you like where you are at, maintain.  You can still slowly gain muscle while maintaining.

How to have an idea of how much to eat

To start, this is just an idea.  It's all it needs to be.  You need to have a ball park figure of how much food you are consuming everyday.  

Check out this calculator and figure out an estimate of how many calories per take it takes to sustain your weight.  It doesn't have to be exact, just an estimate, but having a good figure can ensure you eat properly.

Check out this calculator for a little more accuracy because it includes an estimate of your lean body mass.

If you need to lose some weight,, plug in the number for a deficit, but do that only as a weight loss program, then maintain what you have so you can continue to build muscle and have energy for your intense training. That will do three things for you. 

1.  You will have the ability to actually gain more muscle.  Once you get past the honeymoon stage of working out, gaining muscle is only accomplished by eating at least as many calories as your body needs to function.  When you combine that with plenty of exercises that focus on working the muscles, eating enough protein, reducing the amount of saturated fats, and eat enough, you have a combination that can fuel continued muscle growth. Again gaining a little body fat is inevitable if you gain, but you can minimize fat gain, and maximize muscle growth, while considering this approach.

2. You'll consume enough quality protein for muscle gain.  If you look at examples of the quality sources of protein, and try to add those to each of your meals, then sustaining and maximizing muscle growth becomes possible.  Without enough protein in your diet, you won't be able to sustain good muscle mass.  On top of that, protein keeps you satiated and reduces hunger pangs throughout your day.

3.  You'll won't feel sluggish and tired, instead you'll have more energy for your workouts.  If you are in a sustained calorie deficit, your overall energy is lower.  Your mood and motivation will plummet.  Without even thinking about how much you are eating, this will be an indicator that you need to address.  If you think you aren't eating enough, you can always occasionally add in more calories with foods higher in fat like peanut butter, or hell, even pizza and ice cream.  As long as you are close to target or just a little over, then things will go great.

Try to estimate your calorie and activity level the best that you can.  If you are eating quality foods, most of the time it's easy to have an awareness of how much you eat.  I'm not advocating a strict calorie counting routine on this because you certainly do not need to.  Instead the awareness of how much your intake is everyday is the key.

Whole foods are great because they fuel you body the way it was designed and it's way easier to estimate. Considering whole food like eggs are 70 calories each, and 1 cup of regular oatmeal is 300 calories. Bananas, apples and oranges are all abound 100 calories.  Regular sized potatoes and sweet potatoes are about 150.  Lean chicken is 45 calories per ounce and lean beef about 50. If you eat 8 ounces of lean meat or 4 ounces of chicken breast you can have an good indicator of how much you are consuming, but it shouldn't consume your mind.  Vegetables are so low you don't even need to consider them.  Whole foods are simple and easy.  The only thing that really matters is having the thought of how much you are eating.

Don't forget to occasionally add foods that are not so quality so you can balance out all the food you are consuming and having a little extra food everyday, in most cases, will be better than not enough.  Again you want to show up in good shape, with a good amount of muscle and some body fat to have on reserve for your intense training.

The purpose of this article is not to have you track your calories like a hawk, instead it's to shed some light on what on how much you are consuming for your body during training and paying attention to quality foods.

Kevin