Vodrazka - The Bodybuilding Meal Prep Cookbook: Macro-Friendly Meals to Prepare, Grab, and Go

Copyright 2019 by Rockridge Press, Emeryville, California

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and Interior Designer: Joshua Moore

Photo Art Director: Sue Bischofberger

Editor: Kim Suarez

Production Editor: Andrew Yackira

Photography 2019 Darren Muir; food styling by Yolanda Muir

ISBN: Print 978-1-64152-384-4 | eBook 978-1-64152-385-1

For Jamie, because I needed to settle this argument once and for all. I obviously love you more. I dedicated an entire book to you, after all.

This book is also for my kids, who wanted to see their names in print. Riley, Kai, Maya, Noelle, and Tristan, I hope this makes you guys happyand, hopefully, quiet, for like five minutes. Just kidding, I know that would never happen. I love you all anyway.

And finally, its for my friends (you know who you are) who somehow manage to keep me sane.

Although my husband would likely disagree....

Contents

Youve likely found your way here because youve been putting in your time at the gym and lifting heavy, but you havent seen the kind of results that you think you should be seeing.

What you may not realize, and what I didnt realize until after several years of working my butt off in the gym for minimal return, is that unless you put the same amount of effort into your nutrition that you put into working out, you wont ever be able to build the kind of body you have always dreamed of.

After years of experimentation, I finally recognized that body composition (the amount of fat versus the muscle you carry) is much more a result of your nutrition than anything you could possibly do in the gym. In fact, after having applied the following principles I am about to share with you, first to my own life and then testing it on hundreds of clients in the same boat as you, I now believe that at least 80 percent of your results come from your effort in the kitchen rather than at the gym.

Unfortunately, for most of us, we would much rather be spending our time lifting weights than pans and pots. Although following a strict diet can be challenging, there is a secret that all successful bodybuilders have figured out that can make it much less onerous, and maybe even fun! As you may have guessed by the title of this book, that solution is called meal prep.

Why Meal Prep?

If I were to tell you that all that stands between you and your ideal body is putting in a few hours of meal prep a week, would you do it? If your answer is yes, then keep reading.

MACROS

So if youre into bodybuilding, you may have heard of this little thing called macros. But just in case you havent, or are in need of a refresher, macros are short for macronutrients, the major nutrients your body needs in large quantities, namely carbohydrates, protein, and fat. These three major nutrients provide us with the calories we need to create energy and stay healthy.

Macros are important in the context of bodybuilding, because when it comes to body composition, what you eat isnt nearly as important as how much you eat of it. In other words, the total amount of calories you eat, and whether these calories come from carbs, proteins, and/or fats, is critical in achieving a lean, muscular body.

Eat too many calories and you will gain body fat. Eat too few calories and too little protein, and you can say goodbye to those sought-after muscles. Unfortunately, ensuring that your diet provides you with the right amount of calories and the proper balance of proteins, carbs, and fats is not easy without some thought and foresight. This is where well-organized meal planning can save the day.

CLEAN EATING

Energy balance (the amount of calories you consume and how many calories you burn) is of primary importance in determining whether you gain or lose weight. And, since most bodybuilders are concerned with not only how much they weigh but also the amount of muscle and fat their bodies are made up of, its vital that those calories come from the right proportion of proteins, carbs, and fats.

Its nearly impossible to achieve the right balance of calories and macronutrients from a diet consisting primarily of junk food. Thats because most junk foods are high in calories, carbohydrates, and fats and low in protein and micronutrients (vitamins, minerals, and fiber), which is the exact opposite of the macronutrient profile needed for proper bodybuilding.

Consuming a clean diet consisting primarily of fresh, minimally processed, micronutrient-rich foods has a number of additional benefits. When you prepare your own food you know exactly what youre getting, from the amount of calories and macronutrients you are consuming to the exact ingredients being used.