The Top 5 Nutrition Mistakes that Lifters Make
Strength training is very demanding on the body, and our approach to nutrition needs to match our output. Whether you’re a brand-new lifter, a weekend warrior, or a strength athlete prepping to get on the platform, how you fuel your body makes all the difference when it comes to performance, recovery and fulfilling your goals.
So what’s the best nutrition strategy for lifters? It depends (because every lifter is so different).
But if you can avoid these common mistakes I see lifters make with their nutrition, then you’re off to a great start.
1. THEY’VE GOT CONFLICTING GOALS:
The most common problem that new lifters have (or any gym-goer) is that they have conflicting goals. They want to build epic muscle mass, but they also want to lose 10kg. They want to PR their Deadlift, but they also want a six-pack in 30 days.
It’d be awesome if it worked this way — but these goals don’t align with each other.
Improving performance, building muscle and increasing strength requires eating at a maintenance level, if not a steady surplus. If you want to see a significant improvement in the weights you’re lifting in the gym, you need a balanced carbohydrate intake pre & post workout (this is usually the first thing people cut out), enough protein and pay attention to your recovery.
If this the outcome, start worrying more about how the body feels and less about the number on the scale.
On the flip side, if you’re setting out to cut fat and have a leaner physique, you need to be ready for performance to dip a little bit as you drop back in calories. Going into a calorie deficit creates stress on the body — so if you’re looking to PR your lifts, your fat loss phase is not the time to do it.
HOW TO FIX IT:
Periodise your nutrition. Just like your training program, your nutrition should work in blocks depending on where you are in the life-cycle of your goal. You shouldn’t be trying to PR your lifts in the gym everyday, just like you shouldn’t be a cutting phase forever. Instead, dedicate periods of time for strength and muscle gaining, and periods for fat loss.
These all require different calorie and macronutrient levels, and trying to juggle too many goals at once isn’t the practical way to make it work.
2. THEY’RE NOT EATING ENOUGH PROTEIN
If you read our article on Workout Nutrition here, you know that protein is the next most important factor after total calorie intake & macro breakdown. Eating enough protein is your best friend for pretty much every fitness goal.
Protein helps repair muscle breakdown from training, increases metabolic rate and has a greater satiety level than the other macros (leaving you feeling fuller for longer) — all of which help with nutrition adherence.
Adding a high enough level of protein to your diet is an ideal way to manage your weight and fuel muscle building and recovery. Unfortunately, a lot of new lifters are more concerned with cutting carbs or fats and forget to be mindful of their protein intake.
The protein intake you require depends on a variety of factors like your activity level, age, weight, and goals, but we recommend about 1.0–1.8 grams per kg of body weight.
HOW TO FIX IT:
Track your food and be mindful of protein. Track your food for a week, then divide your average protein intake by your bodyweight. Did you fall within the 1.0–1.8g guide? If not, try adding more protein sources to your meals until you reach that range.
3. THEY’RE NOT EATING ENOUGH OF ANYTHING:
To be honest, this should probably be Number 1. By far the most common thing I’ve seen from lifters in the gym, whether they’re brand new or they’ve been around for a while, is that they’re simply just not eating enough — period.
This then leaves them frustrated that their physique doesn’t reflect the hard work they’ve been putting in at the gym, when the solution to the problem is to simply just increase their calorie intake.
When we live in a calorie deficit for a prolonged period of time, our body goes through what’s called a catabolic state, meaning that the body will break down tissue to restore depleted energy levels for function. In other words; good-bye gains!
Your metabolic process will also slow down and your body will begin to store any source of food energy it can for use. You’ll hit a point where you can’t lose (or gain) any more weight, your muscles look like they’re shrinking and your workouts have plateaued.
This is why fat loss phases should always be periodised. You can’t live in a constant calorie deficit, especially if part of your goals is to increase your strength. In my experience, a lot of people I talk to who are frustrated that their weights aren’t going up are usually in a 500-odd calorie a day deficit without realising it. This is where working with a Coach is extremely beneficial; a good Coach will plan and track workout progress, but also pay attention to managing your nutrition needs.
HOW TO FIX IT:
I’m going to give you the best news you’ve heard all day — START EATING MORE!. Reverse diet back up to your maintenance state. Reverse dieting can be mentally very difficult, especially if you’ve been in a deficit for a long time, so if you don’t know how to increase your calories or you’re nervous about gaining too much fat, reach out to us and we’ll talk you through it.
4. THEY’RE SKIPPING CARBS AFTER WORKOUTS
Carbs are the main fuel source for glycolytic activity like exercise. Especially if you’re looking to peak in test week, or you’re participating in sports like CrossFit, you need more carbs in your life.
Carbs aren’t essential for our bodies to function — but they are essential for performance. Carbs are stored in the body as glycogen, which is our most readily available energy source during training. Sure, your body can convert fats into ketones and use them for energy, but this is way less efficient than glycogen, so if you have a specific strength goal, embrace the carbs.
Carbs are also important for recovery. Working out stresses your bodies nervous system, and depending on your intensity level will spike your cortisol (your stress hormone). Consuming carbs post-workout increase insulin, which balances this cortisol response so your body can get to work repairing the muscles you just worked.
HOW TO FIX IT:
We recommend consuming carbs and protein in your post-training meal. While the “anabolic window” of 30 minutes after training is total bullshit, re-fuelling with carbs, protein and little to no fat post-workout is a non-negotiable.
This is where nutrient timing matters. Carbs replenish your glycogen stores, calm the stress response and with enough protein, start repairing muscles after training.
5. THEY’RE TRYING TO OUT-TRAIN A BAD DIET:
You’ve heard it before, but it’s true — you absolutely can’t out-train a poor diet. Going full “Beast-Mode!” in the weight room isn’t going to balance out all the McDonald’s and donuts. In fact, a diet high in processed foods is probably hurting your performance more than it’s benefiting it.
Think about the last time you had a really shitty workout. What happened that day? Were you stressed? Probably skipped a meal, maybe two? Maybe you grabbed some drive-through on the way home from work because the day was so hectic.
In short, you weren’t fuelled or recovered because your diet that day didn’t support it.
Even though processed foods contain carbs, proteins and fats in varying levels, they’re not great sources of nutrients because they lack other essential vitamins and minerals that play important roles in body function.
Supplements don’t balance out a bad diet either. Supplements are exactly that; supplementary to your nutrition, not the main source of energy. Supplements like protein shakes, carb powders and protein bars are great for filling in the gaps in your diet, but if they’re becoming a major source of your calories you’re probably missing out on other important things like fiber, vitamins and minerals.
HOW TO FIX IT:
Instead of using soul-crushing workouts as a way to “earn” your food, trying earning your workout by fuelling your body properly. I’ll usually skip training if I know I haven’t eaten well that day, which throws my whole training schedule off for the week. Training isn’t the punishment, it’s the vehicle that uses the food energy you give your body and turns into your successful outcomes.
Did you hit your macros yesterday, get a good nights sleep & hydrate well? Awesome, go hit the gym!
But if you barely ate enough food, drank more alcohol than you did water and slept for 3 hours — try taking a walk instead of crushing yourself under a barbell today.
Are you committing as much time to your nutrition as you are to your workouts? If not, you know you should be! Work with a coach or start using a tracking app like MyFitnessPal for yourself and make sure you’re eating enough nutrient-filled calories to keep smashing it in the gym and helping your muscles recover.
Want to more about fuelling your body for lifting? Send me a message on Instagram @mvmnt__training and let’s get you back on track.
