What does Eating “Normal” Mean?
Now that the ‘holiday’ season is over it’s business as usual…or is it?
January is usually a time when many people start to crack down on diet and exercise as a new years resolution. For most people this is short lived. They start the year off with every intention of making a change and even sign up for the gym and start working out…they might even make some progress with their diet and lose some weight. Then about 4-6 weeks later ‘life catches up’ with them and they fall off the wagon.
Badlands Booker is a competitive eater, for him eating this 6lbs burger could be 'normal'.
This scenario seems to repeat itself year after year. In fact you could say that for these people this is their ‘normal’ January.
Then this got me thinking…there is no such thing as ‘normal’ eating. At least not in a way that can describe the entire year.
It’s more accurate to say there is the ‘normal’ way you eat throughout December and the holiday season…there is the ‘normal’ way you eat in January…and there is the ‘normal’ way you eat when summer rolls around etc.
If all of these ‘normal’ ways you tend to eat don’t produce the body you want, then obviously something has to change.
you cannot simply go back to eat the ‘normal’ way you always during each season or time of year.
This same situation goes for people who have successfully changed their bodies and now want to maintain that new body.
If your old ‘normal’ pattern caused you to gain weight, it will not help you maintain your new weight.
The point is there is no such thing as the ‘normal’ way you eat all of the time.
Instead there is the way you eat at certain times of year, and given certain events (weddings, birthdays, holidays, stressful situations etc)
I have found that having a goal and a date to hit that goal by is one of the only ways to force yourself to create a change on your body and make it happen.
You could even say that you’ve created a new ‘normal’ way of eating by setting a goal for being in a transformation contest like the Adonis Index or Venus Index transformation contests, or simply setting a date for a photoshoot to see how far you can go in a given amount of time.
In this case you’ve created the ‘normal’ way you eat during a transformation, or the ‘normal’ way you eat when you’re getting ready for a photoshoot.
When you look at it this way, you can more easily decide which ‘normal’ pattern you want to follow.
The big difference is that eating the way you ‘normally’ do to prepare for a photoshoot will set you on a course to get into and stay in a shape that you really want…none of the other ‘normal’ ways you eat can do this.
The point is that nobody gets in shape by accident. It always happens because of a conscious effort to do so. But it can also be a normal part of your yearly routine to work towards a better shape and then maintain that shape.
John
4 Responses to “What does Eating “Normal” Mean?”
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January 3rd, 2011 at 11:36 am
True, and proof of this is that the only two times in my life that I’ve been the leanest I’ve ever been was when I was preparing for a bodybuilding show. I simply haven’t been able to “force” myself to get in such shape without a goal date and heavy incentive in mind.
January 3rd, 2011 at 5:51 pm
By the way John,
What do you recommend to be a good “off-season” condition for an aspiring physique competitor, since bulking is out of the window?
January 4th, 2011 at 11:43 am
Eating normal for me when I was 22 was 3,000 calories a day with 250 grams of protien being the minimum goal everyday. I got pretty bloated but “it was all muscle!” yeah right. It took about a year to get to just 2,000 calories feeling normal. But after another eyar 500 to 1,000 calories became pretty normal thanks to yours and Brad Pilon advice. Now 2,000 calories feels like I am eating a ton of food. But right now it’s back to the 1,000 calorie days for most days in the week since I had too many big eating days over the holidays. Worth every bite of it though. By the way the gelato stands like you show in your picture are incredible, I could eat gelato in zero degree weather it’s that good.
January 4th, 2011 at 4:11 pm
You are right with the photoshoot. Once you set a date and turn this into a challenge, it will become normal for you to eat like that even after the photoshoot. The photoshoot can also help you motivate yourself better.
Good article as always.
Greg