This is a question I see all too often. People live in this weird old school world where they can only eat three square meals a day, and then they snack between meals to keep them from getting hungry. If you ask them how many meals they are eating, they will say “three” which is incorrect because snacks count as meals. People also have this weird idea that only the three square meals (breakfast, lunch, dinner) count so only these meals need to be healthy. Because snacks “don’t count”, many people don’t think they have to be healthy or nutritious. “Its just a snack” so you can basically have whatever you want that is yummy – cheese and crackers, peanut butter and jelly sandwich, Snickers bar, a cookie. NO NO NO NO
When will people understand that it does not really matter when you eat or what you call it, every calorie that you eat is important. If you are serious about building muscle, losing fat, or getting healthy then everything you eat needs to fit into a plan. If you are cutting, every calorie has to count because by the time you have satisfied your macros like protein, and your micros like fiber, vitamins, and anti-oxidants, you will have pretty much used up every calorie for the day. If you are bulking or maintaining then you have a lot more calories during the day to use so you do not have to eat so strict and can have a few treats during the day. Even when bulking though, people overestimate the amount of junk they can eat, we are talking at most 400 calories worth of discretionary calories – thats not even an order of french fries.
Most beginners to bodybuilding claim that they “have good nutrition” but the problem is that they have no idea what this really means. Its not their fault because its not taught in school and their parents do not understand it either. This is one of the reason that obesity is at epidemic levels.
When asking the “what is a good snack” question, people also do not realize that this question simply cannot be answered in general because ALL the food you eat during the day has to fit into a plan. What will make a good snack for you depends on what you have eaten so far and what you will eat during the rest of the day.
What is a good snack for a bodybuilder?
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