Lewis Harrison is a British fitness model and one of our #TEAMGORILLAWEAR athletes. He has been training for years, which has resulted in an impressive physique. Besides, he has assisted people all over the world as a personal trainer and online coach, which has given him a lot of knowledge about diet and training. We spoke to Lewis about his diet tips for cutting.
Cutting
Cutting is a workout technique that people use to get as lean as possible. It involves a weight loss diet that’s meant to maintain as much muscle as possible. Besides, it’s important to train resistance when cutting (for women too) and this is commonly perceived incorrectly; many people think that cutting is all about cardio exercises. The goal is to create a state of controlled catabolism in order to cut, which means that you’re, in essence, breaking down more energy than you’re producing. Lewis says in order to do this, you need to cause your energy expenditure to be far above baseline for hours post-exercise.
Workout
Lewis advises his clients to use a low tempo when doing exercises. Essentially, your best gains in terms of strength, and therefore developed musculature, come from doing a slow negative muscle contraction. As it will provide the best gains, specifically aiding the development of your fast-twitch type IIB fibers. These fibers have the greatest potential to grow, so activating these is key to cutting.
Diet
Dieting well throughout your training is just as important as the training itself. Although we will all differ in the way we respond metabolically to food, we will all benefit from eating well and consistently.
Lewis recommends keeping all meals, apart from the main meal of the day, relatively plain. A tip to make it a bit tastier is to use cottage cheese, as it gives some flavor to an otherwise bland meal and is also a good source of protein.
Your main meal of the day is the one that can include sauces of some kind, but make sure they’re low in sugar. Or use raw ingredients and cook them yourself, this is often even better. This meal should also be the one that includes your main carbohydrate source, because it is generally straight after most people train. This is probably in the evening and should be consumed within 90 mins of training. If you train in the morning, it is good to train in a fasted state before you eat.
Food
Some foods high in carbohydrates are for example oatmeal, wholegrain pasta/rice, and sweet potatoes. Products with a lot of proteins are chicken, beef, and tuna. The recommended vegetables for cutting are green vegetables (such as broccoli, spinach, green beans), tomatoes, and carrots. Additionally, Lewis recommends including the following foods in your diet: almond nuts, cottage cheese, salsa (or equivalent), and Greek yogurt.
For more information, diet plans, or training plans, visit Harrison Twins!
