What Do I Eat and Why?

Getting ripped

I’ve experimented with a lot of supplements and diets, some of which i mention in my Ultramind Experiment.

My current supplement regimen consists of the following:

  • Multivitamin, especially those days I don’t eat any vegetables.
  • Omega 3 for those days I don’t eat fish.
  • Vitamin B6 + B12 + folate.
  • Magnesium, not in combination or proximity to caffeine.
  • Zinc, sometimes after workouts.
  • Selenium, same as zinc.
  • Vitamin D, daily amount of 10000IU unless I spend at least 20 min in the sun.
  • Coffee, yerba mate, or green tea. Usually consumed in the morning or prior to workouts. My own personal rule is to not consume coffee or tea after 2 pm because it gives me sleeping issues at night as an effect of the caffeine. Consuming cocoa at night doesn’t give me sleeping issues however.
  • Creatine. One teaspoon taken prior to and after working out.
  • L-glutamine. Taken at least once daily upon rising, sometimes up to two or three times a day similarly to creatine. Or used while I fast – but sparingly in separate doses hours in between never exceeding 5-10 g.

[Note 2013-12-30: I no longer consume selenium, vitamin B6 + B12 + folate, and I don’t eat multivitamins as often as before – only on days I don’t get vegetables, which is almost never…]

My Recurring 80/20-Baseline Foods

Here’s a list of everything that I eat and drink on a regular basis:

  • Fish. Salmon, usually fresh, but sometimes canned. Be careful with canned fish though and eat it very sparingly, it may contain mercury. I got a whim of ‘brain fog’ from eating a ton of canned tuna two years  ago, before I quit doing that cold turkey six months ago. I know this thanks to  lab results from a hair analysis.
  • Eggs. Plenty of eggs, I always get remarks from people about this. I’d guess I eat AT LEAST four eggs per day. Eggs are the best all-around source of protein there is and it is absorbed very slowly by the body at around 2 grams/hour as opposed to E.G whey protein which is usually absorbed at around 10 grams/hour. Eggs contain the sulfuric amino acids methionine and cysteine which are needed for the body’s sulfation process. They also improve glutathione production, which is the body’s main antioxidant.
  • Quinoa or brown rice. To the extent you can, skip pasta, white rice, bread, and various gluten foods that most people stuff themselves full with. It’s empty calories,  devoid of any real nutrients. I make a point out of eating as few carbs as possible, as briefly mentioned previously in relation to my IF and overall fasting regimen.
  • Cocoa. I either eat it raw, in combination with coconut fat, or mix in with protein shakes. I love cocoa and it’s an awesome antioxidant as well as stimulant. Cocoa contains small amounts of caffeine and quite a bit of theobromine. Raw cocoa is seriously underrated! It’s one of the best and most healthy stimulants out there.
  • Protein shakes. I usually have one per day after my workouts, but rarely otherwise. I used to consume more protein before, but after learning through diagnostic tests and recognizing the symptoms, I realized that my body wasn’t able to assimilate all the protein. SoI have cut down to around 2 gram of protein per kilo from 2.5-3 grams per kilo. I’ve also noticed that there’s a huge difference in quality between protein powders. While I lived in Canada I consumed some very low quality whey and casein protein powder that made me really bloated, gassy, and lethargic. Those were all signs of my body not being able to assimilate the protein. I’m currently using Gold standard 100% whey, which is easier to digest. Also, a lot of preworkout supplements are notoriously bad for the stomach, which is why I’ve replaced that with the occasional use of coffee or tea if I’m going to the gym before 2PM. Otherwise I’ll just have some raw cocoa. Two full teaspoons do the trick without giving me sleeping problems.
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Containing ca 30g protein powder, 1-2 tablespoons of cocoa, 5 grams of L-glutamine, and a teaspoon of creatine. Sometimes I add in one or two eggs.

  • Meat. Usually hamburger meat, mince meat, chicken, and beef.
  • Fats. I eat a lot of coconut fat (very good for the stomach), butter and peanut butter.
  • Berries & fruits. Bananas  consumed sparingly in combination with my standard trailmix (see below) every once in a while.  I used to eat more berries and fruits before, especially during the Ultramind experiment, but since the last four months it’s been my objective to reduce ALL sources of sugar and sweet things to fully recover from my candida albicans. I think a lot of people unknowingly suffer from varying degrees of candidiasis, the most common symptoms are rashes, smelly stools, bloating, being gassy, feeling slow.
  •  Seeds & nuts. Sunflower seeds, flax seeds (preferably ground flax seeds for easier digestion), pumpkin seeds (high zinc content), hemp seed (great but expensive), shredded coconut (cheap and tasty — a good filler), almonds, hazelnuts, para nuts (Brazil nut – very high selenium content). Seeds and nuts are generally a good dietary source for minerals and healthy fats, but can be hard for some people to digest. They must be chewed properly. Also, seeds and nuts contain high amounts of phytic acid (here’s a great article by Mark Sisson on the subject). As you may notice my diet is quite high on phytic acid, but I’ve yet to notice any adverse symptoms from it so I assume it’s safe. Also beware of eating large amounts of nuts, seeds, cocoa, coconuts in combination with supplements as the phytic acid can act as a blocker and make it a waste.
  •  Greens & vegetables. Spinach (vitamin A, B – folate, C and, K), broccoli (vitamin C & K), and avocados (potassium, vitamin Bs, K & E) are what I eat the most.  I also eat kale, tomatoes, cauliflower, carrots, onions of different kinds, peppers of varying colors, and mushrooms.
  • Spices. I eat sea salt and oregano with almost everything (it is one of the most potent antioxidants available). I also eat thyme and rosemary — both spices are relatively healthy and good antioxidants, but they can’t compare to oregano.
  • Dairy. I have really cut down on dairy during the last six months because I had issues digesting it in large amounts. I have some milk with my trailmix a few times a week and occasionally in my protein shake. I consume somewhat large amounts of ‘high-fat’ yoghurt or kefir that I either mix in my meals or in my sauces. Dairy is good to consume IF you have a stomach that is capable of digesting it properly — but most people are more or less lactose intolerant without knowing it.
  •  Candy. Some dark chocolate with 80%+ cacao.  I binge desserts every once in a while but it’s pretty rare. It’s usually when I am offered free food and cannot say no. As long as you got your diet on point and keep to it consistently it doesn’t matter if you binge every once in a while — at least not once you’re ripped.

What My Meals Usually Look Like

But before I show you. . .

. . . Here are a few things to consider:

  • Why do you eat in the first place? For me eating is mostly about gaining the nutrients to be as productive and healthy as possible. I mostly eat for performance and not out of hedonistic reasons — though my food is quite tasty!
  • I follow an IF-protocol – intermittent fasting. I eat 1-3 times a day within a gap of eight hours as most.  Fasting gives rise to fewer spikes in insulin levels and lets you burn more fat through the process of ketosis it shifts the body’s main source of energy from glucose to stored fats. I eat some carbs post workout, but minimize it otherwise. On rest days I eat mostly protein and fats.
  • Apart from the 16 hours of daily fasting I fast for two days (40-48h) during Sunday dinner to Tuesday dinner. Though I often consume coffee/tea,  and L-glutamine during this time.
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Here’s how my trail-mix may look like. Nowadays I usually have it with a banana, some goji berries and milk. Mainly seeds and nuts.

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Hamburger meat, eggs, some radishes, peppers, fried onions (not healthy but whatever), kefir, avocado, and quinoa on the bottom. I usually eat minimal amounts of carbs (with the exception of vegetables) or not at all unless it’s immediately post workout.

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Salmon, eggs, avocado, quinoa, kefir, spinach, broccoli, onions, and mushrooms, and of course sea salt.

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This was a HUGE meal. It was the only thing I ate that day. However, this is an example of suboptimal meal-timing because I consumed a lot of seeds and nuts in combination with my various sources of vitamins and minerals. As mentioned above, the phytic acid from the seeds, nuts, cocoa, and coconuts will come into contact with the minerals in my stomach and reduce my ability to assimilate it.

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Vegetables, beef, broccoli, kefir, sea salt, tomatoes, and brown rice.

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Another hamburger meal. This time with cauliflower (a lot of vitamin C) among other things.

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Another salmon meal.

 

Most people benefit from eating about the same type of foods. But there are always exceptions, for example, a few people can drink all the milk they want or eat as much gluten as they want without seeing any negative side effects from it.

 

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Comments

  1. Do you cook your almonds too?

  2. Dear ludvig, i am currently experimenting with food combining rules. Some say to eat fruit alone, not mix cooked and raw foods, etc. Others think that certain combinations actually aid digestion. You have likely heard of raw honey and pineapple and papaya and lemon juice for their enzymes.

  3. Ludvig, I notices there’s usually some kind of none sweet fruit ( tomatoes, olives, avocadoes) in your meals. Do you have these cooked too? I wonder if it is beneficial to have at least some raw fruit with our meals to enhance digestion of proteins?

  4. Would be great if you offered a meal plans exactly like yours so we can try to follow it, the meals you posted look very good, would love to know what’s in them and the macros that go with it to..

  5. Do you think it is possible to overcome Candida without completely eliminating starchy carbs? Like a cup of rice per day? Or did you have to initially cut out carbs entirely for healing to occur? Thnx!

  6. Ludvig, according to various resources on Candida diet, caffeine (coffee, green or black tea and even decade tea) is not acceptable due to an already impaired immune system.
    http://www.thecandidadiet.com/foodstoavoid.htm

  7. Ludwig, I bet you chew your food really well. Which makes me wonder. How long does it take the guy to eat his huge meal at the buffet?? Lol
    And do you account for this in your 8 hour feeding window?

  8. I’ve read some nasty stuff about peanut butter.

  9. Do you eat most veggies raw or cooked?

  10. How do you know it’s Candida and not something else, like say SIBO?

  11. I know this an old post but how do you get all your protein requirements in one meal ??

    • I eat eggs or a lot of meat/fish. Sometimes a protein shake post workout (and a meal 1-2 hours later). I don’t always eat one meal, but I typically still do. It does not seem to be a problem with the protein.

  12. Hello!

    I saw that you wrote “sometimes adding 1-2 eggs in the shake”. As I understood it, eating raw eggs will result in that the body only could absorb 50 % of the protein in the egg due to some enzym or something like that. Ever heard of this?

    Br

  13. Hey Ludvig,

    I really like your blog and your posts. Could you provide the brands of your supplements or at least the exact ammount you take of each? :)

    • Hey Tim.

      Thanks!

      Supplements I currently take:

      1 Multivitamin –> no special brand (an average quality Swedish company). I don’t really need this, but I take it anyway just as a margin of safety.

      Vitamin D 8-10K IU / day when I don’t get any sun. Swedish pharmacy brand.

      2 ZMA pills at night before bed. I don’t think the brand is important, most ZMA formula are the same (unless you buy some particularly cheap one, I suppose).

      Coconut fat from some ecologic and fairtraded Swedish brand. When it comes to coconut fat you want it to be non-hydrogenated.

      Omega 3 from ArcticMed. Around 10 ml (a table spoon) of its fish oil per day. This oil has a particularly high oxidative resistance, so the body absorbs it and successfully assimilates it better than most other omega 3 supplements.

      Olive oil from ArcticMed, with particularly high polyphenol value. Especially the antioxidant hydroxytyrosol.

      http://arcticmed.se/
      GREAT products. You can’t buy from them through that website though, I think. However, you can use Amazon:
      http://www.amazon.co.uk/s?ie=UTF8&me=AM0KYQKXBCLKT&page=1

  14. Raw Milk from pastured (grass fed) cows is much more easily digested than that which comes from cows that are not pastured and predominantly fed a diet if corn and soy. I used to be lactose intolerant until I began drinking my milk raw, from grass fed cows. It helps that I live in a rural region of N.America and can connect with sources for it. In the metropolitan areas it might be tough.

  15. I hate to eat healthy food so I prefer taking a nutritional supplement that contains all the required nutrients :)

  16. Hi, i read your blog from time to time and i own a similar one
    and i was just curious if you get a lot of spam responses?
    If so how do you protect against it, any plugin or anything you can suggest?
    I get so much lately it’s driving me insane so any assistance is very much appreciated.

  17. Looking good, particularly the pic second to last :)

  18. Looks like you’re doing lots of things right! I like your food choices – much like mine. I particularly like eggs and eat eggs and veg every morning. I’m posting my eggy breakfasts on Tuesday, in honor of Easter coming up. Not that you’ll need any further ideas along these lines I’d imagine!

    • Thanks for the comment!

      Yeah, eggs for the win! I’ll check out your post in two days when I finish my weekly two day fast :)

  19. Reblogged this on danceqweenaj.

    • Your diet seems very complicated, but obviously its working for you. I cant help but wonder how you fiind some of the ingredients because half the ingrediants that were stated I dont find them in most groceries. Over all Im going to try your suggestions though im not overweight I just want to be a little bit mor fit. Pushups and situps dont seem to be working.

      • Where do you live?

        While I stayed in Canada there was an abundance of groceries (you could get virtually anything!) whereas in Sweden it’s a bit more tricky at times. But I think there’s been an overall increase in the variety of different seeds, fruits, vegetables, and healthy fats that’s taken place during my period abroad. The food companies are keeping up with the newer, healthier demands of the market place – this is great news.

        Yes, my diet is somewhat complicated – it’s taken me a while to find out what works well for me by experimenting with a ton of different supplements, diet regimens, and fitness workouts during the course of the past two years. I’m not going to say my diet is the ultimate one, but it’s the best one for me given my body’s current condition.

        (No two bodies are the same, therefore there is no ultimate diet for everyone, but as humans we do have a bunch of stuff in common and there certainly are a few good guiding principles as to how we should eat, sleep and exercise in order to be healthy and productive)

        Btw, speaking of pushups and situps. You may want to focus on compound exercises such as squats, deadlifts, dips, pullups/chins, bench press, etc.You may find my post about the fundamentals to exercising interesting:

        http://www.startgainingmomentum.wordpress.com/2012/09/24/the-8020-of-working-out-and-body-building-mastering-the-fundamentals/

        • I live in Florida

          I have been trying different things and none seem to be working. I came across yours and it seemed so intriguing, and I thought how can seone have such a complex diet and still be fit. The fact that you exercise along with all the food you eat confuse me. shouldnt your weight be off balance?

        • When it comes to exercising and diet (and building muscle) it comes down to having a lot of consistency – being able to form healthy habits and then keeping them.

          It might be hard to implement all of my habits quickly – especially fasting daily and 48 hours per week – that takes a while for the body and its hormones to readjust if you’re used to eating 3-6 meals per day.

          The four most important things for me to be consistent about have been:

          – Training correctly and productively = Mostly doing compound exercises (Very little or no cardio)

          – Fasting & meal frequency = the less meals you eat the less you will raise your insulin levels. When your insulin levels are heightened you will be storin fat and using glucose as your main source of energy, which means you are adding on body fat. I strive to eat 1-3 times per day. Usually 2 including my post workout protein shake.

          – Eating a lot of vegetables (or good supplements as a plan B), protein, healthy fats, and reducing carbs.

          – Good work ethic in the gym and enjoying working out – being good at getting into flow. Always pushing harder and persist for at least 5 more minutes or x amount of reps whenever the mind wants to quit.

          This should explain why I can get away with eating so much and yet stay the same weight. I’ve actually kept an excel sheet on my weight the past 3 months, and it’s very steady. :)

        • Thank you for you help. ‘im thinking of starting tomorro, i’ll try to follow your routine and see where it goes from there. Hopefully it works out for me. Thanks again really appreciated. : )

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