Originally Posted by eazy

The blander the diet, the more hardcore you are

This is one thing that I will never understand about many bodybuilders—the idea that a monotonous, bland, lame diet is somehow better for physique and performance purposes than a diet that has variety and actually has some flavor to it.

Sadly, many people hold rigidly to the “clean eating” stance and assume that clean eating entails a day full of nothing but plain chicken breast, broccoli, and brown rice. Reality check...eating plain, bland, boring, dry-as-the-desert chicken breast doesn’t make you healthier, better or more hardcore...it makes you a lazy ass for not being more creative in the kitchen.

There are a million ways to eat a healthful diet rife with nutrient-dense foods and make it taste good. There seems to be this inane idea in bodybuilding subculture that achieving the body of your dreams and performing your best means you have to sacrifice all your favorite foods and the pleasure of eating altogether. Well wake up and smell the roses because the truth is that you can have your cake and eat it too if you’re smart about it (*cough* portion control *cough*).

The bottom line

Alright Brutus Biceps, nobody cares that all you choke down is plain chicken breast, dry rice and asparagus...it’s not going to make you look or perform any better than the guy that makes his food taste good and has some variety in his diet. If you really want an award for being “more hardcore” than try to figure out how to work foods you genuinely like to eat into your diet, because that’s the mark of someone who can control themselves and has a balance in life.

If you truly believe that sacrificing taste/flavor in your diet means you are somehow more hardcore or more prone to succeed because of that, than there really is no other term to describe your train of thought than utter meatheadedness. Eating is a privilege and something that sustains us both mentally and physically, not a chore that you should abhor and think of as sacrifice.