In this video, I’m going to show you how to lose weight without ever having to count calories again. One thing I hear all the time is “how do you stay so lean year round”. People assume you have to eat like a bird or be hunched over a scale calculating every crumb you put onto your plate. The reality of the situation couldn’t be any further from that. I don’t really give nutrition that much thought anymore because I’ve been using the same effective approach for the past decade and it has allowed me to stay lean and ripped year in and year out for over 20 years now.
One of the reasons people get nutrition wrong is that they are overwhelmed by choices. Low carb, low fat, Keto, IF, IIFYM, the carnivore diet. Which is the best? What about calories in / calories out? Just measuring everything and entering it into an app? Where do you start? Which one works…and which one works the fastest? The truth is, they all ‘work’. From a purely scientific perspective they’re all accomplishing the same goal, limiting the amount of calories that you consume. They’re just doing it different ways.
The problem creeps in when you’re stuck with an eating plan that doesn’t really fit your lifestyle for the long term and you end up abandoning it for your old, unhealthy way of eating. You know, the one which got you out of shape in the first place.
I realize that there are people who choose to do specific diet plans because of potential health benefits that they might enjoy. For example, some people who suffer from inflammation have reported having relief with a Ketogenic approach. If your meal plan is meeting your personal needs and your health goals; it’s fine with me. More power to you. I’m not trying to convert people to my way of eating.
For the majority of people out there however, they just want to look good, get leaner and maybe even carve out a six pack. For them, no matter what they do they often end up right back to where they started from often with an additional few extra pounds. If that’s you, you should give my easy to follow approach a try. It’s worked for me and it’s what I have all of my pro athletes doing.
To start I divide my plate into thirds and dedicate a full third to my preferred protein. The remainder of the plate is divided up again for carbs with twice as many fibrous carbs occupying space compared to starchy carbs. For an example of this, be sure and check out the video where I demonstrate how I divide the plate and also show some specific meals I eat. It’s also important to mention that just because you’ve divided your plate up correctly doesn’t give you license to start stacking it higher and higher. That would defeat the purpose.
You might be wondering how this could possibly work, how could he be eating pasta and rice without measuring or entering data into a calorie counting app to ensure he’s staying up on his macros. The fact is, if you’re making a conscious effort to fill your plate the way I describe, the rest sort of automatically falls into place.
Fibrous carbs will provide you with the vitamins and minerals, your protein needs as an athlete are going to be met as we’ve prioritized protein by giving it the most real estate on our plate. To ensure you have plenty of energy (and your sanity) you’re still getting plenty of access to delicious carbs like rice, potatoes, pasta, couscous etc…
Eating to be healthy and lean doesn’t have to be complicated, if you’ve found yourself banging your head against the wall trying to decide between wether you can eat breakfast or you should be writing off rice for the rest of your life, give my approach a shot. In even a few short weeks I bet you start to see a difference. What’s best, your going to get results without having to put forth all that much effort.
If you’re looking for the latest in sports nutrition to assist your ab getting goals, be sure to head to or head to at the link below and get access to the same if you meal plan I use for building muscle and staying lean year round.
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Did two takes of this video and somehow my fat recommendations didn't make this cut. As always recommended, healthy fats are essential to a balanced nutrition plan. One of the biggest mistakes I made earlier in my youth (as I stated in a video on the topic) was following a no-fat diet. Now, I am sure to include them in every meal. In the example provided, you want to either cook with them (pasta in a cracked red pepper and olive oil red sauce) or add them directly (sweet potato mash with added butter). If fibrous carbs were spinach for instance, I would never eat them raw. I'd instead sautée with garlic and oil and mushrooms for more flavor. Remember, if it's not tasty you won't eat it long term. This defeats the purpose of establishing a game plan for PERMANENT healthy eating! I'll publish the unseen footage on my instagram @athleanx for those interested in watching!
Can I gain weight using this method?
Nailed it
This is good advice. Protein based foods are generally more filling than starchy carbs. Perhaps lucky for me, I've never been a fan of starchy carbs. They're just fillers for me, kinda bland and boring. So I naturally make then roughly a quarter of my meals. Sometimes I even skip starchy carbs altogether, and have eggs, bread or nuts instead. I like fibrous carbs (veggies) better, but they're still not my favorite, so those tend to become roughly a quarter as well. That leaves protein and fat, which fills out the remaining half of my plate. Sometimes even 3/4 of it. Prolem is though, that I eat way too fatty foods, and that's the culprit to why I consume too many calories. I unfortunately hate dry food and not a fan of spices either, and I love creamy sauces.
So my meals often end up way too rich in fat from dairy. This was a good technique back when I only ate once a day to get most of my daily calories into that one meal (and then drink the rest) but now that I've split my diet up into 3-4 meals a day, I'm noticing quite a calorie surplus from all those creamy sauces I've become accustomed to. It's quite a challenge to slowly change them from cream to lower fat options like milk and adjust my seasoning technique to that. So basically, I agree that a higher protein diet absolutely does help you get full on less food, but that just doing this isn't always enough to be at a calorie maintenance or deficit. I can easily stuff myself with a 2000+ calorie dense meal consisting of just meat, dairy and veggies. Great for my gains, not so great for my gut.
fantastic stuff so well explained thanks
This is exactly what I need because I absolutely hate counting calories! Thanks so much!!!
I love using the plate portion. Do you have any pointers for using this method (or another one) if food is mixed and not separated into individual ingredients?
I gotta ask tho. My family and friends enjoy eating out at restaurants at certain holidays. Like Christmas. How does one use your plate meal division then on?
What about dessert?
Love your content Jeff. I don't count calories. I follow a ketoish meal plan. I've gone from 375 to 206 with it. I eat whole foods and stay away from highly processed foods or "fake foods" that were designed to not satiate, create strong cravings and have very little nutritive value. I use IF as well. I eat vegetables, grass fed beef, butter and dairy. I drink a lot of water. I do drink coffee and use stevia. I rarely eat sugar. This keeps my mood and energy level very consistent. I walk 3-4 miles every other day, weights 2-3 days a week. Sauna, ice baths, breathing techniques and light exposure. I have 1-2 beers a month and yes a little whip cream sometimes! This is such a great channel! Thank you Jeff!
Just a serious question: how many of your example plate can you eat per day, to stay on track!? 🤔
Jeff uses two knives when cutting his food, so to avoid cutting imbalances.
I only have vegetables and meat. That plate won't work
I counted my kcals for 12 momths dropped 30lbl. I've spoken to my dietitian. I'm now in maintenance. Until January. …. Do final 6 months. Be lean again
What about sandwiches?
How many times a day do you recommend eating like this…I know most of us eat 3 main meals but do we really need up to 5 meals like this or would it be better to eat 3 main meals like this and have maybe 1 or 2 100-200 cal snack in between meals, and should we eat the same every day or eat more on strength training days?
I was doing this weeks ago and just now watched your video. It's amazing how portion control is related to lean build.
https://youtu.be/D6t0HEb4_p0
do you have any suggestions for someone who is physically challenged?
What's so good about Jeff is that, in addition to his profound knowledge, he is practical and you don't have to be a fanatic to succeed. Thanks Jeff.
I can't gain weight, I have opposite problem.
I set a goal at the beginning of the month. I do all my resistance training and cardio the first 20 days. I eat chicken, steak,and vegetables every day. I eat clean but I eat a lot because I’m building muscle.
I do all my dieting the last 10 days. I lose all my weight the last 10 days of the month. I also lose some of my gains. I’ve lost 40 pounds in 2 months.
The problem is that even if you eat accordong to the portions he's talking about, you'll still be hungry if you're in a calorie deficit and you'll eventually compensate (or over compensate) through eating something not planned in that "perfect plan". Counting calories helps you get the discipline to suffer through that little hunger, because you know the math, that if you'll reach that bread/cake/yogurt etc, you won't be at the calorie deficit needed to lose the weight you wanna lose.
yes 10 breast would be the best
More bad nutrition advice from a freakishly carb-tolerant man.
This is great. I have one question – do you do this ratio for all three meals? Also, should you snack between meals? Thank you!