The MRP Diet
by Chris Shugart and TC

Given that you gluttons out there might want to start thinking about whittling away at that gut you're building up during the holidays, we thought we'd reprint this easy, no-brainer diet article that originally appeared in issue #102.

We live in a society that's stuck in fastforward. People today work harder and longer than any previous generation. What's more, we don't exactly come home, put on a snazzy sweater vest, and flop down in the La-Z-Boy, either. Nope, we spend time with our families, head to our second jobs, start our homework, or pass the evening in clubs trying to find a woman who's drunk enough to talk to us. If you're like most T-mag readers, we'd guess that your life often resembles a frantic juggling act in which you try to keep work, family, school, and relationships aloft at the same time. All of these things keep moving, somehow, in a complex and ever-evolving pattern.

If you're an athlete or bodybuilder (or just someone who wants to look great naked), then you have to add two more items into this juggling act: diet and training. All too often, when the juggling act gets tough and the unicycle starts to wobble, one of the first items to be dropped is diet. That's too bad, of course, since diet is the key to reaching your goals, whether you want to get nicely ripped for summer or pack on as much mass as possible.

The solution for many of us is to use a meal replacement powder, the quintessential MRP. They're healthy, fast, and most of them actually tastes pretty good these days. Still, you couldn't live on them...or could you?

If your life resembles the circus act described above, then you have two choices. 1) You could skip meals or live off of the latest "potbelly in a sack" lunch special from Wendy's. Sure, you'll end up fat, weak, and unable to even get laid by a drunken sorority chick with a pierced tongue and emotional issues. But, hey, that double-bacon cheeseburger sure was good, huh? 2) You could use the MRP Diet outlined below. It's cheap, simple, and effective. And it will allow you to have the body that you want and a life at the same time. What a concept! Check it out.

Overview

Here's the plan. You're going to chug down three to five MRPs a day, and then eat a solid meal in the evening. That's it, lots of bodybuilding nutrition in a no-brainer diet. The only trick is that each MRP will be customized to fit your needs and remove any inherent shortcomings. But don't worry, it'll still help you lose fat and build muscle without spending all day reading labels in the kitchen. Here's an outline:

Breakfast) MRP blended with fruit

Believe it or not, most of us T-guys are actually into health. Really. Square biz'. And there's no easier way to get a mess o' phytochemicals into your body than by throwing an assortment of fruit, frozen or otherwise, into the churning blades of your blender. And don't give us any guff about the evils of fructose, for Pete's sake. Glycemically speaking, fructose is pretty low on the scale and won't give your blood-sugar levels a kick in the pants.

Lunch) MRP mixed with flax oil or Udo's Choice

If you'd rather not mix oil into your shakes, then you can just take it before or after you drink your shake. Sometimes, we just take a swig from the bottle or pop a few fish-oil capsules. In a pinch, you can always throw in a spoonful of natural peanut butter (great with a chocolate-flavored shake).

We recommend not throwing any fruit into your lunch mix. The extra carbs might lead to extra serotonin production, which will make you fall asleep during your afternoon meeting with CEO Wiggins. Your head will hit the desk like the comet in that "Armageddon" movie and, in a few weeks, you'll be standing in a soup line where MRPs are relatively scarce.

Post-workout) For this one, a higher GI would be beneficial. Add maltodextrin powder, Ribose-C, or a scoop of Twinlab Ultra Fuel.

Solid meal) The content of this meal depends on your specific goals, but we suggest that you get some vegetables to make up for any nutrients not provided by MRPs. You might try a large salad topped with some chicken.

Nighttime shake) The goal here is to reduce any nighttime catabolic activity caused from the eight-hour fast called sleep. We suggest that you add a little glutamine to your shake, and anywhere from two to five grams is cool.

There are probably a bunch of pure products out there, but we like Champion's gluatmine. You may also want to throw in some type of fiber supplement, such as Metamucil, so that you can properly fumigate the house every morning like a real man should always do. If you can't stand Metamucil, then take a Fibercon tablet with each shake during the day and another dose at night, if necessary.

Questions and Answers

Q: How do I go about choosing which MRP to use?

A: There are a couple of considerations here. First and foremost, pick the MRP that tastes best to you. You're going to be tossing back several of these things a day, so you don't want to settle for some of the grocery store crap that Weider packaged back in 1987.

Next, you don't want an MRP that's going to jack with your blood-sugar levels too much. Choose one that has a decent glycemic index. Many of the popular MRPs on the market today will send your blood-sugar levels through the roof, and your islets of Langerhans (part of your pancreas) will start squirting out insulin like a pornstar performing a climactic money shot. This could lead to cravings later on and, possibly, greater fat storage.

It's no surprise that we're going to recommend our own MRP, Biotest Grow! To us, it solves many of the shortcomings of other MRPs. First, its GI is perfect, causing no more than a four-point rise in most users' blood-sugar levels. Its micronutrient profile is also ideal, as it only contains the nutrients that you need to properly utilize the protein and other macros. Grow! also wins out when it comes to taste and texture, at least to us and all of our repeat customers. If you haven't lapped up a blender of this stuff yet, you're really missing out.

If you choose to take something besides Grow!, hey, no problem. Just be sure that you're using a complete, quality MRP, not a plain whey protein powder or something similar. While products like Designer Protein and Precision Protein are good, they don't contain enough healthful fats, carbohydrates, or proper micronutrients to be considered "meals."

Q: What other supplements should I use besides an MRP?

A: There are a few that we'd consider mandatory and others that you may want to use depending on your individual goals. First, you need to use some sort of essential fatty acid blend, such as Udo's Choice or flaxseed oil. Fish capsules are another decent choice. Second, MRPs don't contain any fiber to speak of, not even Grow! (we didn't think that you'd want to chew your shakes, so we left it out). Use some sort of psyllium husk fiber supplement. Metamucil, Colon Cleanse, Beyond Greens, and Fibercon will all keep the plumbing working. Third, go ahead and take a multivitamin with your breakfast shake, just to be sure that you're covering all of the bases. Lastly, if your goal is to lose fat, then we strongly suggest that you use MD6 with this program or, at least, a conventional ephedrine and caffeine blend like Twinlab Ripped Fuel.

Of course, almost any other supplement that we make will compliment this program nicely: Tribex-500, Methoxy-7, Power Drive, Ribose-C, Androsol, and ZMA all will help. Just choose whichever ones most fit your needs and goals. But keep in mind that, with the exception of MD6, the primary goal of the aforementioned supplements is to build muscle, not necessarily to burn bodyfat.

Q: Three to five MRPs a day? This is going to be expensive!

A: Not really. Remember, you'll only be eating one solid meal a day for a couple of weeks, so your grocery bill won't be bad at all. If you decide to use Grow! and take advantage of the "buy two, get one free" deal, then this diet is going to cost you $1.66 a meal. That's a good price for high-quality muscle food! Even if you choose to use another popular MRP, like EAS Myoplex (a little over three bucks a shake), it's fairly economical.

Q: So what's my daily caloric intake supposed to be with this diet?

A: That depends on your goals. A good rule of thumb for all diets is to keep up with your daily caloric intake for a week or so. Try to establish your maintenance level, then begin to play with that number by adding or subtracting a couple of hundred calories per day. You probably shouldn't gain or lose more than two pounds a week or you could be losing muscle or laying on too much fat.

Since our goal here is to design a simple diet for busy people, we've laid out the numbers for you in the following charts. They represent the MRP intake only (using Grow!):

Now, just add in the calories from your solid meal, oils, fiber, and any additional supplements, and you'll be set up. Simple, easy, and it leaves plenty of time for the important things in life, like chasing women, watching baseball and...huh, let's see here...uh, you know, that other important stuff.

Tips, Tricks, and Recipes

We suggest that you use this diet any time that the annoying thing called life gets in the way of your bodybuilding goals. And we say to use it no more than a couple of weeks at a time, whether you want to lose fat or add mass.

If you're going to use Grow!, be sure to get both chocolate and vanilla flavors. That way, you'll have some variety.

For those who are really skinny and can't seem to gain any mass, mix the shakes with milk. Otherwise, just use cold water. (A quick word of caution: never mix Grow! with beer. Oh, sure, it'll sound good at the time and, actually, it doesn't taste half bad with a really heady, dark brew. But it just ain't meant to be. Trust us on this one, okay?)

For breakfast, play around with different fruits. Using vanilla Grow!, toss in strawberries, frozen peaches, and a peeled apple with a dash of cinnamon ? whatever yanks your crank. Try the milk chocolate flavor with a banana. Add ice for a milkshake texture. Toss in a little sugar-free Crystal Light mix to make berry flavors. Pour your shake up in one of those lovely old-fashioned milkshake glasses and carefully position a delicate mint leaf on the top to add a splash of color and give it visual appeal. A stick of cinnamon, while not practical, will add a delightful touch of texture that's both charming and amusing. Serve at garden parties or whenever friends stop by to discuss spring-cleaning strategies or serve at your next recipe-swapping party!

(Sorry, Martha Stewart just broke into T-mag headquarters with a band of angry housewives and took over for a few minutes. Luckily, Tim was able to reach his zipper and expose his sinister-looking penis. The housewives, having never seen a penis in the natural light of day before, became so frightened by the monstrous missile of meat that they turned and fled back to suburbia. In the ensuing stampede of cellulite, Martha was trampled and damn-near killed. Brock Strasser is over at Jesus God Almighty hospital at this very moment to comfort her during her convalescence. At this very moment, he's stroking her hand and whispering encouragement into her ear. Of course, he's just hoping to get into her pants, but we digress.)

Unless your name is Kim Chizevsky and your clitoris resembles a swollen Vienna sausage, women who try this diet should probably stick to two-scoop servings of Grow! The label already breaks down the numbers for you.

If your primary goal is fat loss, you might want to check out our outline of German Body Comp training. If your main objective is to build strength along with some size, try Charles Poliquin's 1-6 Principle. article. Also, virtually any of Ian King's 12-week programs would be a great place to start.

Pack up a few servings of your favorite MRP and keep them with you for emergencies. You could even blend a couple up with a little ice and carry them with you in a thermos.

Choose the food for your solid meal based on your immediate goals. Remember, this meal isn't a "free" meal where you gobble up everything in the fridge including the three-year-old box of Arm and Hammer baking soda. Eat big if that fits your needs, but eat clean:

• Chicken
• Turkey
• Veggies
• Lean cuts of beef
• Fish
• Quality carbs
• Etc.

There you have it, a diet that's healthy, effective, and so simple to incorporate, George "Dubya" Bush could follow it. Now you can never again use that "too busy" to eat right excuse. Now go get that blender smokin' and get back to work!

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