blastthru23
Moderator
I've been thinking of writing a post showing how to build a basic diet plan. It's really quite easy, but it takes a little time and some simple arithmetic to figure out the macro profile of your diet. Here is how to create a diet that has the typical 6 meals per day, and features nutrient timing. You'll need to know multiplication, division, and addition. Also, you'll need your TDEE (total daily energy expenditure); this is you baseline. There are numerous sites that offer this calculator for free. This number let's you know which way to go. In other words surplus calories for bulking, and deficit calories for a cut. For argument's sake, we'll go with 2700 cal per day. Our hypothetical athlete here will be seeking a lean bulk, so we will create a 3500 calorie diet, an 800 calorie per day surplus. This athlete is 5'10", 200lbs., and has a body fat percentage between 9% and 13%. He is in his 30's.
{To create a cutting diet, you only have to adjust the macros to meet that goal. You would instead figure out a number BELOW your TDEE at roughly 400 calories depending on a variety of factors}
At this time, I am not going to lay out a carb cycle plan, which would have 3 different menus for different days. This is a simple plan with nutrient timing. Furthermore, this is NOT a recommendation as different bodies deal with nutrients in different ways. This is merely an example. If it maps on to your specific requirements, that would constitute a fortuitous accident 
Step 1. First you'll need to calculate your protein. As a general rule, you will want between 1.25g to 2g of protein per pound of body weight. Say you're 200 lbs. Let's go with 1.5g protein. That's 1.5x200, which equals 300g of protein per day. Divide this by 6 and you get 50g of protein per meal. Protein is 4 calories per gram, so multiply 300 by 4 and you get 1200 calories per day from protein. All 6 meals will have 50g of protein.
Step 2. Next, we calculate the fat. Fat intake can range from 15% to 25% of one's caloric intake per day. Let's just go with 20%. Multiply total calories per day, which here we are going for 3500. 3500x.20 equals 700. Therefore, 700 calories per day will come from fat. Fat has 9 calories per gram. So, dividing 700 by 9 you get 77.7, or 78 rounding up. Two of your meals will not have added fat. The first protein shake in the morning, and your post work out shake. That leaves 4 meals that will have added fat. Dividing 78 by 4, we get 19g of fat per meal for four meals.
Step 3. Calculate your carbs for the day. Our imaginary athlete is seeking 3500 calories per day. We know that they will be getting 1200 calories from protein, and 700 from fat. Adding 1200 and 700 we get 1900. Subtracting 1900 from 3500 (3500-1900) we get 1600 calories from carbohydrates. Four meals per day will have carbs: First, second, fourth and fifth ( or post work out shake). Carbohydrates are 4 calories per gram. Dividing 1600 by 4 we get 400g of carbs per day. Now, divide 400 by 4 (the number of meals containing carbs) and we get 100g per meal for the four carb containing meals
Here is what that looks like in macro grams per day: P: 300g C: 400g F: 78g
Next, you need to figure out where these macros are coming from, and how much of each macro are contained in the source of a macro. For example, 112g (1/4lb.) of boneless/skinless chicken breast contains upward to 30g of protein (bake 450 degrees for about 30 minutes without oil; do not pan fry). One (1) cup of white rice (cooked) has 45g of carbohydrate (1 cup of uncooked white rice has 148g of carbs), and 100g sweet potatoes have 18g of carbohydrate (for best results, boil sweet potatoes as baking changes the chemistry of the sugars, not in our favor). Olive oil and coconut oil contain 14g of fat per tablespoon. It is also a very good idea to add a hearty green vegetable such as cabbage or broccoli to meals that are comprised of chicken and rice to add necessary fiber, etc..
Finally, create your menu based on the calculations for your daily macros (I am not going to create the menu, just a "blueprint"). Notice how some meals contain no fat or no carbs (to make it easy, I've emboldened those for you). Here is what it could look like:
Meal 1. P: 50g, C: 100g, F:0g
Meal 2. P: 50g, C: 100g, F:19g
Meal 3. P: 50g. C: 0g, F: 19g
Meal 4. P: 50g C:100g F: 19g
Meal 5 (post workout). P: 50g, C: 100g, F: 0g
Meal 6. P: 50g, C: 0g, F: 19g
