Prime Performance Therapy, PLLC
You are not broken. You just need the right plan. Answer a few honest questions and get a complete nutrition framework built around your body, your training, and your goal. Not a template. Not a guess. A plan calibrated to you, in about two minutes.
Most people were never lacking willpower. They were lacking a plan that fit. This is that plan.
This tool builds a personalized nutrition framework based on research-backed formulas. It is educational guidance, not a clinical prescription, and it works best when you use it as a starting point you adjust over time, not a rigid rulebook. The calculations are accurate. The plan requires your honest effort to work.
If any of the following apply to you, speak with your physician or a registered dietitian before starting:
The plan is only as accurate as the numbers you put in. Honest inputs, honest plan. No rounding down.
| Meal / Moment | What to Focus On | Examples for Your Goal |
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Most people don't fail their nutrition plan because they lack willpower. They fail because they didn't build the system. When 5 o'clock hits and you're exhausted and there's nothing ready, your best intentions don't stand a chance. Meal prep isn't about being perfect. It's about removing the decision from the equation so that doing the right thing becomes the path of least resistance.
Research published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine found that people who spend more time preparing food at home consistently show better diet quality. Batch cooking concentrates that effort into one or two focused sessions instead of scrambling every single day. The strategy is simple: cook your proteins, your carbs, and your vegetables in large quantities once or twice a week. Everything else is just assembly.
Eyeballing your food feels fine until you realize that a "handful" of almonds can range from 150 to 400 calories depending on who's doing the grabbing. A digital kitchen scale is the most impactful five-dollar investment you can make for this plan. You don't have to weigh forever. But especially in the first four to six weeks while your eye is calibrating, it is the difference between guessing and actually knowing.
You do not need twenty different meals prepped every week. You need six reliable building blocks that you can combine into different meals without getting bored. This is what the research on dietary variety and adherence consistently confirms: versatile components beat rigid pre-made meals for long-term consistency.
One day. Two to three hours. That is all this takes if you run it right. Most people use Sunday. Some use Sunday and Wednesday. Find what works and protect that time like a training session. Because it is one.
A note on storage: cooked chicken and ground meat keep well for 4 days refrigerated. Cooked rice and grains keep 5 to 6 days. Sweet potatoes and roasted vegetables, 4 to 5 days. Hard-boiled eggs in the shell, up to one week. When in doubt, freeze it. Frozen meals preserve nutritional value and eliminate the "it went bad" excuse entirely.
The numbers in this plan only work if you actually use them. MyFitnessPal is the most practical free tool for tracking your daily intake, and it takes about five minutes to set up. Here is exactly how to get it dialed in to match your plan.
Download MyFitnessPal from the App Store or Google Play and create a free account. Use your real email so you can log back in across devices.
Go to More, then Goals, then Calorie and Macronutrient Goals. Enter your Target Calories from this plan. Then set protein, carbohydrates, and fat to match your numbers above. Use grams, not percentages, for accuracy.
Tap the plus icon, select a meal, then tap the barcode icon to scan any packaged food instantly. For whole foods like chicken or rice, search by name and select the closest match. Log each meal as you go rather than at the end of the day.
Before bed, open your diary and review the day. Did you hit your protein range? Were you close on calories? You do not need to be perfect. You need to know where you stand so you can make a small adjustment tomorrow if needed.
A plan without checkpoints is just a guess. The numbers in this tool are a research-backed starting point, not a permanent prescription. Your body responds, your life changes, your training intensity shifts. The check-ins below are the moments where you take honest stock of where things stand and make one small, informed adjustment if needed. Not an overhaul. One adjustment.
You have had two weeks to run the plan. Here is what to honestly assess:
If yes to all four: the plan is working. Stay the course. Two weeks is not enough time to see body composition change. What you're building right now is the habit.
If energy is low or training is suffering: bring calories up by 100 to 150. You may have underestimated your activity level.
Four weeks in, you should have enough data to start seeing trends. Assess these five markers:
If all five are trending right: do not change anything. Resist the urge to accelerate by cutting more. This pace is where the results actually live.
If strength is dropping: add 200 calories on training days only. Target carbohydrates first.
Eight weeks is where real, measurable change becomes visible. This is also the most common point where people either double down or make a mistake. Assess:
If results are visible and training is strong: recalculate your targets using your new body weight. Your maintenance calories will have shifted.
If results are stalled and adherence was solid: reduce daily calories by 100 to 150 or increase training frequency by one session per week. Change one variable at a time.
This tool provides general educational nutrition estimates for healthy adults based on evidence-backed population formulas. It is not medical nutrition therapy, clinical guidance, or a substitute for individualized care. All targets are starting points that should be adjusted over time based on your personal response, training demands, and how your body adapts. Every individual is different, and no formula replaces lived experience or professional evaluation.
If you are managing a medical condition, have a history of disordered eating, are pregnant or nursing, or are working with a healthcare provider on a clinical nutrition protocol, please consult your physician or a registered dietitian before implementing any nutrition plan. This tool is designed to educate and empower, not to replace professional guidance.
Food allergies and intolerances: This planner includes filters for common dietary restrictions, but it is not a substitute for individualized allergy management. If you have a known or suspected food allergy, intolerance, or immune-mediated response to any ingredient in your plan, consult your allergist, dietitian, or physician before starting. This includes but is not limited to tree nut, shellfish, egg, gluten, soy, and dairy allergies, as well as conditions such as celiac disease, inflammatory bowel conditions, and other GI sensitivities. Reaction thresholds vary significantly by individual, and your provider knows your history in a way this tool cannot.
Alpha-gal syndrome: Alpha-gal syndrome is a tick-bite-triggered immune response to a carbohydrate found in mammalian meat and dairy. When this restriction is selected, beef and mammalian dairy are removed and replaced with poultry, eggs, fish, and pea protein. Chicken and turkey are poultry and are not affected by alpha-gal. Reactions vary significantly by individual and can include dairy sensitivity at varying thresholds. Consult your allergist or physician before making any dietary changes if you have alpha-gal syndrome, as every case is individual and your provider knows your specific threshold.
The evidence base that informs every recommendation in this plan. Each finding is expressed in plain language with the key number you need to know.
Consistent resistance training requires 0.73 to 1.0 g/lb (1.6 to 2.2 g/kg) of body weight per day. The higher end is especially important during calorie restriction to preserve lean muscle mass.
Consuming roughly 0.18 g/lb per meal across 3 to 5 eating occasions stimulates muscle protein synthesis more effectively than consuming the same daily total in one or two larger sittings.
Deficits in this range allow meaningful fat loss while protecting muscle tissue, particularly when protein meets the 0.73 to 1.0 g/lb range and resistance training is maintained throughout.
Pre- and post-workout carbohydrate intake replenishes muscle glycogen, supports training intensity, and enhances the muscle protein synthesis response when paired with adequate protein. Performance declines meaningfully when carbohydrate intake is chronically low.
In men, very low-fat diets suppress testosterone. In women, adequate dietary fat is essential for estrogen and progesterone synthesis. Fat intake below 15 percent of total calories is associated with disrupted menstrual function and reduced estradiol levels. For perimenopausal and postmenopausal women, fat quality influences visceral fat accumulation, insulin sensitivity, and bone density. Omega-3 fatty acids reduce post-menopause inflammation and support both cardiovascular health and muscle recovery.
Declining estrogen in perimenopause reduces the anabolic sensitivity to protein. Research suggests older women may need protein closer to 1.0 g/lb to achieve the same muscle-protein synthesis response. Resistance training combined with adequate protein is among the most supported strategies for preserving lean mass, bone density, and metabolic rate through and beyond this transition.
Flexible dietary approaches that allow preferred foods within an overall calorie and protein framework produce better long-term outcomes than rigid elimination-based plans because they are sustainable through the realities of daily life.
Consuming at least 0.18 g/lb of protein within 90 minutes of finishing a resistance training session significantly enhances muscle protein synthesis compared to delayed intake. Pairing post-workout protein with fast-digesting carbohydrates replenishes glycogen and amplifies the anabolic response, making the post-training window one of the most valuable nutrition opportunities of the entire day.