Transcription
All right, what's going on, y'all? Today, I'm going to take you through a full day of eating, fasting as an Orthodox Christian. Today, I'm going to show you how I go through and I fast, um, and still have it be high protein and hit my, my protein goals, um, to make sure I maintain performance as a strength athlete and strength coach. This has been a, a question I've been getting a lot lately for my Orthodox brothers and sisters of, you know, how do I manage my fasting days with everything I do, you know, to make them high protein and all that? So hopefully, some of these meals today can be, um, useful to y'all, um, during your fasting days to make them a little bit more high protein, um, or just make them a little bit better, um, you know.
We fast on Wednesdays and Fridays. Today is Friday, um, so today is a fasting day. Um, and then obviously, we've got, um, Great Lent coming up, which is about a month and a half of fasting. So, um, I have a whole list of, you know, fasting meals, um, especially high protein fasting meals. Um, so today will be a little bit of a sample of that and hopefully help y'all. So, um, we've got Divine Liturgy coming up in a few minutes, so I'm getting ready to have meal number one. Now, meal number one, um, this is a quick swap that I do from my non-fasting days. Um, it's very similar to my non-fasting days, um, and it's a very, very simple, quick, easy meal, easy to get down, um, and I, I love it. So, I've just had morning prayers. Now I'm going to go ahead and have meal number one, and then we're going to get off to Divine Liturgy. So, what I've got for meal number one is 100 grams of oats, I've got 70 grams of vegan protein powder, and I'll show you what I'm working with in just a second, and then 50 grams of blueberries. Now, I like my oats to be a little bit more, and I call this "Proats." It's a Proats bowl, protein oats. Um, I like my Proats to be a little bit thicker. Obviously, you can add a little bit more water if you want it to be, um, you know, a little bit more runny. Um, so the, the protein powder I'm using for this meal, this is Ghost vegan protein powder. This is their chocolate cereal milk. It's delicious, um, in this meal. Um, so, you know, go ahead and get getting this meal down as meal number one. This, this is like a high protein meal for, for meal number one. Gets a lot of protein in for the start of the day, um, and kind of gets me rolling along to hit my, uh, my total daily, um, protein goal. So I'm going to go ahead and get this down. We're going to go off to church, um, this morning, and then, um, I'll show y'all what we're working with for meal two.
All right, y'all. So we're back from church. So I'm getting ready to head off to work. So today, I've got a couple in-person, uh, training sessions with some clients, and then in between those sessions, I'm going to get my own training in. So for meal two today, meal two, I want it to be, uh, pretty big. Um, it's got to keep me full for, for quite a bit, um, before I can get to meal three. So I'll show y'all what we're working with, um, for that in just a second. But in case you don't know, the rules of Orthodox fasting is we're essentially vegan. Um, there's a couple exceptions to that, but, um, we're essentially, you know, completely vegan. We, um, abstain from meat or, or blood, um, you know, blood from animals. Um, and the only really animal products we can have have is crustaceans, like, like shrimp. Um, and I might have a shrimp meal today. We'll see what I'm working with for tonight. Um, but for the most part, when we fast, um, we're vegan. Um, and that, you know, we've got big, um, Great Lent coming up, Holy Great Lent coming up, that's going to be, um, you know, about, you know, six weeks or so of, of fasting. Um, and during that time, it's, you know, mostly just strict fasting, which is going to be, you know, vegan with, you know, the exception of, of shrimp. Um, but with that being said, you know, it's not, it's not really hard if you strategize on getting, um, high protein meals. So, um, this has been something that's been requested by my church and then, uh, my spiritual father, Father Moses. Um, he's really encouraged me to make a cookbook for our church for a lot of the guys, um, and girls in our church that, um, are really big into fitness and want wanted guidance for, um, you know, how to get, uh, high protein meals. Um, and I've also been getting some questions from y'all on, you know, how I'm going to manage, um, Great Lent and how I manage my own fasting, um, with my training and all that. So, um, we've got a bit, bit of a mess here. Um, my wife and I have been spending the last couple weeks, um, cooking, um, all these recipes for our cookbook, our Orthodox, um, fasting cookbook for strength and performance. Um, it's a cookbook full of fast and compliant recipes that are high protein. Um, and my wife has been making some delicious, delic, delicious recipes. So, um, Jacqueline's been, been doing an amazing job on this. So hopefully, um, I'll have this done for y'all on this next week and available that way before we roll into to Great Lent, you'll have it available. Um, you know, these recipes are going to be great for you guys, especially, you know, all of you out there that are, um, you know, into fitness or any strength sports or anything like that, and you're trying to manage your protein. These are great recipes to help you, um, fast, right? You know, fast in the, the right way that we as Orthodox Christians do, but also do it, um, with high protein. So excited to bring you all that. That should be out this next week. So be on the lookout for it's going to be the Orthodox fasting cookbook for strength and performance. Um, you know, and we can thank my, my beautiful, amazing wife for, for putting in so much work of coming up with these recipes and making them taste delicious. I'm serious, guys. The last several weeks, you know, I've been having some great food, um, trying this. So today, what I've got for meal two, I've got a burrito here. Now, we were out of our high protein, um, burrito wraps. You can get a high protein burrito wrap, so I just used a regular, um, wrap. I'll go ahead and use that for the macros I show you today, um, but just keep in mind, you can go ahead and make this even higher in protein, um, with that. So what I've got is the wrap, I've got a whole block of tofu, um, which guys, I can talk about this in another video of the science behind soy and phytoestrogens from all that and the, the true effect it has, and frankly, y'all don't really need to worry about it. Uh, but we got a whole block of tofu, um, about a fourth of a cup of black beans, avocado, and then for seasonings, we used, uh, some bell peppers, nutritional yeast, smoked paprika, garlic powder, um, and then we've got some like habanero salsa. What was that? Baby salt? Yeah, salt, salt. Um, and then, um, that habanero salsa, not the Habanero hot salsa I typically use. I use the salsa on this one. So, um, I've got three burritos here. Um, so I'm going to get this down, and this will keep me full for the next few hours before I show y'all meal three.
Meal three should be, um, before or after training today. Um, and then I'll, I'll show you what we're working with that. And then, um, tonight should be some good meals too. So, uh, I'll keep you guys posted and catch you guys in a bit.
All right, y'all. So I just finished up my training. So I had an in-person, uh, client session and then rolled right into my workout. Um, just rolling off of those burritos from earlier. Um, I did an upper body session, kind of something quick today, pretty pressed on time, but it was a good workout. So I, I hit a little bit of chest, a little bit of, uh, shoulders, a little bit of back, and then, uh, a tiny bit of arms. Um, pretty low volume for all the muscle groups, but, um, you know, still good to get it in, and, uh, the strength performance was, was quite good today. So, um, what I'm rolling with right now, this is going to count as meal three. I've got 70 grams of that Ghost vegan protein powder and then 7 grams of creatine, all mixed in here. So this is what I'm going to have post-workout. I'm going to get this down and then chill out for a few minutes, and then I've got another client session, um, and then I'll get back home tonight and show y'all what we're working with for, for, uh, for meal four.
All right, y'all. So I just whipped up meal four. So before I show you what meal four is, um, one thing to note is most fast days, I do have one meal of the day be, um, you know, a shrimp meal or mussels meal, and then on the very rare occasion, sometimes scallops. You know, we, we can have, um, shellfish and, you know, invertebrates, invertebrates, you know, seafood like that. So, you know, we can have like lobster, clams, mussels, shrimp, um, scallops, octopus. Um, now, what I typically have in my diet is usually shrimp, mussels, and then the very rare occasion, scallops. But today, I wanted to show you, you know, that you can do this high protein, completely vegan, so completely plant-based, not even including that in. Because when you add in, you know, the shrimp or the mussels, it's a game changer. You know, that's basically pure protein, makes hitting macros, um, and getting high protein in while fasting super, super easy. Also to mention, you know, when you go into Great Lent, you know, it's that something you have to worry about on like the regular Wednesday and Friday fast. You know, if you just go vegan on a Wednesday or Friday fast, no big deal. But, you know, during Great Lent, um, you know, where several weeks long, you do need to be on top of, um, your vitamins and minerals and stuff. And, you know, if you go completely vegan, you've got some considerations with that. That's where adding in, you know, the occasional shrimp or mussel, um, mussel meal can really, really help you, or clams can really help you, um, you know, kind of make up for, you know, where you can have deficiencies in a completely vegan diet. Um, but I wanted to show y'all that you can do this completely vegan, um, because a lot of people just don't believe you can do that. Um, I, I'm honestly telling you guys, you can see this on my Instagram. Um, I've got a few, uh, completely vegan, um, clients, bodybuilding clients, or strength athlete clients. I mean, one in particular has been with me for the last couple years, and he's been completely 100% vegan for years, and he's gone through many offseasons with me, many contest preps with me, and he looks fantastic. And not only does he look fantastic, he performs incredibly well. Um, and then his, his health is literally, um, impeccable. So this is something that you can do. Um, it just takes a bit more work, and you just got to be on top of your macros. That's really the point. It doesn't really matter what you're eating, um, you know, if you're really focused on strength and, and performance or even aesthetics, you've got to, you've got to be on top of your macros. Um, so, you know, I wanted to show you that you can do this vegan today. Typically though, like I said, on a fasting day, I do have, um, a shellfish meal like shrimp or mussels, and then sometimes it's super delicious to have scallops. So what I've got here, this is one of my favorite, um, vegan meals. So I've got, um, rice noodles. I did, I believe, 135 grams of rice noodles, a whole block of tofu, um, and then I did some kale, some zucchini, salt, pepper, and then I topped it with, um, sriracha. It's very, very simple. This takes like less than 10 minutes to make, um, and it's delicious. I, I love this meal. Um, so this is a super quick, easy one that y'all can hit. I'll throw the macros up on the screen, but this is, um, very, very high in protein, um, and it, you know, it's just a delicious meal, kind of like Asian flavored, um, but this is one of my favorites. So this is going to be meal four. For meal five today, it's going to be kind of a before-bed kind of treat. And, um, we'll talk about treats during fasting, um, kind of my viewpoint on that in a second, but, um, we'll get to that, um, in a little bit later. So this is what we're working with for meal five, or meal four. Um, and I'll catch y'all in a bit.
All right, y'all. So now I'm going to have meal five. So meal five is going to be a little bit of a treat tonight. Now, with fasting, you know, the whole purpose of fasting, um, is our own, you know, transfer and, you know, going deeper in our prayer life, and frankly, doing this in devotion to God. So, you know, there's that kind of whole argument out there of, you know, should you be making your meals taste super delicious, um, you know, and should you be having desserts? And, you know, obviously, you know, at the monasteries, they, they take fasting, you know, very, very ascetic. You know, they are, you know, having like, um, bread and just a little bit of fruit, um, you know, throughout the day. So there's degrees in which you can fast, and this is all comes down to your own, um, you know, your own, your own fasting life, your own, you know, how, how ascetic do you want to take it? Um, the way I built out the ebook, and this is under guid, uh, you know, from guidance under my, um, you know, spiritual father, Father Moses, you know, the main thing is, is a lot of people have trouble having complete compliance with the fast and actually just following the fast by the rules set out, um, for us. So, you know, the reality is that, you know, say through Great Lent, you know, you can go ahead and, you know, after just weeks of being on this diet, you know, you want, and you know, a lot of people crave, um, those animal products, you know, those, the meat, you know, um, all of that. So, you know, there's people that will give up on the fast, um, because they don't, you know, they miss that stuff. So I put in a couple into this ebook, a couple kind of treats, um, you know, to allow you, you know, to be able to kind of maybe curb that a little bit, you know, because the main, the main thing is, is we do want compliance, um, with the fasting, making sure you actually follow the fast and all of that. So, you know, it really comes down to how ascetic do you want to take your fast? You know, you can make it to where your, your food, frankly, is really boring, and you're not thinking about food at all. Um, but, you know, I wanted to build a cookbook that, one, is high protein, um, and then two, people could actually be compliant with the fast. So what we've got for meal five is a treat. My wife made, um, and this thing is bomb. I've been, I've been nibbling on, you know, some of the bites she's had for this. Um, so, baby, do you want to say what's in this? These, these are muffins, by the way. So there's buckwheat flour, oat flour, protein powder, bananas, salt, cinnamon, um, chocolate chips, I think. Oh, yeah, I did chocolate chips too. Yeah, yeah. So these, these things are bomb. So, um, I don't usually, you know, on fasting days, have, have treats like this. I personally don't take it super ascetic, but, um, you know, I'm not trying to. I don't really like to think about food on, on my fast, personally. Um, but, you know, I do like to still eat good and obviously have high protein. So this is kind of a rare thing for me. But, um, you know, I personally think it's completely fine for most people, you know, if this keeps you compliant on your fast, you know, absolutely feel free to, you know, use this from time to time. Um, so, you know, just make sure obviously it doesn't take away from your prayer life and you going deeper with God and all that. So, um, I'm going to go ahead and have one muffin tonight. Um, I'll probably be eating this over the next couple days. We got Great Lent coming up, so I'm getting, you know, some good food down. Um, so I'm going to have a muffin. And then before bed, before, uh, I do evening prayers, um, I'm going to have 45 grams. Oh, by the way, the protein she used in this is Ghost vegan, um, banana pancake batter. Um, um, so before bed, I'm going to have another protein shake with 45 grams of that chocolate pecan protein powder. And I'll throw the macros up on the screen for this meal and for the total daily macros. You know, normally on a fasting day, I wouldn't need to have this much vegan protein powder. Um, but, you know, this is a day I made it completely vegan and didn't have, you know, shrimp meal, um, or mussels meal. You know, whenever I have a shrimp meal, it's super easy, guys, to get a high protein, um, and to have, you know, the macro balance. So if you want a lower carb or lower fat, um, and a higher protein, it's super easy to do when you throw in, um, you know, a shrimp meal or even a shrimp and mussels meal. So I'm keeping that in mind. And with the ebook, keep in mind that's going to be coming out in the next several days with it. I've got all the rules on fasting. I've got how to follow this to where whether you want to, um, increase performance, you know, while fasting, so you want to be in a surplus, you want to be in maintenance, you want to be in deficit, how to go ahead and set up your macros, how to follow macros, how to swap, swap foods in and out, um, how to make stuff more high protein, you know, when we have the oil-free days, you know, how to cook without oil, um, how to make your meals more aesthetic if you do want to go kind of more like the monks at the monasteries, um, you know, how to take kind of these meals and make them even more aesthetic. So I've got, I've built this out to hopefully help y'all, um, with your fasting days, with Great Lent. Um, you know, I want this to be a blessing to y'all and, and that y'all are able to use this to where not only are you compliant with fasting, but, um, you don't miss out on your, your goals and you're not stressing. You know, the whole point is, is I don't want you stressing over, over losing performance, all that, you know, during Great Lent, um, and, you know, it taking away the whole purpose of Great Lent, you know, so, um, hopefully this can kind of be, you know, a really big help to y'all, um, and help you out. It's going to have over 30 recipes, and they're great recipes, all high protein, um, what I love to eat, and what I eat during, um, during my fasting days. Um, and like I said, guys, I've built this, this book out to to be a full guide for you on how, how to really, really do this right. So, um, this will be out in the next several days. So, um, it's going to probably first launch on Instagram, so be on the lookout, um, on there, and then, um, the next several videos, it should be linked down below. So, um, any might be linked down below by the time you see this video, depending on when you watch this. So, um, I hope this was somewhat helpful to you guys today. If you want me to do more of these full days of eating, most fasting days frankly are are all completely different. You know, I've got some meals like that one, uh, tofu rice noodle dish I just did. I love having that a lot, but, um, you know, my meals change up. So if you want me to do more of these kind of full days of eating, or you want Jacqueline to do, um, you know, some, some cooking or recipe videos, you know, just let, let us know down in the comments down below what would help you guys out. Um, you know, we're here for y'all. So let us know in the comments down below. Um, if you enjoyed this, please go ahead and smash that like button. Hit subscribe if you haven't already. God bless y'all and have a great rest of your day.