Former US Army Captain and MRI athlete Kyle Clark sits down with Fitness Rx For Men to share his daily meal plan, philosophy on cheat meals and cardio and top tips for staying motivated.
If you missed Part I of Kyle’s interview, see it here.
NAME Kyle Clark
AGE 32
HEIGHT 5’11
WEIGHT 185
What is your approach to cheat meals?
“I would say save it for a Sunday or something. If you know that’s your day, then you can kind of go out and enjoy it. I never wanted to be that guy who goes to a nice restaurant with Tupperware. So I always find something on the menu that I like. If you save your cheat meals for when you go out with people it’s a lot easier, because you actually get to enjoy your time with others and enjoy the food. And then if not Sunday, after leg day would be an ideal time for me to have a cheat meal because I get those extra calories to help me recover.”
Do you have a set number you shoot for as far as total calories?
“I couldn’t tell you how many calories I eat in a day. I’ve found out over the years for me, what matters more, is my intensity in the gym not how strict I am with the diet. I focus more on how hard I’m going at the gym and less on what I’m eating.”
Like most hard gainers, you have a fast metabolism. How much, and what type, of cardio are you doing each week?
Fasted cardio just seems to work for me. I get on a treadmill and knock out 30 to 45 minutes either walking up hill or a low run, like a jog. I feel like it brings out my obliques better, it brings out my abs better. I do a lot of cardio with the sports I play. I have a track down the street, my buddy and I go to it a lot, it’s a whole football field and everything so we’ll go there and throw the football and all kinds of things. And then I’ve got softball, I’ve got hip hop classes, I have a mountain bike, I have a dog … so I’m doing lot of cardio every day anyways.
| KYLE’S 3 KEYS TO STAYING MOTIVATED |
| 1. FIND A PARTNER The way I’ve found is having an accountability partner. As much as I like to train alone, if I can find someone else that wants to do morning cardio, then great. You kind of hold them accountable, they hold you accountable, and it becomes a habit after a while. If you’re metting your buddy there, or if you’re meeting your girl there then you have to go. |
| 2. HAVE A VISUAL GOAL Pick an image of someone who – you want that body – and say Ok, it’s going to take me this long to get to there. In three months I should be about here, six months I should be about here. Break down your goal so you can track your progress over time. |
| 3. SET A DATE If I’ve got something coming up, like the Arnold or the Olympia, that always helps. If you’ve got a cruise coming up or the summer is coming up and you want to be able t to wear something you just bought and look good in it, those are always super motivating factors. If it’s healthy and you’re mentally ok with it, I think it’s good to use that stuff as motivation as well. |
