The Bodybuilding Dietitians

In this episode of The Bodybuilding Dietitians podcast, we unpack the role of cheat meals in both bulking and cutting phases, from unstructured high calorie days to strategic diet breaks and refeeds. We discuss why context matters, how the term "cheat meal" can shape your relationship with food, and what the research says about diet breaks for hunger, satisfaction, and adherence during prolonged deficits. The conversation also covers the "superfood" label, we share a few foods we genuinely prioritise and why, including things like extra virgin olive oil, potatoes, dark chocolate, and berries. The episode wraps up as always with what we learned this week!

 

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Links & Resources

Coaching Services – https://www.thebodybuildingdietitians.com/enquirenow 

Website – https://www.thebodybuildingdietitians.com/

 

Instagram

The Bodybuilding Dietitians – https://www.instagram.com/thebodybuildingdietitians/?hl=en

Team TBD – https://www.instagram.com/_teamtbd_/?hl=en

Jack Radford-Smith – https://www.instagram.com/jack.radfordsmith/?hl=en 

Damien Cox – https://www.instagram.com/dietitian_damiencox/?hl=en

Lauren Stevens – https://www.instagram.com/thephysiquedietitian_/?hl=en

 

 

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In this episode of The Bodybuilding Dietitians Podcast, we answer three listener questions, starting with how to reduce visceral fat more effectively, including realistic rates of loss, why visceral fat is more metabolically active than subcutaneous fat, and levers beyond a calorie deficit such as aerobic fitness, anti-inflammatory nutrition, sleep, stress, and alcohol. We then break down pre-workout supplements that actually have research support, including clinical dosing, timing, and why most off-the-shelf pre-workouts are generally underdosed. Finally, we discuss post-prep recovery priorities, the order in which the body restores function after a competition diet, realistic rate of gain in the first four to eight weeks, restoring energy availability, and specific considerations for female athletes around menstrual cycle recovery. The episode wraps up as always with what we learned this week!

 

⸻

Links & Resources

Coaching Services – https://www.thebodybuildingdietitians.com/enquirenow 

Website – https://www.thebodybuildingdietitians.com/

 

Instagram

The Bodybuilding Dietitians – https://www.instagram.com/thebodybuildingdietitians/?hl=en

Team TBD – https://www.instagram.com/_teamtbd_/?hl=en

Jack Radford-Smith – https://www.instagram.com/jack.radfordsmith/?hl=en 

Damien Cox – https://www.instagram.com/dietitian_damiencox/?hl=en

Lauren Stevens – https://www.instagram.com/thephysiquedietitian_/?hl=en

 

 

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Enjoying the podcast?

Make sure to subscribe, share the episode, and leave us a five-star rating or review, it really helps us grow and reach more listeners.

In this episode of the Bodybuilding Dietitians podcast, we tackle the question of whether a calorie surplus is truly necessary for muscle gain or whether maintenance can be just as productive. We discuss Eric Helms' 2023 study comparing maintenance to moderate and larger surpluses, how training age shifts the equation, and why training performance is the real driver of muscle growth rather than scale weight alone. We also cover whether high-dose antioxidants like vitamin C and vitamin E can blunt hypertrophy signalling when consumed close to training, what dosages the research actually used, and practical tips for timing supplements. The conversation also takes a lighter turn with yogurt bowl recipes, Ninja Creami tips, and as always, we wrap up with what we learned this week.

 

⸻

Links & Resources

Coaching Services – https://www.thebodybuildingdietitians.com/enquirenow 

Website – https://www.thebodybuildingdietitians.com/

 

Instagram

The Bodybuilding Dietitians – https://www.instagram.com/thebodybuildingdietitians/?hl=en

Team TBD – https://www.instagram.com/_teamtbd_/?hl=en

Jack Radford-Smith – https://www.instagram.com/jack.radfordsmith/?hl=en 

Damien Cox – https://www.instagram.com/dietitian_damiencox/?hl=en

Lauren Stevens – https://www.instagram.com/thephysiquedietitian_/?hl=en

 

 

⸻

 

Enjoying the podcast?

Make sure to subscribe, share the episode, and leave us a five-star rating or review, it really helps us grow and reach more listeners.

In this episode of The Bodybuilding Dietitians Podcast, we unpack how to structure your nutrition without rigid tracking, including the key differences between auto-regulation and intuitive eating, and practical tools like hunger awareness, portion anchoring, and body weight trend monitoring. We also discuss what deserves your attention most during prep versus the off season, covering everything from calorie deficits and training stimulus to sleep, progressive overload, and diet quality. Finally, we dive into whether increasing creatine from 5g to 10g per day offers additional cognitive benefits, what the current research actually shows, and who might benefit most. The episode wraps up as always with what we learned this week.

 

⸻

 

Links & Resources

Coaching Services – https://www.thebodybuildingdietitians.com/enquirenow 

Website – https://www.thebodybuildingdietitians.com/

 

Instagram

The Bodybuilding Dietitians – https://www.instagram.com/thebodybuildingdietitians/?hl=en

Team TBD – https://www.instagram.com/_teamtbd_/?hl=en

Jack Radford-Smith – https://www.instagram.com/jack.radfordsmith/?hl=en 

Damien Cox – https://www.instagram.com/dietitian_damiencox/?hl=en

Lauren Stevens – https://www.instagram.com/thephysiquedietitian_/?hl=en

 

⸻

 

Enjoying the podcast?

Make sure to subscribe, share the episode, and leave us a five-star rating or review, it really helps us grow and reach more listeners.

In this episode of The Bodybuilding Dietitians Podcast, we unpack how to structure your nutrition without rigid tracking, including the key differences between auto-regulation and intuitive eating, and practical tools like hunger awareness, portion anchoring, and body weight trend monitoring. We also discuss what deserves your attention most during prep versus the off season, covering everything from calorie deficits and training stimulus to sleep, progressive overload, and diet quality. Finally, we dive into whether increasing creatine from 5g to 10g per day offers additional cognitive benefits, what the current research actually shows, and who might benefit most. The episode wraps up as always with what we learned this week.

 

⸻

 

Links & Resources

Coaching Services – https://www.thebodybuildingdietitians.com/enquirenow 

Website – https://www.thebodybuildingdietitians.com/

 

Instagram

The Bodybuilding Dietitians – https://www.instagram.com/thebodybuildingdietitians/?hl=en

Team TBD – https://www.instagram.com/_teamtbd_/?hl=en

Jack Radford-Smith – https://www.instagram.com/jack.radfordsmith/?hl=en 

Damien Cox – https://www.instagram.com/dietitian_damiencox/?hl=en

Lauren Stevens – https://www.instagram.com/thephysiquedietitian_/?hl=en

 

⸻

 

Enjoying the podcast?

Make sure to subscribe, share the episode, and leave us a five-star rating or review, it really helps us grow and reach more listeners.