Reigning 212 Olympia champion Derek Lunsford recently shared what his full day of eating looks like. After consecutive second-place finishes at Olympia in 2018 and 2019, Lunsford finished fourth at the 2020 Olympia. His dream came true when he beat the former champion, Shaun Clarida, at the 2021 Olympia. The 29-year-old started the prep for 2022 Olympia a few weeks back. As important as the training is, it can bring the desired results unless accompanied by a perfect diet.
Recently, Lunsford shared his complete diet for the 2022 Olympia prep in a recent video uploaded on his YouTube channel. Lunsford’s diet consists of six meals per day and aims to strike a perfect balance between all the dietary requirements of a high-caliber professional bodybuilder.
Derek Lunsford’s Full Day Of Bodybuilding Diet for 2022 Olympia Prep
Meal 1
Lunsford typically starts his day with fasted-state cardio and then has his first meal of the day. The 29-year-old also consumes most of his dietary supplements mid-way through this meal. However, he admittedly woke up late on this particular day. Therefore the meal preceded the cardio workout. Almost all of his meals include six to eight ounces of rice.
The first meal of the day included:
- 7 ounces of Sirloin steak
- 8 ounces of rice
- Supplement drink – half scoop Lipocide and two scoops of Carnitine
- Other supplements – Probiotics (30 billion CFU), GDA supplement, Vitamins supplement and Digestive enzymes supplement, Vitamin D3 (10000 IU daily), Liver care supplement, N-Acetyl Cysteine, Low dose Aspirin and Omega 3 fatty acids
“I make sure to take my health very seriously. The healthier that I am, the better bodybuilder that I will be and of course we all want to live a long, healthy and good life…” Derek Lunsford said.
Meal 2
Lunsford’s second meal of the day incorporates a moderate portion of fatty food along with rice and protein. It includes:
- 8 ounces of Cod
- 7 ounces of rice
- 1 cup Avocado (11 grams of fat)
While speaking about this meal, Derek Lunsford said:
“I like this meal because it’s refreshing but mostly it’s super light on the stomach. So when I eat this, I tend to digest this super quick and much faster than anything else.”
Since the meal is easy on his stomach and gets easily digested, it does not interfere with training. Therefore the reigning Olympia 212 champion prefers to consume this before his training session.
Meal 3 and Meal 4
The third meal serves as Lunsford’s pre-workout meal. He prefers to add healthy fats like coconut oil, avocado or almonds with the meal to avoid extra calories that sauces or other sources of fat might add to the meal.
Overall, the third meal includes:
- 7 ounces of chicken
- 6 ounces of rice
- 9 grams of coconut oil (Almonds or avocados are other preferred options)
- Seasoning salt
A heavy workout follows meal number three. For the intra-workout drink, Lunsford prefers two scoops of Glycogen supplement along with Aminochem.
“That will give me 50 grams of carbs intra-workout. I always find that doing the carbs intra-workout fuels me for the training more. So it helps not just give me a bigger, fuller pump but it also helps me continue training longer and harder throughout the workout,” Derek Lunsford said.
A post-workout drink with two scoops of Isoject supplement constitutes Lunsford’s fourth meal of the day.
Meal 5
As the day starts approaching its end, Derek Lunsford reduces the amount of fat in his meals. Fats slow down the digestion process and keep a person satiated for a longer time. However, to keep the metabolism going, Lunsford avoids eating fats towards the end of the day.
“I want to really keep that metabolism revved up and I really don’t want to slow it down with the fat considering it’s already getting late and I’ve already had a pretty good amount of fat in the meals earlier today,” Derek Lunsford said.
Therefore the fifth meal consists of:
- 7 ounces of Cod
- 8 ounces of rice
Meal 6
The final meal of the day also happens to be a fish meal as Lunsford consumes salmon and rice along with Mango salsa. It includes
- 7 ounces of Salmon with mango salsa
- 8 ounces of rice
“At the end of the day it’s about health and improvements,” Derek Lunsford said.
Derek Lunsford is giving his hundred percent efforts by following a stringent diet and training routine during this Olympia prep season. He is expected to defend his 212 title at the 2022 Olympia that will take place from December 15th to 18th. However, it is not clear if he will stay in the division or make a move up to the Open Pro division.
Lunsford has spoken candidly about eventually making that move. However, it remains to be seen whether he will take that step this year or the next. During the guest posing at the 2022 Pittsburgh Pro, Lunsford looked capable of competing against the likes of Nick Walker, Brandon Curry and Hunter Labrada. His coach Hany Rombod and Olympia president Dan Solomon have already raised concerns over his ability to make 212.
All things considered, if Lunsford remains in the 212 division this Olympia he will face stiff competition from the likes of Kamal Elgargni and Shaun Clarida. Looking at his unadulterated efforts, Derek Lunsford definitely seems capable of emerging victoriously when he steps on the stage.
Courtesy of Derek Lunsford’s personal YouTube channel, you can watch the full video here:
More related resources:
Find complete coverage of the 2022 Mr. Olympia, including pre-judging, event recaps, analysis, and final results at our Olympia coverage hub: FitnessVolt.com/olympia
