some advice i was given from my nutritionist, who happens to also be a contest prep specialist, former amateur body builder, and personal trainer. i asked for advice on how to keep my calories high, but still continue to lower body fat and build lean muscle mass. here is his response, i found it very informative so i thought i would pass it on to the forum.....

"The key to keeping your calorie load high enough to build muscle while still burning fat is simple. It is going to come down to high quality fat intake. (red meat, whole eggs, nuts, etc) The reason for this is every gram of carbohydrate has 4 cals, every gram of protein has 4 cals, while every gram of fat has 9cals. So the trick is to pick the right fats that your body can use to pack on muscle without fat storage. You can see how you can easily double your caloric intake by including high quality fats in your diet.

Ill give you a sample high fat to low carb diet for you to go off of. The key is to use the carbs early in the morning to support high energy for the day, then switch to slow digesting fats at night. this slow digestion of high fat proteins will give your body plenty of fuel to build muscle throughout the night as well as curb your appetite to avoid any cravings. The best thing right before bed is a large scoop of natural peanut butter with about 40-50 grams of whey protein. this will slow down the absorption rate of the whey protein so you have fuel to repair muscle throughout your sleep...

Here is a sample diet to burn fat while maintaining high quality muscle...

Meal 1 3 whole eggs, 3 egg whites, ½ cup Oatmeal

Meal 2 2scoops whey protein ¼ cup almonds

Meal 3 8oz Chicken/fish 6oz sweet potato

Meal 4 8oz Chicken 6oz sweet potato

Meal 5 2scoops whey protein ¼ cup almonds

Meal 6 8oz steak Large salad Oil/Vinegar

Meal 7 1 scoop whey protein 1 Tbsp Natural Peanut Butter

• Drink atleast 1 gallon of water daily

• Daily Supplements
  Multi Vitamin
  Pre workout supplement ( Hyde, Jacked, Bullnox, etc )
  Omega 3,6,9
  Thermogenic fat burner ( Ripped Fuel, Yellow Bullet, etc. )

Exceptable condiment options…

Non-stick cooking spray

Mustards

Vinegar white/red

Ketchup (sugar free)

Soy sauce

Steak sauce

Olive oil

Sea salt/pepper

Natural herbs/spices

Hot sauce

Cinnamon

Salsa (garden fresh)

When using condiment options use only one serving size

Breads....

100% whole wheat
Multi grain
Ezekiel low sodium (can be found in the organic section in the freezer)

Mixed vegetables/salad....

Red/green peppers
Cucumbers
Green/black olives (7) med
Spinach
Mushrooms
Asparagus
Green beans

Peanut butter.....

Organic no stir (Maranatha )
Crunchy or creamy
Teddies
Natures promise

hope this helps!!!! i'll be following these recommendations immediately....FYI this guy is a BEAST, his father was also a bodybuilder, he's been ripped since high school, & he can't have more than 4% BF on him. so i take his advice seriously.