Man 2.0 Engineering the Alpha

general sense, but let’s look at them in terms of calories. Like protein, carbohydrates have 4 calories per gram.
    So during Prime that would look like this:
    Weeks 1–2
    • Workout days: 30 grams (120 calories)
    • Non-workout days: 0 grams (0 calories)
    Week 3
    • Workout days: 75 grams (300 calories)
    • Non-workout days: 0 grams (0 calories)
    Week 4
    • Workout days: 100 grams (400 calories)
    • Non-workout days: 50 grams (200 calories)
    Going back to Steve’s calorie balance on training days:
    Beginning balance: 1,940 calories
    Protein: –512 calories
    Carbs: –120 calories
    Remaining balance: 1,308 calories
    Fat
    At this point, you know your daily calories and have subtracted the caloric values of both your protein consumption and your carb intake. Now, you still have a balance of a few hundred calories; these will come from fat sources—and yes, that generally equates to a lot of fat. But, as you know by now, if you’re getting healthy fats from quality sources like steak, eggs, and salmon, you’re taking another step on the path toward hormonal optimization.
    Fat has 9 calories per gram, so take your remaining balance of calories and divide by 9. The result is how many grams of fat you eat. Let’s look at Steve’s workout day example again. After subtracting calories from protein and carbs, he’s got 1,308 calories left:
    1,308 calories / 9 = 145 grams of fat

    THE ALPHA EATING GUIDE
    You want to know what to eat? Good, because we want to feed you—and make sure this plan has you feeling free, flexible, and ready to feast. Here is our Alpha-approved shopping list. Stock up on these foods, and then plug and play each option into the meal guides. The foods have been split into categories: proteins, free veggies, fats, and carbs. While we’ll provide you with very specific numbers, we’ll also show you how to create your own meal plan so every day can offer a menu loaded with your favorites. Dig in.

    THE ALPHA EATING EQUATION: PRIME
    Workout Days
    — Using the information in the chart, figure out how many calories you need in order to maintain your body weight.
    — Subtract 300 from that number. Now we’ve got your calories for workout days.
    — Multiply your lean body mass by 0.8. This number represents how much protein you should eat.
    — Based on where you are in Prime, set carbs at either 30, 75, or 100.
    — Take your total grams of protein and your total grams of carbs, and add them together.
    — Multiply that number by 4. This gives you the total number of calories from protein and carbs.
    — Subtract this number from your calories for workout days. This number is how many calories from fat you need.
    — Divide this number by 9. This is how many grams of fat you need.
    Because numbers can be tricky, let’s make sure we’re not letting math stand in the way. Let’s use Steve as an example. If you remember, Steve is two hundred pounds with 20 percent body fat and an LBM of 160 pounds.

Daily calories = 2,240
2,240 – 300 = 1,940 calories on training days
160 x 0.8 = 128 grams of protein
Carbs = 30 grams (Prime, week 1)
128 (grams of protein) + 30 (grams of carbs) = 158
158 x 4 = 632 calories
1,940 – 632 = 1,308 calories from fat
1,308 / 9 = 145 grams of fat per day

    Total goal numbers for week 1 Prime, workout days:
    1,940 calories | 128 grams of protein | 30 grams of carbs | 145 grams of fat
    Non-Workout Days
    We repeat the same process for non-workout days:
    — Using the information in the chart, figure out how many calories you need in order to maintain your body weight.
    — Subtract 500 from that number. Now we’ve got your calories for non-workout days.
    — Multiply your lean body mass by 0.7. This number represents how much protein you should eat.
    — Based on where you are in Prime, set carbs at either 0 or 50.
    — Take your total grams of protein and your total grams of carbs, and add them together.
    — Multiply that number by 4. This gives you the total number of calories from protein and carbs.
    — Subtract this number from your calories for non-workout days. This number is how many calories from fat you need.
    — Divide this number by 9. This is how many grams of fat you need.
    Example using a two-hundred-pound man with 20 percent body fat and an LBM of 160 pounds:

Daily calories = 2,240
2,240 – 500 = 1,740 calories on non-workout days
160 x 0.7 = 112 grams of protein
Carbs = 0 grams (Prime, week 1)
112 (grams of protein) + 0 (grams of carbs) =