Female vs. Male Diet & Nutrition

[dcalive]

Hello all!

I've used these boards for about 6 years but havent logged in in so long that I don't even have the email address for my original account, so I just made a new one!

I've been training forever and spent 2 of the last 3 years training with a personal trainer 3 times a week to learn as much as I could about proper form as well as nutrition... I feel very confident in my knowledge of nutrition and dieting for a male, but when asked by my female friend to write her a meal plan, I realized I don't know that much about dieting for females! Obviously most things are the same, but there are a few things that are stumpping me and I was hoping to get some answers here.

First, ill give you her info and goals:

Age: 21
Height: 5' 4"
Weight: 118lbs
Goal Weight: 108lbs
Body Type: Slim / Athletic
Current Diet: Generally Very good... maybe 1 bad meal every 2 days
Allergies: Lactose & Nuts
Doesnt Eat: Red Meat

She hit that age and her metabolism slowed down, and she went from 108 to 126 over several months... once she noticed, she weighed herself and freaked (of course, wouldnt we all) and so I got her eating better in general over the last 3 months and shes lost 8lbs but is plateau'd at 118 for about 6 weeks now, with that generally good diet, and regular exercise (all cardio).

Now she is asking me to write a meal plan for her that will bring her weight down along with her 3 - 4 times a week at the gym. I'm more then happy to do this, but I do want to make sure I guide her properly so these are my questions:

How much water should a female her size consume in a day?
How many calories, grams of fat and grams of protein should a female her size be consuming in a day to promote weight loss?

I guess that's really it... here is what I'm thinking, if someone can please let me know if im on the right track...
(This is in terms of portion sizes and types of food in each meal)

6 meals p/ day broken down like this...
Meal 1: Protein, Carbs, Fruit/Veggie
Snack 1: Fruit/Veggie
Meal 2: Protein, Fruit/Veggie
Snack 2: Carb
Meal 3: Protein, Fruit/Veggie
Snack 3: Fruit/Veggie

1500 cals
50g fat
100g protein
1-2 carb servings daily
2.5L water daily

Am I on the right track here? I'm also having problems coming up with snack ideas for her since she is allergic to lactose and nuts... Fruit/Veggie all the time for snacks gets boring and that discourages people.

So yeah, any input that anyone can give me would be much appreciated, shes very determined to get back into her own skin and feel like herself, she just needs the perfect diet to do it, and I want to make sure that I can write her a diet that suits a person of her size and weight.

Thanks so much!
Nick

[LiquidMercury18]

I see no fats in there? When you starve your body for fat your body holds onto fat even more so. Provide it with fat and its much more likely to use fat as an energy source.

[robinhoods123]

Good information. I liked how you went explaining protein intake because it is a highly debatable subject. I personally think some bodybuilders say to take way more protein than you really need. But I believe at looking at all the angles and would say that if you are eating animal proteins then you would have to eat more protein than if you were eating plant based proteins. Since our bodies were not designed to eat and digest meat, I believe allot of the protein never gets digested and absorbed by the body.

[roji25]

Hi,

Hmm, calorie needs depend on many things, including genetics, age, sex, body fat percentage, activity level and type of food eaten. But here's a very approximate method to calculate your calorie needs.
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