A few weeks ago, I was at a business meeting and I ordered a grilled chicken wrap with fries. It was a cheat meal, but I was also about to go lift heavy AF as well. “YOU are eating THAT,” he proclaimed. Hell to the yeah. I eat IIFYM, which means if it fits my macros (a certain number of carbs, fats, and protein) I can eat it. Granted, when I’m competing macros can get pretty low, so I turn more “bro diet,” but during my offseason, I like to swap ingredients to make delicious creations. A great IIFYM strategy is to make all of your protein at the beginning of the week so that you have it readily available. I wasn’t traveling this week, so Sunday I decided to make pulled pork. Believe it or not, pork tenderloin is pretty damn lean, and also amazing. Here’s what I did:

1.5 lbs pork tenderloin

1 jar of gluten free BBQ sauce (found at schnucks: watch SUGAR and FAT content on these bad boys)

Line a slow cooker with a liner (or don’t but I’m not cleaning that thing). Add pork and sauce and cook on low for 8-10 hours. Pull apart. That wasn’t so hard was it?

Now you’ve got a protein for all week! Here’s a few delicious recipes (some more macro friendly than others) that won’t break the bank.

 

Pulled Pork Tacos

4 oz. pork tenderloin

La Tiara Taco Shells (you can find these at most grocery stores AND these babies only have 4G OF CARBS. WHAT THE WHAT?!)

Lettuce

1 oz Fat Free Cheddar Cheese

1. Cook taco shells for 10 minutes at 200F. Add toppings. Done

Next up is my favorite recipe I’ve made so far:

Pulled Pork Nachos

Let me be clear here, these bad boys are better for a cleaner cheat, but regular nachos half close to triple the fat content.

1 bag Rice and Bean Adzuki chips (can be found in organic aisle)

4 oz pork tenderloin

.25 cup of 2% cheddar cheese

Throw on a plate and cook in the microwave Napoleon Dynamite style. YESSSS.

 

The next one is actually pretty clean:

This is actually an interpretation of one of the best things I’ve ever eaten. If you’re ever in Dallas, stop by the Pecan Lodge in Deep Ellum and get The Hot Mess. It’s a sweet potato loaded with the best pulled pork you’ve ever eaten.  Obviously with brown sugar and other dressings, it’s loaded with calories, so I’ll try to keep it clean 🙂

This place is everything

The Not-So-Hot Mess 

4 oz pulled pork

4 oz sweet potato

1. Cook sweet potato in oven or microwave as you prefer
2. Fill with pulled pork
3. Top as you like

Protein: 25.7

Carbs: 23.6

Fat: 6.1

Obviously there are a ton of other things you can do with your pulled pork, but these are a few creative options when you are feeling like you want to splurge. Add it on a wrap, add it on a bun, or heck, just slap it on some lettuce!

 

The most important lesson here is to know your macros. If you want to learn more about macro’s, check out this class by my trainer Tracy.

Got any other creative ideas? Drop them below!