there are many diets lifters follow, in terms of daily meal frequency and macros. however, the one tried and true rule that always works (again, this can be tailored to one meal a day or 6) - eat 500 calories more/less than your daily maintenance amount, depending on your goals. for example: i burn about 2,500 calories. if i want to build muscle, i take in 3,000. if i want to cut up, i take in 2,000. it's not rocket science. if i find i'm losing too much muscle on a cut, i swap some of the carbs/fat for more protein. i do the same if i'm getting too soft on a bulk. this is considered a clean