Imperfect, but not terrible, diet: waste of time?

[emoth1]

Hi all, in combination with my post in the losing weight section, I thought I'd get a bit of advice on diet. I have heard all the cliches like 'abs are made in the kitchen', 'you can't out-train a poor diet' etc, and wondered to what extent they are true? Can you out-train a decent, though not ideal diet for instance? I am looking to lean out a bit as I mentioned in my other post, but I don't to have to resort to an extreme diet. I am not happy with the shape I'm in now, it would just be nice to be shredded for the beach! The thing is, I moved in with my girlfriend in September, and we are both out all day at uni, so eating is still quite a social thing for me, and being ripped isn't going to make me happier than eating food that I enjoy. However, I would quite like to make some changes. I am trying to either reduce or eliminate carbs from my evening meal, and am trying to drop refined carbs altogether, as much as possible, so no bread or pasta. Recently I have been trying to have just loads of boiled veg instead of pasta or whatever, and once we run out of the pasta/bread we have left I won't but anymore, and stick to potatoes and rice, and even then limit how much I have in the evening.
A typical days diet looks something like this:
7.30 cereal and protein shake
9-9.30 apple and banana
11.30 apple or banana
1 salad with chicken or ham, peppers, tomatoes etc if I'm out / OR soup and maybe a protein shake or boiled egg if I'm not at uni
4-5 a piece of fruit for a bit of an energy hit as I work out at around half 5/6
7-8 something like chilli con carne with loads of veg thrown in and a small portion of rice / chicken wrapped in bacon with loads of boiled veg or roast peppers / mince cooked in bolognese sauce over broccoli (surprisingly nice!) / chicken fajitas / occasionally risotto.
Weekends is generally the same, maybe have a cooked breakfast, but not like a full greasy fry-up.
I try to cook with olive oil a lot as I know I don't get enough EFAs, I'm considering getting a supplement for this. I have the odd treat now and then as well, but don't have much of a sweet tooth, so it would rarely be chocolate, and not much of that if I do, more likely a fruit corner yoghurt or something like that, or something like parma ham/sundried tomatoes in oil/cashew nuts, which are more to my liking than sweets. They're quite high calorifically, but not crap so I don't beat myself up if I go down that road.
Ideally I'd have more protein between breakfast and getting home, but don't have a shaker, so when I manage to get hold of one that should sort that problem out.
Does that look a reasonable diet for fat loss? Any glaring omissions that I want might want to consider getting supplements for?
Cheers,
Ed

[Beanyman]

A typical days diet looks something like this:
7.30 cereal and protein shake
What cereal do you havel ?

9-9.30 apple and banana
11.30 apple or banana
You need some protein inbetween your breakfast and lunch, maybe a shake, slices of ham/chicken, tin of tuna ....

1 salad with chicken or ham, peppers, tomatoes etc if I'm out / OR soup and maybe a protein shake or boiled egg if I'm not at uni

Looks OK

4-5 a piece of fruit for a bit of an energy hit as I work out at around half 5/6

Again, you need protein here, you are going from 1 - 8 before having any, a shake could fit in around an hour before your workout and one after, or maybe a few slices of lean ham, tin of tuna on a couple of rice cakes before the gym to give you energy and a protein hit.

7-8 something like chilli con carne with loads of veg thrown in and a small portion of rice / chicken wrapped in bacon with loads of boiled veg or roast peppers / mince cooked in bolognese sauce over broccoli (surprisingly nice!) / chicken fajitas / occasionally risotto

OK, just watch your portion sizes and sources as they can hide a multitude of calories, salt, sugar, fat ...

You mentioned a shake before bed, do you like cottage cheese ? if so, probably a better option before bed.

It's also worth working out your calorie intake too, maybe have a look at www.fitday.com and stick your diet into there to see how many/much calories, carbs and protein you are consuming.

EFA supplement wouldn't go amiss either.

As for a protein supplement, just buy a simple whey protein one that is high in protein and lowish in carbs.