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Training on Low Carb Diet

by stepho
Fri, Jul 11, 2014 16:41
12

I have decided to do a 2 week training stint on very low carbs.

I have been eating far too much bread etc recently and have felt a little bloated so I decided to cut carbs out for a fortnight and hopefully drop a bit of body fat in the process.

Im offshore at work for 2 weeks so will be doing fairly short 60 - 90 mins high intensity turbo rides.

Does anyone have any experience of this?

Cheers

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12 comments

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carytb | 10 years ago
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It can take 3/4 weeks to fully adapt to a low carb diet. Training during that time can be VERY hard and you can feel like S**t. Have alook at this if you are serious about low carb and training.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Art-Science-Carbohydrate-Performance-ebook/d...

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arfa | 10 years ago
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If you want to shift some lard, try the 5 day detox diet here
http://www.zoeharcombe.com/
Basically, cut out sugar, alcohol, caffeine and you're most of the way there.
It usually shifts 2-3kg for me but I still manage a 20 mile commute on it although it will leave you a bit tired and low on glycogen.
A word of warning, I stopped it on Thursday and went for a longish ride on Saturday and had to reach for the gels at mile 50 to avoid bonking this weekend.

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stepho | 10 years ago
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Sacked it.

Felt like shit and almost impossible to do high intensity for any length of time.

38

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stepho | 10 years ago
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For a short period of time 16

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stepho | 10 years ago
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Im allowing myself between 50 - 75g of carbs a day and my workouts although they are high intensity are very short.

From the research I have done and advice taken it seems like a fairly healthy thing to do.

17

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stepho | 10 years ago
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Thanks guys.

Trying to go in ketosis so the body starts using fat as the primary fuel source.

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Simon E replied to stepho | 10 years ago
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stepho wrote:

Trying to go in ketosis so the body starts using fat as the primary fuel source.

Are you sure you want to do that?

From what I've read and heard, LCHF nutrition can work well, but just dumping carbs might not work too well or be very good for you. I'd start by looking at the quality of your carbs as much as the quantity.

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userfriendly replied to stepho | 10 years ago
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stepho wrote:

Thanks guys.

Trying to go in ketosis so the body starts using fat as the primary fuel source.

That will pretty much suck for any kind of exercise. Yes, the body can use fat as primary fuel source - in that sense, ketosis very much works. But for exercise you need quick energy, and that's not something ketosis is of much use for.

Ketosis is a good strategy for 'normal' people (who aren't physically active above average). I'm doing even just a moderate amount of cycling, about 200 miles a week - most of that commuting. But I very much doubt that I could do that on body fat alone.

Either way, it's a pretty extreme change for most people, and certainly not easy getting used to. Try it and see for yourself.

I do think that simply cutting down carbs and increasing protein instead will generally work best. Don't get hung up on getting results fast. You will lean out either way, but without carbs you will feel like crap during and after exercise and there won't be much benefit to it.

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bikeyourbest | 10 years ago
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You'll have a very difficult time getting through two weeks of high intensity trainings with no carbohydrates. Carbs provide the energy your muscles need to complete high load work and endurance work.

Better would be to find the carbohydrates to metabolize "cleaner" so that you can lean out (sounds like your goal) while still maintaining a high level of fitness. A shifting of the "standard" macro nutrient pie chart would help as well...iow, reduce your carbohydrates to 50% of your daily intake and up the protein intake to 40%. This will also help you lean out while still providing a "base" level of energy to slog through the workouts

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userfriendly replied to bikeyourbest | 10 years ago
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bikeyourbest wrote:

A shifting of the "standard" macro nutrient pie chart would help as well...iow, reduce your carbohydrates to 50% of your daily intake and up the protein intake to 40%. This will also help you lean out while still providing a "base" level of energy to slog through the workouts

This. I've lived on a low carb diet for years, which was fine - until I started cycling regularly. I still don't eat a whole lot of carbs but have integrated a breakfast with porridge into my diet and drink chocolate milk instead of sports drinks. The rest of my diet consists of a lot of meat, fruit, and veggies. Still leaning out to the point where I'd actually like to gain weight again instead - single digit body fat percentage and less than 10 stone at 5'10".

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stepho | 10 years ago
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Yeah, weighed myself and done a BMI.

2 days so far without carbs and I have to say doing HIIT without carbs is no fun whatsoever. Felt pretty lethargic today but apparently after a few days your body begins to adapt (I Hope)

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Scoob_84 | 10 years ago
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I haven't, but let us know the results.

Have you weight yourself before giving this a go?

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