Fat Burning

[norajane]

The basic premise is to carb load for X number of days followed by no carbs for Y number of days, depending on how long you've been cycling. At the moment, I am doing 3 days carb load, 2 days no carb (as in as few, if any at all, carbs consumed as possible), followed by 2 days of normal eating. The general logic is that when the body receives excess carbs, it will boost metabolism and ramp up muscle glycogen levels. During the days of no carbs, the body will maintain this elevated metabolism but will deplete it's glycogen stores and rely on fat stores for energy. As your body (and your mind) gets used to the cycles, you can replace the normal eating phase with another cycle (e.g., 2 day carb load, 2 day no carb, 2 day carb, 1 day no carb). Mix and match as you please...

 

Oh, this is interesting. I've been doing this, without knowing it was a Plan!

 

I love carbs, it's one of my downfalls as far as eating goes, so I limit them, but I have to have my days where I eat them. So then I make up for it on other days by eating as few as possible. I'm not as regular as you've laid out, but I guess I do have a bit of a rhythm, with weekends being the bigger carb days.

[USMCHokie]

PrettyInInk, I wanted to add another thing about carb cycling. It's really just a way to manipulate your body into staying in high gear all the time. The problem with only doing a low calorie diet is that it will slow your metabolism down. When the body realizes that it's getting less food, it will slow the rate of burn in order to, for all intents and purposes, stay alive...so those folks who eat dangerously low amounts of food will not only see little, if any, results, but also creep into the realms of the unhealthy...

 

With carb cycling, the goal is not to drastically reduce caloric intake, but to "trick" your body into burning calories at a high rate all the time...

[USMCHokie]

Oh, this is interesting. I've been doing this, without knowing it was a Plan!

 

I love carbs, it's one of my downfalls as far as eating goes, so I limit them, but I have to have my days where I eat them. So then I make up for it on other days by eating as few as possible. I'm not as regular as you've laid out, but I guess I do have a bit of a rhythm, with weekends being the bigger carb days.

 

 

Yep! Some people get VERY detailed with the scheduling of their cycles with corresponding workouts, but you can certainly see the benefits by just applying the general principles. If you usually work out during the week and rest on the weekends, then it'd be prudent to load your carbs along with your most difficult workouts at the beginning of the week, leaving the end of the week for the no carb phase and less intensive workouts.

[PrettyinInk]

PrettyInInk, I wanted to add another thing about carb cycling. It's really just a way to manipulate your body into staying in high gear all the time. The problem with only doing a low calorie diet is that it will slow your metabolism down. When the body realizes that it's getting less food, it will slow the rate of burn in order to, for all intents and purposes, stay alive...so those folks who eat dangerously low amounts of food will not only see little, if any, results, but also creep into the realms of the unhealthy...

 

With carb cycling, the goal is not to drastically reduce caloric intake, but to "trick" your body into burning calories at a high rate all the time...

 

 

i am going to look further into it, i know that when i was cutting calories to the extreme it was working, but not really doing me any good in the long run, that is why i stopped. i have been trying to stagger calorie intake from day to day, without actually keeping track, but i generally know how many calories are in my foods of choice. usually i consume more on the weekends. this might help me balance things out better, i am confident that my diet would support this type of fat loss.

thanks!

[Chocolat]

On a similar note, I think I'm going to forgo giving out any dietary advice until I'm finished reading and understanding "Girth Control" by Alan Aragon. That book is showing me how a lot of my preconceived notions about nutrition were either flimsy at best or outright wrong...

 

Tman, where is this published? I have read most of his stuff on bb.com but have not seen this title.

[tman666]

Tman, where is this published? I have read most of his stuff on bb.com but have not seen this title.

 

http://www.alanaragon.com/my-book.html

[Chocolat]

Thanks, Tman.

 

I note this was copyrighted in 2007. Alan has since posted updated information in various threads on bb.com. I don't know if you are active there but, if so, I would be curious to know how the information in Girth Control stacks up against his newer findings?

 

I've considered Tom Venuto's Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle my nutrition "bible" for a while -- I've been able to maintain ~13% bodyfat through lifting and clean diet (no cardio) for a few years now. But I am always interested in learning more!

[tman666]

Thanks, Tman.

 

I note this was copyrighted in 2007. Alan has since posted updated information in various threads on bb.com. I don't know if you are active there but, if so, I would be curious to know how the information in Girth Control stacks up against his newer findings?

 

I've considered Tom Venuto's Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle my nutrition "bible" for a while -- I've been able to maintain ~13% bodyfat through lifting and clean diet (no cardio) for a few years now. But I am always interested in learning more!

 

I've never been an active member of bb.com, but I used to (and still do, on occasion) frequent t-nation.com. When I joined up, the training info (and to a lesser extent, nutrition info) on t-nation opened up a whole new world for me. Since then, it seems like it's gotten progressively more "out there" in terms of their marketing and product claims. This fact, among other things, has given me cause to look elsewhere for information.

 

I would imagine that most, if not all, of the info contained in Alan's book is still relevant. His most up to date stuff is published in his research review that he writes (monthly, I think?).

 

Overall, I've pretty much gotten out of the habit of taking what I read at face value, whether it's supported by research or not. Even the best of advice will not work for everyone, so some experimentation is required. Of course, Alan's research-supported assertions not only make sense, but have been tested in the real world (not that anything he says is all that radical). The book really does have the feel of a condensed nutrition course. It's not a diet or training book. It basically outlines all of the basics of nutrition for fat loss and muscle gain, including plenty of scientific backing to satisfy us fitness geeks.

 

My reasons for reading it are primarily so that I know my ass from first base when it comes to nutrition. In this way, I'll be able to design or tweak my own diet around my goals.

 

Btw, great work on maintaining your physique goals.

[Chocolat]

I've never been an active member of bb.com, but I used to (and still do, on occasion) frequent t-nation.com. When I joined up, the training info (and to a lesser extent, nutrition info) on t-nation opened up a whole new world for me. Since then, it seems like it's gotten progressively more "out there" in terms of their marketing and product claims. This fact, among other things, has given me cause to look elsewhere for information.

 

I would imagine that most, if not all, of the info contained in Alan's book is still relevant. His most up to date stuff is published in his research review that he writes (monthly, I think?).

 

Overall, I've pretty much gotten out of the habit of taking what I read at face value, whether it's supported by research or not. Even the best of advice will not work for everyone, so some experimentation is required. Of course, Alan's research-supported assertions not only make sense, but have been tested in the real world (not that anything he says is all that radical). The book really does have the feel of a condensed nutrition course. It's not a diet or training book. It basically outlines all of the basics of nutrition for fat loss and muscle gain, including plenty of scientific backing to satisfy us fitness geeks.

 

My reasons for reading it are primarily so that I know my ass from first base when it comes to nutrition. In this way, I'll be able to design or tweak my own diet around my goals.

 

Btw, great work on maintaining your physique goals.

 

I remember there was a big hubbub a while back because AA posted a thread on bb.com that more or less contradicted some of his earlier dogma, especially as related to pre- and post-workout nutrition.

 

I don't go to t-nation much any more. I really like some of the writers there and I especially like some of Chad Waterbury's routines, but I get tired of all the hype and the constant pushing that one needs a barrage of supplements in order to achieve one's goals. I understand why they do it, but it makes it feel sort of sleazy. The site is also sooooo slow, unless that has been fixed recently.

 

Anyway, I like to know as much as I can about nutrition, so I might buy the book. Thanks for the mention.. and for the compliment.

[tman666]

I don't go to t-nation much any more. I really like some of the writers there and I especially like some of Chad Waterbury's routines, but I get tired of all the hype and the constant pushing that one needs a barrage of supplements in order to achieve one's goals. I understand why they do it, but it makes it feel sort of sleazy. The site is also sooooo slow, unless that has been fixed recently.

 

Bingo. The biggest wake up call was the release of I, Bodybuilder and Anaconda protocol. Seeing the herds (including well respected forum members there) rush to the conclusion that it is the most revolutionary thing to hit bodybuilding since AAS was disheartening to say the least. It really made it glaringly apparent that T-nation and Biotest are not as benevolent or objective as they claim to be.

 

The bottom line is that even people like Alan Aragon are running a business. However, I appreciate the fact that he's made his business conveying research based, objective information over pushing supplements. If the info he publishes conflicts over time, that's fine by me. Research conflicts itself all of the time: i.e. the "truth" is always changing and being refined. It's just the nature of the beast.

[tman666]

By the way, people love to talk **** about Chad Waterbury and his programs, but I clearly acknowledge that his philosophies and programs ushered in a huge period of physical and knowledge based growth for me. Before then, I was really lost when it came to training. Even though the guy has gone "hollywood" as of late, I cannot deny that his earlier programs were pivotal in helping me mature as a lifter.

[Chocolat]

By the way, people love to talk **** about Chad Waterbury and his programs, but I clearly acknowledge that his philosophies and programs ushered in a huge period of physical and knowledge based growth for me. Before then, I was really lost when it came to training. Even though the guy has gone "hollywood" as of late, I cannot deny that his earlier programs were pivotal in helping me mature as a lifter.

 

Agreed. He is a big proponent of both compound movements and periodization and helped me gain a solid understanding of the importance of both when I was first starting out. I am amazed at the number of guys in my gym who do the same sets/reps every workout... and never work legs!

 

I feel the same way about Tom Venuto. I thought Burn the Fat was a great primer in workout nutrition -- tons of good information about body recomposition, imo. But now he's busy e-hyping it and has joined up with some questionable partners and it's too over the top for me. His principles are solid, though, and helped me a lot.