NANBF User Forum

What is your preference and why?

Mine is Low carb. I feel it gets you lean without tons of cardio and it maintains muscle better.

Let's get it on low fatters!

Low Carb, duh

your body and burns carb in two instances, HR> anabolic threshold, and in the presence of insulin.

your muscles are designed to use fat as energy. its the only cell that does. your muscle membrane is made from fats and protein. holding back on fat may reduce muscle recovery, inturn resulting in a loss of lean mass.
this is BodyBUILDING, not BodyBURNING

of course, we are talking about the proper amounts of omega- 3,6,9s

I prefer both.
I am currently doing 3 low crb/cal days followed by a high crb/cal day, usually my maintenance level, every 4th day. I do this because my nutrionist tells me to, except he wants me to do high carbs every day but I don’t (see why below). The other reason for this is because the time the 3rd day comes around I am so flat and thin that my shoulders and traps look like a marathon runner. The day after my high crb/cal day I look as if someone snuck in and gave me a shot of test in the middle of the night. Everything is full, round and very anabolic looking. I know some of it is water from the carbs but some of it is also the carbs filling me out and replenishing me. I get a great pump for a day or two afterwards as well.

I am currently training for a show Aug. 15th and I am still around 7-8%, so I have been cutting my carbs quiet a bit since I am in a mad rush to lose the fat. I think next year I will start my diet 20 weeks out so I can have some more carbs to my diet. I tend to get extremely flat and loose a bit of muscle weight (yes.. I do) when I go to low on my carbs.

The bottom line is, both sides of the fence will have their “scientific data” as for the reasons for dieting the way they do. I have seen first hand folks become shredded and full doing both high and low carb. For instance my nutrionist has produced state champions and national competitors and has become the “go to guy” around these parts with his high carb diets and I must say you feel a heck of a lot better on his diets. I can’t argue with results. Nether can I argue with Layne Norton’ low carb diets either. By the way his diets tend to stay away from a lot of fats.

So the way I see it, if a person likes what they are doing and they consistently come in around 3% and looking full, then why fix something that’s not broken?
Me? I am still trying to find the diet that I like. I will know by this time next year.

On a side note, I am a manager at my company. I have a lot of responsibility. Sometimes I’m finding it a struggle to gather the least amount of brain power to answer questions and make the day to day decisions that is required of me on the low carb diet. I know most of brain energy comes from carbohydrates. So that is something I will have to consider as well.
As far as “fat vs. carb” debate, I always incorporate fat in my diet. I have recently started adding 2 additional tablespoons of peanut butter to my diet on low carb days.

My 2 cents…..

Scott

Lucas,
I hear the " I go flat on low carbs" all the time. People will say to me at contest time "Oh you are on the carb depleted diet so you are mentally fuzzy too". That is so wrong and kind of ruffles me too because it is kinda of a slam about what I am doing. It's quite the opposite as when I am on the diet I have tons of evergy and my mental faculties are sharper. I feel more fuzzy when I am eating carbs going through the peaks and valleys of the almost Comatose insulin crashes. This is what N.O. and all that crap is for to wake you up out of this haze so you can train. This does not happen on a properly done low carb diet. I have hit P/R's on my bench press 2 weeks out from a contest. Weighed 152 hit 275lbs for 6 reps. At 50 years old, two years ago, I did the German Volume training. Did 10 sets of 6 with 60 second rests Squats and at the beginning could only get 265lbs the first week at a bodyweight of 168. The week "of" at 150lbs I started at 315 and the 3rd set did 335 x 6 and the 4th set wanted to see how much I could handle. Slapped 350 on and hit it for 5. WOW! for me that is stupid good! Then I finished out the next 6 sets at 315lbs! Again this was with 60 second rests .

How much fat are you taking in when you go low carb? Fat is your fuel when you do this and if you do not have enough you go into Keto-Acidosis which is muscle wasting and really unhealthy to boot. There are rules to the road and if you do not comply with them you will crash and burn. Everybody has been brainwashed that fat, cholesterol, red meat, egg yolks will kill you. This is total bullshiot. As long as you follow the rules just like you would on a low fat diet (The Diabetes, Obesity inducing diet that is killing us.) you will be healthy. I have been using a higher fat diet for 18 years now and at 50 had the whole battery of testing on my heart a colonoscopy and I was clean as a whistle. So if someone scares you into the Good fat style of low carb eating which I can tell you doesn't work very good for us as naturals tell them to blow off. I am starting believe to that fats need to be bio identically closer like protein to work as your primary energy source better than plant based fats. Interesting?

Just a little tidbit. Anytime you eat over 15 grams of carbs you will cause an insulin secretion. For up to 5 hours later your body will only use carbs for energy you will not burn fat as an evergy source in that period. So apply this to what you are doing.

jarnold,

Did you read the last part of my post? I said " I always incorporate fat in my diet".

As far as being flat, call it what you want. I'm either flat or just did not have the muscle size to begin with. Either way I am still pretty much following the same general principles’ you are. Low carb, high fat, except I raise my carbs a bit every fourth day.
That's great that you are able to move the weight around that you do. Not so lucky in my world. I was struggling yesterday to curle 40lbs preacher for 8 reps. Muscle stamina is the biggest thing I have noticed or lack of. I have become very weak.

As far as brain function, all I can tell you is how I feel and the time that my brother locked his keys in his truck 3 times in one day while dieting for a show.
I also was dieting for a photo shoot once and while I was at work I started shaking badly and got extremely light headed. I had a hunch what it was so I went to the vending machine and got a honey bun (till this day that was the best honey bun I have ever had). Within 5-10 min. I felt completely fine. I never did go to the Doctor to see if I was Hypoglycemic but you would have to wonder from the episode that I encountered. One other time it started happening to me again and I just completely quit dieting all together.

So far on my low carb days this time around I have not had a problem. Other than the lack of stamina and feeling sluggish I have not got the shakes or felt as if I were going to pass out. I feel great the day of and the day after I have my refeed day with carbs. This is what I contribute to keeping me from having another HypoG episode.
Currently my carbs are around 60-80 per day then I will do around or a little less than 150 on my refeed day. My protein is generally 210-230 and the rest are fats I am losing weight consistently so it is working. I only wish I had done it this way all along. I would be closer to the desired % that I need to be.

So, even though I am currently following a lower carb diet with higher fat I will have to plug one in for the "carbers" since I see it working on guys all around my gym. One could argue that low carb diets "are so wrong" and that it kind of “ruffles " them as it is a "slam" to what they are doing since what they are doing is working for them. As I stated in my last post, you can't argue with results.

By the way don’t get to “ruffled” . After all this thread was created as a thread for debating wasn’t it? I enjoy forums like this, I learn a lot from them.

I am not ruffled at all. LOL! This goes with the territory when you do something that is not mainstream old school low fat contest dieting. I guess that was jab to all the Low fat eating, Carb, Salt and Water Depleters? LOL!

You say you are doing about 60 grams of carbs and 220 protein a day. What about the fat. Actually you are high on the carbs. I think where you are having problems is from not enough fat. When you do the dizzy's you are going into Keto- Acidosis something you want to avoid like the plague. Since it means you are eating proteins and that is also lean tissue. Do not be afraid to go as high 25% off your bodyweight in fat. This keeps you out of the Protein burning and falling over. Also the good fat thing is hogwash too. Animal fat is more bio identical as is animal protein and I think it works better for us who do the low carb diets. Yes you will feel better on low fat days right now only because you are not hitting Keto Acidosis. Low fat days with moderate carbs are OK. You will feel as good if not better if you do your low carb days right.

Ain't it crazy!

My fats are atleast 25% of my weight. I am currently around 163-165 so it doesn't take much. It's not necessarily the good fats. It is either by products or peanut butter.
I'm feeling pretty good with everything right now. If I get feeling really bad I usually will have a packet of plain oatmeal or grits and that knocks it out. Within an hour I am back to normal. Some people have to be very careful with low blood sugar so I don't want to send the wrong message.
First, be healthy, then diet for a show!

My fats are atleast 25% of my weight. I am currently around 163-165 so it doesn't take much. It's not necessarily the good fats. It is either by products or peanut butter.
I'm feeling pretty good with everything right now. If I get feeling really bad I usually will have a packet of plain oatmeal or grits and that knocks it out. Within an hour I am back to normal. Some people have to be very careful with low blood sugar so I don't want to send the wrong message.
First, be healthy, then diet for a show!