Carbs and Pre-Contest Dieting.

[beast2007]

Hi guys, just wondering what peoples thoughts and experiences are with general carb intake whilst prepping for a show. Do you really need carbs? or do they just slow down fat progress... i know carb-up/re-feeds are needed, but whats your opionions on carbs in general whilst prepping for a show?

 

[Dad]

Yuo need some carbs - to go without is to put yuorself in constant ketosis, which increases the chances of using amino acid pools in the muscle for fuel.

Having said that, carbs are something yuo can sort of "cycle" by having periods of depletes and loads.

On the Main Forum there's a thread started by Xcel about carb loading and depletes. In it is posted Dan DuChiene's Ultimate Diet - a 10 day cyclic diet of carb depletion and loading along with the training for each phase.

 

[km2000]

it depends on your insulin sesitivity...

i am a high carb guy, i can diet on 4-600 or so a day and lose a good amount of fat...

some folks cant look at carbs or they get fat! i would reccomend experimenting with some different typs of carbs and diets to see where you fit in....

like dad said they are needed to spare aa and a constant ketosis state...

i have found timing in the day to be the factor... pre and post workout are prob the safer times to consume carbs....

 

[kidstuff]

it depends on your insulin sesitivity...

i am a high carb guy, i can diet on 4-600 or so a day and lose a good amount of fat...

some folks cant look at carbs or they get fat! i would reccomend experimenting with some different typs of carbs and diets to see where you fit in....

like dad said they are needed to spare aa and a constant ketosis state...

i have found timing in the day to be the factor... pre and post workout are prob the safer times to consume carbs....

km2000,

do you think that glycemic rating of carbs is important? will eating steel cut oats versus instant oats make a difference in the long run? or is one better at loading glycogen than the other?

recently i've been using exclusively steel cut oats, yams with rice cakes, honey, raisins and bananas around workouts... i'm finding i really like these sources, seem to be most compatible with me.

 

[km2000]

km2000,

do you think that glycemic rating of carbs is important? will eating steel cut oats versus instant oats make a difference in the long run? or is one better at loading glycogen than the other?

recently i've been using exclusively steel cut oats, yams with rice cakes, honey, raisins and bananas around workouts... i'm finding i really like these sources, seem to be most compatible with me.

i think the gi is important,but i dont think it is that important while carb loading befor a show, i usually go half high gi and half low when loading for a show, ...

i use the same carb sources myself, it took me a while a figure out which ones worked best for me but when i found out it really made a huge difference, i also use br rice and apple juice........ i think the steel cut oats are a lot better than instant oats for a few reasons... the steel oats are whole and have more fiber, the have been processed less and are not refined, and i think they just taste better!

 

[oldfella]

I am about the same as Km here with carbs. i keep carbs in my diet all the way through. I never worry about GI of carbs, only that I get what I need. For variety I will change to sweet potatoes and wheat pasta. But carbs are important for proper metabolism function, brain function and energy production. I do manipulate them as I go further into contest prep and do a similar cycle such as Duchaines but not to that extreme. I go high carbs for a couple of days and low for a couple. You will need to experiment with different ways and carbs to find what works best for you. Just as KM said.