Low carb+School=concern

[Jason]

Losing fat creates the illusion of gaining muscle. I hardly doubt you packed on a TON of muscle maybe 1 pound MAYBE 2 and that is pushing it alot IMO.

You need carbs man, if you want muscle cut down on doing your insane amount of reps too. If your realyl actualyl doin 400 pushups every night your overtraining those muscle like crazy.

 

[El Caco]

No wonder you are feeling the way you do, I just had a look at your diet, I have not read the entire thread yet and probably will not but just going off what you noted that your eating you are not getting enough energy.

Have you read Atkins or anything else about controlled carb diets? On a controlled carb diet you get your energy from fats and protien. Since you have chosen to control your carb intake you need to get your energy from one of these also it is very important to maintain your nutrient intake.

The problem is you are not doing the controlled carb diet correctly, as it's not working for you I suggest you either try to learn more about it and do it properly or go on to a balanced controlled calorie whole food diet.

As for your goals of getting leaner while maintaining muscle mass, eating healthy carbs will not prevent you from achieving this but any poor diet will. Your body requires a certain amount of energy and nutrients to burn fat and function properly if you do not supply it with what it needs you risk doing permanent damage (especially if you are working out at the same time) and not achieving your goals. I have personally witnessed someone eat a low carb diet that was too low in fat insufficient in nutrients and n that person failed to supplement their diet correctly and despite training intensely for hours a day for well over a year, that person did not lose a single kg and did not tone up at all. What that person did achieve was chronic medical problems, constant visits to the doctor, periodic depression, constant mood swings and the odd injury and passing out in public places.

I'm not telling you not to do a controlled carb diet, I have successfully lost weight on the Atkins diet as well as on balanced whole food diets and others. I am advising you to research what you are doing and do it correctly.

I just noticed that your original post was weeks ago.

 

[El Caco]

After reading your update, congrats on losing 10 pounds. I am not sure from your update what type of diet you are doing now but keep in mind what I said. Your body need a balance of certain nutrients and energy to function correctly, dieting can be dangerous if not done correctly and with care. Just take care to provide your body with the nutrients and energy it needs.

Congrats on the outline of that six pack, it's been a while since I had one and mine is slowly becoming a keg these days You will find that getting the six pack is very difficult but once you have it, it is not so hard to maintain.

Look after yourself, looking healthy is great but it shouldn't be at the expense of your health in later life, so keep going but be safe.

 

[tehk]

In my honest opinion, low-carb is ONLY necessary if you want to get into contest shape (4-6% bodyfat): or you have a lot of body fat to begin with (eg. +35%) and you want ot drop it quick)

Doing extreme low/no carb is somewhat dangerous if you don't know what you're doing and you don't know your body. When you do low-carb, you're putting quite a bit of strain on your blood sugar levels, your insulin, and especially your thyroid gland. That's why it is common for people to have a "carb-up" day every 4-6 days to stabilize the thyroid gland and to refuel muscle glycogen.

This is a major issue for you. You're only eating 3-4 times a day, and you're having beans as a dinner meal (beans are loaded with carbs). Split your meals up into smaller portions (like 5-8 meals a day), replace with protein shakes if necessary (for convenience and budget purposes). This will keep your metabolism high, and your insulin levels stable throughout the entire day. This will lead to greater fat metabolization and less fat storage.

Have 20-40g of protein at every meal. Since this macronutrient intake is increased, the ratio flux SHOULD make you want to consume less carbs and fats.

This is my experiences with low-carb thus far (this year that is)
I bulked my way up to 210lbs (about) - about 15-16% body fat
Its been near 3 months of my cut cycle and I've cut down to 175-178lbs about - 7-8% body fat.

My goal is to get into the 5-6% range if possible.

I'm utilizing this method because I know it works well with my body, and I believe it is necessary to achieve what I want.

However, if you don't have as much lean muscle mass to begin with, I strongly suggest you consume a well balanced, high-protein diet with VERY slight calorie deficient (its pretty much your bodyweight x 12). That way, you'll take on a more healthy and less stressful approach to achieving your goals and possibly gaining some lean muscle mass as well.

OH! and amp up the cardio. It is almost necessary to getting lean, unless you have a REALLY FAST metabolism.

 

[Labrie]

Losing fat creates the illusion of gaining muscle. I hardly doubt you packed on a TON of muscle maybe 1 pound MAYBE 2 and that is pushing it alot IMO.

You need carbs man, if you want muscle cut down on doing your insane amount of reps too. If your realyl actualyl doin 400 pushups every night your overtraining those muscle like crazy.

Couldn't agree more. You need carbs to function properly. A high protein diet is essential for gaining muscle but you won't be getting much energy if that's all you eat.

 

[tehk]

"A high protein diet is essential for gaining muscle but you won't be getting much energy if that's all you eat."

Not necessarily true. If your body undergoes lipolysis after experience a period of extremely low carbohydrate intake, you will use fat cells and/or fat intake as energy. This is just as effective as carbohydrate metabolization, however, it is extremely mentally straining (cravings that is). If you do carb refeeds at proper times, you'll prevent your body from going into ketosis. It is during ketosis where your body produces a lot of ketone bodies which are released into the blood to replace glucose (which come from carbs). THIS is when you start to lack energy.

You guys are right, totally. Its just.. there's more to it then no carb = no energy .
In the lifestyle diet regime sense.. get your carbs in.
In the quick fix/bodybuilding/competition/model sense.. low-carb might be good for a period of time ONLY (not for life).

 

[guitarplayerone]

as a small update, I have found that once I am in ketosis, I have tons of energy. I have started a very mild form of carb cycling, where I eat extra peanuts or an apple etc, right after a workout (and sometimes before). My total fat loss is now at 16 lbs from the beginning of the diet. Here's a somewhat recent pic, compared to one from last year (where I weighed 186). Now I'm at a steady 160. Sorry I don't have better comparison pics, but I don't have my own camera. The new one is a video still, and the old one I borrowed a camera for.
(I hid it well and sucked in lol, but what you don't see here is a belly approximately the size of a half-deflated soccer ball)

Last month (in the middle of flies, so I look flexed)

Yesterday (not flexed). Same weight, but with more LBM? Looks like it anyway. Six-pack under that guitar btw

I have noticed essentially what I am doing is following a 'caveman' diet. I cheat about once a week, and it inevitably happens on Sunday. I am trying to really make the cheats healthy, as this is why I have plateaued at 160. I do a bunch of cardio, but I have laid off the weights for a little while because I cant be sore for my Lifeguarding exam, which is next Tuesday.

Overall I think that the swimming helps a ton, and I do eat carbs- just very high GI, so I stay full for a LONG time, and my blood sugar is not completely empty, just low, all of the time. I strive for five meals a day, usually at least I get four in. No carbs at night period (even from veggies).

An example of a typical day is now this:
Breakfast= A plate full of cabbage. Shredded cheese on top (I just shoot for the 1 carb kind. The cals are 110 per serving, ~70 from fat. I just got some Jalapeno variety, its awesome). 3 whole eggs.

Brunch= Lettuce, olive, and tuna salad.
Lunch= Some shish kebob, or other meat. If there is nothing in the fridge, I'll go for a hot dog, but I usually don't to avoid the fat
Dinner 1= Broccoli with shredded cheese. Usually steak or flounder, etc. Reasonable portions.
Dinner 2= Usually a can of tuna. This is the hard meal. Very hard not to cheat, but its all worth it the next morning.

Altogether, I recently upped then gradually lowered my caloric intake to restart my metabolism. I would estimate that nowadays I eat ~1400-1600 calories per day. I eat 1800 sometimes, but I usually go and spend at least half an hour on an elliptical machine afterwards at some point in the week.

With this said, I carbed up and am now restarting a ketogenic diet to get below 160 (and my ~10ish% bodyfat). I can see abs now, but I want them to be a little more ripped. After this I will begin carb cycling and very slowly build some mass over the summer. In retrospect I should have been bulking during the winter (at least carb-cycling bulking) instead of trying to diet. Then I could have just dieted very aggressively and kept a decent amount of mass, but what the hell. This is day 63ish. I've gotten a lot of info from www,t-nation.com, some bodybuilding friends (who compete) and Bodybuilding.com - The Future Of Bodybuilding! Huge Bodybuilding Site..

I've been watching lots of testosterone-laden movies (esp with Arnold Schwarzenegger), because as corny as they are, they motivate me.

Anyway, I am quite happy that it is (finally) summer up here in NYC, and I can honestly say that my diet began with the calculations I came up with using the threads on nutrition at SS.org!

A few final words:

In of itself, this new lifestyle feels really good, but I used to suffer from fairly extreme depression before. I don't know if it's because I stopped doing drugs (period), smoking and drinking, or what, but I feel so much more confident and happy now. I have tons more drive, and I just feel good. Overall, my mood is just excellent, regardless of what happens throughout the day.

Origionally I just wanted to get into shape out of spite for people who told me I should just accept who I was. But out of this I have learned so much about myself, and I have reaped all of the benefits of a healthy lifestyle. I think for ectomorphs, etc my low carb diet is completely useless, but for endomorphs such as myself, I have come to the conclusion that ketogenic or not, it is extremely important to limit the intake of refined sugars and ensure proper fat intake as well (as in, not all animal fat, and maintain the proper balance of mono, poly, and unsaturated fats).

If anyone is considering doing something like this remember: its all in the mind. Be strong. Just be determined and you can do anything you want.

 

[tehk]

Lookin' lean and mean .
Now pull a Petrucci and bulk up .

Hehe.

I envy the low bodyfat percentage around your shoulder/arms. My bicep vein NEVER shows.. This is what I get for being fat long ago I guess .

I did ketosis once, and personally felt that it wasn't for me.
I recently stopped my cut cycle. 30lbs loss was good enough for me..
Anyways.. gotta bulk up to a mean 210lbs.. possibly 220lbs. Who knows.

Keep up the good work!