Carbs vs. Fat when dieting

[CraveMuscle]

when dieting, given that protein intake is sufficiently high, and given that cals aren't too low, is there anything inherently or possibly detrimental to lower carbs and higher fat?

strongchick posted that optimal testosterone occurs about .5 g fat/lb of bodyweight, and seeming as I'm having a very hard time keeping all of my hormone levels up, I'm wondering if it would be detrimental to muscle maintenance during contest prepping/dieting to keep carbs in pre and pwo but to do p/f meals for all other meals, getting in like 70 g fat or more a day. this would essentially be a ketogenic diet with healthy fats to buffer the rest of the cals.

or is that just dumb?

"we" have discussed the importance of carbs and carb cycling and low-carb to death, but this is more of wondering if others have had success LEANING OUT on an extened low-carb, high fat diet. and yes, this would be a lot like (or essentially the same as) an atkins diet, but with a targeted period for carbs (ok, so maybe more like a targeted ketogenic diet). I'm at 149ish lbs right now and have 11 weeks for dieting for the comp.

shoot me if I'm beating a horse to death. :suicide:

[ashleyk]

Personally I've seen best results (quickest weight loss and easiest time staying on diet) with pc meals PWO only and pf throughout the rest of the day.

Thats just me though. :)

[CraveMuscle]

I hate to be prying here, but did you notice a decrease in hormone levels or a cessation of cycles?

and how long were you dieting down using this type of setup?

[strongchick]

I think its really individual. Some people are more carb sensitive than others. And personally, I find having a higher fat intake keeps me more full.

Have you been to the website beyondlowcarb? Lots of people on various low-ish carbohydrate diets who weight train.

[magdalynaa]

Originally posted by strongchick@Jun 8 2006, 01:17 PM
I think its really individual. Some people are more carb sensitive than others. And personally, I find having a higher fat intake keeps me more full.


Ditto.

I did P/C and P/F meals for a long time (and still generally eat that way), and I never had any problems with restricting my carb intake around my workouts. I distinctly remember swearing to Thunder that I would DIE if I didn't eat carbs at every meal, but it just didn't happen.

I hate it when he's right. :cheeky:

As for low carb intake affecting your hormonal levels... I don't know that I could draw that conclusion from my experience. When I was leaner (and even then I wasn't particularly lean... 17% maybe), my hormones were definitely screwy. I never stopped having a period, probably just because I was on the pill. But I think the hormonal screwiness was probably more a function of being leaner and less a function of carb intake.

70g of fat does seem a bit high to me. What are your stats?

[rachel.]

I think its pretty individual

I've never had any trouble with excessive weight gain and I've been pounding back bagels and pasta for most of my life lol

Now I stick to oats, organic clean wholegrain pitas, sweet potatoes and occasionally potatoes -- I usually get btwn 175-260g per day.

And I eat 2/3c raw oats every night -- I havent seen any weight gain so far! :p

[~LV~]

Originally posted by ashleyk@Jun 7 2006, 10:33 PM
Personally I've seen best results (quickest weight loss and easiest time staying on diet) with pc meals PWO only and pf throughout the rest of the day.

Thats just me though. :)
My body responds to this method very well.

[Kathryn]

Originally posted by ~LV~+Jun 8 2006, 10:44 AM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (~LV~ @ Jun 8 2006, 10:44 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> <!--QuoteBegin-ashleyk@Jun 7 2006, 10:33 PM
Personally I&#39;ve seen best results (quickest weight loss and easiest time staying on diet) with pc meals PWO only and pf throughout the rest of the day.

Thats just me though. :)
My body responds to this method very well. [/b][/quote]
Do you keep your fats at a modest level? or is it higher than normal?

[~LV~]

Originally posted by Kathryn+Jun 8 2006, 11:50 AM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (Kathryn @ Jun 8 2006, 11:50 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'>
Originally posted by ~LV~@Jun 8 2006, 10:44 AM
<!--QuoteBegin-ashleyk@Jun 7 2006, 10:33 PM
Personally I&#39;ve seen best results (quickest weight loss and easiest time staying on diet) with pc meals PWO only and pf throughout the rest of the day.

Thats just me though. :)
My body responds to this method very well.
Do you keep your fats at a modest level? or is it higher than normal? [/b][/quote]
I up the fat intake and lower my carb and keep my carb intake to pre, post, and post post workout meals only.

[NooHoo]

Lyle McDonald wrote a great article on comparing different dieting approaches. He discusses the low-carb/high fat option in it.

Comparing Diets - Part 1 (http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/Articles/comparing1.html)

Comparing Diets - Part 2 (http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/Articles/comparing2.html)

[CraveMuscle]

great responses. thanks so much. and the articles were very helpful in laying out situations for choosing which one might be more properly suitable.

magdalynaa, I haven&#39;t figured out yet what my macros will be for the next couple of weeks of leaning out, so I&#39;m guessing it could be up to 70 g of fat per day, but it might be a leetle bit lower. that&#39;s what I was using for my fat intake on low-carb days though, so if I add in some carbs around training, it should bring the cals up enough.

I&#39;m 5&#39;10&#39;&#39; and 149ish. and still too damn skinny. :shutit:

[rachel.]

Originally posted by CraveMuscle@Jun 8 2006, 12:55 PM
great responses. thanks so much. and the articles were very helpful in laying out situations for choosing which one might be more properly suitable.

magdalynaa, I haven&#39;t figured out yet what my macros will be for the next couple of weeks of leaning out, so I&#39;m guessing it could be up to 70 g of fat per day, but it might be a leetle bit lower. that&#39;s what I was using for my fat intake on low-carb days though, so if I add in some carbs around training, it should bring the cals up enough.

I&#39;m 5&#39;10&#39;&#39; and 149ish. and still too damn skinny. :shutit:
I&#39;m 5&#39;10 and 115lbs :( I have no booty and you can see my ribs -- not pretty at ALL.

Its a good thing I have muscle or I&#39;d look like complete sh&#33;t. haha

Bring on teh carbs baby :p

[nikegurl]

I think personal preference comes into play here. (in terms of what the individual has an easier time adhering too). I have a better track record of following a cutting plan that has higher fat and lower carbs (keeping my carbs at meal #1 and pwo for the most part).

That&#39;s not the same as saying I "can&#39;t" drop fat on higher carbs. It&#39;s just easier for me to stick to the program this way.

[Erik]

Originally posted by nikegurl@Jun 8 2006, 05:56 PM
I think personal preference comes into play here. (in terms of what the individual has an easier time adhering too). I have a better track record of following a cutting plan that has higher fat and lower carbs (keeping my carbs at meal #1 and pwo for the most part).

That&#39;s not the same as saying I "can&#39;t" drop fat on higher carbs. It&#39;s just easier for me to stick to the program this way.
Adherence is definitely an issue to consider

What&#39;s &#39;easiest&#39; to follow likely works best.