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my first go at a LOW carb diet

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presstons

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I'll start by saying i'm new to STRICT dieting.

About 5 days ago i started a very low carb diet.

All my meals consist of chicken, broccoli, 96% lean ground beef, LOTS of egg whites..

Snacking on turkey jerky here and there between meals..

Pretty much the only carbs i'm taking in is a small amount of sugar free oatmeal in the morning as soon as i wake up, and a protein shake that has some immediately post workout.

My question/concern is this: My workouts are STRUGGLING. Feeling pretty sluggish throughout the day, and even less energy in the gym. I've lost probably 20-30% of my strength.

Am i experiencing what i'm supposed to? Do any of you suggest i do something different? My goals are to lose as much fat as possible while holding on to the maximum amount of muscle i can.
 
Have refeed days where you pile on healthy carbs once a week. Also on low carb days add coconut oil and other healthy fats to your diet for energy.
 
Your fats are too low. They need to be more in the 40% or more range for your total calories, even better if they are 50%.
 
ok..what types of foods would you suggest i add in to get these healthy fats
 
presstons said:
ok..what types of foods would you suggest i add in to get these healthy fats
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Egg yolk, fish oil, coconut oil, flax seed oil, olive oil. The list goes on.....google brother google.
 
Nocode8511 said:
I respond well to low carb for cutting. I like 50/40/20 F/P/C as a base and adjust from there. You don't need the carbs in the morning just before/after workout, IMO. As stated above have a refeed day and a cheat meal in the middle of the week. I'm not a nutritionist but I think I know my body very well... http://anabolicsteroidforums.com/sh...anyone-actually-have-an-impressive-body/page5
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http://anabolicsteroidforums.com/sh...anyone-actually-have-an-impressive-body/page5
 
Lot's of good responses here so I'll add some other insight.

Like NoCode, I do well on low carb diets.
http://anabolicsteroidforums.com/sh...-impressive-body?p=93908&viewfull=1#post93908

My breakfast was always just a bowl full of scrambled eggs - no carbs. Well maybe a little when I put ketchup on them :D The idea of having protein first thing is to start your Leptin burning. Or so I've always believed.

Yes your energy levels will be down some in the beginning. Its natural as your body shifts from being carbs as a main fuel source to using Ketones. You'll eventually get used to it. May not ever be as much as when you're ingesting carbs but you'll grow accustomed to it. When I start dieting that severely I feel like I could eat a shoe. But it passes. I just don't keep anything tempting in the house.
 
i need to get ripped and im on last 3 weeks of 14 week cycle.....


Guys. Im just about to end my first cycle in 30 yrs at age 54 of 500mg sustanon weekly and 30 mg dbol daily. I came off the dbol last month and all my bloat in my face went away yet out of the 15 pds Ive gained on this 14 week cycle, I kept 11-12 of it which isnt good considering I ran out of gas about 10 weeks out and took 2 weeks off which im not going to count but kept the juice up. I just for the heck of it threw in some tren E yesterday after my strength went thru the roof after 4 days on tren A 6 WEEKS AGO and then i stopped it and kept up the sustanon. I had a bit of tren in my last order and wanted to see if it would help either my endurance or...my getting ripped as the sust or dbol wasnt doing either nor making me look any better. Im now 5-9-1/2" 182 lbs, but look almost as I did at 170 when i started. so....

Im going to keep up the sust and just 100mg tren e weekly(i had the runs from 75mg a day of tren A.) FOR 3 MORE WEEKS. i WANT TO JUST focus on getting hard, but I notice that whether I eat 100, 150 or 250 gms of protein it does not affect my weight or quality of musle....carbs do. For me.....I cannot go under 150 carbs a day and thats low. 1st off i get constipated on low carbs as i need high fiber foods and also my cholesterol was high when i tried to replace carb calories with protein calories and very little was beef, mostly white pork chops and tuna with oil in a can and chicken burgers. Yet if i go under 100 carbs a day i get low blood sugar and cracvings at night and get acute insomnia, and if i go really low carbs like we used to in the 70's, im talking like just chicken and salads with one piece of fruit all day, i couldnt get a pump and my energy would cut in half.

How do I get cut, and why isnt the sust alone with no dietary changes at least cutting my body fat by 3-4%??? I think i started this cycle at around 18% and its at least that much now. Eliminating oils, butter and beef lowered my cholesterol from 230 to 190 in 5 weeks. And I wasnt even working out so i was eating only about 80 grams of protein a day. so...too much protein, my cholesterol goes up, too much carbs and i dont gain fat or weight, i just dont lose any, no matter what kind of juice i take.

ps-my tyroid has been low for yrs yet all doctors are baffled that i cannot tolerate any synthroid or any other thyroid meds without getting jittery and getting chest pain and insomnia. been that way for 8 yrs now. went to an endo last week and she put me on armour thyroid.............same reaction, at the lowest dose they make!

SUGGESTIONS PLEASE! -)
 
I think there are a few problems with this. Ketosis was a difficult animal to conquer, but I think I have enough of an understanding now that I can help you out.

Firstly, dietary fiber is CRUCIAL. You need it, sir. That's why you experience the constipation when your carbs are low. More than likely, the 150-200 grams of carbohydrates you allow yourself are not quality, but just suppressing your appetite. Plenty and plenty of leafy greens, good sir. Put a tablespoon of italian dressing in the premixed bags of lettuce and shake it up (ensuring that you know EXACTLY how many carbs come from the salad dressing). Broccoli, cauliflower, etc. Plenty and plenty of dietary fiber.

Secondly, fats need to be high. To maintain an anabolic effect, it must be high. Allow me to preface my next statement with this one; your health is the most important, so if cholesterol is a constant, nagging effect on your diet, maybe this diet isn't for you. Anyway, fats must be high, but they must be correct. Saturated fat is one of the sole catalysts for testosterone synthesis that can be put in your body (naturally, you silly gearheads). Ensure that the types of fats you utilize don't wreak havoc on your LDL while doing nothing for HDL. Just stuff to keep in mind.

As for your chemical enhancement, be conscious of the effect that testosterone loses when dosage remains constant for 6+ weeks. Maybe stagger the dosages and try to get a little more bang for the buck out of the last couple weeks. The effects you have described would be enough to hurt anyone's ego. For that much juice and dedication, you deserve more. Please let me know any questions you may have. I hope that was somewhat helpful.
 
My lessons learned on low carb diets.....

1) If you weight train, weekly carb ups are a MUST. Google CKD diet. 65% fat, 30% protein, 5% carbs for 5-1/2 to 6 days, then a refeed of approximately 600-700 grams of carbs, low fat, moderate protein for 1 to 1.5 days to replenish glycogen stores, before going back into ketosis.

2) Focus on high fat sources such as nuts, olive oil, and omega 3's. Keep saturated fat to a minimum.

3) Keep sodium to a minimum.

4) Drink plenty of water (3/4 gallon a day minimum).

5) Eat as many fibrous veggies as you can like broccoli and cauliflower. Leafy greens like baby spinach are great also. Don't bother to count as carbs. The more you eat, the better.

6) Take a fiber supplement.

7) And lastly, have ONE cheat meal a week. Preferably right before the carb up. Wait until you are least 3 weeks in on the diet, but eat what ever the hell you crave. Just remember, one cheat meal, once a week and you are golden.
 
Thank you dawg. I myself, never thought that plant fats could raise cholesterol but my nutritionist tells me if you want to lower cholesterol you must lower all fats. so i took out 3/4 of my olive oil, all butter(that means bread too as bread is a waste without butter. lol) But mostly i think i went from 2% lowfat milk to 1% and cut my eggs to zero and beef to zero. lots of chicken and white lean pork a dn 3-4 oz fish daily was my protein and it worked great. But whats happening now is as im getting older, the carbs i eat (3/4 are from hi fiber cereals with tons of berries on them), this has to be 35 gms of fiber daily at least but its getting harder to move. the fact that im stuck on a painkiller narcotic whose side effect is constipation is not helping at all. Plus my low thyroid (#8) also causes constipation and im sure lack of fat loss.

SHOULD I TRY ONE POSTERS SUGGESTION AND EAT CARBS NORMALLY AND DONT EVEN COUNT THEM BUT STOP ALL CARBS BY 3PM? THAT MAYBE I CAN HANDLE.
 
Aslo, any time i went on the old atkins diet or low carb tuna and water diets for bodybuilders in the 70's, my tongue got coated and my breath foul in just 2-3 days!!!!!! disgusting. after 5 days i couldnt crap at all.
 
Z82 said:
Have refeed days where you pile on healthy carbs once a week. Also on low carb days add coconut oil and other healthy fats to your diet for energy.
Click to expand...

Z82 said:
Egg yolk, fish oil, coconut oil, flax seed oil, olive oil. The list goes on.....google brother google.
Click to expand...
If ketosis is the goal, avoid coconut. I believe Palumbo even makes mention to this. Entirely different metabolic process involving peroxisome metabolism. You want to stick with the basic to ensure mitochondrial metabolism and ketone production.
jerseydevil said:
Use psyllium husk powder for constipation
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The solver of everything.
 
Eat more good fats to make up for lost carbs. Load up on good carbs once a week.
 
I cant go to the bathroom with over 30gms of fiber a day either.

silat50 said:
Thank you dawg. I myself, never thought that plant fats could raise cholesterol but my nutritionist tells me if you want to lower cholesterol you must lower all fats. so i took out 3/4 of my olive oil, all butter(that means bread too as bread is a waste without butter. lol) But mostly i think i went from 2% lowfat milk to 1% and cut my eggs to zero and beef to zero. lots of chicken and white lean pork a dn 3-4 oz fish daily was my protein and it worked great. But whats happening now is as im getting older, the carbs i eat (3/4 are from hi fiber cereals with tons of berries on them), this has to be 35 gms of fiber daily at least but its getting harder to move. the fact that im stuck on a painkiller narcotic whose side effect is constipation is not helping at all. Plus my low thyroid (#8) also causes constipation and im sure lack of fat loss.

SHOULD I TRY ONE POSTERS SUGGESTION AND EAT CARBS NORMALLY AND DONT EVEN COUNT THEM BUT STOP ALL CARBS BY 3PM? THAT MAYBE I CAN HANDLE.
Click to expand...

Wow, you sound like my clone. Im 54, and because Im on painlillers that constipate me bad, if I go on any kind pof low carb diet, I dont care what you eat, you cant get enough fiber to crap right. But....I am hearing now that fiber isnt the only factor which is proving itself out a bit in my diet too. Its water soluble foods like berries and melons, and melons have fairly low carbs and plenty of water to lubricate that colon. -) Yet, i find it helps but as you know.... a low thyroid also makes oyu constipated and i cant take the synthroid or Armour they givfe you to combat it. Gives me anxiety, sweats,heart palpitaions and bad moods. So I dont know how to lower my carbs and not wind up in the emergrency room because when i cant crap after 5 days, im feeling really ill. I heard too that psyllum husk helps constipation, thats just the plant fiber that metmucil uses but if anything its clogging to me. and i drink a ton of water with it. Somebody heeeeelp us!!!!!! -)

If i could stomach salads, id eat 3 huge salads a day but as of now i can barely tolerate 1 small one per day and that doesnt do anything in that dept. I find so far that if i eat 2 precut slices of honey dew in the morning and then have some all bran, im good to go. but bran cereal with out the other seems not to work so good anymore as i GO THRU MY 50'S. Who needs this crap. God, let us all 85% of our intended lifespan feeling like a 22 yr old and then just die. This can be like a slow death especially for those of us who are body builders or martila artists!
 
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