If I do a low carb (20-30 GMs) a day and lift heavy Tue Thurs and sat mornings what day should I re-feed and how many carbs should i be consuming that day? Thanks for any info.
2 weeks in to low carb, down from 192 to 180. 5'9". Just looking to lean out and add vascularity.
There are a few different schools of thought on this. The problem with getting kicked out of ketosis is that it may take a day or two to get back into it; that's why some people advocate a one or two carb days in a row and then 5 straight days of low/no carbs.
Others advocate carbing up right after a workout and keeping things in check other times.
I personally have not done a refeed of carbs for almost 6 weeks, and only did so one day per week or two before due to a pancake addiction that would then collapse into a carb packed orgy for the rest of the day... I think i'll limit any refeed to a cheat meal once a week at night if at all to keep things in check.
How many carbs? There are calculations out there with respect to your bodyweight, but if your goal is still to remain lean i would stick more to calorie guidelines and less to "how many carbs." Monitor how many calories you're eating - even during the low carb phase - and do so as well on the refeed day/days and see where things are at after a few weeks and adjust.
If you're just lifting 3 days per week and want to lean out check out the "starting a ketogenic diet" thread on the OG. The guy has made great progress and there is a lot of great information.
I would honestly stick to the low carb eating for another few weeks if you're feeling, looking and performing well. Make sure it's not a low fat diet; you should be replacing the would be carb calories with fat and keeping the protein under 30%.
What does a days eating look like for you?
I've done a lot of CKD stuff over the years. I've done shorter cycles of preogressively lower carbs followed by a re-feed. I have also done the 5 days low, two days re-feed (which fits well with the standard work week). Lastly, I have also cycled the intake to meet training demands etc.
Personally, I like the 5 on 2 off style the best. It worked very well for me (and many clients) and seemed to consistently deliver the results I was looking for.
I do feel (as Badmonkey has indicated) that when you allow enough fat in the diet, the need (and desire) for carbs is greatly deminished.
One other method I have used is to eat 5-6 times per day with two carb based meals and three to four all protein / fat meals. This seems to work well for me also. I start the day with a carb based meal, and make sure I alternate after that. So it looks like this:
Meal 1: Carbs (no fat mod protein).
Meal 2: High Protein High fat (no carbs)
Meal 3: same style as meal 1:
Meal 4 - 4 & 6 same as meal 2:
There are lot's of ways to do this stuff. It is an experiment of one, to determine which works best for you and fits your lifestyle and psychology the best.
TAKU.
Thank u both for the info. I've done low carb a lot thru out the yrs to clean up or get rid if moon face but after 1 bad I've always said f it. I'm just learning and reading about the re-feed methods. I generally feel so much better low carb. I do not think I've been getting enough calories at all. Past 2 weeks my diet has been
Breakfast - black coffee and almonds
Lunch - 8 oz chicken 4 oz green veggies
Dinner - 6 eggs 10 pieces turkey bacon
Lifting days
Morning pre work - nos powder
Lift followed with 10 oz water 6 raw eggs w muscle milk
Same lunch
Dinner - tuna or beef with turkey bacon.
From the above food list, it looks like your calories are pretty low. I can get lean on just under 3000 Kcal per day (if I make good choices).
TAKU