Ive been getting alot of questions about drinking a workout drink and fat loss. And this objection seems logical. But remember this very simple message…JUST BECAUSE SOMETHING IS LOGICAL DOESNT MEAN ITS PHYSIOLOGICAL!
In our lab we have a theory that well trained people dont have that big of a reduction in fat oxidation with carb intake. This may be due to regulation at the maonyl co A step or due to increased insulin sensitivity at the muscle cell...Im not sure what the outcome will be but we're testing it out in the lab soon after Surge is done. (My Surge project 1 data is nearly finished and project 2 is underway - Im presenting them in Nov at a conference in Toronto).
Anyway, based on the data available and the current absence of data on well trained people, my contention is this. If you actually do a cost benefit analysis (calculate the total amount of fat (not the % or shift) in grams that will be burned with no carbs before or during training and with carbs before or during training and then compare it to the protein balance afforded with a small p+c drink during and after), I think the evidence is good enough to suggest that drinking a carb drink is ok. Also, Ive seen people able to train much, much harder when ingesting carbs during the workout when dieting. So this benefit alone may also weigh in on the carbs side.
Remember, just cause there is a statistically sig difference, that doesnt mean its physiologically important.
There is one caveat though. If you are really lean and need that last bit of edge to drop that last bit of fat, eliminating the drink is fine. At that point, the dropping of that fat is more impt than muscle preservation and you can be resigned to some lean mass losses.
I'll write more later on this later though as I get more data. This is certainly an interesting debate and on this one I won't insist Im absolutely correct. The future may prove me wrong but I think that we need to remain objective about this so as not to just assume carbs are bad during training when dieting.