My Experience On the Anabolic Diet

Nutrition
2882

Last saturday on my carbup, i did 2 great workouts on the same day. This got me wondering about the Chad Waterbury 2x4 workout type system. Myself, I usually just do a 24 hour or so carbup (too addicted to cheese/honey sammiches… always end up cutting it short. hahah) once a week, but for those who do split-week/“Poliquin-style” modifications, the 2 times/day workout style might go great.

I know that the day i did 2 workouts, i did great on deadlifts in the morning, hit new rep numbers on weighted pullups in the PM… etc. Then again, I had woken up that day feeling great too, maybe because it was the first night in a long time i’d gotten a great sleep, so maybe starting my carbup after the first workout didn’t have the effect i thought it did, and it was more due to for once having adequate recovery :slight_smile:

But this saturday i’m working a 16 hour shift, so i’ll probably not be working out at all. Oh well, :slight_smile:

2883

For the guys with GF, wives and kids: do they follow your eating pattern or do you go about your business by yourself?

2884

Maybe someone could chime in on this, but what exactly would be the physiological implications of drinking low-carb alcohol (i.e. straight vodka) about half way through the “metabolic transition” period? I’ve decided to go an extra week on the break-in given that alcohol inhibits the burning of lipids for fuel. FYI, I hadn’t drank in nearly nine months and experienced headaches/brain fog for a good three days afterward.

2885

[quote]zdrax wrote:
Maybe someone could chime in on this, but what exactly would be the physiological implications of drinking low-carb alcohol (i.e. straight vodka) about half way through the “metabolic transition” period? I’ve decided to go an extra week on the break-in given that alcohol inhibits the burning of lipids for fuel. FYI, I hadn’t drank in nearly nine months and experienced headaches/brain fog for a good three days afterward. [/quote]

zdrax,

I would suspect the very same thing. Despite not purely being categorized as a CHO it, alcohol would inhibit the burning of fats as fuel. This is exactly why we on the AD need to stay away from sugar alcohols found in things like gum, protein bars and other “sugar-free” goodies . . . don’t worry . . . Jello is the exception.

Just my opinion of course.

Cheers,

Sasha

2886

[quote]zdrax wrote:
Maybe someone could chime in on this, but what exactly would be the physiological implications of drinking low-carb alcohol (i.e. straight vodka) about half way through the “metabolic transition” period? I’ve decided to go an extra week on the break-in given that alcohol inhibits the burning of lipids for fuel. FYI, I hadn’t drank in nearly nine months and experienced headaches/brain fog for a good three days afterward. [/quote]
I’m new to the AD but not to low carb (or drinking :wink: ) in general and IMO if you were well fat adapted a moderate amount of alchohol wouldn’t be a big deal, but since you are still in “metabolic transition” I think extending the break in phase a little to insure that the transition is made was a good call on your part. I don’t have any science to back it up but that is what my experience has shown me.

2887

Hope everyone’s doing well. I’ve worked 24 of the past 32 hours. Oof. started my carb loading this morning, had a terrible workout after work today (feet so sore deadlifting was painful on the soles. :>)

Here’s an interesting study RE: the ALA that some people are taking: Vitamins and Supplements Rooted in Science - Life Extension

I think I might’ve had a bad week this week on the lower-carb days. I’m wondering if i’m not too in love with broccoli and brussels sprouts. I can seriously eat like a whole bag of them in a day. haha. Half-n-half in the coffee this week too… hmm.

I got the link to that study from lowcarb.ca … pretty interesting links on there sometimes.

2888

[quote]SwD wrote:
For the guys with GF, wives and kids: do they follow your eating pattern or do you go about your business by yourself? [/quote]

I go about it by myself right now. But she’s shown some interest.

Actually, I wouldn’t mind reading some more comments about women’s expereince on the AD. Seems like there were very few in the thread and none from long timers. The AD could also fit my wife’s lifestyle, but she is still early on the road to ‘wanting’ to train for fitness and asthetics. So, it’d probably need some modification if all she’s currently doing is walking! :wink:

2889

Progress has stalled a bit for me. I had a friend come visit me, so I extended my carb up time to 3 days, and I had a night of drinking too. Looks like I’ll have an extended carb up next weekend too for travelling. Will there be serious negative effects of extending the carb up? I’m thinking if I just go hard with HIIT I should get back to action.

2890

ok guys i got a question for all of u.

im finishing up the v-diet tomorrow. ill then re-introduce food into my system and have a lil carb up saturday (a chipotle burrito, maybe a little pizza).
starting next monday, im at a crossroad. Right now i am 218 lbs, 13-14% bf. My goal by August 30 is to get my bf% down to around 10-11(enough to see abs and have definition).

Now, my question is: should i go on a low calorie type of AD diet, with refeeds every 2 weeks, or just hop on the Get Shredded Diet bandwagon for a month? Also, should i keep taking HOT-ROX Extreme, or would ephedra get the job done better for fat loss? thanx

2891

[quote]Ballin4Christ32 wrote:
ok guys i got a question for all of u.

im finishing up the v-diet tomorrow. ill then re-introduce food into my system and have a lil carb up saturday (a chipotle burrito, maybe a little pizza).
starting next monday, im at a crossroad. Right now i am 218 lbs, 13-14% bf. My goal by August 30 is to get my bf% down to around 10-11(enough to see abs and have definition).

Now, my question is: should i go on a low calorie type of AD diet, with refeeds every 2 weeks, or just hop on the Get Shredded Diet bandwagon for a month? Also, should i keep taking HOT-ROX Extreme, or would ephedra get the job done better for fat loss? thanx[/quote]

Your first question has a real easy answer. The GSD is a low calorie AD type of diet. You’re not trying to lose that much weight, so I suspect the AD induction would be a start. After the first refeed, just look at how you’ve progressed, then you can decide whether to drop down to Berardi’s calorie levels, or keep doing what you’re doing. Of course, the fact that you’re coming off the Velocity Diet could make your body’s response unpredictable, so you’ll have to be ready to adapt.

That’s just my opinion, of course, I’m sure there’s somebody with more experience that can give a better answer.

How much did you end up losing on the velocity diet?

2892

well todays my last day, so ill let u know in the morning. todays weigh in says 215, 30 lbs so far lost

2893

I have an opinion and then a question

Veruvius: I’d say (And so does the AD book) 3 days is too long for a carbup. Especially if you do 3 day/week carbups 2 weeks in a row. If you’re travelling, it’s not hard at all to stick to low-carb.

Of course, you’re free to do whatever you’d wish, but be prepared to destroy the hormonal environment that the AD tries to create when you stop following the AD.

If 3 days was fine… then why not 4? 5? hehe. :slight_smile:

Anyways, here’s my question: If you wake up in the middle of the night mad hungry, is it unwise to just eat a chunk of protein, as opposed to say something with more fat in it, like cheese or something of the sort? I thought about that last night at 4am as i munched on a leftover chicken breast from supper. I was thinking it might be detrimental to not have fat in the meal… usually if i wake up starving i just cut a chunk of cheese off the block and munch on it. thoughts?

Seems it might be unwise to just eat a chunk of protein, as the body might be more wanting some tasty fats to power itself through my powerfully sexual dreams.

2894

Day 17 and its been a good ride so far. Was definitely bloated after the weekend, but it did seem to make both lifting days better so far this week. It was nice to get rid of alot of the bloat from the weekend after Monday’s workout. Libido still running stronger than it has in a while, still feeling pretty damned good all day, still adding weight and can feel/see a difference in mass, but i’m not positive about fatloss yet, and all I can complain about so far is that I’ve still been a bit sleepy after work. More than usual anyway. But I’ve been trying to catch up on sleep.

2895

[quote]suavij wrote:
I have an opinion and then a question

Veruvius: I’d say (And so does the AD book) 3 days is too long for a carbup. Especially if you do 3 day/week carbups 2 weeks in a row. If you’re travelling, it’s not hard at all to stick to low-carb.

Of course, you’re free to do whatever you’d wish, but be prepared to destroy the hormonal environment that the AD tries to create when you stop following the AD.

If 3 days was fine… then why not 4? 5? hehe. :slight_smile:

Anyways, here’s my question: If you wake up in the middle of the night mad hungry, is it unwise to just eat a chunk of protein, as opposed to say something with more fat in it, like cheese or something of the sort? I thought about that last night at 4am as i munched on a leftover chicken breast from supper. I was thinking it might be detrimental to not have fat in the meal… usually if i wake up starving i just cut a chunk of cheese off the block and munch on it. thoughts?

Seems it might be unwise to just eat a chunk of protein, as the body might be more wanting some tasty fats to power itself through my powerfully sexual dreams.[/quote]

I actually was quite unhappy about extending the carb-up. As much as I think I can’t wait for the weekend, when it comes to eating the carbs, I don’t get excited. Then again, I don’t have an issue doing it either :wink:

On a side note, though I’ve been trying to drop fat, and that has happened to some extent, I would swear that I’ve been gaining muscle recently. I haven’t been able to get to the gym as consistenly as I want, so when I do, I really bust my ass.

As for your question, though I’m a n00b here, why not throw some fat in there? I don’t see how just protein could be detrimental as it’s better than nothing, but why not add some delicious fat? If you’re bulking, how would that not be a good idea?

2896

Boy oh boy. I started my reintro phase to the AD something like three weeks ago. This will be my second time on the diet. Over the last three weeks I’ve made sure to get less than 50g of total carbohydrate, all of it from incidentals only (in things like almonds, greens, eggs, etc.)

I drank pure vodka (~ 4oz) nearly two weeks ago, and restarted the reintro from that point until tonight. I’ve felt like absolute trash for the past few days.

I had a crash early on, and going this long without dietary carbs destroyed my workouts. I decided it was time and had a very brief carb up of around 140g of CHO. I feel much better already. I plan to do another moderate carb up (around 200g) Saturday evening. The abs are coming in nicely, while muscle mass and strength appear to be up. Ahh this is the life.

2897

guys… i am in. started tuesday, will keep cals at about 2200 for a week, (my metabolism is a little wack right now… low calories for a long time) and then jack them up to 2500, then probably at 2700 and see how i am doing. i am psyched. power to olive oil, it will be my main staple for the next months.

2898

Flax oil is really good for you, I drink it over olive oil, every morning I drink some straight out of the bottle.

Tomorrows friday, then saturday! I have a huge craving for watermelon right now, especially after I read that thread about water melon.

2899

Question for the many knowledgable AD Vet’s:

Has anyone experimented w/ 0 carbs?

I mean attempting to take in an absolute minimum carbs, incl fiber count …w/ zero being the goal?

I have been doing just that lately and it’s really quite effective. I’m using whole foods, ISOpure ‘zero carb’ protein powder and getting my fiber from physillium husks only.
I’m eating well over maintenance
(5k-5,500 cals daily) and am still managing to lean out. I’ve had to resort to a mid-week, post training carb spike in order to keep energy levels up …but it’s working quite well.

I do this for a week -then return to the standard AD (deleting fiber from total carb count)

Thoughts???

2900

wow. Just read through all the pages, spread out over 3 days while at work.

I started the AD August first. My goal is to cut/lean out. So far, I feel great. I was on T-dawg 2.0, so I think the transition won’t be so bad.

some background-
H/W: 6’, 200lbs
Training: Waterbury Method
Cardio: currently none, will adjust later on.

Im aiming for around 2400-2600 cals day to try and lose bf% without doin cardio.
If I start to add cardio, It will be performed AM/fasted, and I will re-eat those cals during the day.

So far, diet looks the same everyday:
breakfast- eggs, turkey, cheddar
meal 2- 96% lean ground beef, cheddar, spinach
meal 3- same as above
meal 4- same as breakfast
pwo -3 cheesburgers, no bun, tablespoon flaxseed oil

totals: ~ 2600 cal, 145g fat, 25g CH, 330g pro

Couple questions-
1.) Enough cals what should I add/change.
2.) since im coming off a low carb diet, I prolly won ‘crash’. Should I follow protocol - 12 day break in before carb up?
3.) Do I need to add cardio, or can I just lift heavy azz weight on WM? :slight_smile:

2901

[quote]aspengc8 wrote:
wow. Just read through all the pages, spread out over 3 days while at work.

I started the AD August first. My goal is to cut/lean out. So far, I feel great. I was on T-dawg 2.0, so I think the transition won’t be so bad.

some background-
H/W: 6’, 200lbs
Training: Waterbury Method
Cardio: currently none, will adjust later on.

Im aiming for around 2400-2600 cals day to try and lose bf% without doin cardio.
If I start to add cardio, It will be performed AM/fasted, and I will re-eat those cals during the day.

So far, diet looks the same everyday:
breakfast- eggs, turkey, cheddar
meal 2- 96% lean ground beef, cheddar, spinach
meal 3- same as above
meal 4- same as breakfast
pwo -3 cheesburgers, no bun, tablespoon flaxseed oil

totals: ~ 2600 cal, 145g fat, 25g CH, 330g pro

Couple questions-
1.) Enough cals what should I add/change.
2.) since im coming off a low carb diet, I prolly won ‘crash’. Should I follow protocol - 12 day break in before carb up?
3.) Do I need to add cardio, or can I just lift heavy azz weight on WM? :)[/quote]

That’s pretty OK in terms of macros… though i’d shoot for more fats, if i were you, maybe some olive oil on that spinach, or some walnuts, etc.

About cardio: Personally, the only cardio i get is non-planned, ie: unloading shipments at work, walking around at work, walking the dog, trail biking, swimmin’ in the lake. Nothing excessive, and it works for me. I’ve put on hardly any fat at all in the past 3 or 4 months, but i’m up about 12 pounds. That’s even though my workouts have been suffering with an insane workload and increased stress for the past few weeks.

Anyway… as i said, the only thing i’d do is maybe lower protein a bit and replace the cals with fats, especially for the first phase, to really send your body the message that ya aint messin’ around. :slight_smile:

It’s probably fine at around the 50% you have it now, but i usually strive for 60% or so. Also, is that fat % accounting for things like fish oils etc if you take them? Just curious… definitely recommended that you take fish oils or at least suck of salmon/herring/krill lollipops between meals

:>

Also… with the total overall Calories that low… make sure you really pay attention to how you feel. I weigh less than you and I eat usually around 3000cals a day, more if i do a heavy deadlifting workout, etc. If you’re feeling tired, I wouldn’t even say it’s because your body is shifting, it may just be a lack of cals. When i started this, it was from a super-low cal diet, and even going from like 1500 to 3000, i didn’t get a large fat gain from any metabolic adjusting or anything… hell, i got even leaner in those first 12 days, on double the cals.