I’ve made an effort over the past 10 days to manage my insulin sensitivity. I was frustrated by my inability to tolerate moderate carb intake. I knew that restricting carbs was hindering my performance in the gym, but I was unable to eat substantial amounts of carbs without bloating, fat gain, and drowsiness.
My approach:
-
Increased cardio from 2 interval sessions per week to 2 interval sessions and 3 steady-state cardio sessions per week.
-
Weight training remains constant at 4 sessions per week.
-
Cut caffeine intake. I was drinking 5-7 cups of coffee or cans of diet pepsi per day. I’ve cut out all caffeine containing beverages and now drink 2 cups of yerba mate tea every morning. Yerba mate is reputed to increase insulin sensitivity. After the first-day headache subsided, I’ve had no cravings for a cuppa joe.
-
Increased morning carb intake. Breakfast and lunch used to be cottage cheese or chicken breast with a handful of nuts and a couple of apples or oranges. Now for breakfast I have a big bowl of oatbran cereal or oatmeal with protein powder or egg whites and a handful of frozen fruit. I borrowed this idea from LL’s latest article. Lunch is either a repeat of breakfast or a chicken breast sandwich with lots of veggies.
-
Taper carb intake late in the day. I ued to be guilty of restricting carbs all day only to binge late at night. By taking in carbs early in the day when IS is high, I’ve reduced these cravings substantially and take in only small amounts of carbs late in the day.
The results:
-
Strength is continuing to increase despite the increased volume of cardio training. I suppose the increased carb intake is helping with recovery.
-
Visible reduction in bodyfat - I didn’t take a baseline measure and have no way to measure BF now, but the mirror is telling me that fat is down.
-
Increased cardiovascular fitness from increased volume of CV activity and, presumably, from the increased carb intake.
-
More energy and increased alertness during the day.
-
Better sleep. For the past 3 years I’ve woken up virtually every night with major carb cravings. Over the past 10 nights I’ve slept through the night 8 times. This is a BIG DEAL for me!
Just thought I’d share the progress I’ve made so far incorporating JB and LL’s dietary recommendations into my lifestyle. It’s still early days but I’ll provide another progress report in a couple of weeks, if anyone’s interested.