What is your opinion on having 2 complex carb meals following a diet similar to your own. Beverly Nutrition recommends 2 carb ups one on Mon and Thurs nights. The meals are basically rice, oats(thats what they recommend i know you dont recommend), sweet potato, and a banana. Just wondering what your take was on it.
[quote]Kana wrote:
Coach, when the hell do you find time to hang out with your fiancee?
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She is in college (30 hours a week) and works as an assistant manager in a clothing store (30 hours a week) so she is just as busy as I am, so there is no guilt involved. We do have some alone time though, at least one day a week. 
[quote]Kana wrote:
I’m really looking forward to following your progress. Can you post some current pictures of your physique?
[/quote]
I’ll try. But I lost my old camera which had an automatic option; my new one doesn’t and I feel weird asking peoples around the gym to take pics of me.
[quote]Kana wrote:
I was reading your chest workout and was pretty surprised with the little amount of rest you need after putting out a set of low incline press and then the max swiss ball pushups. Is your chest completely fried after those 4 sets?
[/quote]
No, I’m a recovery freak … seriously. I always used very short rest intervals in my training. Even when I was competing in Olympic lifting I would rarely take more than 90 seconds between sets. I just built up my recovery capacity over the years.
BETA-7 also helps a lot in that department.
[quote]Kana wrote:
How do you prepare your turkey? Or could you point me in the direction of the recipe? This would be a perfect meal for me because I’m in sales and always in the car. Finding acceptable meals for me with my working conditions and schedule is my biggest challenge.
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To be honest I’ll be a big disappointment as I’m really not a gourmet! I eat all my food bland, without seasoning or special preparation. I HATE cooking!
[quote]matt_t2004 wrote:
What is your opinion on having 2 complex carb meals following a diet similar to your own. Beverly Nutrition recommends 2 carb ups one on Mon and Thurs nights. The meals are basically rice, oats(thats what they recommend i know you dont recommend), sweet potato, and a banana. Just wondering what your take was on it.[/quote]
NO!
It defeats the purpose of this type of dieting as even one “clean” carb-up meal will kick you out of ketosis and it may take 1-2 days to get back into it. Until you are in a state of ketosis you will crave carbs and have a hard time controlling your appetite if you cut carbohydrates.
I’m not saying that it won’t work. I always say that ANY training program will work provided that you are progressing every week.
The same is true for a diet… every diet will “work” as long as you are in a state of caloric deficit. However a low-carb diet WITHOUT being in ketosis is hard to handle physically and psychologically.
I once recommended the 2 carb-up meals per week (every 4th day) for VERY LEAN individuals (who thus don’t have to cut calories too much and can eat more food… less cravings) but in most cases it’s just making the whole process harder to stick to.
o whoops lol thats what i ment Metabolic Drive. I had a few more questions…Why dont you take any natural testosterone boosters?..Also I see in your siet you really dont eat too many vegtables, Why is that? And as far as strengh goes when your working out and cutting do you try and maintain msucle with little work or alot to preserve?
thanks alot
[quote]Christian Thibaudeau wrote:
matt_t2004 wrote:
What is your opinion on having 2 complex carb meals following a diet similar to your own. Beverly Nutrition recommends 2 carb ups one on Mon and Thurs nights. The meals are basically rice, oats(thats what they recommend i know you dont recommend), sweet potato, and a banana. Just wondering what your take was on it.
NO!
It defeats the purpose of this type of dieting as even one ‘‘clean’’ carb-up meal will kick you out of ketosis and it may take 1-2 days to get back into it. Until you are in a state of ketosis you will crave carbs and have a hard time controlling your appetite if you cut carbohydrates.
I’m not saying that it won’t work. I always say that ANY training program will work provided that you are progressing every week.
The same is true for a diet… every diet will ‘‘work’’ as long as you are in a state of caloric deficit. However a low-carbs diet WITHOUT being in ketosis is hard to handle physically and psychologically.
I once recommended the 2 carb-up meals per week (every 4th day) for VERY LEAN invididuals (who thus don’t have to cut calories too much and can eat more food… less cravings) but in most cases it’s just making the whole process harder to stick to.[/quote]
Thanks for the reply. This is exactly what I was thinking.
[quote]crod266 wrote:
o whoops lol thats what i ment metabolic. I had a few more questions…Why dont you take any natural testosterone boosters?..Also I see in your siet you really dont eat too many vegtables, Why is that? And as far as strengh goes when your working out and cutting do you try and maintain msucle with little work or alot to preserve?
thanks alot[/quote]
- VEGGIES … I don’t really like the taste. I used “Primal Greens” by Poliquin and now will use Superfood both of which provides all the essential nutrients found in veggies. Superfood also provides the essential elements from fruits.
Plus, I’m following a KETOGENIC DIET which means that I must cut carbs as low as humanly possible (at least below 50g per day and ideally less than 30g per day) to put the body in ketosis, a state in which the body relies primarily on fat for fuel.
While green veggies provide little carbs, it is easy to go above the 30g per day by eating other veggies, even in small amounts, especially considering the trace carbs from the protein powder and peanut butter.
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NATURAL TEST BOOSTERS … it is my opinion that supplements should be added in gradually as they become needed. It is a mistake to throw in everything all at once. For now my test levels a fine since the dieting hasn’t affected my endocrine status.
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My training varies. One constant is that I always strive to AT LEAST maintain strength but my goal is really to increase it, that’s the surest way to maintain muscle mass. As for the volume, it varies depending on my physiological state. It is normally higher at the beginning of the diet when my body is not yet in panic mode and when I don’t do cardio yet.
ok thanks alot for all of your answers
Hi Coach
What is the reason of include the second exercice with max reps or speed reps?
[quote]Antoine Castillo wrote:
Hi Coach
What is the reason of include the second exercice with max reps or speed reps? [/quote]
Read my book “High Threshold Muscle Building” and you’ll get your answer. 
Ok, ok … here’s the section of the book explaining this type of training:
Introduction
I first discussed high-speed metabolic work in 2003 in an article I wrote for T-Nation.com titled “Superman sets.” The basic premise of this method was, and still is, to perform as much physical work as possible during a set time frame. With this type of training very fast reps with a relatively light source of resistance (free-weight or elastic resistance) is the preferred approach. The objective is to perform as many complete reps as possible in the time frame prescribed by the program. This method fits right in with the high-threshold training mentality since explosiveness, speed and power are emphasized. Just like with the “regular” strength exercises, during superman sets/high-speed metabolic work movement speed will eventually decrease as fatigue sets in. However it is the intent to accelerate that remains paramount to the success of this method.
Why high-speed reps?
Metabolic work should emphasize speed reps because these will put more strain on the fast-twitch fibers/HTMUs. Even the recruited and stimulated mixed fibers will tend to adapt to this type of training by changing their profile towards a fast-twitch one. HTMUs also tend to rely mostly on glucose for fuel. This source of energy leads to an acidification of the blood and muscle which stimulates the release of growth hormone. As you probably know, growth hormone can both stimulate muscle growth and fat loss. While a transient hormonal stimulation isn’t going to have the same effect as using exogenous chemicals, over the long-term it can play a significant role in stimulating a positive change in body composition. Simply look at the physique of athletes who compete in sports revolving around performing a lot of work in a short period of time (sprints, speed skating, jumping events, gymnastics, etc.) and you’ll see that, on average, they are the leanest and most muscular group around (without even trying to get these kind of results). So when doing metabolic work in the gym, the emphasis should be on performing as many speed reps as possible within a time frame that can lead to a significant elevation in blood acidity/lactate. Also remember that moving fast burns more energy than moving slowly. Take a car engine for example: it will burn more fuel running at 7000RPM than when running at 3000RPM. So for the same time frame, fast movements will use more calories than slower ones, which is the primary objective of metabolic sets.
What set duration should we use?
When using metabolic work with muscle growth and fat loss in mind the set duration should allow for the use of a moderate weigh, lifted at high speed and while inducing an increase in lactate production. Sets of less than 20 seconds should be ruled out because these will rely mostly on the phosphagen energy system (ATP and creatine phosphate) which doesn’t lead to a significant elevation of blood lactate. Sets lasting longer than 60 seconds should also be ruled out because, since the HTMUs are not fatigue-resistant, it will be impossible to maintain a high rate of work for that duration and you will have to use a lighter load to complete the set. While the load used is not of prime importance with metabolic work, it still plays a role in stimulating positive adaptations. So it should be evident that the ideal set duration is between 20 and 60 seconds. Anecdotally I found that sets of 30-40 seconds produce the best results with metabolic work. So I do recommend this as a “baseline” time range. Shorter (20-30 seconds) and longer (40-60 seconds) sets can also be used from time to time, as a change of pace. Shorter sets being better suited for maximum growth phases and longer ones for fat loss phases.
What type of resistance should we use?
In my original “Superman sets” article I recommended using free-weights for timed sets. While these can still be used effectively, I find that an elastic source of resistance (e.g. elastic tubing with two handles) provides better results than free-weights. Why? Because it allows you to take advantage of the high-speed execution more so than the free-weights. With free-weights you must decelerate during a very important portion of the movement, this is done as a reflex to protect the joints from a ballistic shock; the faster you move, the more time you’ll spend decelerating (and the less time you’ll spend accelerating) because you’ll need a longer breaking distance. This is not what we want! The elastic source of resistance acts as a break: the more you stretch it, the more resistance it provides. So the elastic tubing will do most of the deceleration job for you. As a result your nervous system will spend more time trying to accelerate. The elastic bands also allow you to return to the starting position faster, increasing the possible rate of work. Finally the tubing allows you to modify the resistance used during a set as fatigue sets in. When movement speed starts to slow down you can walk back so that the tubing will not be stretched as much, decreasing the amount of resistance and allowing you to maintain a high rate of work. As you can see, elastic tubing clearly is the superior choice of training equipment for metabolic work. However free-weights can still be used if no tubing is available to you.
How to use it?
While timed sets/metabolic work can be used as a stand-alone exercise, the greatest benefits are reached when it is supersetted with a regular lifting movement. For example after performing a set of incline dumbbell press you can move on to a low-position alternate punching metabolic movement. This type of training is incredibly effective at stimulating muscle growth, fat loss and power gains.
Key points
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When performing timed sets/metabolic work you should emphasize speed of movement above all else.
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When gaining size is your primary objective you should use sets of either 30-40 seconds or 20-30 seconds.
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When losing fat is your primary objective you should use sets of either 30-40 seconds or 40-60 seconds.
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An elastic resistance is superior to free-weights for high-speed metabolic work.
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To get the most out of metabolic work, superset it with a regular lifting exercise. This is especially effective during a fat loss phase.
Hi CT, how you reintroduce carbs into your diet and how long it take ? Going from “balanced” diet to keto-diet is relative easy, but the inverse isn´t that easy.
Thibs,
are you going to switch out Charles’ Primal Greens supp for Superfood or use both?
Do you believe the whole thing about testosterone lowering herbs in greens supps?
[quote]TAVARES88 wrote:
Hi CT, how you reintroduce carbs into your diet and how long it take ? Going from “balanced” diet to keto-diet is relative easy, but the inverse isn´t that easy.
[/quote]
I answered this not long ago in “The Thib Zone.”
[quote]RitesOfSpring wrote:
Thibs,
are you going to switch out Charles’ Primal Greens supp for Superfood or use both?
Do you believe the whole thing about testosterone lowering herbs in greens supps?[/quote]
A) I’ll switch. Or at the worse alternate both on a 2 weeks schedule.
B) Maybe, maybe not. I know that some herbs can indeed affect sex hormones (test, estrogen) but I don’t know the extent and/or significance of it.
Hi Coach:
Without carbs, you´ll feel flat during the week until your refill day. This time, Do you not use glycerol in any moment of your plan?
CT,
Why did you go for 18 months without carbs? You couldn’t have been cutting for that long. I ask this because you ate a lot of carbs during your recent mass gaining phase.
im just curious why dont you use Surge post workout? I realize what kind of diet your on but alot of the experts on T-Nation say you can take in carbs pwo
[quote]crod266 wrote:
im just curious why dont you use Surge post workout? I realize what kind of diet your on but alot of the experts on T-Nation say you can take in carbs pwo[/quote]
You can take in carbs post-workout when you are on a diet. But not when you are on a KETOGENIC DIET. Any significant amount of carbs consumed at one time (more than 20-30g) or consuming more than 40-50g per day total will kick you out of ketosis. It’s not that it totally ruins the fat loss efficacy of the diet, but that it makes it much harder psychologically: when you are in ketosis you don’t crave carbs and your hunger is blunted. If you get out of ketosis and then cut your carbs, the time it takes to reestablish ketosis (anywhere from 1 to 3 days) are basically hell on earth.
[quote]mwyatt wrote:
CT,
Why did you go for 18 months without carbs? You couldn’t have been cutting for that long. I ask this because you ate a lot of carbs during your recent mass gaining phase.[/quote]
NOW I can consume more carbs when trying to gain size because I spent years at a low bodyfat. But the first time I got defined, my setpoint was still high (18% or so). Until my setpoint adjusts downward, any significant amount of carbs made me gain fat.
It is basically the fact that I spent 18 months without carbs that allowed me to be able to eat carbs afterwards.
And no, I wasn’t dieting down to lose fat the whole time. I did have several periods of caloric excess, without increasing carbs.
[quote]Antoine Castillo wrote:
Hi Coach:
Without carbs, you´ll feel flat during the week until your refill day. This time, Do you not use glycerol in any moment of your plan?[/quote]
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Glycerol can kick you out of ketosis. Not a bad thing if you are merely following a low-carbs diet; but a bad one if you are trying to stay in ketosis.
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I have not felt flat yet. Why try to solve a problem that is not there yet. If anything I’m fuller now. I attribute this to increasing my consumption of good fats as well as my sodium and potassium intake. Numerous studies have shown that potassium depletion is one of the problems with low-carb diets and electrolyte imbalances might be partly responsible for muscle flatness.
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I am WAAAAAAAYYYYYY past the psychological need to feel full. I dieted for a lot of contests and know the feeling of being flat and it doesn’t bother me anymore.
I’ve been doing some interesting stuff regarding capsaicin (red pepper extract). It would seem to be a pretty good thing to add to a fat loss phase, especally in the later stages.
Studies have shown that capsaicin:
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Increases fat oxidation (use of fat for fuel) (Lejeune et al. 2003) especially when following a low-carbs/high-fat diet (Yoshida et al. 1998)
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Increases satiety (you feel full faster) when taken 30-90 min. before meals and thus reduces hunger and food intake. Only oral supplementation of capsaicin works as other form sometimes show the opposite! This is probably because capsaicin decreases appetite due to sensory factors (Westerterp et al. 2005)
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Lowers bad cholesterol and increases good cholesterol and seem to have powerful antioxydant properties
The effective oral dose seems to be in the 3mg/kg of bodyweight range per intake.