Carb.sensitivity = Insulin Resistant?

[georgiehopper]

This is kind of a spin off post from another post.

The PT I'm working with says after several weeks of adjusting my diet ratios, he feels that I'm carb sensitive. When he added more carbs into the diet I gained everything back within a week. I had lost 2 pounds the week before.

My gaining trend is continuing this week too.

After doing lots of reading it seems to me that carb. sensitivity is really insulin resistance.

What bothers me is I was just tested 2 weeks ago and my tests came back normal for blood sugar, etc.

Also I am reading that insulin resistance/carb sensitivity is caused by eating too many refined carbs, sugar, etc.

Well for 2 years, I have had essentially zero refined carbs. No white potatoes other than splurge maybe once a month... no refined bread..all whole grain, sprouted grains, stevia sweetener, etc.

So....can you still be "carb sensitive" eventhough your diet has been very clean for 2 years??

Or are carb sensitivity and insulin resistance two different things?

[freebirdmac]

How many grams of carbs were you consuming before? If you were eating low carb for awhile there will be a bounce back but it subsides in a few weeks. I doubt you're really insulin resistant. Your body is just responding to additional carbs by holding water. The best way to deal with it is keep eating carbs at the higher level.

[georgiehopper]

How many grams of carbs were you consuming before? If you were eating low carb for awhile there will be a bounce back but it subsides in a few weeks. I doubt you're really insulin resistant. Your body is just responding to additional carbs by holding water. The best way to deal with it is keep eating carbs at the higher level.

The 1st week I was at 101 grams and I lost 2 pounds. the 2nd week I was at 170 grams and the 3rd week at 170 grams. I gained 3 pounds and 1/2" on my waist and an 1/2" on the thigh.

Calories were at 1525 for the three weeks.

I was hungry and became constipated the 1st week... it went away at the end of that week.

I was hungrier during the 2nd week, no irregularity though.
3rd week, I lost my appetite and started feeling very bloated and low energy. He also added more fat to my diet in the form of walnuts, which gave me some stomach upset.

He is supposed to make another change starting Monday. He says I am carb sensitive.

[freebirdmac]

Phooey. You're not carb sensitive, you gained water weight that will go away. Your trainer should know that.

That said, 170g while leaning out is too much. Why did he bump you back up? I assume he dropped your protein.

[georgiehopper]

Phooey. You're not carb sensitive, you gained water weight that will go away. Your trainer should know that.

That said, 170g while leaning out is too much. Why did he bump you back up? I assume he dropped your protein.

Yes, he dropped the protein from 190 grams which was gross, down to 125 grams. In his defense, I have to say I've been bad about the water intake and barely make 8 glasses a day.. he's been upset by that.

By the way, thanks for replying on Christmas day!! Happy Holidays to you.

[freebirdmac]

150-160g grams would probably suit you fine. Then you could drop the carbs back down and still get in a good 43g or so of good fats. When you bring carbs back up you can do so in stages. That can help with the bloating. Aside from occasional refeeds. But don't fret. That isn't fat you gained.

Merry Christmas to you as well!!

[georgiehopper]

150-160g grams would probably suit you fine. Then you could drop the carbs back down and still get in a good 43g or so of good fats. When you bring carbs back up you can do so in stages. That can help with the bloating. Aside from occasional refeeds. But don't fret. That isn't fat you gained.

Merry Christmas to you as well!!

His main reason for the changes so far is to get a "baseline" on me...he wanted to see how I reacted to the higher protein and then the higher carbs... I guess it's been a bit of an experiment.

He also dropped my protein a bit because my cholesterol went over 200 on the high protein... I lean towards high cholesterol...even without eating high fats, egg yolks, dairy, etc. He wants me to eat an ounce of walnuts per day, but they are giving me stomach distress!

[freebirdmac]

Heh. To assess a diet it takes 3 or more weeks. You can't learn anything based on one week.

You did cholesterol checks at the end of each week? Were they fasted? Did you get an HDL/LDL breakdown? Protein from whey, chicken, and tuna shouldn't cause an LDL spike. Red meat can.

[georgiehopper]

Heh. To assess a diet it takes 3 or more weeks. You can't learn anything based on one week.

You did cholesterol checks at the end of each week? Were they fasted? Did you get an HDL/LDL breakdown? Protein from whey, chicken, and tuna shouldn't cause an LDL spike. Red meat can.

The cholesterol check was something that had been planned by my doctor weeks before.. the appointment for the blood work just happened to fall a week after I started the high protein.

There was no redmeat, I never eat redmeat, no egg yolks, ..nothing that would normally spike the cholesterol. Prior to starting with the PT, my fat intake was less than 27grams per day or around 15%.
You can imagine how upset I was when I was told my total cholesterol was 235. It was after a 12 hour fast. LDL was too high, HDL was good, triglycerides were good.

Burns me up because the Dr. office just assumed I was eating Big Macs and a typical high fat american diet. They told me to start a "low fat" diet. I've been low fat for years...since my 20s when my cholesterol was 300.

The only thing I could imagine the problem being from is A: heredity (strokes run on my mother's side from clogged carotoid arteries) and B: all the chicken I was eating. Other than that, I don't know.. the lowest my cholesterol have ever been was 200 and that was from taking a polycosanol supplement which I have started using again. The doctor is talking Crestor or one of those blasted statins...and I refuse.

[freebirdmac]

It's not the chicken. Heredity can render any diet useless in reducing cholesterol. My mom is an example. Menopause can also cause a jump. I don't think it comes back down either. I don't blame you about the statins, however I'll bet money you'll have no other option. Research the ones out there and pick one to try. My mom is sure happy on hers.

[georgiehopper]

It's not the chicken. Heredity can render any diet useless in reducing cholesterol. My mom is an example. Menopause can also cause a jump. I don't think it comes back down either. I don't blame you about the statins, however I'll bet money you'll have no other option. Research the ones out there and pick one to try. My mom is sure happy on hers.

I am not so sure about it being impossible to bring down.. my sister is 53 and her cholesterol was 280. She incorporated lots of oatmeal into her diet, which is one thing I didn't do and she was able to bring hers down to 170. Initially the dr. wanted her on statins too and she refused. The doctor was really surprised at what she did..but she also had 80 pounds to lose. So... I'm gonna try the oatmeal, polycosanol, and some other natural cholesterol blockers and see what happens.

[imsotheman]

Realize when you add a certain food.. generally one gets taken away to make up for the caloric balance.

ex: if I add oatmeal, chances are I took out something else I normally would eat in that meal.

Secondly, remember that your body does hold food in your gut. it takes between 3 and 4 weeks to really assess a diet. Also remember genetics plays a large roll in your sensitivity, but it seems like above poster has all your bases covered so ill just shut up.

[Emma-Leigh]

The above is correct - cholesterol is largely familial... Although diet and lifestyle do contribute, it is not so much dietary cholesterol that plays a part - rather it is excess calories, saturated fats, HFCS etc....

Also -->>
http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showpo...1&postcount=15
http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showth...hp?t=120943951

[virtualgrace]

I get frustrated when I read comments that say that people can't possibly put on real pounds from adding carbs back in and what they are experiencing is only water weight. After a disastrous 3 year stint with the HCG (BLANKETY) Diet, I became so carb sensitive that I would put on 7 lbs from a potato. Water weight you say? Not so! In 8 months I've gained 100 lbs that has never gone away. Even when cutting out the carbs, the weight stays. My diet is very moderate. Mostly protein, no fruit, no dairy except for cheese and butter. I don't have sugar and I rarely eat carbs because of the extraordinary gain.

I would give anything to find an intelligent and educated person who could tell me what in the world is going wrong in my body and then help me fix it. Now that I'm 278 lbs, I don't have much hope that this will happen. People just keep spewing the same tired, "This is only water weight, no one can gain that much weight from what you are eating" advice that everyone else said. No one seems able to explain why my body is so out of control. Doctors put me on carb restricted diets to "reset" my metabolism, and my carb sensitivity starts all over again. After finally getting to the point where I was only gaining 5 lbs a month from food, I am back to gaining crazy weight from carbs after cutting them out for a month and a half. Here I am, gaining 8 lbs in 2 days from having some Doritos 2 days ago.

Just because other people have spewed the, "You can only gain a pound of fat from this many calories" nonsense, doesn't make it true. I'm living proof of this unfortunate fact.

[sonti]

N=1 doesn't make fact.

How do you figure you can create 7lbs of actual body fat from a 150 gram (medium, on average) potato.

Now, I`m not a scientist, I admit, but I struggle with that concept.

One thing is for sure, I do agree that you`ve really screwed up your body, but .... really.

[virtualgrace]

Well obviously it's either that or I've got 100 lbs of water and am a living, breathing waterbed! I should be sloshing when I walk!

[virtualgrace]

Oh yes, and the fact that diuretics don't work, the weight doesn't fluctuate back down again, only up, and water weight isn't that consistent. No way is this 100 lbs of water. Sorry.

[kimm4]

Well obviously it's either that or I've got 100 lbs of water and am a living, breathing waterbed! I should be sloshing when I walk!

If you've gained 100 lbs, it's because you overeat in calories period. The carbs have nothing to do with it.

[rockangel]

Oh yes, and the fact that diuretics don't work, the weight doesn't fluctuate back down again, only up, and water weight isn't that consistent. No way is this 100 lbs of water. Sorry.

If you've gained 100 lbs, it's because you overeat in calories period. The carbs have nothing to do with it.

I agree with kimm, you over eat period. When you went on the HCG diet, at 500 cals a day, you basically told your body to drop weight, any weight, because it was in a "famine" situation. This meant that you 1) didn't learn how to eat properly (portions, healthy foods, how to cook and make appropriate meals in a healthy manner)..and 2.) didn't change any of your thinking in terms of health.

Then you stopped doing the HCG diet at some point, with less muscle more than likely, you resumed old eating patterns, you don't mention any exercise in your rants... you don't mention calorie levels either.... which says to me, you haven't paid attention to it.

You gave up, you over ate, you are not carb sensitive....

You want to lose 100 lbs, then get on an appropriate cal level, get your body moving, and take control of your own life and stop giving excuses.

If you find the above doesn't work, then go to an actual doctor, have them run blood work and check your thyroid among other things and actively seek out a reason other than chalking it up to "im carb sensitive".

[oregonchick76]

I get frustrated when I read comments that say that people can't possibly put on real pounds from adding carbs back in and what they are experiencing is only water weight. After a disastrous 3 year stint with the HCG (BLANKETY) Diet, I became so carb sensitive that I would put on 7 lbs from a potato. Water weight you say? Not so! In 8 months I've gained 100 lbs that has never gone away. Even when cutting out the carbs, the weight stays. My diet is very moderate. Mostly protein, no fruit, no dairy except for cheese and butter. I don't have sugar and I rarely eat carbs because of the extraordinary gain.

I would give anything to find an intelligent and educated person who could tell me what in the world is going wrong in my body and then help me fix it. Now that I'm 278 lbs, I don't have much hope that this will happen. People just keep spewing the same tired, "This is only water weight, no one can gain that much weight from what you are eating" advice that everyone else said. No one seems able to explain why my body is so out of control. Doctors put me on carb restricted diets to "reset" my metabolism, and my carb sensitivity starts all over again. After finally getting to the point where I was only gaining 5 lbs a month from food, I am back to gaining crazy weight from carbs after cutting them out for a month and a half. Here I am, gaining 8 lbs in 2 days from having some Doritos 2 days ago.

Just because other people have spewed the, "You can only gain a pound of fat from this many calories" nonsense, doesn't make it true. I'm living proof of this unfortunate fact.

If you have gained 100lbs of FAT, you have eaten 350,000 calories in EXCESS of your daily expenditures.

You are living proof that people have a very low awareness of what they are eating. You are not some physics-defying freak of nature who puts on fat from breathing air...

[virtualgrace]

I'm sorry but I have to say I find your replies very ignorant. You do not question what I am eating, or what my calorie intake is, you simply make assumptions. If you think someone is eating enough calories to gain 7 pounds in one day, then bless your hearts.

Thank you for your kindhearted replies and interest in my situation. I can clearly see I'm in the wrong place for an educated discussion.

[sonti]

I'm sorry but I have to say I find your replies very ignorant. You do not question what I am eating, or what my calorie intake is, you simply make assumptions. If you think someone is eating enough calories to gain 7 pounds in one day, then bless your hearts.

Thank you for your kindhearted replies and interest in my situation. I can clearly see I'm in the wrong place for an educated discussion.

It's not a 'discussion' if you state things as if they were fact and then refuse to answer anyone when they ask a genuine question. I genuinely would like to know, how on earth do you claim that you gained 7lbs of fat by eating a 100-200 gram potato???? HOW?

[kimm4]

I'm sorry but I have to say I find your replies very ignorant. You do not question what I am eating, or what my calorie intake is, you simply make assumptions. If you think someone is eating enough calories to gain 7 pounds in one day, then bless your hearts.

Thank you for your kindhearted replies and interest in my situation. I can clearly see I'm in the wrong place for an educated discussion.

What is there to discuss? You're at the weight you are because you overeat...it's not rocket science.

My best advise, put your fork down and get a grip.

[birdiefu]

Perhaps it's all the cheese and butter and everything else that is taken in along with the carbs? And I can gain 8-10 lb in 24 hours, and no it's not fat.

You would not believe the amount of people who come on here asking "why am I gaining weight, I eat so CLEAN", and so on. The few that actually take the advice to weigh everything thing they put into their mouth to the gram and track it all come to realize that they were taking in more *calories* (this is what determines body mass gain/loss) than they thought. And guess what? Once they track foods appropriately and adjust their calories, they *gasp* lose that stubborn weight. We are not as special as we think - our bodies all obey the laws of physics.

You are in total denial if you can blame 100 pounds of weight gain on poor, defenseless carbs.

[womaninthewoods]

Is the HCG diet the 500 calorie one? If you did this for three years, I'd think your body is going to be a freaking fat storing machine for a while, in case it is faced with a similar situation again. We are really good at staying alive. So I'd expect to gain faster than "normal". I gained insanely fast when I quit crash dieting. I agree with the above posters.. math is math... you can't create 100 lbs without an excess of calories. How long did you follow the doctor's reset diet?

[rockangel]

Is the HCG diet the 500 calorie one? If you did this for three years, I'd think your body is going to be a freaking fat storing machine for a while, in case it is faced with a similar situation again. We are really good at staying alive. So I'd expect to gain faster than "normal". I gained insanely fast when I quit crash dieting. I agree with the above posters.. math is math... you can't create 100 lbs without an excess of calories. How long did you follow the doctor's reset diet?

Yep, HCG is the 500 cal one, its also been banned by the FDA and is illegal to use for fat loss now. HCG can now only b prescribed by a doc and only for female infertility.
I mean, do you know how bad a diet has to be before the FDA will step in and make it illegal??? You would think this would clue people in...

The last time I spoke with someone on this diet, she decided that her 500 cal limit would be taken completely in beer, so no food for the day just beer. so yeah, excuse me if I don't think people learn how to eat correctly while on a 500 cal a day diet believeing that a female fertility drug will make you skinny.

[Echo814]

I'm sorry but I have to say I find your replies very ignorant. You do not question what I am eating, or what my calorie intake is, you simply make assumptions. If you think someone is eating enough calories to gain 7 pounds in one day, then bless your hearts.

Thank you for your kindhearted replies and interest in my situation. I can clearly see I'm in the wrong place for an educated discussion.

Do you even know how the human metabolism works?

[SuperMomx4]

Do you even know how the human metabolism works?

Holy crap that picture is funny

[oregonchick76]

I'm sorry but I have to say I find your replies very ignorant. You do not question what I am eating, or what my calorie intake is, you simply make assumptions. If you think someone is eating enough calories to gain 7 pounds in one day, then bless your hearts.

Thank you for your kindhearted replies and interest in my situation. I can clearly see I'm in the wrong place for an educated discussion.

We absolutely do not need to know WHAT you have been eating, only that you have gained 100lbs. Clearly you do not understand how this whole thing works - otherwise you wouldn't have gained 100lbs. It doesn't matter if you eat bags of sugar and sticks of butter, or existed solely off celery sticks - if you eat MORE than you burn, you gain weight. If you eat LESS than you burn, you lose weight. You have not gained 7lbs of fat in any one day unless you were eating with a shovel. The body does not store fat unless there is a surplus of calories, and it takes a surplus of 3500 calories for the body to make a pound of fat.

Well, there's 60 seconds I'll never get back...