Carb`s... And Carb Cycling For Fat Loss

[Ski]

Carb`s... And Carb Cycling For Fat Loss
by Tim Wescott

When dieting for a bodybuilding contest, I use an arsenal of weapons to lose unsightly excess bodyfat. One of the dietary procedures I institute, is to cycle my carbs. Carbohydrates are used as energy by the body,they fuel our workots, as well as providing ample fuel to be used throughout the course of the day. Ingesting carbs also replenishes our glucose and glycogen stores to prevent fatigue.Carb cycling allows you to still eat carbs from clean sources, without adding bodyfat, and cycling enables you to better utilize fat for burning as fuel, as opposed to burning carbs and hard-earned muscle tissue for fuel.

Are Carbs The Evil Enemy ??

Carbs are not the evil villian the media makes them out to be. Improper carb timing can however, cause these carbs to be stored as fat. Carbs are not essential to the body, but they make dieting, and eating in general, a lot easier and more pleasureable... as long as the carbs are from the proper sources. Carbs get a bad rap in the news lately, due to people jumping on the proverbial bandwagon to make a buck off the latest trend in dieting.... low carbs! There are tons of low carb foods hitting the grocery stores daily,everything from bread, to potato chips,can now be found with a low carb label.
A few years back it was all about bashing fats....remember??
What will it be next year....protein? We`ll just have to wait and see I guess, but they`ll think of something.

Junk Carbs !!

Carbohydrates eaten in excess, or eaten at the wrong times, can help to add adipose tissue to the body, but they are not a bad thing if incorporated into a diet properly. Eat the majority of your carbs early in the day and at the post-workout meal,tapering off on them as the day goes on.Never eat carbs late at night,opt for protein instead. Sugar laden junk foods are always bad, and they are comprised mostly of carbs, and fat. In turn, they should have no place in a serious bodybuilders diet. If people eliminated, or cut down on junk food alone, they would lose a lot of weight, and look and feel much better for it. Quitting junk food however, is usually too much to ask for most people. Most junk food is simply calorie dense garbage, totally devoid of any nutrients.

When I devise a diet for a trainee ,the first step I implement is to have them cut back on junk gradually, until it is totally eliminated from the diet, except for the rare occasional treat. Once it`s gone from the diet, it`s usually not thought about again, except for the occasional craving. Eating junk food is a conditioned thing that can, and should be eliminated. In this article I will outline a plan that still allows you to eat healthy amounts of good carbs, and still lose fat in the process.

As I mentioned earlier, it`s not carbs that are the villian, but rather the type of carbs eaten, and the specific times that they are ingested. If you are indulging in junk food on a daily basis, then you will most likely get fatter. Another problem is eating carbs too close to bedtime, when your activity and expenditure of energy is lessened.This is not a mystery, and all that`s needed by the person looking to lose bodyfat is a lifestyle change !! Cut down on eating the crap, and you`ll be well on your way to better health,increased energy, and a leaner body.

The Proper Attitude !!

When talking to bodybuilder`s, and other`s that want to lose fat, or increase muscular definition for competition purposes, I often find a trend in their thinking that they can still eat things in moderate portions that are usually considered taboo, while on most diets. Terms like "refeed","cheat meal,"and "cheat day," almost always come up. These ideas can be used to your advantage, but in my opinion, you should wait until you are pretty close to aheiving your desired bodyfat % goals before even thinking about them at all. Yes folks, I`m an "old school" type of guy who will tell you right off the bat, that you MUST make some sacrifices, and give up all negative eating habits to acheive these goals if you want to succeed in losing fat or winning a contest!!

I typically diet down for bodybuilding contests acheiving approximately 3 - 5% bodyfat. Did I accomplish this while cheating and eating the occasional junk treat? My answer is a resounding NO. I suffered a bit here and there, but once I flip the switch in my mind to eat "clean" I do just that. There can be no half measures. You must get into the proper mindset and stay completely focused on acheiving your goals, if you screw around and cheat once, you will repeat this cheating again and again. I know this from early attempts at getting cut-up,and from experiences learned from training my clients. Remain steadfast on your mission to getting lean, and you most definately will.