Hi all,

I was wondering if there is a recommended amount of carbs to be injested for different scenarios(cutting and bulking) as there is for calories(over and under maintenance value)?

I googled it and didnt get a straight answer at all but the general rule of thumb was calories/8

Thanks
Ciaran

There is not just one diet that everyone agrees on.

My calories are= 20-25% fat, protein grams are a little over my bodyweight in lbs. (I'm about 190 and I get 200 or so grams protein), and the rest are carbs.

Since I have a very high metabolism that means well over 50% of my calories are from carbs

Yup, this was of huge concern for me too (still is but I have a better idea now). You kind of have to figure out how "carb sensitive" you are.

Speaking personally, I never had a problem with "carbs". As long as I was eating "under" my Maintenance Calories (deficit), I could eat carbs at any time and even before bed. And, I dropped well over 30 pounds. To this very day, I dont concern myself with carbs when on a tradional deficit diet. I do concern myself with them for Pre and Post workout reasons, however.

It is quite common for me to eat two servings of oatmeal before bed when deficiting, and then get up in the AM and do cardio (like last night and this morning). As long as the calories are right, weight comes off (when we are talking the bulk of loss).

I "generally" like to eat the big "three" with each meal, unless its a pre and post workout meal, where I tend to eliminate fat intake (or severely reduce with these two type of meals) and focus more on recovery (etc). Therefore I get my good fat intake at other times during the day.

In my view, carbs are important and are not one to fear on traditional diets. They are your friend, unless you are one of the few who are sensative. Carbs arfe the "main" and preferred source of fuel, and since a deficit diet creates an energy shortage, I just make sure I get them and let the calorie v exercise ratio take care of the rest.

With "most" persons its generally a calorie in v calorie out issue: Above all this is the most important in my opinion.

In your quest, your going to get a wealth of information and opinions. Decipher through it, and then take off with something that makes sense and stick with it. Find out what works for "you".

Best wishes to you!


KEEP ROCKEN YOURSELF. Wish you the best of luck in all that you set out to do.



Chillen

And I find I do better if I carb cycle and keep the majority of my carbs for workouts. I also try to not eat carbs close to bedtime as they keep me up.

Like Chillen said it's more of a personal thing.

Cheers for that guys! Its something I've really no idea about(I'm really new to this but I can see myself getting addicted)

The reason I brought it up was tha Atkins diet(I have no plans to even thinking about even reading about it) and they cut out all carbs to lose weight. I'm looking to cut for the next couple of weeks and then bulk until June(get that beach body) I'm going to throw up a few photos after Christmas, more than anything so I can keep a record myself for those days where "God I still look the same 8 weeks on"

Thanks for your help!

So ciarzy_boy what are you finally gonna do? Limit your carbs?

Well I've decided to track everything on fitday, calories, protein fat and carbs and then monitor what happens! Hopefully I'll have abs by the end of it all

Greetings,
As you seen, this is something that is differant for each person regardless to what science may have you think! You should write down what your eating and figure this out for you. With me, I use to have it dialed in well, I Knew if I was to eat any amount of any given food on my diet, that by the next morning I would of gained or lost xxx amount of weight! In some cases, I needed to cut the protein down and increase my carbs to lose weight for a weigh-in. No starch!!! just veggies!!! Now, this is me! You are going to need to find what is going to work for you!
God Bless,
Franklin McQuaid

I would be interested if you could clarify why "any amount of any given food in your diet, leads you to believe that basically overnight you gain weight". What are "your" calories like for your personal particulars? What methods of action are you doing to determine whether this is actually tissue weight gain or temporary water weight. When do you weigh yourself, etc.

And your rationale, in why you reduce protein and increase carbs to lose weight. What sort of calorie deficits do you allow?

I didnt want your post hanging the way it was for the OP. It needs additional clarification.




Best wishes to you my friend,



Chillen

Chillen I rememmber you saying that you only eat up to 50g of carbs daily whilst cutting no? OR am I confusing things here? because right now im bulking and i am trying to get a lot of info for cutting because everywhere I look it seems like a different story from different people.

Yes, you are confusing two things: 1. The bulk of my weight loss (over 30 pounds) was through a normal deficit diet and exercise routine (weight training for the large majority, and then later cardio), and 2. When my body fat percentage hovered around 10%, the fat loss slowed and the last portion became very difficult to lose (remember this is fat that has been there for a very long time), and after 3 months of working with defict calorie diet v exercise ratios--and no success, I decided to give a low-carb approach a shot, and this proved to be a sucessful attempt, and I dropped my BF around 8%.

I spent 3 months trying to remedy this situation with everything I had in me, and it did not prove successful. In a matter of about 3 weeks (with me, approximately), I accomplished my goal, that previously I had tried to master in three months.

After this, I went on a Maintain weight diet specific to my personal particulars, as my goal had been reached.


EDIT: The bottom line: You are going to get alot of personal success stories, information, etc. One has to sort through it, and stick with something---long enough--to see if it will work, and then try something else, if it doesnt.

Trial and error. There "many ways" to skin a cat. It is possible a more traditional deficit diet v exercise (appropriate combination) would have worked in replace of the low carb diet. However, it so happens, this came along as the (4th attempt) among other "options" I could have tried.


ROCK WITH TRIAL AND ERROR.....LEARN FROM IT!.......ROCK ON FROM IT.......BE AT YOU BEST, BABY!



Best regards,


Chillen

To add, Snorkles:

Try not to confuse yourself too much in your journey. Yes, arm yourself with all the information you can, no doubt.

It is "possible" that just applying some "Basics" of deficit dieting and applying some "Basic" weight training techniques, is all that you will need to "cut" when the time comes. Try this this first, IMO. If within the goal path, this proves not to be the case, then pull from your stored information, and try something different until something does in fact work.

This is all that I have ever done: I learned, applied, adapted and adjusted, to body feed back based on trial and error. One of the many keys were: Persistance.


ROCK ON!



Chillen

Since this is a Thread on Carbs, I "popped" a "chill pill" and I-be-chillen in providing the "brotha and sista's" some info:

The Human Brain - Carbohydrates

What are Carbohydrates?

What You Need to Know Before You Start a Low Carbohydrate Diet
(and other info)

Carbohydrates
(this one may be a tad over-kill for the average person)

=============================================

Some info on Protein:

John Berardi - Protein Super Feature

Everything you need to know about protein

Protein: Nutrition Source, Harvard School of Public Health

Free Exercises, Fitness Equipment, Customized Workout, Fitness Programs, Fitness Articles, Beauty Fitness, Weight Loss, Weight Training, Diet Plans
=============================================

Some info on Fats:

What You Need to Know about Fat and Your Family's Diet - Family Articles - Kaboose.com


Fats 101: How to tell Good Fats and Bad Fats


Fats, Fish Oil and Omega-3-Fatty Acids - Cholesterol Information Produced by Doctors For Patients Experiencing High Cholesterol Levels

(and other GOOD info)

Fat

================================================

Enjoy! Hope this assists at least one person! ROCK ON!

I wish everyone well each and every day.


Be proud. Stand proud. Embrace your personal power. Knock down any adversity in your way. See your goal. Earn your goal. BE YOUR GOAL! YOU CAN DO IT! BE TOUGH!

ROCK ON!------>ROCK ON!------>ROCK ON!--------KEEP ROCKEN on toward your goals, baby!


Best wishes to you all!



Chillen

thanks chillen. its clear now. I must have had the same situation as yourself since I dropped to 11% BF but hovered there for 2-3 months despitecalorie defeciting everyday. my abs were visible but not just how I wanted them. next cut I will try your approach. thanks again