Seeking advice
 

I have been following a LC diet - for the most part - since august. I achieved my desired weight loss within the first 8 weeks - and have recently begun to excercize.

I don't feel able to really get a good work out unless I load up on carbs - usually a nutrition bar of some sort, or a shake. I even had a corn muffin last week before working out - and that really helped me to have some stamina.

I'm not VERY concerned about my weight at this point - but I do feel better (I have reactive type hypoglycemia) when I avoid carbs -

What do other people do about excercize in terms of carbs/energy?

Thank you - this is my 1st post!

Linda

linda, congrats on reaching goal :) That must have felt great!

Increasing carbs when working out intensely is pretty tough to avoid. There are a few ways you can go about it.

One method is to increase carbs throughout the day with complex carbs - steel cut oats, sweet potatoes, whole yoghurt, fiberous fruits and some whole wheats or other grains. Another is to give yourself a 'hit' of high G.I. carb before you workout to get you through your workouts. This involves shakes with dextrose, or sports drinks (gatorade) or candy - skittles, smarties/ rockets etc. The aim is a rush of insulin to get you anabolic and building muscle - then you go back to eating LC for the rest of the day. (This is the theory behind a diet plan called the TKD - targeted ketogenic diet - and there's a forum you can check out called "CKD / BodyOpus" for more info).

If you're highly sensitive to carbs, and simple ones in particular, you might find the first method better suited to you. I have used both in my lifting / working out and use a mix of the two - higher carbs throughout the day with a sugar hit before and after I lift. It's working for me, but I do not have a problem with carbs - they don't set off binges for me, or make me crave more.

HTH
Nat