Hi there!

I'm new to LC-ing, or rather, I've half-heartedly followed a LC approach in spring after which I went travelling (and also cycle-touring) for 3 months in Brazil during which I was almost submerged in carbs.

When I came back a good friend told me about her great results with body building and how she was now using an ABCDE diet with bulking and cutting phases.
She got me enthusiastic again to try a more radical approach to LC-ing.
So, I've been consuming 20 grams of carbs or less/day for the past 2 weeks and am now in ketosis.
However... unlike her, I'm essentially a cyclist, and from March-August a long-distance one too.
In winter I habitually put on amazing amounts of weight, the swings are much larger than they used to be when I didn't cycle as much (approx. 10.000 km/year). Due to an injury I went back to 85 kg this year, while I should be weighing 65 kg with my height.

So, as of this week, I am trying to maintain cycling fitness by spinning twice a week (or 3 times) and will also go back to weight training according to the BFL principle (I hope)..

Which diet would fit best for my goals? As said, I'm essentially a long distance cyclist in summer, but used to be a hibernating bear in winter.. I enjoy weight training though!

Fietser (cyclist)

Maybe a TKD style diet would work well for you, Fiester. If you go to lyle mcdonald's site you can order his book there. It contains information on SKD, TKD and CKD.... each has it's place, depending on your workout schedule, etc. I'm sure if you do a search on this board you'll find tons of information as well. Also try the sticky about CKD 101.

http://www.theketogenicdiet.com/

Good luck!

I suppose the sticky will tell me what TKD is.. is it a daily carbo-load as opposed to a weekly one?

Like take in a bag of Skittles before working out...

I'll find out!

Fietser

Fiester:

The sticky is really more about CKD, but it might give you some insight of overall refeeding. TKD (Targeted Ketogenic Dieting) is focused primarily around your workout....but I don't want to try and give you specific info on that yet because I've not really studied that so much in the book. I can't say WHAT kind of carbs would be ideal for that----but if you start a new thread about TKD and advice I'm sure you'll get lots of feedback.

Jallah, I checked the FAQ on low carbing at

http://low-carb.org/faq/#Q2_3
and it answered the questions perfectly: supposedly maltodextrin is regarded as a good energy source. Though I don't really understand why fructose is not, I love fruit!
Do Maltezers contain maltodextrin? They are like chocolate covered somethings, the something could be that stuff.. But Skittles are now sold here as well.

I'm thinking that for now the CKD would work OK for me since I am not riding all that much in winter (though it is a 28 km round trip to the gym) but TKD seems a better idea in spring and summer, when at times I ride 20 hours on end. I will need to investigate nutrition for the mega-ride I'm planning to participate in next year (1200K in 90 hrs).
Why CKD and not TKD? I'm not very bothered by underperforming in the end of the week. But most of all, I'm afraid that I'll not have sufficient self-control to keep that daily dose of carbs limited to the pre- or postworkout meal/snack and go overboard on other carbs. A weekend binge sounds like a much better idea!

Fietser, who's getting used to eating this much protein every day.


2.2: What is a "CKD"?

A: CKD stands for Cyclical Ketogenic Diet, a generic term for a diet that restricts carbohydrates to induce a metabolic state known as ketosis and includes a period of high carbohydrate eating to replenish glycogen stores depleted by exercise. CKDs were originally designed for competitive bodybuilders. While most low carb diets focus on the control of insulin, the explicit goal of a CKD is insulin and hormonal manipulation. That is, using a period of ketosis to induce fat burning and ingesting a large amount of carbohydrates in a limited time to take advantage of the anabolic properties of insulin, transporting protein and other nutrients along with glucose to muscle cells. The three books describing the CKD are "The Ketogenic Diet","BodyOpus" and "The Anabolic Diet". Most of the FAQ content deals with CKDs, unless noted.[HC]



2.3: What is a "TKD"

A: Targeted Ketogenic Diet. It is essentially a ketogenic diet where carbohydrate intake is timed around weight training workouts. The goal is to provide enough short term energy to exercise effectively without disrupting ketosis. The amount of carbs to be consumed is determined by the number of sets to be performed. Lyle McDonald has suggested 5 grams for every two sets to be performed as a guideline. A person planning for 10 sets would consume 25 grams preworkout using these guidelines. Most TKD followers use abbreviated weight training routines: i.e., HIT /Hardgainer, where only one or two sets of an exercise are performed. An extensive listing of sample abbreviated routines can be found at: http://www.cyberpump.com/workouts/workpage.html . Carbohydrates are generally consumed 30 minutes prior to workout. Others have found sucess with carb intake during their workout. Some TKDers also take in post-workout carbs, generally with some protein to aid in recovery. Fat intake should be avoided when taking in whatever source of carbs is chosen. Experimentation with the amount and timing of carbohydrate consumption will generally be necessary to get the results desired.

Glucose /Glucose polymers are often used as preworkout carbs. "Smarties" (U.S. version only) and "Sweettarts" are popular pre- workout carbs, but anything that is easily digestable and will give the desired amount of carbs is fine. [HC]

Sounds like you got some good info, Fiester! Keep us posted on your progress, okay??

My profession used to be information specialist: looking up info for other people. My weaknesses are to combine all knowledge and applying it.

BTW, sorry I called you Jallah, it should have been Jalilah, but I didn't quote you.. mine is fietser which is difficult for English speaking folks

LOL, Fiester.... your profession sounds like my curse! I end up doing that more times that I should. This time, however, I'm trying really hard NOT to combine principles. Not easy for me, I'll tell you that much.

I think your name is cool, btw!