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A boat full of carbs

AstraMonti

The idea of starting this log came to me when I was in a 12 hour boat trip from Athens to Lesvos where the ferry had nothing but carbs to eat. I mean just sandwiches, cakes, croissants etc etc.. So i had to survive 12hour on the nuts I had with me, pretty amazing for me as I am hungry every few hours.

Anyway, as I am thinking taking things a bit more serious this year, just for my self rather than anything else, I will write here all my daily battles with food and the training. If you are following Pete's food log, I am very strictly following the LCHF diet and we will see how this will affects things this year. I 've completely eliminated all carbs, I 've killed my cravings for sugar and generally I am a happy man. As of this morning, I weigh 79kgs which brings me a kilo down from the end of July with no exercise and a lot of food and drinks, but holidays are now over. I don't promise for this log to be very interesting but i ll do my best. I do plan to race cyclocross starting in a few weeks time (do you hear that holyboy? :P) but I am seeing it as training more than a race, I am not in a racing shape by any means.

So to start off:

Sunday

Training: 50km spin, very low intensity, mostly flat with 1-2 very short sharp hills. Felt great.
Food:Breakfast was few pieces of brie cheese with butter fried bacon and one apple. Lunch was two salmon fillets with mayo and spinach salad. Dinner two pork chops with two fried eggs on top, all done in butter. I had various nuts throughout the day.

Monday

Training: Back to the gym in the evening. I am doing twice a week a crossfit session which helps me deal with issues on my knee and my shoulders. 1hour of pain.
Food: Breakfast was cheese with ham. Dinner was pork chops again with spinach/rocket salad. I wasn't hungry for lunch so I just nibbled on some cheese and ham.

More later today.

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Billycake

[QUOTE=AstraMonti;

I do take carbs after exercise in the form of complex protein as I feel like a bag of potatoes the next day if I don't. If you feel fine (no heavy legs or more tired than normal) I would say skip the carbs and see how it goes. For me everything comes down to how the body feels.
[/QUOTE]

Hi Astra monti,
I've been following more or less the same "diet" as you for two months now but I'm curious as to what complex protein / carb mix you use after exercise?? I had been eating some fruit & yoghurt or milk after hard sessions with no problems but this week I've suddenly been floored after a 90min sprint drill session on Tuesday and a weight session on Wednesday. Nothing unusual in my training at all.
I wanted to ride again on Thursday but just couldn't do it as the legs and body hurt too much and I had a 4 hour ride in for tomorrow but even the thoughts of it now are too much.

AstraMonti

I think it's an Olimp complex whey protein, I threw away the package. If I remember correctly per 100gr there are 10gr of carbs or something like that.

Paul Kiernan

I ate a potato last night. It was delicious. I cut it into thin slices and soaked it to remove as much starch as possible. It was then smothered in cream and gruyere and cooked in the oven in an open dish. It was delicious.

I felt so guilty this morning I had to go out and do a 3 hour spin.

I'm going to have some chips with my steak tonight. And some pepper sauce made with butter.

Edit: Damn, I felt even guiltier this morning. And it's stuffed roast chicken tonight, can I resist the stuffing!

godihatedehills

I'm in no way fully committed to the cause but I have been dabbling from Mondays to Fridays. I was wondering if the diet has an effect on anyone else's sleep?

ROK ON

I experimented from say late July until end Sept with a few slip ups.
I stopped because while I felt trimmer and lost a few lbs I was knackered pretty much all of the time.

My focus is to avoid processed food in as much as possible.
So to that extent I am eating carve (sweet potato, root veg. Fruit)
I no longer take sugar in coffee and have cut way way down on chocolate (maybe 4 bars a week as opposed to 2bars every day).

Going without carbs didn't appear to suit me so I have kep all that is good - oily fish, green veg etc but have added in carbs.

The kids love sweet potato and brocolli so there is some benefit.

Paul Kiernan

godihatedehills wrote: »

I'm in no way fully committed to the cause but I have been dabbling from Mondays to Fridays. I was wondering if the diet has an effect on anyone else's sleep?

I've been sleeping like a log and having extremely vivid dreams. So much so that I'm beginning to question what is reality, the dreams or the waking hours. I hope I remember posting this when I wake up.

Tec Diver

ROK ON wrote: »

I experimented from say late July until end Sept with a few slip ups.
I stopped because while I felt trimmer and lost a few lbs I was knackered pretty much all of the time.

I went cold turkey off carbs in Feb and the first two weeks were tough, then on weeks 3-4 I felt like I had a small hangover/head cold all the time. After that I felt better and better. If you stick with it you'll reap the benefits. For me it includes better sleep, no more blocked sinuses, no bloated stomach after meals, no more food comas, no dry skin and being "wide awake" all day (no mid-morning/afternoon slumps). Also I don't get hungry anymore, which is great, even after a long run/cycle.

AstraMonti

godihatedehills wrote: »

I'm in no way fully committed to the cause but I have been dabbling from Mondays to Fridays. I was wondering if the diet has an effect on anyone else's sleep?

If anything I am sleeping better and a bit quieter too, but still snoring hehe

I haven't updated much the last few days. Foodwise I am keeping the same stuff, I tried venison with a buttery sauce which wasn't really my liking but anyway. I 've been bad with sugar though the last couple of days, I ate a whole pack of milk chocolate coated gingerbread cookies and I didn't even feel sorry which is the bad part.

As for training, I went for a spin on Saturday and just back to the gym today which I got another PR with a 155kg deadlift. /flex

Seriously now, need to figure out why I keep going back to sugar. My cravings are back like before, even after a very lchf lunch/dinner. It's like my body is waiting for a treat after a meal and the berries do not really satisfy.

ford2600

Ok as promised lipid results after 3 months of diet which has totally excluded carbs with exception of generous fruit and veg, with high meat, eggs, plant fats etc.

As a note between Jan-May I was on a strict low fat diet with next to no alcohol chocolate etc.

The results are interesting to say the least Apo B test a must with my sky rocketing LDL and TC but exceptional Tri HDL levels. My GP is just as confused..

Not looking for medical advice just put up for interest so please don’t offer it don’t want to derail thread

TC HDL LDL Tri Tri/HDL Ratio TC/HDL

Jan 13 6.8 1.42 4.8 1.31 0.92 4.78

May 13 6.3 1.48 4.0 1.64 1.1 4.25

Nov 13 7.8 1.8 5.4 0.92 0.51 4.33

AstraMonti

Thanks for that ford, you can actually see how the diet "works". I think the results are fine, TC & LDL by itself says nothing to me anyway. And at last I ll be able to show you my results as well as I booked blood tests for next thursday.

ford2600

AstraMonti wrote: »

Thanks for that ford, you can actually see how the diet "works". I think the results are fine, TC & LDL by itself says nothing to me anyway. And at last I ll be able to show you my results as well as I booked blood tests for next thursday.

Sound.

Would you mind sending me name of clinic/lab that does ApoB test?

My guess is LDL particles are big and I don't have that many of them!
The drop in Tri and rise in hdl between following strict food pyramid and HF diet is interestesting. Doing what I was told my lipid were going in wrong direction.

Now only to get my dear wife to believe Dayspring & co are right and every other doctor is wrong. Not a conspiracy theorist but the $12 billion/year factory outside my window which used to make just one tablet is a powrrful voice to quiten

AstraMonti

Not much to update in terms of training as I didn't do much and due to some news I got are probably going to change my plans for "hardcore" racing in the next season but we ll see.

As for food the breakfast remains the same, a variety of eggs with either ham or bacon. That's what I had yesterday morning:

Lunch was butter baked Salmon with spinach and homemade pepper mayo. Dinner was a selection of nuts, cheese and ham.

ford2600

Did a mini experiment today.

Other than fruit/veg no carbs/sugar in diet.

A neighbour dropped over two jars of honey about a month ago which have remained unopened.

About 2.5hrs after lunch I had two teaspoons of said honey.

An hour or so later I was like a bear in supermarket looking for food. Haven't felt that in a while!

Very unscientific I know

AstraMonti

I 've been very busy lately so not many updates.

Food continues the same, I 've managed to contain my sugar cravings by just refusing to eat any, not sure how much I ll last, but I am trying it.

As for training I 've been everyday to the gym this week, Monday was weights, tuesday 45mins spinning-15min abs, wednesday and thursday "heavy" lifting. A new PR in the deadlifts of 160kg and new pr in squats of 110kgs. Might not sound a lot, but for me it's a huge improvement, last year at this day I couldn't even lift a third of that.

niceonetom

I'm not sure you still need the inverted commas around the word "heavy". That's heavy.

petethedrummer

So I've tried training fasted twice now on my last 2 Saturday spins. Big meal the night before so no need for breakfast. 3.5 hour spins. Coffee stop. Water in bottle was largely untouched. Big slow cooked lamb stew when I got home.

I like it (YMMV).

AstraMonti

Interesting day today. I had arranged to do my blood tests today, and I was fasting since yesterday afternoon. The blood tests were at 11 so I was close to 18hours without food. I was very hungry in the morning but that wore off pretty fast and then had lunch at 12:30 which was roast beef with salad and carrots. Was again hungry at 3 so had some jerky beef, cheese and nuts. On to the gym after work for an hour of a hard spinning session (which i felt quite weak to be honest) and now at home.. surprisingly not hungry. I ll wake up early for a fry tomorrow hehe.

I ll post the blood results once i get them, which should be next tuesday.

ford2600

petethedrummer wrote: »

So I've tried training fasted twice now on my last 2 Saturday spins. Big meal the night before so no need for breakfast. 3.5 hour spins. Coffee stop. Water in bottle was largely untouched. Big slow cooked lamb stew when I got home.

I like it (YMMV).

On your 3.5hr spin, what kind of effort were you putting in? Was it an easy flatish spin or were you in mountains/pushing it hard?

petethedrummer

ford2600 wrote: »

On your 3.5hr spin, what kind of effort were you putting in? Was it an easy flatish spin or were you in mountains/pushing it hard?

Hilly routes usually around Dublin mountains. I go by perceived effort. The climbs would be done pretty much as quickly as I can do them without wanting to puke at the top. I could go marginally harder if I was trying to match a better climber. I tend to train effort/rest/effort/rest. I don't do continuous slogs. The length of the efforts is as long as the hill. The rest is as long as the downhill and flat bit.

I liked it because there was no getting up early for breakfast, no digestion taking place on the bike and no faffing with food on the bike. Wake up 10 mins beforehand, get dressed, fill water bottle, get on bike. Efficient.

AstraMonti

I was away for work for 3 days and it was a huge carbfest, nothing besides pizzas, greasy burgers and fries near the datacenter. Felt horrible each and every day in every possible way, and I ll spare you the details. I think it shows how the body has adapted to the low carb diet and how a sudden change to that screws it all up.

I met a swedish guy in work, watched him put butter in his coffee and we struck a conversation. He was genuinely surprised to hear that a non swedish is doing that kind of diet and when i told him that we're a bunch of crazies doing that he was in shock.

Tec Diver

AstraMonti wrote: »

I was away for work for 3 days and it was a huge carbfest, nothing besides pizzas, greasy burgers and fries near the datacenter. Felt horrible each and every day in every possible way, and I ll spare you the details. I think it shows how the body has adapted to the low carb diet and how a sudden change to that screws it all up.

I met a swedish guy in work, watched him put butter in his coffee and we struck a conversation. He was genuinely surprised to hear that a non swedish is doing that kind of diet and when i told him that we're a bunch of crazies doing that he was in shock.

I've gotten to like a buttetproof coffee in the morning, after the bacon & eggs of course.

ryan_sherlock

AstraMonti wrote: »

I was away for work for 3 days and it was a huge carbfest, nothing besides pizzas, greasy burgers and fries near the datacenter. Felt horrible each and every day in every possible way, and I ll spare you the details. I think it shows how the body has adapted to the low carb diet and how a sudden change to that screws it all up.

During my 'off-season' I really relaxed what I ate - still high quality, just things that I wouldn't normally eat (think lots of cake) - felt horrible - took me a few weeks to get back feeling normal (well, what I now consider normal) - don't think I'll do that again.

AstraMonti

Yesterday's breakfast was bacon and eggs, lunch was gluten and wheat free sausages from the butcher with spinach salad and just a protein shake after the gym. The gym was interesting, started with 10mins warmup with high resistance on the bikes, 10mins of various style press ups and then we moved to weights. After we finished a round of weights, we did a 5 chinups-10 pressups-15squats every minute for 10minutes. I was genuinely out of breath by the end of it with 10secs to spare.

ford2600

"watched him put butter in his coffee"

Sounded weird. I like my ridiculously expensive homemade Gaggi Americano black or with cream. Just tried it with butter, first impressions are good.

Will probably keep to myself though, anyone I talk to about food in last few month thinks I mad

12 sprocket

AstraMonti wrote: »

Interesting day today. I had arranged to do my blood tests today, and I was fasting since yesterday afternoon. The blood tests were at 11 so I was close to 18hours without food. I was very hungry in the morning but that wore off pretty fast and then had lunch at 12:30 which was roast beef with salad and carrots. Was again hungry at 3 so had some jerky beef, cheese and nuts. On to the gym after work for an hour of a hard spinning session (which i felt quite weak to be honest) and now at home.. surprisingly not hungry. I ll wake up early for a fry tomorrow hehe.

I ll post the blood results once i get them, which should be next tuesday.

Any results yet?

AstraMonti

Nothing yet, thanks for reminding me to give them a call hehe

AstraMonti

I only got a quick phone call from the doctors office and was told that my results are exceptionally good, whatever that means in numbers, I will get the full report on Monday.

AstraMonti

Went out for a spin this morning with no breakfast with just an espresso with butter in it. Knew it wasn't going to be a long spin so I didn't bother with food. Did 50k and came back hungry so I had some nice beef stew. I had a lot of greek christmas biscuits after that (they have too much butter in them if it's any consolation

) and then some more.. Had some salami, cheese and nuts for dinner and that was it for the day.

AstraMonti

Food: eggs with bacon for breakie, chicken with carrot and nuts salad for lunch, some jerky beef with cheese for snack before the gym and a pint of milk with protein after training.

1hour intense boxfit, 45mins spinning and 15mins abs. New pr.. 2mins 05secs in a plank position.

AstraMonti

A nice read: LA Lakers Go Low-Carb!