Adding Back Carbs

#1

I am a recovering carbaholic. I am very sensitive to the addictive nature of carbs.

I have a lot of experience with different ways of eating and have been flirting with low carb for 15 years. I also had a serious fling with very low carbs for a year in 2010, which felt great. I started the year eating under 20g net carb and 80g protein. The last couple months, I’ve been eating more like 40g carb and 100g protein with 1.5 hours or more VIGOROUS physical training daily. Throughout that time I have bounced around a 20-pound range in bodyweight with the bottom end being what is likely a not-too-skinny ideal for daily living.

I am very fat adapted. I have been tested to be burning 1.3g of fat per minute of exercise, and think that I have improved on that since the test.

Here is the issue: my runs are slower on keto than they were before. My heart rate will simply not get as high as it had before keto.

I have tried my own “strategic” taking of carb before exercise and plan to take some carb a half hour so into my long runs (which I have never done, including marathon distance); however, it has not helped, and the carb while exercising clearly won’t help the first hour or so.

Peter Defty for sure, Dom D’Agastino I think, and even Drs. Phinney and Volek recommend more carbs than 20g per day. Zach Bitter, the ketogenic athlete who holds the world record for running the farthest in 12 hours, eats 10% of his calories from carb and will increase that as high as 30% (for a few days) for a race or even extended training sessions - you can hear this here:
https://theketogenicathlete.com/episode-56-dealing-with-success-copy/. (the link is misnamed, but works; however, it is episode 57 in case the link changes)

Also, I have discussed this and my situation with Zach Bitter. I eat 3,000 to 4,000 kcal per day to not alter my weight, and my plan is to be to eat 75g of carb per day and vary that up to 150g for more intense workouts.

I must add 25g to 100g of carb per day to what I eat now. I don’t really want to do this, but I have come to understand that it is likely for the best. I want to find some carb that does not make me want to steal more of it from others. What foods should I try? My best thought so far, is to combine my carb with fat, e.g. raspberries with HWC. I also understand that Haagen Dazs Butter Pecan is 70% fat energy.

(KetoCowboy) #2

Interesting question.

In my experience, legumes are the form of carbohydrate that I can consume without triggering cravings.

I eat refried beans (pinto) or hummus (garbanzo) once a week or so. When I do, that pushes my carb count far higher than usual, but I don’t experience the cravings I would have if I ate rice, pasta, potatoes, or flour.

That may be too idiosyncratic to be helpful. Good luck.

(You've tried everything else; why not try bacon?) #3

Just watched one of Dr. Phinney’s lectures again, posted on another thread. He mentioned in passing that the participants in Dr. Volek’s FASTR study had a similar problem, because they were a little low on sodium and a little dehydrated at the time of the tests. Dr. Phinney advises taking a cup of bone broth about an hour before beginning exercise, since it will help keep circulatory efficiency at the maximum.

(Carpe salata!) #4

Apparently having carbs with fibre helps to moderate the insulin spike. Maybe the berries have fibre.

(Michel Nieswaag) #5

Hi,

I know this an old topic, but I wanted to answer anyway :wink: I’m a 42 yeard old ( Ultra ) Runner on a Keto/Paleo Diet for some time now. All I can say is : Do NOT be afraid of carbs during during races. I am very much fat adapted and I follow a HFLC diet. Following a HFLC diet does NOT mean you have to be in ketosis all the time. When I have a heavy training coming up or a race I will add carbs, 95% in the form of fruit. I eat fruit in lower qty’s all the time also when I’m not racing. One of the reasons I do this is when I eat very very low carb I sleep very badly. This is how I found out that adding fruit will not kick me out of ketotis. Levels of Ketones are lower, but hey, who cares. I don’t need to loose weight - I use the diet purely for running purposes. During races I eat nut-butters but also sometime I have a Gel or a coke at an aid station… the stuff works like rocket fuel then :wink: The next day I go back to less carbs and I’m back in Ketos again. Eat healthy and give your body what it needs :slight_smile:

#6

Thanks for the comments. I am still eating in the 3000 to 4000 kcal daily range and training hard. My carbs are in the 40-50g net carbs daily. However, that does not count gels taken during runs, which I have just started last week. I plan to eat 25g carbs during runs once I am 7k in and every 7k as long as I have at least 7k to run without any gels at the end. I plan to do this to learn to eat and run at the same time, but will shift back to training daily without the carbs and save gels for only races and perhaps a maximum of one long run weekly. If anyone has suggestions (or research) on the effects of carbs taken during exercise at various times during exercise (and specified intensity levels), then I would love to hear about it.