Metabolism

  • Carbs, Macronutrients, Metabolism, Performance

    Carb loading first with extra fat afterwards

    One of the main energy stores in the body in glycogen. Glycogen is essentially reserved carbohydrates to be used throughout the day and exercise as needed. Higher intensity activities (ie. sprinting, jumping) use more glycogen than fat for energy. This is what carb loading is trying to target. By eating extra carbs leading up to an intense activity (carb loading) it can increase the amount of glycogen in the body. More glycogen in theory should then allow for more energy and increased performance. But what happens if after carb loading, a high fat meal was the last meal before the event?

    Carb loading has a long history

    Carb loading has been a strategy used for decades. It has stood the test of time for quite awhile because it’s worked and the concept makes sense as we discussed. But especially here of late new theories are starting to emerge to question this. One of the biggest is the strategic usage of periods of lower carb with higher fat intake. The carb loading has proven to help significantly raise glycogen in the body and many people have used this to set personal bests in a wide variety of physical tests/activities. With timed higher fat intake the theory is that it could help preserve that glycogen. Which again addresses the goal of more glycogen for longer to equal greater and more sustained performance.

    Fat rich meal as a chaser

    Generally a fat rich meal consumed purposefully is with the goal of making the body use fat for energy more. Consistent low carb diets really try to push this. In this study though the goal was to cause this effect just for the single exercise. The exercise specifically tested here was a 60 minute aerobic treadmill run. While the intensity wasn’t overly high it was still pushing the participants at 95% of their lactate threshold. After carb loading and then having a higher fat pre-race meal (meal was 42% fat), participants showed using less glycogen. Based off of what was being tested this was a success! But be mindful of a few things before grabbing an avocado and diving in headfirst.

    Be mindful with this carb loading strategy

    Fat takes longer for the body to breakdown and digest. As you get closer to exercise, typically you want to keep foods simple and easy for your stomach to digest. At that time blood is being focused to your muscles and not your stomach. With less focus on your stomach, digestion takes a back seat. This is why a high fat meal may not sit well for some people as fat takes longer to digest already then carbs do. That paired with exercise can really slow down digestion. With extra food sitting in your stomach that is when bloating and cramps tend to pop up more. So while in theory this could be a great strategy that was shown effective in the study, it should be tested during practice before an actual competition. As I always say, no new foods on game day! That applies to food strategies as well.

    Study referenced: click here

    CONTINUE READING

  • Body Composition, Diets, Macronutrients, Metabolism, Weight, Wellness

    Metabolism Changes To Keep In Mind During Weight Loss

    Weight loss is one of the most common nutrition goals amongst any population. The formula is basic that everyone has heard regarding eat less and move more for the calories in, calories out idea. But it isn’t talked about as much how the metabolism changes with weight loss. Those changes are why many tend to regain the weight they just lost.

    How the metabolism changes

    The body tries really hard to stay at its current weight. No matter if someone’s goal is weight loss or weight gain, the body fights it a little bit. Change is hard for everyone, our body’s included! Two hormones in particular drive this; leptin and ghrelin.

    Leptin is what helps us to feel full. After a big meal, leptin levels increase and signal to the brain “ok, that’s enough” to stop eating. Ghrelin is the opposite and makes us feel hungry when we need to eat. Long periods without food, ghrelin levels increase until we eat something.

    When losing weight, these signals get a little mixed up. To try and keep the body weight at the same level, leptin levels become reduced. The signal and how loud leptin is shouting that the body is full also decreases. These things result in feeling more hungry and thus eating more.

    Rate of weight loss

    How quickly someone loses weight can impact these effects. Slow and steady is the key. The faster weight is lost, the greater amount of that weight tends to be muscle. This obviously isn’t ideal! By going at a “slow” rate of around 0.5-1.0 pounds lost per week, that can be a great rate to preserve one’s muscle. That muscle is what will help to keep the metabolism burning to maintain the weight that is lost.

    On the other hand losing weight quickly comes at the expense of muscle. The metabolism changes with that are that it begins to slow down. Ghrelin levels increase quite a bit as well which can lead to overeating or sometimes even binge eating. It’s a recipe for potential disaster. This is a big reason why many people who regain their weight, had originally lost that weight in a fairly quick manner.

    Foods that can help

    There are some foods that can be a bit more helpful than others though. Those foods are ones higher in protein and fiber. Both of these nutrients provide more satiety and help to create that fullness feeling. As discussed earlier, that fullness feeling can be a challenge so focusing on protein and fiber rich foods can help ease some of those hunger pains.

    Increasing one’s protein intake will also help maintain muscle mass. We work hard for our muscle and if we cut weight we want to make sure it isn’t lost. Eating extra protein helps the body to repair and rebuild any potential muscle damage. Aiming for right around 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight is a good reference point.

    Diet breaks and refeeds

    There are different theories on the best way to reduce calories for weight loss. The most common and typical strategy is a continuous calorie restriction. This is where day in and day out calories are pulled back a bit. Some feel that this long term restriction can cause the body to adapt and slow metabolism down. Based on this thinking, adding in some times for a diet break or a refeed can help avoid that slow down. What this can typically look like is 5 days of a bit more sever restriction with then going back up to a weight maintenance level of calories for 2 days. Overall there is still a total calorie deficit resulting in a similar weight loss.

    Study so far show no actual difference between the two strategies. For athletes though, strategically adding in a refeed can be great when those are timed around competition when maximum performance is the key. The biggest difference in these strategies seem to be the psychological effects. If being able to have a day or two of maintenance calories allows someone to relax a bit and overall help increase the sustainability of their diet then it’s worth it. For those who would feel worse with bouncing back and forth, the consistent restriction is better. Everyone responds differently to different things so it’s finding what works for that person specifically.

    Key points to limit metabolism changes

    – Slow and stead rate of weight loss

    – Increase protein intake

    – Focus on high fiber foods

    – Caloric deficit is the goal

    – Best eating strategy for caloric restriction is unique to each person

    – Continue lifting weights to maintain muscle mass

    Study referenced: click here

    CONTINUE READING