Fasted High Intensity Resistance Training page

[LowCarbMaster]

Hey everyone. I'm new to this forum, but definitely not new to low carb/paleo and exercise. I've been doing research for a while. A few books later, blogs, videos later and I am now following a basic slow burn program. I personally prefer to stay in ketosis because I feel like it gives me an edge with endurance in the sport I perform in (boxing).

So under those circumstances, I have been working out in the morning on an empty stomach with the assumption that my body would mostly be running off of body fat instead, both dietary and body fat.

Now of course I drink water, a cup of black coffee, creatine monohydrate and maybe some salt (sodium) to make sure I'm on par there.

I have completed every exercise until failure and have continued to show extreme gains weekly, in both fat loss and strength gains.

Post workout meal is a ton of protein and fat IMMEDIATELY after my workout.

I usually season and prepare two, 1 pound steaks to cook right after. They are thick, fatty cuts.

With this, I'm just trying to put two things together. I have no direct evidence at the moment to back up the conjunction of the two, but I have heard about it before and I personally don't see how it would be a problem.

I'm totally interested in seeing what everyone here has to say about it. I have a lot of respect for opinions from this website.

Thoughts, critiques, opinions, etc

[Scott F]

You'd probably should ask Robb Wolf's podcast this question. But I pretty sure I know what they'll say. If you are depleting your glycogen doing HIT your body wants to replace that glycogen. The main sources will be from carbs or protein. I think you know your can make glucose from protein...but the process is slow and compared to carbs more expensive. If you have a really hard workout you might have a hypoglycemic crash try to replace that glycogen from meat. If it were me I'd have a couple 2 or 3 sweet potatoes right after a hard HIT.

[Neckhammer]

I also train HIT resistance and stay low carb. Works fantastic. Actually HIT and low carb goes together like bacon and eggs . The infrequency of training needed with HIT allows your body to refill glycogen stores sufficiently even while eating low carb. That, and lets face it ...if your doing it right you should be done in under twenty minutes and are likely burning 30g or less of carbs anyhow. Keep it up!

As you probably know HIT is quite different from a WOD in crossfit. We are doing low reps till momentary muscle failure. Not hi rep glycogen depleting protocols.

[not on the rug]

i am most definitely not a low carber, but i think neckhammer raises a good point. if you are truly doing short bursts of HIT training a couple days per week, low carbing is probably ok. if you are training for extended periods of time, or on a daily basis, then you might want to add some carbs to your diet.

if you are showing "extreme gains weekly" then you're most likely a newb. those types of gains will come to an end

[Mr. Anthony]

I do great doing every kind of workout fasted. HIIT, heavy weights, boxing, runs, whatever. I'll take some BCAAs before I work out and try to eat soon after I'm done. Everyone is different though.

[Scott F]

Here's a 2009 Robb Wolf discussion on Low/High carb post workout meal.
Post Workout Nutrition: High or Low Carb?

[LowCarbMaster]

That's true, but I'm not using glucose for energy. What is the importance of BCAA's?

What would be the benefit of the sweet potatoes after my exercise?

Rug. I've been working out for years, but I am newb at slowburn. A "Body by Science" type routine. I was close to a crossfit-like routine before.

I want to stay in ketosis for performance reasons, so I'd like to avoid carbs (mostly bad ones) as much as I can.

Thanks for the input guys

[joeobowyer]

The main sources will be from carbs or protein

[Scott F]

BCAA BRANCHED-CHAIN AMINO ACIDS: Uses, Side Effects, Interactions and Warnings - WebMD
"How does it work? Branched-chain amino acids stimulate the building of protein in muscle and possibly reduce muscle breakdown."

Leucine is suppose to be good for anabolism.

Sweet potatoes is simply a source of carbs with out going to grains. The Glycemic Index For Sweet Potatoes | LIVESTRONG.COM
The way you prepare sweet potatoes makes a difference in their GI. The GI of a 150-g sweet potato, boiled with its skin for 30 minutes, is 46. That number rises to 94 if the same sweet potato is baked for 45 minutes. These dramatic differences come from the way the starches in sweet potatoes gelatinize during cooking. Foods that turn viscous, or jelly-like, in your digestive tract have a lower GI because the gelatinous substance slows the release of the nutrients in the food. Baking your sweet potatoes instead of boiling them changes the quality of their starches and transforms this root vegetable from a moderate-GI food to a high GI-food.


You don't say how much time you're spending during the week lifting and boxing. If it were me and I was interested in boxing performance and putting in the necessary time I'd get some post workout carbs in. If you read the link I posted to Robb Wolf, how you eat and train depends upon your end goals of health and performance and your current % of body fat.

[not on the rug]

I am not trying to jump all over you, and i definitely want to help you out. but there are some things jumping out at me that i want to point out. i'm just going to list them.

i'm not sure what performance advantage one could gain from being in ketosis, particularly as a boxer. just not seeing it. could you explain what you mean?

you should definitely read the article robb wolf did on the post workout carb debate.

i also can't see how a slow burn or body by science workout would be in any way beneficial to a competitive boxer. how has it helped you more than other strength training programs?

maybe if you gave us a little more info about your workouts, your current bodyfat percentage, etc. if you are seeing extreme gains in strength and fat loss, then you're probably going to do well in ketosis for a while. i would imagine that once your bodyfat level drops enough, you'll start to see some negativity.

not to bring it up again, but if you are a boxer, and you train as such, this is not HIT training. sparring sessions, roadwork, padwork, etc are not HIT workouts. i also wouldn't categorize slow burn/BBS is HIT either.

now to my personal opinion. i am able to do some short slow-burn cardio in a fasted state, and some brief (15-20 minute) HIT training in a fasted state. I however, do not do well with long bike rides, long boxing training sessions, or heavy weight training in a fasted state. i have to eat something an hour before i do any of those, or i will feel sick, not perform well, etc.