Yesterday I made the decision to switch from Carb Nite to Carb Back-Loading. I didn't mind going ULC for 7 days and having a Carb Nite once a week - however, I began noticing the following:
- No change - no real fat loss, no significant body recomposition, very little change on the scale,
- All paired with no visible changes on my body. Progress pictures put side-to-side from dayONE and dayFIFTEEN show no change, and maybe some slight fat gain (or muscle loss).
- I have been too stressed post-Carb Nite from worrying about the sheer volume of food I ate, and I stay bloated until day 7 of ULC. Maybe my cortisol levels have risen as well.
Most importantly: After tracking my macros, I realized I was only eating 1200-1500 calories/day, when my BMR is approximately 1222 calories. Basal metabolic rate is the amount of energy expended daily by humans and other animals at rest, sufficient only for vital organ function. I have been exercising with heavy volume weight training and 3-4 HIIT sessions/week, which amounts to approximately 300-400 calories burned per workout.. and that doesn't account for post-workout calorie burn.
If I need this 1222 calories just for my organs to function, and I'm at a 300-calorie deficit, that leaves the final number to be approximately 900. WOW, not good.
Usually I don't focus on my caloric intake, but this is too little food.
According to this macro calculator, someone my age, exercising vigorously for 6-7 hours a week, needs about 2109 calories to maintain their weight. I'm not too concerned about weight, but more of my body composition - decreasing my body fat percentage, and increasing my lean body mass. That's over 1000 calories I am not eating.
Throw heavy weight training AND multiple HIIT sessions in the mix, and this has spelled disaster for me. Disaster means a stall. Any further, and I'd be imposing some bad stuff upon myself, health-wise. I really don't want to impose any metabolic damage on myself, ever, not even for any competition or any aesthetic desire. My health comes first.
I could tweak everything by NOT working out and increasing my fat take to up my caloric intake to 1560/day during Carb Nite, but currently my body needs much more muscle to develop the shape and state of fitness that I really want...
There's no way I'm going to scale back on the volume of my workouts. My body needs the exercise and responds very well to it. It is also my de-stressor everyday.
And that is why I will be carb back-loading again.
During March, I CBL'd multiple times a week - sometimes I even got out of hand. If only I had kept a numerical log during that month, I could have posted the differences. The most important thing I noticed, is that dayONE and dayTHIRTY of March's 30dayPUSH displayed the most significant changes. Hell, even dayONE-dayFIFTEEN was super drastic.
To describe it, I lost a ton of FAT on my back and upper body, which has been my constant goal since the beginning. My lower body gained more definition, and despite the fat loss, the measurements for my hips, glutes, and quads did not change - which is also what I was going for.
I've always known it in the back of my mind, that my body responds rather well to eating copious amounts of food post-workout, and that eating a significant amount of carbs afterward always makes my body feel good.
This switch, and a switch for good - while still being able to make tweaks, here and there - will make my body much healthier, my mind more sane, and life a little brighter. And I will explain why.
Changing the Approach
Being 19 weeks out from a show that I've never done before, and deciding to increase caloric intake by a bunch, seems rather risky, doesn't it?
Well, I'm not going to risk metabolic damage. I'm not going to let a whole month go by with no progress. I'm actually very happy to be able to eat more soon. My body will like it, and not only will I be able to work better and harder in the gym, I'll definitely see some muscular growth. It's not without its downsides, of which are the fact that I'll be recording my progress daily NOT to minimize intake, but to make sure I eat enough. Um, actually, that's not a downside :P But the fact that I will be recording every little stat, change, etc. to make sure I'm on track and don't mess up.
I consumed 181g of carbs yesterday (which felt like a LOT to me last night) but according to the CBL book, I can get away with 270-364g per night. Provided I train - train the way I do now, and even harder perhaps. I will start at the bottom and work my way up. I will only increase carb intake if results are stalling (ie. I'm not growing). Fat loss will happen as well, so I need to make sure to monitor my fat intake to make sure I'm not overloading on that while carb-loading as well.
I'll post my CBL experience from last night, in the next post. My spirits are up, I'm happy, life is good. I will explain all really soon, I promise. But for now, I have to go. Carbs are back!
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