[quote]PB Andy wrote:
[quote]hipsr4runnin wrote:
In your expierence then guys whats going on (roughly) with the person that is low to zero carb pre workouts but still performs with no dip in energy and or performace? What do you think is going on there?
[/quote]
Not sure, but all I know is I’ve tried training fasted (using just SWF/Ana/MAG-10, with no food beforehand), and I love it. I used to use FINiBARs beforehand, but now I just use more SWF if I want more carbs during my workout. I know that Thib rarely uses FINiBARs pre-workout, and just uses SWF.
Lifting in itself is very metabolically demanding, and while yes, you should always strive to increase performance in the gym, that doesn’t mean you need a billion carbohydrates before hand. You can still use that lifting session to burn fat. That’s why I stopped taking FINiBARs before-hand… taking 41g carbs all at once pre-workout hampers pretty much any fat loss effect. I’d rather sip on SWF gradually over the course of 90 mins. Do keep in mind that I am an Olympic lifter, but I still have many workouts with quite a bit of TUT (squats, deads, pull-ups, presses, etc).
Basically, I have a meat + nuts + berries breakfast, and then focus on increasing DRIVE before I train. I do this by taking Fast Brain 2.0, caffeine pills, Power Drive, and Alpha-GPC. Works great. I then have my SWF/Ana/Mag combo, and then have a big ass meal with whatever carbs I need post-workout. And then I have a small meal after that, or a decent-sized protein shake with some healthy fats + fiber thrown in.[/quote]
This is similar to what I’m doing. I’m on 16/8 IF, so my first meal is eggs and a protein shake or meat+veggies, followed by alpha-gpc and a moderate dose of stimulants 1-2 hours later. I sip Anaconda while I train and have my carbs in the 2 or so meals post workout (both within 8 hours or so). I train nearly every day, so this works very well for me. If I am REALLY dragging and have been moving around more or stressed during my fasting period and my blood sugar is low, I might have 20 or so g of carbohydrates pre workout to stabilize blood glucose, but that’s the exception, not the norm.
Like Andy, I find I have better workouts if I’m “topped off” the day before in terms of energy substrate and focus more on “drive” with my pre workout supplements. I seem to remember some research showing that full glycogen replenishment normally takes about 24 hours to occur, and even the super-fast carbohydrate sources don’t get it done all the way in 90 minutes. If you were doing twice daily sessions or something, there is merit to carbohydrate consumption before the second session, but for my needs, I find it does more harm than good.