Sprinting and Carbs

Hi I just wanted anyone and everyones advice on this, I just started training with my schools track team( and I want to make the spring team), we train 4 days a week, two heavy heavy sprint days, two average jog-pylometric type days…

anyways i was doing VLC for sometime but its so hard to run, or especially sprint on little to no carbs, so my plan was to eat carbs before sprinting, and either before or after weights (kind of like a TKD)- and which should it be, I think its more important to get carbs after weights than before, or should it be the other way around?

And I know I dont need them after sprinting just before to give me some glucose/energy and also since im sprinting does it matter really what kind of carbs since I will be burning them up anyways? Thanks ahead of time for any feed back!!!

you also need carbs after sprinting to replenish glycogen stores in your muscles. That or take ~20g glutamine after running.
As active as you are, with running 4 days a week in addition to weights, I feel like you’d really want more carbs in your diet. Why are you restricting anyways? You’re gonna be crazy active…

glutamine replacing CHO for an athlete?! lol, Come ON!

You need a lot of carbs. You are performing high CNS plyometric movements four times a week, and nothing is more maximal than sprinting. Eat as many carbs as you need, and that’s a LOT. For performance and recovery, it’s mandatory.

I talked to a sprinter who ate a pretty unusual diet on the off season- 8-9 meals a day with 30g protein, 35g carbs, and 10-15g of fat. And I’m willing to bet he eats even more carbs when he’s competing.

Are you trying to lose weight or something?

wow thanks for the replys, yes i really need to cut at 15 lbs. I wasn’t quite this active before, i was lifting tho, but I just really want to see changes to my body, also Im sensitive to carbs, and I in general believe they’re just not as good as fat…

come on this is T-Nation not bb.com we all know its all about the fat, I made the best gains when i added way more fats but now i need to lose to speed up! i guess i will experiment with carbs before track and after weights and assess from there…thinking of keeping a journal…

As a competing 200m sprinter who trains sprints 3 times a week, weights 3 times a week and circuits, i can tell you even if you are just sprinting you will need the carbs, i have experimented with dropping them on a occasion, out of curiosity and my sessions just dont work with out them.

I practically live off oats, brown rice and sweet potatoes, with a similar meal breakdown to the post by actionjeff, i eat 8 times a day plus a post workout drink similar to Surge.

if you need to drop some fat, manipulating the carbs is the key, oats whey and raisens before and after sessions works wonders, depending on the time you finish your sessions the meal before bed can be carb free, your off days can be lower carb but not to the extent of the ketogenics.