montyloree

I am curious to know if anybody is using the high fat/low carb (ketogenics) method to weight loss .... accompanied with cycling....

I successfully lost 35 lbs last year using ketogenics... then the winter came and had to stop bicycling.... Saskatchewan winters...lol

I need to lose an additional 25 lbs or so to get to my goal weight...

I am training to do the century, and was hoping to find some low carb snacks... based on ketogenic requirements...
My problem is: instead of having snack bars, or easy things to eat on route, i need to eat high fat/low carb which doesn't make for easy snacks... i am curious to know if anybody has had success with this...


Thanks,

monsterdog1114

I follow a lo carb/high fat lifestyle. I also cycle.

As long as your body is accustomed to a lo carb lifestyle you should be fine. There is no need to carb load or such.

I do have to ensure I am eating enough calories during a long ride. You can easily carry eggs, cheese, turkey.Also, depending on how low you go for carbs, you might be able to fit in some Gatorade G2, or find whatever protein bar you like.Many lo carb people find the Quest bars to be the best carb value.

montyloree

Thanks Monsterdog... i guess i will take real food with me... not the convenient snack bars...i
will check out the quest bars... i'm trying to do less than 30 grams of carbs per day...

At home i eat meats and greens.... i will have to figure out how to package this for the bike....

monsterdog

I make cheese/turkey rolls and wrap them in saran wrap. hardboiled eggs - same.

But make sure to re-fuel before you (think) you need to. Figure out what works best for you. I eat before I ride and eat every 1.5 hour minimum. (but that is what my body needs).

Another thing. I do carry Gatorade Energy Chews for an EMERGENCY. You get 6 chews for 24 grams of carbs. If I feel like I am draining and about to bonk, I can always suck down 1 or 2 (4 or 8 grams of carbs) in an emergency. The whole package is very small. It just lives in my bike back.

NashvHeel52

I plan to try using what, I think, are the only truly low carb/high fat bars out there... called Adapt Your Life bars (put out by Dr. Eric Westman at Duke... who's kind of a low carb superhero). Just released in the last few months. My understanding, however, is that these bars (or any bars/snacks) theoretically shouldn't be needed when truly keto-adapted because your body will use body fat for fuel and not rely on carbs or even dietary fat (like the bars). I hope that it is the case and that is my plan, but I'll take some nuts and Adapt bars on long rides, just in case. I have purchased (but not yet used) some sodium tablets to take on long rides too, because it is my understanding that too little sodium can cause some struggles for low carb folks on endurance rides. For that reason, I try to drink some chicken broth before a long ride. So far, so good. Good luck!

Doohickie

I did Low Carb 11 years ago and lost 70 lb. I wasn't riding at the time. When I tried to lose weight while riding I found it really difficult to throttle back my calories on the days I didn't ride. I finally gave up on the low carb thing and switched to simple calorie counting. MyFitnessPal says I get 2000 calories a day and that's all I eat, except when I ride, then Strava tells MFP to allow some extra calories. It seems to be working.

Daspydyr 

I have lost weight following a low carb diet while riding. I do beleive that I also lost strength with the weight loss. In my experience I need to use a pretien supplement when following a los carb diet.

Cosmic Hawk

I really don't thing low / zero carbs and physical activity go hand in hand. Fruit grows on trees for a reason. Of course you can become accustomed to anything. Some people drink 2 pots of coffee every day. You can lose weight and eat carbs. no matter what, I've never heard of anyone performing their best at a physical task when ketogenic.

Willbird

For me it was really tough to get enough fiber on low carb to not get all bound up for lack of better terms.

NYSteve

So long as you are fat adaptive, you should be fine.

A great snack would be Olives, Hard boiled egg, home made jerky

Up North

Here is another tip if you want to put your diet into overdrive:
consume all your calories within 8 hr period then fast 16. So for me it's breakfast at 11am - dinner at 6. Some recent studies have shown that subjects that consumed as above lost twice as much weight as those that ate/snacked for 12-16 hrs and only fasted 8 hrs per night. It was really easy for me to adjust. Just drink lots of fluids and a couple of coffee in morning supresses appetite until 11am.

customsound79

I just saw that article where that guy lost 70 lbs in 100 days eating only potatoes. Another guy did it with Twinkies. For my cycling the low-carb made it harder. As soon as I went back to a well rounded diet, longer distances were no longer an issue. If I WERE looking for a low-carb riding snack: BACON!!

NYSteve

This is what I do. A great book to read on Fasting and Eating Low carb together, is called "The Obesity Code" by Dr. Jason Fung. I Followed his website for over a year. I just bought his book. Great read

baron von trail 

I think of low carb as a gimmick. Of course, I also do not buy into high carb diets either. So...call me a balanced diet kind of guy.

When cycling, I simply see no benefit gain by eating meat while on the bike or before setting out. It digest poorly and gives me no added energy. If anything, it bogs me down. I do, however, get a lot of benefit from eating a few carbs before and during a ride though, especially the Gu gels or their equivalent.

Protean with minimal carbs after a ride is good. In fact, I believe protean after riding is a must.

Jarrett2

I'm still in the process of switching from a low fat/high carb/cycling routine to a low carb/high fat/cycling routine.

It's tough. On no ride days, it is no problem. On ride days, I find myself needing carbs, but tough time moderating it.

Overall, I feel better. I'm a little leaner and more muscular than I used to be due to more weight lifting, less riding.

Carbs and cycling go together well, but I keep reading it can be done low carb as well.

If I were really trying to stay ketogenic for rides (which I'm not) I would look at jerky's. Turkey jerky for me likely. Just carry it in my jersey pocket. Would probably have to go homemade for true ketogenic needs.

I've stopped in the middle of long rides at a store when I feel the need for protein and grab some Jack Link's Turkey Jerky and take it with me. Works well on the bike, I thought. Just need lots of water with it.

NYSteve

Really? Check this out: Fat Chance Row

jsigone

sorry but cyclist needs carbs, nearly all cycling food has carbs and sugars in it.

Carbs is the food that fuels your body on the bike to keep going

During my wife's last pregnancy last year, she got Gestational Diabetes. It sent a shockwave through the house and kitchen. Almost everything we had in kitchen, I had to eat alone or throw away.

We hit the low carb thing really hard for the baby sake, but my cycling suffered quite a bit, I was slower, lower energy, tired on and after the ride. My body needs carbs. It got to the point that I had to prep two different meals. This time last yr, I was riding 4-600mile months and century every other weekend if not every weekend. So diet changes were seen and felt pretty quick.

I suggest for your 3+ hour ride days you mix in more carbs the night before and on the ride itself, you don't want to bonk on the side of the road and call for a pick up. Worst feeling ever!!! You can still do the low carb diet when not on the bike for 3+hrs, but its a double edge sword.....

Chaco

I'm a prediabetic, and I'm trying to keep off meds, so I'm on a very low carb diet. Maybe not keto, i.e., <20 carbs/day, but certainly less than 40 grams per day. 100% of my carbs come from vegetables, with a couple of cups of blueberries thrown in about twice a week.

I've lost 42 pounds since last August. My LDL has dropped by 50%, from 176 to 84. My HDL has stayed about the same, at 51. Triglycerides are 48, which is pretty low. In other words, LCHF hasn't hurt my lipid profile one bit.

Resting pulse has dropped from 60 to 51.

I've actually felt more energy, perhaps as a result of losing so much weight. I ride 3 times a week, usually for around 40 to 45 miles on the weekdays and 50+ miles on the weekends. I use a Fitbit, and the results on my most recent ride were as follows: 132 minutes in peak zone (152 bpm +), 59 min. in cardio zone (135 - 151 bpm), 12 min. in fat burn (110 - 134 bpm). This ride was a bit more intense than typical rides, but not that much.

I notice that around 3 1/4 hours into every ride, I start having problems with lactic acid buildup, especially if there's been more than 2,000 feet of climbing.

I don't eat any carbs during my rides. I use Hammer Endurolytes to replenish my electrolytes during the ride, about 1 tablet per hour mixed with a bottle of water. If I really need a snack in the middle of a ride, I eat nuts.

I don't view LCHF as a "fad diet" -- it's what has kept me off of diabetic meds and what is keeping me from losing my feet and eyes.

But it has also not hurt my riding. Yes, I couldn't be a racer (but at age 67 I couldn't do that anyway), but it's overall been a great help to my overall fitness and my bike rides in particular.

NYSteve

Thank you for sharing your success story.

Too many people blow off LCHF diets as fad, or unhealthy. You can't do it cycling.

Another great book to read is from Ultra Cyclist Vinnie Tortorich Fitness Confidential.

Senrab62 

I have done the Leto style eating for the better part of 5 years and agree that it can be done. Also, I do not know any super well respected lchf person that does not allow additional carbs (source is the key) when doing endurance type exercise. Why is this such a big misconception? Higher carbs (again, depends on from what foods) are also recommended for those attempting to gain weight while living lchf.

I don't do a lot of centuries or anything, but I like to stay active in a variety of ways. My performance (not just cycling, but all sports I am active in), my drive, my energy levels, my rate of hair loss, my knee pain (2 ACL surgeries), my blood work, my body fat, have all improved. When I stay 100% or close, it's basically maintenance free.

Zoxe

You'll probably find that this is a contentious topic, and there are a few other threads on the same topic that devolved quickly.

But here's me:
I lost my first 50 lbs by cutting down on packaged/processed food and eating take out and pizza 4 nights a week. And biking. And training for triathlons.

In 2013, the doc challenged me to lose 40 lbs or go on meds for life. He recommended South Beach, which focuses on less refined sugar, more whole grains, lean protein, and good fats. I hit his goals, bringing my net loss to -90 lbs and maintained under 200 lb for a little over 2 years. I'm up to 203 at the moment. I suspect some of that is muscle gain.

Overall I find that my performance is far more consistent (and not hindered) by making my carb selections more carefully. On event days and long rides, I do consume gels and G2/HEED and clif bars.