By the end of this post, I suspect I will have put a good dent in my potato & egg burrito, some back country gluten free bar (full of simple carbs), a muffin (didnt even look at what kind it was), and a dark chocolate mocha. I hope I dont fall asleep typing! In fact, I even felt the need to explain the carb indulgence to the barista, who didnt even bat an eye. Funny thing was, everyone around me is eating something similar. While everyone is completely comfortable, I feel like Im breaking the law. And, in the realm of Ultimate Kickboxing, I guess I am breaking the law. Welcome to carbo-loading. This is my first true carbo loading regimen. Myself and 4 other team mates are racing this Saturday in the Spartan Beast (Monterrey, CA). From Monday to Wednesday, I was on a carb deficit diet. Carbs were about 40% of my diet, and was 90% vegetables. Wednesday afternoon, after a short run, then an intense spurt for 10 minutes, I immediately switched to the actual carbo loading phase. Were talking 4 grams per pound of bodyweight every 24 hours. Thats over 3,000 calories just from carbs! Im sharing all this, not to teach anyone about carbo loading, but to share something that is so blindly obvious. Ive been reading quite a bit online about endurance athletes carb loading and getting sick in the process. It seems that many athletes believe that you get sick from the sudden change, or shock to the system. Here is what makes you sick... EATING MASHED POTATOS, PASTA AND RICE ALL DAY! This diet is just another confirmation why we need our vegetables, and less starchy carbs. These foods change your PH levels from alkaline to acidic, and theyre low in micro and macro nutrients. Although these foods have their place, they shouldnt be 90% of your diet. Analyzing food logs, it is clearly our biggest obstacle as Americans. I have a major phobia of getting sick before competition, which is why I decided to yo yo from a vegetable carb load to a starchy carb load. And, 12 hours before the race, its all starchy. In this long winded post, my hope is that you take away the importance of controlling those carbs that can be so accessible, satisfying, and often delicious. In fact, I challenge you to make the carbs in 3 out of your 5 meals per day 100% from vegetables. Your other 2 meals can be a starchy carb, just as long as it can fit in the palm of your hand? Do you accept this challenge? Do it for 2 days and tell me about it.
Posted on: Thu, 05 Jun 2014 17:44:05 +0000