Refeed blues

[Habib]

I had my carb refeed on Thursday, consumed about 2500 calories (1800 is my usual), of which probably half, maybe a bit more, came from carbs. I started that day at 152. By the end I was 159. It's now Saturday, and I'm still around 158-160 (I was 156 today in the morning). Granted, I haven't gone #2 since the carbup (although I feel one coming on today), but I can't remember the last time I dropped that much weight in a trip to the bathroom. Basically, I guess my question is, does anyone know what's going on? Is this normal? Kinda discouraging to be 8 lbs above what I was 3 days ago.

 

[physicallyelite]

Your additional weight is most likely due to the extra carbs you ate. You consumed 700 more calories normal with your refeed. If this came from carbs you could have retained more water than normal. Remember, for every gram of carb you eat you retain 4 grams of water.

 

[Habib]

Wow, I never knew there was a direct ratio. Ok, how do I get rid of said retained water? I drink a lot of water throughout the day (1-2 gallos), is there anything else?

 

[physicallyelite]

Try doing cardio the day after your workouts. If you have time do more than one cardio workout. Drinking lots of water and increased protein the day after should help. It may take 2-3 days.

You may also want to eat fewer carbs during your next refeed to see what happens.

 

[Akateros]

As I have recently discovered, carb-cycling/refeeding is not comforting to those who are tied to the scale. I have been doing a fairly straightforward 3-day low/1-day high carb cycle, and the pattern would typically be that I would drop to my lowest on the third day of low-carbing. Day after high carb, my weight is up, anywhere up to five pounds. Then it drops again, usually about 1/2-1 pound lower than the last time, on the third day of low carb again.

If my caliper measures were right, though, I have actually gained lean muscle mass while I've been doing this, so though the weight loss seems small, I'm happy with the result.

I advise you not to heed the scale too much, and use other measures of progress instead. If you must weigh, don't do it every day; instead, pick one day of your cycle, the same one every time, and weigh then.

 

[Habib]

Hrmmm, what you say makes sense. I've actually been worried a bit about my weight over the last 3 weeks. I've been doing HIIT 3 times a week, lifting the thrice as well, eating 1800 a day with enough protein and low fats but I've only lost about 1.5lbs. now, since I'm a newbie lifter (I only lifted for 6 weeks in the Fall) I'm hoping that I may be gaining some mass somewhere and that I'm actually losing more fat than just 1/2 lb a week, but I can't really tell in the mirror and I'm having difficulty operating my Accu-Measure calipers properly. *sigh*

Edit: How many carbs do you eat on your low/high days, and do you only stick with "good" carbs on the highs, or do you hit the pasta/baked potato/whatever?

 

[Jodi]

Did you read the refeed sticky?

ALL of your cals should come from carbs on refeed days with little protein and NO fat.

 

[physicallyelite]

Originally posted by Habib
I've only lost about 1.5lbs. now, since I'm a newbie lifter (I only lifted for 6 weeks in the Fall)

One other thing? What is your percent bodyfat? The more body fat you have, the less often you should do a refeed and the briefer the refeed should be. If you are for example, 15% body fat or more you may want to start with a refeed meal once a week. As you become leaner you could progress to refeed days.

 

[Habib]

Originally posted by physicallyelite
One other thing? What is your percent bodyfat? The more body fat you have, the less often you should do a refeed and the briefer the refeed should be. If you are for example, 15% body fat or more you may want to start with a refeed meal once a week. As you become leaner you could progress to refeed days.

EH, I don't know. My scale says 15%, but my Accumeasure calipers, which I am sure I am using wrong somehow, say 9-10% (wtf?). I have some pictures up if you'd like to judge for yourself: www.habibsdepot.com/pics/pics.html

 

[oaktownboy]

Originally posted by Jodi
Did you read the refeed sticky?

ALL of your cals should come from carbs on refeed days with little protein and NO fat.

holy shit!!! u serious??? i had no idea..on my high carb days i would eat as many carbs i could at my 3 main meals provided i got my protein requirement in before it..and no fat??no fish oil???damn this is getting way too complicated...i've almost dropped my high carb day as well because i can't force myself to eat that mnay carbs anymore..dunno

 

[Premo55]

^^ If you're carb cycling, that's how you should be eating. Jodi is referring to a refeed that's done for a typical low carb diet.

Peace.

 

[aztecwolf]

yeah dude you need to eat a lot more, i eat that many carbs on a normal day and for a refeed you should be eating a ton, plus your calorie intake seems way to low, you should concentrate more on building more muscle then losing any fat for the time being.

 

[Habib]

I'm not trying to be a body builder, I'm trying to improve athletic performance in the sports I play. For that purpose, I would prefer to drop whatever fat I have left (preferably to 10% or less) before bulking.

 

[aztecwolf]

building more muscle will help you in that capacity, more muscle, more strength, more speed, better performance, trust me it is helping me i was a ripped lean 5 % bodyfat and my athletic performance was beginning to suck cause i wasn't as strong as i needed to be,

 

[Habib]

Buddy, if I were a ripped 5%, I would bulk too.

 

[Twin Peak]

Originally posted by Premo55
^^ If you're carb cycling, that's how you should be eating. Jodi is referring to a refeed that's done for a typical low carb diet.

Peace.

Exactly. Carb Cycling (my way) does not include "refeeds" per se.

Also, Jodi is overstating a true "refeed", in my opinion. While you want fat to be almost zero, you do want some EFAs (liek fish oil), and you definitely want sufficient protein (around a gram per pound of bodyweight).

But still, you should be getting 70-80% of your calories from carbs.

Lastly, your body holds 3 grams of water, per gram of carb, if I recall correctly. And this is a good thing, you don't want to lose this (though you will as you become carb depleted).

 

[Jodi]

around a gram per pound of bodyweight

My article says that. So

 

[aztecwolf]

Originally posted by Habib
Buddy, if I were a ripped 5%, I would bulk too.

thats why i have to the tune of 20 lbs. i'm just stating that if you want to increase athletic performance you should concentrate a little more on muscle gain, cause it ain't like you are a fatass that needs to drop like 20 lbs to be effective in your sport of choice