Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

Question

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I just got through Jeff Volek and Stephen Finney's Art and Science of Low Carbohydrate Performance. It's worth the $6 Kindle price if you happen to have an e-reader: http://www.amazon.com/The-Art-Science-Carbohydrate-Performance/dp/0983490716

One of the things that struck me is the authors' claim that they and other athletes have maintained uninterrupted ketosis for months and even years at a time.

It seems that a lot of athletes in the paleo community (myself included) find the need for carb refeeds. I'm sure I dip into ketosis every once in a while, but the amount of veggies I consume on a regular basis (around 100g carbs) is unlikely to have me in full ketosis. I've found bi-weekly refeeds work best. When I need a refeed, I can feel it, and they do wonders for bringing recovery and energy back up to full levels.

But what of these athletes claims in the book (ultra marathoners even) that they can maintain uninterrupted ketosis for months at a time? Is there a point at which a ketogenic diet (less than 50g/day of carbs) mitigates the need for a carb refeed on a more standard paleo diet that is not as carb strict (between 50-150g/day)? What would the mechanisms be? Or is this just standard variation between individual needs?

flag	asked Aug 23 at 4:31 Jake 935●1●9

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I thought refeeds were for weight lifters trying to build attractive muscles. Anyway, it seems that very low carb works well for endurance athletes. They discuss this often over on Barefoot Ted's forum. – Diane Aug 23 at 18:09

A lot of people discuss it in terms of weight loss/body building, but it comes up frequently in recovery as well: MDA touches on it here: marksdailyapple.com/… (feeling sluggish, etc.) – Jake Aug 24 at 4:50

Monte · Answer 1 · 2012-08-23 05:02:59Z UTC

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When considering athletic performance Dr. Kruse has stated that full fat adaption may take years to accomplish.

Read this whole thread. ;)

http://forum.jackkruse.com/showthread.php?305-Fasted-State-Training-Adaptations

answered Aug 23 at 5:02

Monte
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Jeff · Answer 2 · 2012-08-23 05:55:34Z UTC

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The mechanism might be the physiological insulin resistance that occurs in people on a very low carb diet. If you're low-ish carb then perhaps your peripheral tissues still want glucose.

answered Aug 23 at 5:55

Jeff
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Satchmo · Answer 3 · 2012-11-04 03:08:23Z UTC

Need re-feeds...maybe. Who are you and what is your sport? You sure as hell need them if you are a Sprinter, maybe even a BB if you really like 8-12 reps per set. On that last one maybe. Pure strength orientation or pure ultra-endurance? I don't see that you need 'em. Endurance is almost all aerobic, non-glycogen burning exercise. My personal experience on a 150g or less of protein per day and 30gm of carb is that that I can make it thru my linear progression on Strong Lifts 5x5 while in Ketosis with no problems. I might go slightly catabolic during the workout, it isn't hard to tell since instead of smelling like sweat you smell like cat pee, but that is really 1 out of 5-6 sessions and on those days I hit a bit of Whey with no carbs and I'm fine. I recover better than when I was eating yams. Mood is better too... Some people who are insulin resistant take a while to adapt and the first month might suck but I suspect you'd bounce back.

CICO Suave · Answer 4 · 2012-08-23 06:01:17Z UTC

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Silly rabbit, ketosis is for Jimmy Moore!

answered Aug 23 at 6:01

CICO Suave
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Ketogenic v. Standard Paleo and Refeeds

4 Answers