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As I’ve mentioned in a number of recent posts, diet is 70% (maybe even 80%) of the success of your fitness program.. A bad diet in a fitness strategy, is like a painter with a bristleless brush. (I love a great metaphor!).. Much like the painter and his brush, your body’s canvas is dressed in the foods you eat.. I referred to an important concept in the last paragraph in “Rep Range for Building lean Muscle” post.. The Way You “look” is a reflection of what you eat.. Bulky Bodies aren’t eating clean. I’ve taken weeks at a time away from weight lifting and kept my diet clean and lean, and my body actually toned up even more.. The weights will be something you need time away from to recharge your body, but the way you feed your body is an everyday thing that has to be mastered to look lean, tight, and toned..

Carbohydrates are on the forefront of many discussions/debates in the fitness world, so I will focus only on that nutrient in this post.. I feel protein is overrated, fat is underrated, and carbohydrates are.. hmm.. undervalued we’ll call it.. Carbohydrates fuel your mind, they fuel your muscles, they personally keep me smiling.. I’ve gone on low carb diet stretches in the past and turned into a total, depressed, jerk overnight.. I can’t even think straight without this nutrient, plus my muscles become extremely flat & I actually look worse.. Have you ever seen celebrities that look a little too thin in the face and their skin seems to be hanging on their skinny weak frame?? This is due to lack of carbohydrates.. I can look at someone’s face & instantly tell if they are, or aren’t getting enough carbs (and also tell if they’ve eaten too many of the wrong kind of carbs).. I’m not asking you to eat pounds of spaghetti everyday because that isn’t the solution, but neither is cutting out this essential nutrient.. No matter if you are obese & trying to only lose weight, or if you are skinny trying to add muscle, Your Body Will Tighten Up With a Lean Toned Look from Carb Consumption. The key is to eat the right KIND of carbohydrate at the right time.

How a Carbohydrate Can Make or Break Your Shape..

You eat a piece of bread.. Your digestive system triggers the pancreas to release the hormone insulin into the bloodstream, converting the carbohydrate to glycogen. Glycogen is absorbed into the muscles making them feel full, tight, and, coupled with low body fat, will make you look more ripped & lean when consumed properly.. If you eat too many carbs in one sitting, or the wrong kind of carbs (aka.. Sugar) then the muscles will absorb the maximum amount of glycogen & then store the rest as body fat (Useless Food energy = Fat).. The key is understanding your sensitivity.. If you have stronger, denser muscles, your body can absorb more carbs in the correct way to build a lean, toned frame, and store less as body fat (another benefit of strength training..) You are lowering your carb sensitivity when you add lean muscle to your frame.. Bodies with no muscle tend to “bloat” up quickly when they eat carbs because there’s no “sponge” (muscle) to soak up the glycogen. This is as technical as I’ll get into your bodies reaction to carbs.. Just know that, carbs make your muscles feel full and tight, but eat the wrong kind of carb or too much of a carb, & your body will store access glycogen as fat.. Eat too little amount of carbs and your body will look and feel tired, skin sags, metabolism slows, muscles go flat, and your mind starts going wacky..

  Low Carb Diets Won’t Make You Lean.. But Only Temporarily Shrink Your Body Due to Lack of Nourishment..

        

Have You seen Katie Holmes Lately? Wow.. Not a poster look for low carb promotions.. The picture to the left with Tom Cruise is a recent picture of her “low-carb” shape.. She looks pretty sick huh.. She’s slim, but not lean, only skinny, skin is sallow, and face is gaunt-looking.. (Tom looks like he’s having to hold her up so she doesn’t collapse..) Notice how she actually appears to be more toned in the healthy attractive pic to the right.. Her face is more attractive & toned as well.. Celebrities use the low carb trick for short term shrinking of their bodies but in my opinion, its not doing their looks any favors.. Its not healthy, it makes you look LESS fit, & the stage is set for your body to blow up like a balloon when you begin eating carbs again.. Skinny is not what we want.. We want toned, and lean physiques.. You need carbs to get lean..

                                                 

Eric Carlson & Gregg Avedon are models for a lean, healthy looking physique from Carbohydrate consumption.. Gregg notes over 50% of his calories come from Carbs, and Eric eats nearly 550 grams of carbs every day! To keep their muscles full and hard, they eat healthy carbs (and alot of them).. If they cut out carbs, they may actually retain more fat (from a slowing metabolism) & their muscles would flatten out & soften up.. They are good examples of bodies that have really high metabolisms that now benefit from clean carb consumption.. In order to ”fire up” your metabolism, you need alot of fibrous carbs.. This will switch the body from fat retention, to fat burning, by encouraging an active digestive system.. Don’t fear carbs..


(The above graph points out the insulin spike I referred to when eating carbs high in sugar (The Red Line).. The Gold Line is the Low Glycemic Line pointing the positive effect veggies & other Low GI Foods have on the Blood Sugar Levels.. When there is no spike, you will have consistent energy all day & little fat storage.. Do as Mommy Taught You, & Eat Your Veggies!)

Choose Your Carbs Wisely..

I’m a firm believer in the Glycemic Index.. This is a rating system that ranks carbs effect on insulin levels in the bloodstream.. As I mentioned above, every time you put a carb in your mouth, insulin is released into the bloodstream that starts the process of “Will this carb lead to fat gain?? OR will this carb soak into my muscle leading to a leaner/toned physique??” The Glycemic Index shows you which carbs will keep insulin levels down (good soaking into muscles carbs) & which carbs spike insulin levels (fat gain carbs).. High sugar carbs spike insulin levels.. Clean, lean carbs such as vegetables & fruit keep insulin levels down, making your muscles tighter, toned & energetic, with no added body fat from excess glycogen.. Below is a list of my favorite low glycemic carbs that make up 90% of my carb intake everyday.. These foods are great for adding lean muscle to any frame, while eliminating body fat because they are low in sugar & high in fiber.. Sugar-free fibrous carbs are your focus..

-Protein Enriched Spaghetti
-Raw Vegetables (I stay away from Canned Veggies)
-Sweet Potato
-Brown Rice
-Oatmeal (Added Only When I’m Growing Muscle)
-Bran/Special K Cereal & Soy Milk Mixed with Fruit (My favorite Tastes Great!)
-Oranges, Grapefruit, Apple, Plums (Lowest GI Fruits.. Watermelon, Pineapple, and Fruit Juices are Not Great Fruits For Getting Lean because of their high sugar content & High GI Ranking)
-Any Fresh Beans Not in a Can.. (Black Beans, Lima Beans, Kidney’s are my Favorite..)
-I’m Not a Fan of Bread (Even Whole Grain.. It makes feel a bit congested like I’ve slammed a couple of beers.. Not sure if its the yeast, or Gluten, but I don’t react well to it, so I don’t eat it.. I always choose the wrap for my sandwiches & double up on the veggies..)

Pig Out On These Carbohydrates for Lean & Toned Muscle..

I eat as much of the above listed Carbs as I want and never gain body fat (I don’t abuse the Cereal, Rice Products, or Sweet Potato, but I still have 1 heaping helping of each, everyday).. As a matter of fact, because of the high fiber content & low-sugar content, the more of those fibrous carbs I eat, the more fat I burn.. When these foods are consumed in high amounts (Much like Gregg Avedon’s diet) they fire the metabolism leading to fat loss, but your calories are high enough to retain muscle (the ultimate goal for a lean & toned physique).. My muscles feel full & hard from eating those carbs, my metabolism is operating at optimum levels for fat burn, and my mind is working at its peak.. Life is good when you’re eating a lot of quality carbs. No matter if you’re obese looking to drop weight, or an ectomorph needing muscle, you can pig out on the Veggies, Lentils (Beans), & Low Sugar/Low GI Fruits.. They will assist in fat burn and retention of muscle, toning your physique.. These are “good carbs” you should eat..

Carbs, Carbs, Carbs.. How Much of This Stuff Should We Eat?!?!

Glad you asked! I don’t there’s a perfect number or ratio that encompasses all body types.. However, if burning fat and tightening up your body is your goal, then carbs need to be eaten.. If you are looking to burn body fat & feed lean muscle tissue, set a goal for consuming at least 1 gram per pound of body weight.. If you are an ectomorph, and struggle to put on weight/muscle, you need at least 2 grams per body pound to keep weight on your frame, feeding muscle tissue with glycogen. As any body type begins to slim down and tone up from excercise and healthy carb consumption, you’ll notice your body will be hungry for more and more healthy carbs.. This is a great place to be and exactly where Fitness Models are.. You won’t find too many fitness models that will cut carbs for too long because their bodies can’t deal with that stress and lack of nutritional support.. For now, focus on the 1-2 grams per body pound of weight of carbs, in the form of low glycemic carbs (fresh vegetables, low GI fruits, different types of beans, whole wheat spaghetti, sweet potatoes, & brown rice).. If a 200 lb man is eating 200 grams of carbs from those sources, that body will tighten up and mold around that muscle creating a toned beach fit body! The same principle applies to any woman.. I’m not as concerned with the amount of carbs you’re eating, but more the type.. If you’re eating the right type, then you can eat as much as you want and continue to drop as much body fat as you wish.. This goes for both Endomorphs (heavier set frames that retain body fat) & Ectomorphs (skinny bodies that have a tough time gaining weight)..

ReCap on “Get Fit” Carbs..  

No matter if you are obese & need to lose fat (without a concern of muscle gain), or if you are a skinny ectomorph needing to add some muscle while not taking on body fat, eat clean carbs and devour them.. If you have a sugar craving, eat fruit.. Just be picky about the ones you eat, then go to town on them! I’ve spent a lot of time testing my sensitivity to this nutrient and found these choices and strategy to be the best fit for giving me lean & toned muscle with low body fat, while not going crazy from low carb fads.. I think if you’ll choose the right carbs for a lean body, you enjoy life a little more and get to your fitness goals quicker.. As I’ve mentioned before, most of us know what to do, we just need the discipline to consistently execute.. This is just touching on carbs.. I’ll hit on quality Protein and Fats (a much needed post on fats..) in a later post to round off a complete dieting strategy.. Let me know of any questions or concerns.. I also would like to hear what’s working for you! If you have anything to add, post a comment to my article.. I love the feedback and invite all of you to share your thoughts & ask questions!

John Fit.. (Inspiring Myself to Keep up My Disclipline Eating Habits!)