Slow Carb Diet and Colorado Experiment Week 3

Written by Editor in Chief, Pick The Brain - 18 Comments
Categories: health and fitness

It’s been three weeks following the slow carb diet suggested by Tim Ferriss. I have to thank Eugene Thong because his breathing advice cured the exercise induced headaches I’d been getting. This is very important to learn for anyone who isn’t experienced weight training with the 5-5 cadence (5 seconds up and 5 seconds down for each repetition).

The problem was that I was only taking one breath for each repetition. This worked fine at my old pace, but the 5-5 cadence makes repetitions much longer. Although I was breathing deeply, pressure built up and caused the headaches. This is the correct breathing technique that I’ve started using as Eugene described it:

Overbreathe – Rather than use the “exhale when you exert, inhale when you relax” standard, breathe with a steady repeating pattern, increasing your rate of breathing as the effort increases. At the end of the set when you’re giving your best efforts, your breathing should almost resemble Lamaze or hyperventilating.

Now that I’m breathing right I’ve gotten back into the weight training. I’m optimistic it will compliment the diet and lead to some nice results in the next few weeks.

Slow Carb Diet

A couple observations on the diet:

  • It’s easy to stick to the diet when you’re in a weekly routine. I’ve been eating the same combinations of vegetables, legumes, and meats for nearly every meal. I eat good portions and haven’t felt deprived at all.
  • It gets difficult when you’re pulled out of your controlled environment and eat in a social setting. It’s not very fun going to a restaurant and not being able to order anything but a salad. It’s amazing how much white carbs and sugar are a part of our cultural diet.
  • I’ve been very liberal on my “free” days. A couple times I’ve eaten a tremendous amount of junk and I think it’s negated some of my fat loss. For the rest of the month I plan to stick to healthier carbs for the most part.

I’m looking forward to seeing my actual weight change at the end of the 4 weeks. I don’t think it will be too large, but the diet and workout routine has been an interesting experience and I can see myself sticking to it.

  • http://vvvlad.blogspot.com/ Vlad

    Hi,
    You never answered my question about breathing when I asked it at your first post – but now I see why – you didn’t know the answer , but thanx for sharing it now :)
    I’ve started with 5:5 training a couple of weeks ago (without the diet…), and I’m waiting to see how will it come out…
    Sorry for being pester, but I have nowhere else to ask the questions:
    1. How did you decide which weight to use (I had to drop it significantly…)?
    2. What is the minimum gap between the exercises (In days…)
    3. What about abdominal muscles? Don’t they need a little more exercise?

    Thanks
    and good luck

  • http://www.pickthebrain.com John Wesley

    Vlad,

    I’m far from the most qualified to answer, but here’s what I think.

    1. In deciding what weight to do I just went by trial and error, with the goal of a weight that would allow me to do 8-10 reps before failure. My weight was also much reduced.
    2. According to Tim Ferriss, the routine should only be done twice a week. I’ve been doing 2-3 days of rest in between work outs, with the occasional cardio or other exercise in between.
    3. The routine doesn’t say anything about abdominals, but because that’s an area I’d really like to improve I’ve been incorporating crunches into the workout.

    Hope that helps a little. I’d be interested to know what more experienced people have to say.

  • http://vvvlad.blogspot.com/ Vlad

    John,
    Thanks for the answer :)
    One more Q: You never said anything about the “Muscle vs. Fat” progress until now.
    Can you see any change?

  • http://www.pickthebrain.com John Wesley

    I’ve definitely become a bit leaner and more toned, but I think not doing the work outs (due to the headaches) for a couple weeks has slowed my progress a bit. I don’t see this as a failure in any way because in the process I’ve learned a lot about what works.

    Now that I’m working out again and getting smarter about the diet I expect results to improve.

  • http://zenhabits.net Leo

    Great stuff, John. I’ve been following this closely. Can’t wait to see the results.

  • Ken

    I’ve just finished the last day of the four weeks. Seventeen pounds lost for me, but just 1 for my wife and a couple for my daughter. No exercise involved. However, since this is the first time I’ve ever dieted, the “yo-yo” effect didn’t come into play for me. The question is: What’s the next step? Obviously, it’s time to exercise to help keep the weight off, but is it also time to splurge two days a week? Or keep to he same regimen (probably not the best choice). Any experiences out there?

  • http://etfwellness.blogspot.com/ Eugene Thong

    John, thanks for the links. I’m glad my suggestions helped you.

    Re: Vlad’s Questions:

    1. John got it right on the money – experiment with the weight till you hit failure in roughly 60-90 seconds (8-10 reps works just fine). You’ll find that as you get more used to the style of lifting, the weights you can use will quickly jump right back to “normal” levels.

    2. The minimum gap between exercise days should be one day (meaning a max of 3 workouts per week), but most folks will find 2 workouts a week (spaced at least 2 days apart) to be most result-producing. Use your ability to make progress (i.e., recovery) as a guide.

    3. The abs don’t need to be trained directly. They are used indirectly on many movements – pulldowns and pull ups, dips, overhead pressing, etc. In addition, for a visible 6-pack, what’s most important is diminishing the amount of overlying fat in the ab region. If you feel the need to perform direct ab work, however, an extra set of crunches isn’t going to hurt your progress.

  • KirdApe

    I’m curious about the “exercise induced headaches” you described.

    After I run long distances (for me 6miles or more) I also have headaches.

    Is my breathing to blame?

  • http://www.pickthebrain.com John Wesley

    Hmmm, I don’t think what you’re experiencing is the same thing. The headaches I was getting were due to improper breathing during weight lifting, I never had any problems doing cardio.

    Can anyone more qualified provide advice to KirdApe?

  • http://etfwellness.blogspot.com/ Eugene Thong

    KirdApe,

    It’s really tough to say what the root cause of your headaches are, since the only information I have is the distance you’re running. But based on my experience, my guess is that they are not the same kind of exercise-induced headache that John was getting, so changing your breathing patterns probably won’t help much.

    There are several reasons why you might be getting headaches from extended cardiovascular training:

    1. Dehydration – It’s common that athletes and trainees get dehydrated, especially in if they work out in hot weather. It doesn’t take much; just a 1 or 2% drop in blood volume can have negative repercussions for performance, and can result in slight headaches. The chances of sustaining a headache are even higher in hot weather as your body won’t be able to dissipate heat as effectively with a decreased blood volume.

    This can be fixed by drinking a tall glass (or its equivalent) of water prior to your activity and consuming water throughout your activity. Let your thirst be your guide here.

    2. Hypoglycemia (Low Blood Sugar) – It’s possible that you’re not fueling yourself properly prior to exercise. Are you running first thing in the morning? If so, your blood sugar levels may be dropping to extremely low levels, which can trigger headaches.

    Consider eating a small snack of complex carbohydrates (i.e., slow-burning carbs) or ingesting some calorie-infused drink prior to your run (if I had my druthers, I’d have you drink something containing BCAAs to prevent muscle wasting during the activity, but that’s just me).

    3. Poor running form – Check your running posture. Are you holding too much tension in your shoulders (keeping your shoulders too tight)? Do you run with your head tilted forwards? If all methods of self-correction fail, consider videotaping yourself running and submit it to a qualified coach for review.

    Those are just a few possibilities but it’s impossible to pinpoint what exactly is causing your headaches unless I get some more information. Hope these help, though.

  • Neil

    John, I am now into the last week of the regime. Two more workouts and and 5 and a bit days to go. For me the results have been incredible. The muscle gain seems to have slowed a little but the fat loss seems to have picked up. I have now lost so much weight from around my middle that I had to buy new belts and trousers for work.

    All up my weight is down by 6 kgs (approx 13 lbs) but at the same time I have put on noticeable amounts of additional muscle. Best of all my belly has gone. I now have my flat belly back after 6 years of being fat.

    Originally I thought that I may need to follow the program for longer than 4 weeks to get the results I was after but I am already there. Next month I will take a break and then try Tim’s program for muscle gain the folowing month. Then I may do this again and try for a ripped six pack.

    Neil

  • http://www.pickthebrain.com John Wesley

    That’s great, Neil. I’m glad your results have been so pronounced, mine certainly aren’t that impressive.

  • http://www.sethigherstandards.com/seattle-experiment-check-in/ Ravi

    While I have seen signficiant increases in strength across most of my major lifts, I have not seen a discernable change in my bodyweight or bodyfat. That said, I have NOT been following the slow-carb diet that Tim outlined. I am a Vegan, and since my goal is to gain weight, I am just focusing on getting in lots of high quality whole foods and proteins.

    However, I am a fan of the single set to failure training method. My body feels great working out this way, and it is a huge time saver. I am going to keep it up for another month or so and see what happens.

    I’ve been following the training protocol for 25 days.

    My latest update is here: http://www.sethigherstandards.com/my-strength-gaining-mission-day-20-check-in/

  • KirdApe

    Thanks alot for your advices.

    I usually run 3 miles in the morning but always after breakfast.

    I only get headaches after long runs when I push the limits. Usually there is only one water distribution.

    I will ask for others to look at my running posture.

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