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I thought CNS would be simple, meaning just don’t go over 30 g of carbs a day. But the more I read the forum the more confused I become. Am I supposed to have macros/protein to fat ratio?? I’m so new to this world. Yes I read CNS but it doesn’t in my opinion provide much direction. I listen to podcast and watch YouTube vids, trying to soak it in but it’s really information overload. Now I’m even wondering if I did carb nite correctly…I did lose 6 pounds in reorientation, for carb nite I had fries and a little soda at 4 then bread,crab cakes, steak and potatoes at 8 and cheese cake at 10. Now I’m up 2 pounds but I know that should go back down over this next week. Key word “should” what if I’m not doing this right??? I don’t want to waste time not doing CNS correctly. Help!
If you lost 6lbs it sounds like it is working for you. Don’t panic, just see where you’re at just before next carb nite and go from there.
Dont’t weigh yourself After carbnite 😉
Start a log, that is really helpful.
And… Don’t panic over 2 lbs! They’ll come off.
It is relatively simple and it sounds like you’re doing something right but yes, keep your carbs low daily – that doesn’t mean GET 30g of carbs, that’s a max – keep it as low as you can only getting carbs from veggies. We rarely get anywhere near 30g of carbs on ULC days. You should have some idea of your macros so you can adjust later. If you’re going high fat/low protein and find that’s not working for you, flip it and go low fat and higher protein; if you’re not keeping track you’ll have no idea what to try. HFLP didn’t work for my girlfriend but she’s having much better success with LFHP (70g F, 125g P)(I’ll relate everything in this post to what’s working for my girlfriend as it’ll relate better to you; assuming you’re female from your avatar, lol)[For reference she’s 5’4″, 137lbs and 42 years old]. For carb nites try to eat carbs every two hours to get the full whammy from the insulin spike and then hit it again after that spike has dropped off around the two hour mark. We start our carb nite at 3:00PM because we typically head to bed early for a 3:45AM wakeup for working out but you could certainly start later if you’re up later. We like to eat on this schedule because we want to make sure our last meal is done and digested before the eight hour window closes.
First spike (and I refer to them as “spikes” but they’re also known as “feedings,” “gorgings,” etc.) is at 3PM and is low fat; typically 80-100g worth of carbs. We don’t typically eat anything but carbs for the first one to start things off, so it’s something like 3 servings of Frosted Flakes or Fruity Pebbles and some almond milk. Second spike at 5PM will be more of a meal (meaning including some/low fat and a decent amount of protein) but still holding carbs to around 80-100g. Third spike at 7PM and now we’ll start going dirty: more fat, some protein – but again, around 80-100g of carbs. Depending on how she’s feeling belly-wise, that might be her last spike. If she’s still feeling pretty good (and everything’s digesting like it’s supposed to) she might have another at 9PM – but she seems to have the best results when keeping total carbs between 300-350ish, sometimes as high as 400, but not often. Any higher than that and she plays hell losing the CN gain the following week.
We lift weights on a four days a week schedule with our heaviest lifting days the first two days after CN. We also do 20 minutes of HIIT before heading to the gym to lift and sometimes she’ll do another 20 afterward. Depending on how we’re feeling we may or may not do a third day of HIIT. Y’all women-folk have a harder time ridding yourself of glycogen and water weight so it takes a bit more effort than it does the men. I know a lot of people refuse to record what they eat and look at their macros but both of us spun our wheels for the first month until we knuckled down and did it; it’s much easier to tweak your intake if you have some idea of what you’re eating. Most of us over or under exaggerate (aka “fooling ourselves”) what we’re eating and what it comes down to calorically – MyFitnessPal (when used properly) keeps things honest. We also weigh ourselves every day (again, some people do and some people don’t) but we use this more or less to watch for trends and make sure we’re trending down.
Anyway, she’s down 12 pounds since the beginning of the year and I’m down 35 since Christmas. Considering the first month/month and a half we were experimenting with different foods and finding some happy mediums AND she was doing HFLP (high fat/low protein) that first period, she’s lost most of her weight after that.
This is all my opinion and from what I’ve learned and seen over the past four months soooo, take that as you will. And I’m sorry this went on for so long, lol, fingers got a bit carried away. Stick to it and be smart with it and you’ll see results. 🙂
S.
I should also add that both of us routinely gain 4-5lbs the day after carb nite and have lost it by day four or five. So, our CN is Sunday, Monday morning we’re up 4-5lbs and by Thursday (usually) or Friday (occasionally) we’ve lost that and are getting to new lows. Two pounds isn’t a problem other than it might imply you didn’t have enough carbs. Insulin spikes are the engine to kicking all that hormonal stuff into gear to really burn fat sooooo…. don’t skimp, but don’t go hog nuts wild. 🙂
S.
SCauffiel thank you!!!!! That helped me more then you know, I am female, 40,150lbs. I will totally take your advice and record my food intake. I do have the MyFitnessPal App. Again thank you so much for taking the time to respond, it wasn’t to long it was just what I needed to hear!!
Glad to help! Hopefully it does. 🙂
Things I’ve learned or keep in mind from my own progress and interacting with Deb:
– Set a goal, a small goal at first, when you reach it set another slightly loftier goal, continue (and by small goal I mean something like, “I’ll log my food for a week” – then “I’ll log my food for two weeks” and on to “I’ll lose three pounds” and “I’ll lose five pounds”: small attainable goals that will bump up your confidence) until you’re at a good point.
– The weight didn’t go on in a day, it’s not going to come off in one – don’t expect it to. As a matter of fact, it’d be easiest to not expect anything, be pleasantly surprised and happy when it does happen. Expecting something is kind of like “demanding” something and that never ends well.
– We’re all different, what works for one person won’t necessarily work for someone else; don’t judge your progress by what someone else is achieving.
– Stress comes in all forms and always seems to be around. It can definitely stall progress.
– If you’re not tracking what you’re doing, you won’t know what to try changing to see better results.
– The scale is not the end-all-be-all; you’ll notice changes in clothes fitting and pictures sometimes better than those numbers.
– Drink plenty of water: log how much you drink, you may be surprised to find you’re not taking in much and that puts a hurtin’ on the body (I’ll routinely drink six-seven 32oz bottles of water a day) in many ways.
– Avoid soda and booze; there’s nothing good in that stuff and all it does is stall out your progress.
– Avoid the know-it-all smart guys who have failed on diets in the past telling you it can’t be done or can’t be done the way you’re doing it – they’re wrong – THEY couldn’t do it. (This is my number one pet peeve. Actually, nevermind, I have several number one pet peeves. LOL)
– Be careful eating out; there are hidden carbs EVERYWHERE. Even something you’d THINK would be innocuous, like bone-in wings from Buffalo Wild Wings, can be PACKED with carbs due to the coating on them; better safe than sorry and cook at home to know exactly what you’re getting – and you’ll save money to boot.
– Know when your time of the month is coming and account for it. You’re gonna gain weight, it’s gonna happen – accept it and move past it – it’ll come back off afterward.
– Don’t go hog nuts wild (HNW – lol) in the gym lifting weights, but definitely lift and mod your workouts so the heavier days are right after CN. Got to burn off that glycogen. Avoid Steady State Cardio and instead do HIIT.
– Get back on the fat train (especially the day after CN) to tell your body it’s A-OK to keep burning fat; start your day with Bulletproof Coffee (with heavy whipping cream, coconut oil or MCT oil) or if you don’t like coffee then take some MCT oil with something. An hour later enjoy a fat and protein breakfast.
– Try to eat dinner at a time where you can go 12-14 hours before having your bulletproof coffee/morning shake the next morning. A little intermittent fasting works pretty well; but don’t go beyond 14 hours before having at least some fat.
– Don’t fear the fat and subconsciously shy away from it. Know how much you’re taking in and account for it in your macros, it’s necessary.
– Have some heavy whipping cream and iso protein powder on hand for making up deficits in your macros. Some heavy cream, protein and ice cubes make a nice after dinner/dessert shake and can make up some calories depending on what you need.
– Plan out your Carb Nite. Decide a day or two beforehand what you intend to eat and enter that into MyFitnessPal, then tweak it to hit your desired macros. Don’t want to be winging it if you can avoid it. However, if you DO decide to wing it, do your best to keep track of it.<pant><pant> I’m out of breath. lol
LOL SCauffiel I think your an expert already. All your tips are dead on. I will be logging food and adjusting if need be. We don’t eat out except for CN, that does help avoiding hidden carbs. I do have my coffee with whipping cream and coconut oil every morning about 7am. I litteraly have no appetite until about 1-2pm and even then a small meal is enough for me. My appetite has completely gone away since starting CNS. I plan on incorporateing a work out routine next week, will be looking into HIIT. Thank you again, keep me posted on your progress and I will do the same. You have really helped me to CALM DOWN lol and go slower.
Nah, not an expert but I’ve learned a lot from all the folks here and from trying out all kinds of things on my own to see how they affect me. It’s all good and a great learning experience. Maybe one of these days I’ll get around to starting my own log and putting this stuff down here but I dunno, we’ll see. 🙂 Glad to have helped and maybe it’ll help someone else when they’re freaking out and wondering what to do.
Were I you I’d try to add a meal in there and not go so long without eating from your 7 coffee to your 1300 lunch, that seems a little long to me. BUT if it’s working for you, then cool; if you’re considering changing things up if you’re not seeing the results you’d like, maybe consider throwing some small snack in there or splitting your lunch up to two events instead of going so long without eating something. In my mind I want to make sure my body knows it has plenty of fat to work with and to keep working with it, keep burning it for fuel.
I should probably add to that list “Change one thing at a time so you’re not left wondering which one, of many, changes you made actually worked” too. lol Good luck with the workout routine and post up your progress!!
Keep Calm
and
Carb Nite
On😉
Steve
Marlee and Scauffiel….you have both helped me as well. I am in the same boat Marlee and I get quite frustrated. My biggest thing these days is trying to find good fat choices. I ate way too many pork rinds the other night and I was actually sick. LOL. My other issue is constipation (ya, I said it). I posted before and was informed to take fiber and more oil, however, still having issues. I think I need to start drinking water. I have lacked this big time.
Nonetheless…great post Marlee and Scauffiel you have encouraged us both. Thank you.
My girlfriend has that problem (constipation) too; what seems to help her is taking a tablespoonfull of Metamucil every night with her protein shake. She’ll actually mod her macros for dinner so that she has enough for a shake every night just to make sure she can take one. It doesn’t always help and she’s not completely regular, but it’s better. The other thing that helps is to make sure to take in some veggies daily.
As for fat, we’ll typically get our fat (if we don’t get it from our fattier meat selections) by adding butter to whatever we’re cooking. It’s fairly easy to know that you’re gonna get 11g/100cal of fat per tablespoon of butter. We use to use coconut oil a lot but it was a lot more hoopla; we’d melt the jar and pour it into silicon ice cube trays in one and two tablespoon doses and then put them in the fridge until they solidified and pop them out, storing them in a tupperware in the fridge. Made it easy to grab whatever was needed and it was fairly easy to identify between the two sizes.
Definitely drink lots of water, it’s just a good idea all around. 🙂
Idk guys, I’m not giving up but it’s frustrating to see that I’m not losing. I’m still down the same 6 pounds from reorienation but nothing since then. I have some macros I’m trying out (btw any suggestions on how to come up with your starting macros) – any one experiencing not wanting to eat at all? I litteraly have no appetite and I’m finding it hard to get my fat and protein in because I don’t want to eat. Not because I’m trying to starve myself but because I have no appetite. At times I’m forcing myself to eat because I know I have to, but it makes me a lil nauseas sometimes. I started HIIT this week as well, felt very exhausted from it. I imagine that’s the lack of carbs I guess… It’s disappointing to stall out just as quickly as I started but I’m gonna keep at it for the next month or so but if I don’t drop below the initial 6 pounds then I’m not sure I will stick with CNS.
hey there, I’m confused by your confusion and frustration.
I’m on day 18 of CNS and it’s been pretty straight forward to the point of being easy. Apart from a doctors check up where I was asked to get on the scales, I haven’t bothered weighing myself and don’t see the need. I think it’s a flawed way of monitoring progress doing more psychological damage than good.
I trust the process (based on my research of the program) and am confident l’ll see improvement over the next 3-6-9-12 months. As long as I have the energy to train and feel good in general, I know I’m becoming a healthier human.
re: has anyone experienced not wanting to eat at all? Oh Yes, all the time, so I don’t eat.
It’s quite simple to stay below 30 grams of Carbs a day. I started a thread called “My Carb Nite Solution Journey – Started 29.03.2015” where I’ve detailed a few weeks of what I have been eating using My Fitness Pal. (if you need some basic ideas)
The last few days I decided to do CNS as if it was a year from today, like it’s already my long term lifestyle and going about my day as normal. I’ve been winging it and not fussed about what the calories are or the timing of when I eat. Simply eating when hungry, not watching the clock, keeping Carbs below 30 grams a day, not eating when full and most importantly, never again logging the food I eat into MFP, ha!
Talk about freedom!
If you believe (like I do) that eating this way puts you in the best environment to mobilise body fat, then the next 1-3-6 months will be the real indicator of your progress.
It’s human nature to have doubts, however using an antiquated device (scales) to track progress just adds fuel to the fire of self doubt.
Well done on your progress, try avoiding the scales completely, trust the process by giving it a chance longer term … and enjoy life.
Regards,
DavidI have been frustrated myself. I logged my food on MFP and realized there are a ton of hidden carbs. I drink 2-3 cups of coffee in the morning with heavy cream. Good grief, the cream adds to 200 calories approx. a serving plus 4 grams of carbs. This adds up. If I don’t drink the cream (which I do love) I won’t get my fat in otherwise. I hate logging food and want that freedom. Maybe I need to go back to basics myself.
thanks for the tips
Thank you for your comments David… But is this really just about staying under 30 g of carbs a day??? I can easily do that however isn’t getting my fat and protien in just as important? If I went based on my appetite I would be getting well under 1000 calories a day, fat 30-40 g and protien 50-60 g a day. Im also female and 40 so my weight isn’t going to fall off as quickly as a male. Clearly what may work for one person on CNS isn’t going to work for the next. I do believe CNS becomes simple once you find the formula that works for you.
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