hi i have a very basic question (apologize if it sounds stupid) but i really needeed to know badly i just had to ask. im sure there was already an aswer to my q's tried to find the exact answer by browsing the forums but couldnt find it (this forum is huge).

ok my q's is do i REALLY HAVE TO or MUST be on 20g carbs a day in order to switch to burning fat mode, if i eat less carb (but not 20g) say 30g or even bit more would my body NOT burn fat?

reason why im asking this is becuz im thinkin on switchin and modifyin a bit and it require me to stay within 20g per day, i dont think i need to lose anymore weight? (more body fat to lose yes) but crucial i want to at least try to follow the plan by the rule. ive never done 20g before in my life so i am kinda hesitate (oh well not hesitate maybe thats not the right word to explain how i feel about it lol sorry).

anyway i just never done it before (20g carb) i think it'll be little hard for me to reach that point as im pretty much aware of my eating pattern right now (i have to at least eat 4-5 or even 6 meals a day and quite a portion during dinner). and with eating pattern like that, the lowest carb i can ever get is between 35g up. lower than that on a lucky day but never 20g.

i'm wondering if i was about to eat between 30g-40g carbs a day would that do me any good or is it just not gonna work at all and 20g carb is mandatory for me in order for my body to switch to burn fat?

appreciate your time to answer my question and thanks in advance.


p/s if this would help i exercise 5-6 times a week, weight, cardio + walkin fit

Shaz: It varies a lot from person to person what the carb count will be in order to be in the fat burning mode. But if you do not want to lose weight, why would you want to be in fat burning mode? Lots of folks use a low-carb diet for health reasons and perhaps that is what you are doing. There is no reason to cut your carbs so low if you are interested in maintaining your weight. You might want to check out the maintenance thread here as there are many people low-carbing to maintain their current weight. Good luck to you!

Orchid

orchid thank you for your reply.



is that mean if i eat 30-40 i'd still burn fat?

im thinkin on doing ckd and from the chart given if need follow the plan rule exactly as it is, i have to eat 20g a day for 5 days and carb loading on weekends.

maybe i post in the wrong thread but id really love to hear from atkiners point of view cuz i think this 20g carb is really atkins thing.

my drawback on startin ckd is that (i think) i cant stay within 20g a day but i dont mind stayin 30-40 but if this numbers not giving me any advantage of fat burning during training on ckd then i dont think its worth it? (i know its worth the try but oh well lol)

thanks again xoxo

I've heard of very active people continuing to lose weight on 90 carbs a day. Your carb level for losing/maintaining/gaining weight is very individual. The 20 carb level in the induction mode is to guarantee most people switch to fat burning mode. Since you're not interested in losing, why don't you start at maintenance mode and adjust from there? Maybe start at 100 grams and increase/decrease by 10 grams.

By "fat burning" you probably mean ketosis. It can vary, but generally speaking ketosis will end after you go up to 50 g of carbs.

If you don't have to lose weight, you probably don't need to be in ketosis, and could start at a higher level of your chosen plan. Or even just stop eating refined foods and sugar, etc.

You CAN still burn fat not being in ketosis. If you are taking in less calories than you are eating, you will burn at least some fat. Doing cardio on an empty stomach will also help burn more fat.

The advantage of ketosis for those of us trying to lose is that it reduces your appetite, and keeps insulin under control -- which means no cravings.

If you are considering LC, it's worthwhile to do some reading so you know how it actually works and the relationship between carbs and insulin.

There's lots of good info at the Atkins website, and the Atkins book or Protein Power are available in paperback for a few bucks, or from your local library.

Good luck.

Sorry - I didn't see you were doing SB. I think SB is ketogenic in the first phases, so your book, if you have it, should have some info. If you don't have the book, Prevention magazine's website has some info on SBD.

thanks kaillean i think that statement somewhat shed a light. i may not want to lose weight but if i do then maybe its good thing?

id stay within 30g or so but not >50g. i was just little conscious that if i dont stay within 20g that the ckd training wont do me any good.

will jump back n forth between atkins and ckd boards for more input.

thanks heap

It sounds like you need to find your critical carbohydrate level. Increase your carbs by adding 5 extra carbs to your carb count per week until you stop losing, then continue adding until you gain(and someone please correct me if Im wrong, its been a while since I read that part of DANDR, and that is my understanding). Once you hit that point back off of the carbs a bit and that should be your approximate level to "live" on.

Also, if you are already at goal on your weight, you might want to think about incorporating some exercise to firm up. It can make all the difference in how your body looks. Best of luck!!!