Originally Posted by Buzz Kill

If anyone is remotely interested in obtaining functional strength I would highly recommend Starting Strength (by Mark Ripptoe), it goes into great detail on why barbell exercises (squat, power clean, press and bench press, etc...) are far superior for overall body composition than virtually anything else.

It also seems, from reading the book, like this super-slow motion stuff that has been touted here would be a phenomenally bad way of exercising. The book is adamant that training with high speed with a reasonably movable weight makes way for muscles to use maximal power and are able to obtain usable, functional strength.

Though I have no fundamental knowledge on this super slow stuff, it seems like you would be training your muscles and central nervous system to be slower and less powerful than what Mark is suggesting.

Originally Posted by M Levac

The bodybuilding community still believes in the Positive Caloric Balance hypothesis i.e. a calorie is a calorie is a calorie. Their advice to gain muscle is: Eat more. This forum is dedicated to low carb diets and as such we're a little more informed on the subject so we would be the first to consider that advice as naive if not completely wrong.

Carbohydrates drive insulin drives fat accumulation. This fundamental principle is the simplest explanation of how we grow fat. Bodybuilders don't escape this mechanism in the least. In fact, the classical method to grow muscle is to eat more regardless of macronutrients, grow fat because of the high carb content, then cut by cutting total calories (which invariably cuts total carbs) again regardless of macronutrients all the while lifting heavy weights. In other words, even as they lift the bar i.e. exercise, they grow fatter. It's called the bulk/cut method. Do you want to grow fat? If not, then don't follow this advice.

The advice to eat more carbs comes from the fact that protein requires insulin to be used by cells. Since carbs also require insulin and more insulin would logically improve the amino acids uptake by cells, eating more carbs would then be the logical thing to do to gain more muscle. The problem with this logic is that it doesn't take into consideration insulin resistance. This builds over time such that cells simply refuse to take in any more insulin. At that point, the only thing that grows is fat tissue because it's the last tissue to become insulin resistant. It can take years like it can take weeks.

Carbohydrates serve only one purpose and that's fuel. It can't be used for repair or maintenance or any other purpose than fuel. Fat can be used for fuel, repair, maintenance and building blocks of cells, sterols production such as cholesterol and subsequently testosterone, and various tissue with the main tissue being the brain. Protein can be used for fuel, repair, maintenance and building blocks of cells and various tissue with the main tissue being muscles. Vitamins and minerals are used in every step of fuel utilization, repair, maintenance and building blocks and there are many more better alternatives than eating carbs to get those.

So yes, it's entirely possible, perhaps even easier, to grow muscle while in ketosis.

Originally Posted by awriter

You know what's cool about the internet? People's actual words are written, and can be copied and pasted. As here, where you wrote:

"Feel free to try adding muscle while in ketosis and not in a calorie surplus - you will be wasting your time."

Wasting your time. Which means not possible. Because if it were possible, you wouldn't be wasting your time.

If I put on 10 pounds of muscle in ketosis while eating a calorie deficit - you're wrong.

If I put on 9 pounds of muscle in ketosis while eating a calorie deficit - you're wrong.

If I put on 8 pounds of muscle in ketosis while eating a calorie deficit - you're wrong.

If I put on 7 pounds of muscle in ketosis while eating a calorie deficit - you're wrong.

If I put on 6 pounds of muscle in ketosis while eating a calorie deficit - you're wrong.

If I put on 5 pounds of muscle in ketosis while eating a calorie deficit - you're wrong.

If I put on even 1 pound of muscle in ketosis while eating a calorie deficit - you're wrong.

Put a fork in it, son - your theory's done. And when something's done, I don't mess with it anymore. If you do, you'll be talkin' to the hand. Done is DONE.