Carb Intake?

chaarlotte289

I've heard that when increasing calories you should keep your carb intake lower to avoid water weight, is this true? If so, how many grams should I be eating a day if I'm upping from 1600 to 2000 calories?

Thanks!

GaleHawkins

Carbs do pull in water but not sure water weight would be considered dangerous to most people. I leave off carbs for pain management but most younger people manage OK on high carbs. It is more of a personal thing when it comes to one's eating lifestyle.

rachsoderberg

It really depends on the overall plan you're following. For instance, I follow pretty closely to a 40% carb, 30% protein, 30% fat diet and it works very well for me and I wouldn't say I carry a lot of water weight unless my salt intake gets really high for several days in a row. I eat 2334 cal/day and it ends up being 233g carbs.
If you're following a similar plan, bump up the carbs and see how you feel! Otherwise, leave them where they're at and again see how you feel. If your carbs are too low you will likely feel sluggish and possibly cranky with headaches (how I get), but other people can run very well on lower carb intake.

sijomial

Yes going from low carb/low calories to normal carbs/normal calories may add some water weight but it would be silly to avoid them for that reason.
It's your body replenishing your glycogen reserves which is a very good thing not a bad thing, especially if you do intense exercise.