Carb backloading for gaining lean mass

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Hey, anyone have any positive experiences of carb backloading for gaining lean mass? Mind power is not an issue for me just need to know if it is effective

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  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,139 Member
    edited December 2015
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    that has nothing to do with gaining lean mass.

    The size of your surplus will determine how much fat you gain. So if you are concerned about fat gains shoot for a .5 gain per week = 250 calorie surplus.
  • pinggolfer96
    pinggolfer96 Posts: 2,248 Member
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    I unintentionally carb-backload because I like eating later in the day and carbing up helps me for my early morning fasted workouts. I don't do it because I think it works, it's just what I prefer in my eating schedule. The same macros eaten in the beginning of the day will have the same body composition effects as eaten at the end of the day
  • adamhendrickson92
    adamhendrickson92 Posts: 29 Member
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    I've had some of my best workouts when doing the opposite of carb-loading. I workout later in the day, and if I eat a high carb breakfast/lunch I have more energy to push my muscles past their limit. When I don't eat enough carbs before I workout there is a noticeable difference in the intensity of a workout I can achieve.

    I figure that I am better off eating carbs early when I know I'm going to burn off all the energy in the weight room. In my experience this, along with super high protein, has lead to gaining strength/endurance and visible muscle mass with minimal fat gain.

    I would like to try out carb backloading now that I've heard of it, and put it to the test. If you're goal is to gain lean mass, I would recommend a high protein, calorie surplus diet coupled with high intensity weight training, and equally important, consistent, quality sleep at night.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,574 Member
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    All muscle is lean. How you dictate on how much fat you gain is based on your surplus. As mentioned, a 250 calorie surplus would keep you "leaner" than one that's 500-1000 calories.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

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