Thread: Atkin's diet and Boxing

What do you guys think of the Atkins Diet for a fighter needing to make weight? I know knocking those carbs out keeps that water weight off, What your thinking on this? I have found lo-carbs = lo energy though ! Thanks for input !

You hit it right on....low carbs=low energy=bad workouts. Just stick to a well balanced diet and up the cardio. If you need to lose a lot of weight, your not fighting in the right weight class.

Like Heavy D said... those diets a barely adaquate for some one who sits on their arse all day... if you do carbohydrate fueled training like boxing and don't eat carbs... expect to train like shite

Getting a sweat on keeps 'the water weight' off and training properly and eating a balanced diet in adaquated amounts will healthly and safely bring the fat off you whilst keeping you fit and healthy

Originally Posted by Lords Gym

What do you guys think of the Atkins Diet for a fighter needing to make weight? I know knocking those carbs out keeps that water weight off, What your thinking on this? I have found lo-carbs = lo energy though ! Thanks for input !

Warning DON*T DO THAT!!!

I did it 2 weeks before a tourumnt And I did make the weight easy almost 2 weightdivisons lover but I had NO energy I trained like shit those 2 weeks and in fight night I had no power or stamina all I did was just clinched all night a lost.

Originally Posted by MikeTysonKnockOut

Originally Posted by Lords Gym

What do you guys think of the Atkins Diet for a fighter needing to make weight? I know knocking those carbs out keeps that water weight off, What your thinking on this? I have found lo-carbs = lo energy though ! Thanks for input !

Warning DON*T DO THAT!!!

I did it 2 weeks before a tourumnt And I did make the weight easy almost 2 weightdivisons lover but I had NO energy I trained like S*** those 2 weeks and in fight night I had no power or stamina all I did was just clinched all night a lost.

yeah i can see that, i did it for a few days and felt like Sh#! thanks for the heads up! CC

im not a professional boxer, however, i train like it, because its a awesome work out, and its really fun.
Atkins, if done Properly can be the most rejuvenating weight loss program out. I lost 75lbs on atkins, and kept it off even after switching to a low cal diet. ( i missed my pasta and bread, Moderation of course). I was doing atkins while going to the gym, and i felt great! I slept like i never slept before, i saw my blood pressure go from Cardiac arrest to, perfectly healthy, my cholesterol was dramatically reduced. My workout level increased, and it seemed i could work out all night if the gym was open for me

HOWEVER, the first two weeks of atkins is the most BRUTAL. What happens is, naturally, your body loves to use Carbs for energy, because its a quick fix for energy. But, the by-product of of carbs being burnt off (or whats not burnt off i should say) gets stored as FAT. So, in the first two weeks of atkins, you basically force your body into withdrawal, what happens is your body is so used to using carbohydrates, that when it doesnt have any, it wants to shut down. But then, after two weeks of no carbs your body realizes that it has some stored fat that can be used as energy. So the body then begins to use the stored fat as a source of energy. Now your body is using fat as energy, so eating fatty proteins is ok! After your body uses up the stored fat in your system, it continues to use protein, as its main source of energy. The great thing about atkins is, even when your not working out, your body IS! The amount of calories that is burnt off by your body using stored fat for energy is REDICULOUS.

In your case, if you were acouple of months away from needing to make weight, i say, GO FOR IT! but because fighters usually try and make weight to close to the weigh in, atkins could be the worst thing. Remember the first 2 weeks of atkins is BRUTAL on the body.

another note, if you decide you want to give atkins a wirl, dont forget. EAT VEGGIES, some you cant eat because of the sugar content. But eat salad, broccoli, etc.. GREENS act as an anti oxident to saturated fat that your putting in your body . (bacon, greese, pepporoni etc.)

Originally Posted by Big_Deuce

im not a professional boxer, however, i train like it, because its a awesome work out, and its really fun.
Atkins, if done Properly can be the most rejuvenating weight loss program out. I lost 75lbs on atkins, and kept it off even after switching to a low cal diet. ( i missed my pasta and bread, Moderation of course). I was doing atkins while going to the gym, and i felt great! I slept like i never slept before, i saw my blood pressure go from Cardiac arrest to, perfectly healthy, my cholesterol was dramatically reduced. My workout level increased, and it seemed i could work out all night if the gym was open for me

HOWEVER, the first two weeks of atkins is the most BRUTAL. What happens is, naturally, your body loves to use Carbs for energy, because its a quick fix for energy. But, the by-product of of carbs being burnt off (or whats not burnt off i should say) gets stored as FAT. So, in the first two weeks of atkins, you basically force your body into withdrawal, what happens is your body is so used to using carbohydrates, that when it doesnt have any, it wants to shut down. But then, after two weeks of no carbs your body realizes that it has some stored fat that can be used as energy. So the body then begins to use the stored fat as a source of energy. Now your body is using fat as energy, so eating fatty proteins is ok! After your body uses up the stored fat in your system, it continues to use protein, as its main source of energy. The great thing about atkins is, even when your not working out, your body IS! The amount of calories that is burnt off by your body using stored fat for energy is REDICULOUS.

In your case, if you were acouple of months away from needing to make weight, i say, GO FOR IT! but because fighters usually try and make weight to close to the weigh in, atkins could be the worst thing. Remember the first 2 weeks of atkins is BRUTAL on the body.

another note, if you decide you want to give atkins a wirl, dont forget. EAT VEGGIES, some you cant eat because of the sugar content. But eat salad, broccoli, etc.. GREENS act as an anti oxident to saturated fat that your putting in your body . (bacon, greese, pepporoni etc.)

Thanks for the info, I am going to give it ago, but dude the first 2 days i was having headaches like crazy and tired as hell ! had to put ben gay on my nuts to get myself motivated to do my road work ! LOL

i was on the atkins for like 9 hours and i couldnt stand it..... lol not that it has mucht to do with the topic.

The body doesn't just use carbs because they are a cheap or easy energy source, it uses them because certain energy systems require them to be used.

Anaerobic activitys need Carbs for muscle contractions to happen, Aerobic activtys can run off fat or carbs.

But boxing is mainly an Anaerobic sport (esspecially amatuer boxing) which makes it stupid to have a low amount of carbs in your system.

You might start to burn fat for a long distance run insead of carbs but bag work, sprinting, Plyometrics, Calisthetics?... you barely use any fat for energy in those activitys.

You will train like piss.

If you want to use fat as an energy source, don't put carbs into your system before you do an Aerobic Exercise. Then more fat is used.

You certainly don't need to virtually eliminate carbs from your diet to do this.

Atkins is not a sports diet it is a (bad) diet designed for people who live sedentary life styles.

Haha...nail on the head right there ^^^^ . Basically, Atkins is a great way to lose weight fast if you really dont want to workout. My uncle lost 80 lbs, my cousin lost 120 lbs and my stepmother lost 40 lbs all in a very short period of time on the Atkins. They all kept it off too, without stayin on the Atkins diet afterward. However, it just really doesn't work when you want to box. You'll have no energy when you train, because, like Adam said, boxing is anaerobic, not aerobic. There's a reason marathon runners eat spaghetti before a race, while sprinters don't. If you're that desperate to lose weight, go for it, but don't expect a good return from your training.

wonder why i felt so good, and had double the energy than before atkins?
interesting

Possibly the exception that proves the rule, or possibly your workouts are as intensive as you think a pro boxers are?

Also, if you lost 75 lbs, you were most likely significantly overweight. Excessive body fat produces some sort of estrogen, while working out helps produce testosterone. Less fat=higher concentrations of testosterone in your system.

Not to mention, I don't see very many energetic 75lbs overweight people.

Or hell...it could just be the fact that the change in your lifestyle helped spark something mentally and gave you a new drive in life...there's a million possibilities.

lets see, i played football in highschool/college, never really got tired, felt a good workout but never found myself gasping for air. Started going to a boxing gym after college, alittle while after college i put on about 25 more pounds. i knew i was overweight, but never felt exhausted during activities. However, sleep was hard to come by, and the intense workout at the gym, would equal workouts for football, working the bag, light sparring, etc replaced the field work of FB. Im not trying to say that my workouts EQUAL a professional, however i became friends with some the pros there, and worked out with them. Yes they would take it to the next step as far as sparring, and road work. And i just could not hang with them at first, then after the weight loss, i found myself wanting to go longer, and harder. Energy levels, and fatigue levels were changed dramaticaly. at the time of me finding a gym i weighed in at about 270...my goal being 230. I am 6'3, and have a very broad shoulders. I used atkins to drop below my goal, so when i transitioned over to a low cal low carb, if i gained some it wouldnt put me back over my goal. I ended up going to 200lbs, and then slowly my body went to about 215-220 (where i float around, given the time of day, or if i make a visit to my parents or my fiances parents house lol)
Now, i understand that the weight loss itself most likely helped my energy level, and being lighter, gave me less body mass to cary around for the workout. But, after the 2 weeks, i never felt "drained" or tired.

like you said heavy, could be a weird case, exception to the rule, or someone coulda been sneakin lots of caffeine into my diet without me knowin lol . Regardless of the fact, it worked, im glad it did, and i would say anyone trying to lose A large amount of weight, go for it!.
But do not use atkins to try and make weight for fights. Not a good ideal.
thanks for your feedback and comments as well.

Regardless of the fact, it worked, im glad it did, and i would say anyone trying to lose A large amount of weight, go for it!.
But do not use atkins to try and make weight for fights. Not a good ideal.
thanks for your feedback and comments as well.

That's pretty much exactly what I was saying. Several family members have been extremely successful with Atkins and have kept the weight off almost a year since, so I know it works very well. I'd just caution against it when trying to box because it does have low/no carbs, which you WILL be needing if you intend to train and box seriously.