(@Edwinsworld) When you lower carbs dieting, do you lose strength?
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Theoretically, in the early stages of reducing carbohydrates, you shouldn't lose strength. Remember all you are doing by reducing your carbohydrates is trying to switch your main energy substrate to fatty acids. You should still have plenty of energy though. If you do get drastic strength loss, then you are probably doing something wrong. What often happens when you enter your 12 week dieting period, for the first few weeks your strength can increase, and this is simply a reflection of a probable increase in training and the volume of training which coupled with a good diet, even with reduced carbohydrates, still gives positive training results.
Remember to keep your water intake high to ensure the muscles stay well hydrated, and make sure you keep your protein intake really high.
Health and Fitness Doctor
Most guys lose strength and endurance in the gym if they are near the end of an extreme low-carb, low-calorie diet and trying to burn off the last remnants of fat. However, most guys lose little or no strength in the first several weeks of their "carb down" diet. I find that guys who have played around and experimented with their carb intake and have experience with low-carb diets adapt to the lower carbs quite well. Having said that, everyone is different and some people even get pretty severe dizziness and dramatic losses of energy and ultra-low carb diets aren't for them.
Usually, only the final stages of dieting become so strict and leave you with such low body fat stores that you struggle to get through workouts and if this happens, just have 40 to 50 grams of oatmeal or some other low-glycemic carbohydrate snack about 2 or 3 hours before your weight training sessions and this will give you plenty of energy.
Nutritionist and Supplement Specialist