However, in the specific case of a bodybuilder in contest preparation, achieving the

necessary caloric deficit while consuming adequate protein and fat would likely not allow consumption at the higher end of this recommendation. Satiety and fat loss generally improve with lower CX-6258 ic50 carbohydrate diets; specifically with higher protein to carbohydrate ratios [44–49]. In terms of performance and health, low carbohydrate diets are not necessarily as detrimental as typically espoused [50]. In a recent review, it was recommended for strength athletes training in a calorically selleck chemicals llc restricted state to reduce carbohydrate content while increasing protein to maximize fat oxidation and preserve LBM [28]. However, the optimal reduction of carbohydrate and point at which carbohydrate reduction becomes detrimental likely needs to be determined individually. One comparison of two isocaloric, energy restricted diets in bodybuilders showed that a diet that provided adequate carbohydrate at the expense of protein (1 g/kg) resulted in greater LBM losses compared to a diet that increased protein (1.6 g/kg) through a reduction of carbohydrate [32]. However, muscular endurance was degraded Nutlin-3a in the lower carbohydrate group. In a study of athletes taking in the same amount of protein (1.6 g/kg) during weight loss, performance decrements and LBM losses were avoided when adequate

carbohydrate was maintained and dietary fat was lowered [13]. Mettler, et al. [29] also found that a caloric reduction coming from dietary fat while maintaining adequate carbohydrate intake and increasing protein to 2.3 g/kg maintained performance and almost completely eliminated LBM losses in resistance trained subjects. Finally, in Pasiakos et al. [40] participants undergoing an equal calorie deficit and consuming the same amount of protein as those observed in Mettler et al. [29] lost three times the amount of LBM over the

same time period (0.9 kg in the first two weeks of energy restriction observed by Pasiakos versus 0.3 kg observed by Mettler). One key difference between these studies was the highest protein group in Mettler Ergoloid et al. [29] consumed a 51% carbohydrate diet while the comparable group in Pasiakos et al. [40] consumed a 27% carbohydrate diet. While performance was not measured, the participants in Pasiakos et al. [40] performing sets exclusively of 15 repetitions very likely would have experienced decrements in performance due to this carbohydrate intake level [32]. The difference in training protocols or a nutritionally mediated decrement in training performance could have either or both been components that lead to the greater losses of LBM observed by Pasiakos et al. [40]. While it appears low carbohydrate, high protein diets can be effective for weight loss, a practical carbohydrate threshold appears to exist where further reductions negatively impact performance and put one at risk for LBM losses.