Written by
Tony Schober ·
Nutrient timing is a highly effective approach to losing fat. By only
eating carbohydrates at certain times, you can maximize your fat loss.
Why Nutrient Timing Works
Nutrient timing is effective because it works in conjunction with
your body’s natural hormones. At certain times during the day your
muscles are more receptive at absorbing carbohydrates. During these time
periods, your insulin sensitivity is at its highest. This means that it
will take less insulin to store the glucose that is produced from
carbohydrates. How does this help you lose fat?
When your insulin is elevated, your body is unable to mobilize fatty
acids. Insulin is a very powerful storage hormone. It takes the glucose
in your bloodstream and shuttles it to the cells that need it. If your
muscles and liver are full of glycogen, they will not be able to store
any additional glucose. During this scenario, insulin takes this
glucose, converts it to fat, and stores it in various places on your
body so that it can be used later.
If our goal is to keep insulin low throughout the day, we want to be
very mindful of when we eat our carbohydrates. Carbohydrates have the
biggest influence on your insulin levels, followed by protein, and then
by fats – which have very little effect on insulin levels. It makes
sense to focus on carbohydrate intake for nutrient timing.
Here are 10 ways you can improve your insulin sensitivity for better fat loss.
Carbohydrate Nutrient Timing
If you can limit your carbohydrates so that you are only eating them
during the time periods when your insulin sensitivity is at its highest,
you will make your goal of losing fat a whole lot easier. When are
these time periods?
- Your first meal of the day - After a night of not
eating, your insulin sensitivity is higher than normal. This is because
your body has been using the glucose in your blood and the glycogen
stored in your liver to maintain body functions throughout the night.
Upon waking, your body’s stores of glycogen are lower – resulting in a
lower amount of insulin needed to store the carbohydrates you’re about
to eat.
- Your pre-workout meal - Most people don’t think of
insulin sensitivity being high just before your workout. And really, it
isn’t. However, during exercise, your insulin response is muted. Your
pre-workout meal is a great time to get in some carbohydrates and some
much needed energy for your workout. Find out if you should have a pre-workout meal, and see some good meal ideas.
- Your post-workout meal - Your post-workout meal is
the time when your insulin sensitivity is at its highest, and it’s a
great time to implement nutrient timing principles. While you work out,
your muscles use glycogen to fuel your exercise. So much so, that after
your workout, your muscles just soak up the glucose in your blood. Your
muscles are so starved for glucose that they are able to take the
carbohydrates you eat and convert it into glycogen without any real need
for insulin. Here is what your post-workout meal should look like.
Knowing that these 3 time periods are preferred for carbohydrate
intake, we can then start to formulate a diet plan. Depending on your
carbohydrate demand and your goals, I would prioritize my carbohydrate
intake like this:
- Carbs post-workout only
- Carbs post-workout and first meal of the day
- Carbs pre and post-workout, and the first meal of the day
Eat the majority of your carbohydrates post workout. This meal should
consist of protein and carbohydrates and very little fat. The remaining
carb-less meals should consist of protein, healthy fats, and veggies.
Planning your meals this way enables you to get all the benefits from
the 3 macronutrients (fat, carbs, and protein).
It also puts you in a prime metabolic state to mobilize fatty acids.
Nutrient timing is your answer to successful fat loss. By eating your
carbohydrates at specific times of the day, you enable your body to
remain in a fat burning state for a longer period of time.
