So I was talking to my brother in law (bodybuilder) today and he mentioned that being insulin dependent means I get to artificially alter my insulin and glucose levels (PWOD who lift obviously can't do this as easily). Guess that's kind of an upshot. Anyway, he was telling me about post-workout insulin dosing combined with a high carb/protein shake to cover the spike. Non-diabetic lifters, apparently, are utilizing this technique. Basically it's increasing insulin levels along with a suitable number of carbs/proteins to cover it in order to allow the muscles to recover faster. Unfortunately I'm finding only a few articles on it and they are targeted for non-diabetic lifters. Has anyone heard of this? If so, any information on it?
I'm not trying it anytime soon (not until I can ask the doc at least) so no need for the panicked warnings of danger, but I at least want to bring the information to her. I'd imagine the lowered BG levels post-workout combined with an insulin spike could be catastrophic if carbs are miscounted.
I had only heard of this in this humongous thread about #25 and 'roids @ fantasybaseballcafe.com. It went on for like 125 pages or so? There was some speculation that insulin was the ‘next wave’ because, unlike other 'roids it is, of course, natural and thus undetectable? I keep waiting to get huge but my shoulder really doesn’t like painting (rooms) and I seem to tear it up doing that every 6 months. Fortunately, there’s only a couple of rooms left?
Yes, I know about it. No I won’t talk about it, I don’t want people coming hear to learn about insulin use for that purpose. Bodybuilders have used it and abused it for probably 50 years. Insulin is banned at all times by the world anti-doping agency (except for those who are medically insulin dependent). If you want to understand workout nutrition, I’d instead suggest the book Nutrition Timing which I found quite quite helpful understanding the role of pre and postworkout nutrition in fueling recovery.
I agree. The best idea is to pick a program that works well in non-D and then adjust your insulin/food intake to fit that program. It may very well come out looking like the program your brother is talking about, but I’d rather think of this as manipulating food intake (and appropriately adjusting insulin) than than think of this as manipulating insulin intake, although changing one does necessitate changing the other. So maybe it’s just semantics but one just seems like a healthier mindset than the other:)
I know NON-D BodyBuilders/HeavyLifters that do it. I am a Type-1
Is it a safe practice for them? - Absolutely not
Is it safe for a Type-1? - Maybe
Is it healthy for a Type-1? - Depends
Does it aid in recovery? - Yes
Will you get stronger, faster? - Yes, if you do the work.
Do I do it? - Yes
Will I teach you how? - Not in a public forum, maybe not at all.
Is it detectable if they decide to test a competitor? - Yes
Insulin in your body is an adipose protector, if you take insulin to cover to many carbohydrates you WILL get fat and it tends to accumulate where you inject your slin. There are lots of lifting forums that discuss this topic in great detail. I wouldn’t suggest it for a bodybuilder at all, and for a competitive lifter it is subject to several warnings about low and high blood sugar. Also every person that does it has to tailor the system to their own Physiology. CAUTION - THIS IS NOT A SAFE WAY TO GAIN.
I talked to former Mr. Universe and type 1 diabetic Doug Burns a while back and he said that yes, with type 1 we have the ability to get stronger than we otherwise would BUT he said that we’re not as healthy this way. And in my experience, cholesterol and triglycerides go up if we’re using extra insulin like this. Doug also said that serious lifters who don’t have diabetes definitely do not use insulin. He said it’s not recommended and frankly, it’s doping.
I used protein/carb shakes as a non-diabetic and I’m doing it now that I picked up weightlifting about 6 months post diagnosis. Haven’t had an issue with it so far. FWIW I make the same recipe every time and know exactly how much insulin to cover it with. It’s not an outrageous quantity of carbs either (I think it’s like 45-50 carbs) and I’ve been seeing great strength gains so far, knock on wood.
I also agree that, while I would rather not be diabetic, it’s a useful body composition tool. I lost a huge amount of fat and some LBM during my first few months (where I was largely afraid to eat more than 60-75 carbs a day as a 6’7" guy) and have noticed (appropriate) mass gain now that I’ve doubled or tripled my intake of carbs (and have not had significantly worse numbers, either). Right now I’m back up to about 197 lbs, and I’d ideally like to get to around 215-220 with a moderately lower BF percentage than the last time I was 215-220.
