Crohns disease

[joejackson62]

Hello everyone. Not sure if this is the right forum, but I did a search and didn't find another thread related to this.

I am 27, 235 pounds (about 180 lean), and was diagnosed with Crohns disease in 2008. As of right now, I am unable to digest most carbohydrates (all rice, oatmeal, breads, milk, etc.) without sever abdominal pain. There are still a few carbs that my body can handle (fruit, vegetables, and for some reason whey doesn't bother me), but I was wondering, is it impossible for me to see any real muscle gains without a significant amount of complex carbs in my diet? I can only eat so much fruit and vegetables a day to meet part of my carb requirements.

I guess what I wanted to know is the varying opinions on what/how I can keep gaining without taking in the complex carbs. Is this even possible?

[keeptruckin]

Wow, I don't know what to tell you there. I have like zero know-how when it comes to Crohns. I'm sorry you have to deal with it.

You can gain without the complex carbs. One of the main points of complex carbs is that they help you gain muscle with minimal fat gain because they tend to keep your insulin levels controlled as they release more slowly into your blood. Also they give you sustained energy which helps you have better workouts. Now the question is how can you perhaps "simulate" that effect.

Note that what you really want is slow carb release, not necessarily complex carbs. Some complex carbs are actually fast digesting. Most are slow digesting. Unfortunately, in my ignorance, I can't name you some the faster digesting complex carbs. Suffice it to say I know that there are some. Google to the rescue! So, what you want is a "low glycemic" effect, really. That being said however, AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE/REASONALE, you do want the complex as they are richer in micronutrition.

Fruit does you some good. However, a good portion of fruit carbs (fructose) replenishes liver glycogen, not muscle glycogen. So, it's not the best for feeding your muscles. But don't cut it out altogether. It has lots of antioxidants and micronutrion benefit.

You mentioned vegetables. Can you handle yams, potatoes, beans? Yams and beans are pretty low glycemic carbs that give you sustained energy. Potatoes not so much, but you can slow down carb release into your blood with a good helping of leafy green veggies with your potatos (or any meal that has carbs, for that matter). Basically leafy greens can help to simulate "low glycemic." The key is getting the slow, controlled insulin release. Remember that a good helping of protein will also help slow the carb release. Also, remember that everything has to be balanced, even leafy greens. Too much fiber daily (like over 50g) can inhibit the absorption of nutrients. So you can't just go wild with the leafy greens at every meal.

Another trick you can use for gains, believe it or not, is to cut out carbs after, say, 4:00 and use a bit of increased fat intake for your bulking calories. There, a good portion of your carb problem is solved right there. There is actually a very tangible benefit to this. Insulin can suppress natural HGH production. By cutting out carbs (except for the leafy green veggies) you are actually promoting natural HGH by not suppressing it. How cool is that!? The only exception is if you workout after that time. You want the protein+simple-carb PWO nutrition there. Yet another benefit, is that you build up more fat-burning enzymes, so you open the door for yourself to have better fat oxidation.

Here are some ABC articles you may also find helpful:

http://www.abcbodybuilding.com/fiberdynamics1.pdf
http://www.abcbodybuilding.com/fiberdynamics2.pdf


Most of the good articles can be found here:

http://www.abcbodybuilding.com/journalstotalpdf.html


Hope that helps.

[joejackson62]

Thank you for the advice. Unfortunately, yams/potatoes/beans are all out for me. Anything that is starchy I can't handle too well. I have been getting Remicade treatments to control the disease, but because my colon is scared and ulcerated, anything too fibrous or starchy gives me bad abdominal pains.

I often wondered, since I hear about athletes who have Crohns (for example, David Garrard from the Jaguars), how they stay in great shape with this same problem. Unfortunately I couldn't find anything on the net. The reason I ask here is because this site is great and has lots of really useful information. I have to figure out a way to keep gaining without the carbs.

Thanks again.

[spider-man]

Originally Posted by joejackson62

Hello everyone. Not sure if this is the right forum, but I did a search and didn't find another thread related to this.

I am 27, 235 pounds (about 180 lean), and was diagnosed with Crohns disease in 2008. As of right now, I am unable to digest most carbohydrates (all rice, oatmeal, breads, milk, etc.) without sever abdominal pain. There are still a few carbs that my body can handle (fruit, vegetables, and for some reason whey doesn't bother me), but I was wondering, is it impossible for me to see any real muscle gains without a significant amount of complex carbs in my diet? I can only eat so much fruit and vegetables a day to meet part of my carb requirements.

I guess what I wanted to know is the varying opinions on what/how I can keep gaining without taking in the complex carbs. Is this even possible?

Two words.....

ANABOLIC.... DIET!!!!!!

[rootb33r]

At least you can eat whey. I would really concentrate on having a big post-workout shake using protein+simple carbs (sugars), which won't irritate your stomach. This will be extra important for anabolism (muscle building) since you aren't able to eat starchy carbs.

[keeptruckin]

Yes, you may give the Anabolic Diet a chance. It was invented by Mauro G. Di Pasquale. It does involve "weekend" carb-ups. The good news is that high glycemic, simple carbs have a lot of benefit for those carb-up days.

Supposedly, you are supposed to have blood tests done before trying this diet to see if you are a good fat oxidizer. The running thought is that if you aren't a good fat oxidizer, this diet could cause you problems. So, you can approach it cautiously. Given that you can't process complex carbs, it is certainly worth a gander.

Here's the diet in a nutshell ...

Startup: 12 Days low carb (under 30g per day, but DO get the 30g); 2 Days carb-up
Steady State: 5-6 days low carb (30g); 1-2 days carb-up


Studying this diet, actually, is where I was enlighted to the idea of insulin suppressing HGH. In the process of inventing this diet, Di Pasquale discovered this. And it is certainly one of the big benefits of this diet.

[LocalRedHead]

My mom has Chrons so I know what you're going through.

It's horrible.

That said, I believe you can use Glutamine to simulate an insuline response like carbs would for PWO nutrition.

I would suggest Glutamine to you for it's gut health benefits, it can only help you in your situation and may improve your condition some. Many don't believe in Glutamine but if you have IBS, you may notice some benefits.

I would take a good hard look into the benefits of Glutamine and introduce safe carbs into your system as prescribed. Your doctor should be able to give you a list of foods to use in replace of the ones he said not to use.

-Levi

[joejackson62]

Thanks everyone. I am definitely taking Glutamine (at least for the past 2 weeks anyway), and I will strongly look into the anabolic diet.