Micheal Phelps' Metabolism

[StevenR]

Check out this article and what his diet consist of
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7562840.stm

Now if most of us ate like that, we would become 400lb behemoths in no time flat. Even if we swam as much as he did most of us I imagine would not burn 10,000 to 12,000 calories a day. I cannot imagine even his natural metabolism burning that much energy. So what did he do to program his body to be able to burn that many calories so easily?

 

[Quiksilver]

I just want to clear this up, about the Michael Phelps diet thing...

He ate 10-12k calories in the days coming up to the olympics, not his regular training cycles.

The few days before you perform any physical activity at a highly competitive level, you carb-load your diet. You eat as many fvcking carbohydrates as you can to fill your muscle cells with glycogen as efficiently as possible. In 3 days you will not suffer any ill effects from super high calories.

FYI, the guy in the lane next to him did the same thing. The guy in the lane next to that guy did the same thing too. Every olympic athlete carb-loads before their event. All 100+ olympic swimmers did pretty much the same thing that Michael Phelps did. They all ate 8-12k calories in the days coming up to their events.

--

During the year and off-season, his calories are probably in the 4-7k range depending on his goals at the time.

He's spending 6+ hours a day in the pool, and not just splashing water around like a toddler either. He pushes himself to the limit constantly so the calorie demand he puts on his body is enormous. Not 12k calories though, not every day, that's just crazy.

Phelps is a champion because he pushed himself through that "I want to quit" barrier, and also because he's a genetic alien in terms of the abilities you need for swimming.

 

[StevenR]

I know a lot of athletes do that because of the demands on their body, but I wonder if something else is going on to make their overall metabolism unnaturally high. What do you think of the claim in the article that he probably burns 1000 calories an hour swimming? A normal human being would not burn nearly that much.
So does his lean muscle mass burn that many calories? at least when he uses all his muscles, or does the amount of exercise he does have a cumulative lasting effect on his resting metabolism, like some theories about HIIT cardio?

 

[Flyer]

I just want to clear this up, about the Michael Phelps diet thing...

He ate 10-12k calories in the days coming up to the olympics, not his regular training cycles.

The few days before you perform any physical activity at a highly competitive level, you carb-load your diet. You eat as many fvcking carbohydrates as you can to fill your muscle cells with glycogen as efficiently as possible. In 3 days you will not suffer any ill effects from super high calories.

FYI, the guy in the lane next to him did the same thing. The guy in the lane next to that guy did the same thing too. Every olympic athlete carb-loads before their event. All 100+ olympic swimmers did pretty much the same thing that Michael Phelps did. They all ate 8-12k calories in the days coming up to their events.

--

During the year and off-season, his calories are probably in the 4-7k range depending on his goals at the time.

He's spending 6+ hours a day in the pool, and not just splashing water around like a toddler either. He pushes himself to the limit constantly so the calorie demand he puts on his body is enormous. Not 12k calories though, not every day, that's just crazy.

Phelps is a champion because he pushed himself through that "I want to quit" barrier, and also because he's a genetic alien in terms of the abilities you need for swimming.

THIS is exactly the kind of stuff that the general public doesnt get so they go at everything!

 

[StevenR]

4000-7000 is still A LOT of calories

 

[Triple T]

4000-7000 is still A LOT of calories

Not really, I'm bulking and i'm consuming about 4000 calories.
I'm only 16 and 140lbs btw.

So i would imagine older bigger guys consuming way more calories when bulking.

 

[mrRuckus]

Damn, Triple T, are you sure that's how much you're eating?

Are you gaining a lot of fat with it? I eat 4000 a day and am putting on weight and a much higher body weight than you.. and my abs are still visible.

 

[BluEyes]

You think Phelpsy is muscular?

Michael Phelps is a bean pole.

 

[Crazy Asian]

I just want to clear this up, about the Michael Phelps diet thing...

He ate 10-12k calories in the days coming up to the olympics, not his regular training cycles.

The few days before you perform any physical activity at a highly competitive level, you carb-load your diet. You eat as many fvcking carbohydrates as you can to fill your muscle cells with glycogen as efficiently as possible. In 3 days you will not suffer any ill effects from super high calories.

FYI, the guy in the lane next to him did the same thing. The guy in the lane next to that guy did the same thing too. Every olympic athlete carb-loads before their event. All 100+ olympic swimmers did pretty much the same thing that Michael Phelps did. They all ate 8-12k calories in the days coming up to their events.

--

During the year and off-season, his calories are probably in the 4-7k range depending on his goals at the time.

He's spending 6+ hours a day in the pool, and not just splashing water around like a toddler either. He pushes himself to the limit constantly so the calorie demand he puts on his body is enormous. Not 12k calories though, not every day, that's just crazy.

Phelps is a champion because he pushed himself through that "I want to quit" barrier, and also because he's a genetic alien in terms of the abilities you need for swimming.

there are many swimmers that have trained longer and harder than phelps.
without his incredible genetics, he wouldn't be anything special.
it takes luck first, and if you add dedication and a stoke of genius, that's when you see something remarkable.

 

[Crazy Asian]

You think Phelpsy is muscular?

Michael Phelps is a bean pole.

that is the IDEAL body type for a swimmer
perfect if i dare say (not for breaststroke)
you should see his size relative to a normal man.

 

[Throttle]

well, this devolved into nurture vs. nature real quick! none of you can prove whether it was

(a) Phelps' "incredible genetics" (how many of you have seen his DNA? or even his parents? -- and I don't mean their DNA, I mean their body types!)

(b) How hard he worked (all Olympians put forth efforts that few on this board could ever comprehend).

Both are plausible. It's plausibly a combination of both. Other plausible contributions: chemical enhancement, whether he was breast- or bottle-fed as an infant, ridiculously hydrodynamic body type, a low coefficient of epidermal friction, something in the water in Baltimore, etc. etc. etc.

It's a fun argument because nobody can prove anything.

Oh wait -- you can prove something: Work YOUR ass off at something you're passionate about and get better at it than anyone else.

 

[partyforlife]

michael phelps used to swim with my brother when they were 12 years old...
at that age michael was still an amazing athlete.

and yeah the normal person will not burn 1000 calories an hour swimming, simply because the 'normal' human swimming does not train nearly as hard as he does. If you know anything about swimming, look up what his practices consist of and you will surly understand.

as for something in the water in Baltimore....why am I not michael phelps 2??? lol

 

[yep]

Guys you have it all wrong. Michael Phelps does not train at all. He is really...aquaman.

I agree with the fact that he just works his ass off. The more you practice the better you get.

 

[Vag_Mag]

triple t,

enjoy it while you can

when i was 16, i used to like an escaped hostage, my mom almost had to get a second job just to keep the fridge full for me and i was skinny as a rail

now if i eat a half a dorito it shows

as far as phelps' diet, quik is right on the money, i bet the runners and other athletes do the same exact thing