“I love you like a fat kid loves cake”. Some lovesick rapper wrote these words of wisdom for a woman who was just a jail cell away. But it’s true. We fat kids do love our cake. Rather, we “smooth perpetual bulkers” do love our carbs. And there’s nothing wrong with that. Carbohydrates are a terrific source of energy, and an essential building block of life. But, like all things in life, you CAN have too much of a good thing. And that quickly becomes a bad thing – insulin resistance.

Let’s talk about insulin resistance. You eat too many carbs, and your body becomes insulin resistant. Make sense so far? When this happens, your body gets fat. (The reason being, your fat cells experience hydrolysis of their stored triglycerides, elevating the level of free fatty acids present in your blood plasma). Non-scientist explanation: insulin resistance means your body can’t burn fat – a.k.a. metabolic syndrome. Plus, you’re more likely to get diabetes.

So we’ve established that insulin resistance is bad. When you see the guys who work out for years, and never look lean, never ripped, no matter how much they train or do cardio… that’s likely insulin resistance. Too many carbs means they’ll always look soft, and always have some health risks as a result as well.

How can we avoid insulin resistance? Simple. Eat the right kinds of carbs, at the right levels. If you cut carbs completely, you’re going to lose muscle and feel lethargic. You likely won’t have the energy to finish your workouts. But you can cut out the bad carbs, and eat just enough of the good carbs, to avoid insulin resistance and reach your bodybuilding goals. High glucose index (GI) carbs (like soda) are bad, and low GI carbs (like whole grain rice) are good. Simple enough?

Exercise helps too, and there are medications your doctor can give you, which also solve the insulin problem in your body. However, doctors prefer to give these medicines to people suffering from diabetes and pre-diabetic symptoms – not some power lifter who can’t put down the fifth serving of corn bread at dinner.

By the way – before you ask – Yes, this is why most top professional bodybuilders will use insulin – it allows them to eat everything under the sun and still avoid insulin resistance. However, this kind of chemical manipulation is HIGHLY dangerous and can lead to a quick death. So do not try it at home, kids. Growth hormone and HRT (hormone replacement therapy) have also been known to lead to insulin resistance.

So get moving. Read about it. Insulin resistance is quickly becoming THE predominant issue in professional bodybuilding, which means it has already trickled into the top amateur ranks and will likely be an issue in your own gym before long. Do some research and learn everything you can about this topic. And avoid that cake, for God’s sake!