I think amateur and intermediate bodybuilders and some other athletes exclude carbs and fat when they are cutting for summer. Their diet would include skinless/lean chicken breasts/turkey, green vegetables, with vitamin supplements etc... Is that even a safe thing to do?

@tigertiger, what kind of dishes were served during traditional Chinese meals?

here's my understanding: low carb is good for bodybuilders or anyone because high carbs lead to weight gain. low fat does not interfere with weight gain, but neither does high fat cause weight gain. and high fat is better for long-term health. and low fat over a long period may be harmful to health. but anyway, i could be wrong. maybe bodybuilders know better than i do.

and skinless chicken breasts taste like crap unless you add oil or mayo. fat and protein seem to go together.

A lot of bodybuilding advice now says that you need carbs for fuel otherwise your body will be breaking down your hard earned muscle mass.
In the old day, when I was a boy, bulking up (putting on a lot of weight) in the off season and then cutting in competition season was seen as the way to go.
But this stopped back in the 80s with BBs like Lee Haney (8 consecutive Mr Olympia titles) extolled the value of eating rice to energise workouts, and staying in near competition shape all year, with no need for cutting, and feeling energetic all the time. The wisdom beeing that when cutting you not only loose the fat, but also a lot of muscle into the bargain, as well as feeling sick and weak all the time due to lack of carb energy.
Some of the high energy fat burning programs like Body of Life also recommend frequent intake of carbs, (small amounts 5-6 times per day) and especially before bedtime.

i think this will clarify for once and for all.

www.weighttraining.com/features/bodybuilding-diet
Eating Habits of Pro Bodybuilders

Arnold:
- 5 to 6 meals a day
- eat carbs half hour after workout
- eat 50-60 g of protein with each meal every 3 hours
- eat no more than 3 eggs a day
- don't avoid saturated fats
* arnold would eat an entire chicken and a pitcher of beer after each workout

Lee Haney:
- 6 meals a day
- consume most calories between 8 am -4 pm
- avoid complex carbs
- 8 egg omelets for breakfast

Jay Cutler:
- 10 meals a day
- 3 gallons of water a day

Ronnie Coleman:
- 6 meals a day
- last meal is at 1:30 am
- only eats carbs during meals 1-4

I am pretty sure that Haney's 'avoid complex carbs' equates to eat only simple carbs. If memory serves he ate 2 or 3 pounds of white rice every day.

BTW a body building buddy of mine got protein poisoning, and was off training for several months as a result. Yes you can eat too much protein.

Are those habits for bulking up? Jay Cutler does seem to be following a lean diet (oatmeal and egg whites; lean steak, chicken) and eats the carbs right before workout. Is it possible to do a lean bulk up?

the reason for my last post was to point out that the diets of different bodybuilders have often vastly contradicting advice.

also, the diets of bodybuilders may be bad for long-term health.

True. Their diet might also depend on what their goal is and how they want to achieve it.

one of the most interesting diets is the Amish diet. they eat just about anything and everything in large quantities and don't get fat. they don't deprive themselves. and they live long.

"A normal Amish day begins with Breakfast that typically includes a stack of pancakes with syrup, scrambled eggs, sausages, hash browns, bread, butter and pie. Lunch: a taco salad with potato crisps, ground beef, shredded cheese, beans and canned peaches. And dinner: beef, gravy, potatoes, bread and butter, more gravy, followed by chocolate pie."

but there's a catch. they perform 6 times more physical activity per day than the average person.