Calorie or carb cycling.

cksmummy

Looking for ideas on calorie/ carb cycling. Anyone doing this? What do you think of it? Also, can anyone point me in the direction of any studies done on this way of eating? Thanks!

IsaackGMOON

Why bother.

WBB55

For "calorie cycling," do you mean, like, 5:2 Intermittent Fasting? Google search Intermittent Fasting, then come back and ask more questions if something sounds confusing. I did a version of 16:8 for about 6 months and I can recommend it as something to try (though that's quite a bit different than a "fasting" plan than 5:2. Just google the terms for more info. Essentially on 5:2 you eat your current maintenance calories, or slightly below, 5 days a week, but 2 days per week (let's say Monday and Thursday) you eat very low calories. This way your weekly average is still a slight deficit but most days you get to eat "normal" (normal being your maintenance calories). 16:8 is where you eat all of your calories in a 8-hour window each day. For me, that was 11 am to 7 pm. You still eat a full day's calories, but just in a shorter window. I did not do 16:8 for weight loss, however. It was more about sleep and exercise while maintaining my current weight. Nothing wrong with IF, but I'm not sure it helps much with weight loss.

"Carb cycling" to me is something athletes do to maintain performance and build muscle while still cutting fat. If you don't have a marathon or triathlon to train for, I'm not too sure carb cycling is worth the bother to even try.

MityMax96

cksmummy wrote: »

Looking for ideas on calorie/ carb cycling. Anyone doing this? What do you think of it? Also, can anyone point me in the direction of any studies done on this way of eating? Thanks!

In regards to weight gain, loss or maintenance it comes down to overall calories you consume

Doesn't matter if you cycle macros or calories.

If you consume more than you need, you will put on weight over time
Consume less than you need, you will drop weight over time.

DeguelloTex

I think it's probably more trouble than it's worth, especially for someone who's looking for a reason to do it, as opposed to someone who already has a reason to do it.

ibnfaqir

Calorie cycling and carb cycling are two different things. Carb cycling is usually for lean people trying to get leaner. You don't fit this category. You can however cycle your calories with alternate high/low days.

arb037

Carb/calorie cycling can work to help keep the bodies hormones in homeostasis to prevent adaptations. As anyone who had dieted and lost a good amount, then hits the wall ( adaptation) knows. The bodies natural response is to lower thyroid function (T3) as well as Leptin levels ( the fat burning hormone). If your leptin is low, i dont care how much deficit or cardio you do, your body is not going to burn fat effectively.
By cycling, you keep the body from freaking out and making adaptations.

MityMax96

Low leptin is only a concern if you are at a low body fat %
When overweight/fat/obese, then your body is full of leptin.

Kalikel

Some people swear by calorie cycling! It works for them.

Although my calories naturally cycle - some days I'm hungrier than others - I've never stuck to certain numbers on certain days and have no personal experience.

daynerz

I see here a comment about carb cycling being for lean people...
I'm lean at 5'8 and 140 pounds
Last year in my second cutting season I ate what I wanted (McDonald's, beer)
I consumed plenty of carbs, didn't care about my macros and lost the fat that I wanted. Of course cutting sodium would of manipulated the number with water weights, so weight loss is math. Do an appropriate calorie deficit and that's all. Cut down a little at a time and never in big increments (-250 calories every to weeks or once you've plateaued)
I know this helps dear.
Feel free to fly me a message

SideSteel

arb037 wrote: »

Carb/calorie cycling can work to help keep the bodies hormones in homeostasis to prevent adaptations. As anyone who had dieted and lost a good amount, then hits the wall ( adaptation) knows. The bodies natural response is to lower thyroid function (T3) as well as Leptin levels ( the fat burning hormone). If your leptin is low, i dont care how much deficit or cardio you do, your body is not going to burn fat effectively.
By cycling, you keep the body from freaking out and making adaptations.

I suspect this isn't the case in that cyclical intakes aren't likely to slow down hormonal downregulation.

MityMax96 wrote: »

Low leptin is only a concern if you are at a low body fat %
When overweight/fat/obese, then your body is full of leptin.

Agreed, and additionally there's speculation (appeal to authority: Lyle) that single day refeeds don't actually do anything for leptin upregulation because leptin drops like a rock once the deficit is re-introduced.

MityMax96

SideSteel wrote: »

Agreed, and additionally there's speculation (appeal to authority: Lyle) that single day refeeds don't actually do anything for leptin upregulation because leptin drops like a rock once the deficit is re-introduced.

Prolly just helps with your sanity more than anything when on a cut.

cwolfman13

what do you think you will gain from either?

personally, I'd just start with the basics...you can complicate your little safari down the road if you like...but really, it's a good idea to get a pretty good grasp of the basics first...i.e. basic nutrition and understanding energy balance overall.

senecarr

arb037 wrote: »

Carb/calorie cycling can work to help keep the bodies hormones in homeostasis to prevent adaptations. As anyone who had dieted and lost a good amount, then hits the wall ( adaptation) knows. The bodies natural response is to lower thyroid function (T3) as well as Leptin levels ( the fat burning hormone). If your leptin is low, i dont care how much deficit or cardio you do, your body is not going to burn fat effectively.
By cycling, you keep the body from freaking out and making adaptations.

I've heard of Leptin being a satiety promoting hormone, but nothing about it actually inducing fat burn. Got any literature on that? I'm curious.

arb037

MityMax96 wrote: »

Low leptin is only a concern if you are at a low body fat %
When overweight/fat/obese, then your body is full of leptin.

Negative, leptin is a concern when running a calorie deficit for any length of time.
http://breakingmuscle.com/nutrition/leptin-the-secret-key-to-getting-shredded

http://authoritynutrition.com/leptin-101/

senecarr wrote: »

arb037 wrote: »

Carb/calorie cycling can work to help keep the bodies hormones in homeostasis to prevent adaptations. As anyone who had dieted and lost a good amount, then hits the wall ( adaptation) knows. The bodies natural response is to lower thyroid function (T3) as well as Leptin levels ( the fat burning hormone). If your leptin is low, i dont care how much deficit or cardio you do, your body is not going to burn fat effectively.
By cycling, you keep the body from freaking out and making adaptations.

I've heard of Leptin being a satiety promoting hormone, but nothing about it actually inducing fat burn. Got any literature on that? I'm curious.

http://breakingmuscle.com/nutrition/leptin-the-secret-key-to-getting-shredded

http://authoritynutrition.com/leptin-101/

cajuntank

arb037 wrote: »

Carb/calorie cycling can work to help keep the bodies hormones in homeostasis to prevent adaptations. As anyone who had dieted and lost a good amount, then hits the wall ( adaptation) knows. The bodies natural response is to lower thyroid function (T3) as well as Leptin levels ( the fat burning hormone). If your leptin is low, i dont care how much deficit or cardio you do, your body is not going to burn fat effectively.
By cycling, you keep the body from freaking out and making adaptations.

No. The body adapts over time and only to a certain degree (taking into account the overall calorie deficit). Many top researchers like Eric Helms and Lyle McDonald have mentioned that they are now thinking Leptin (which does drop regardless due to less calories and less bodyfat) does not even start to rebound some till after 2 or more days of eating at maintenance or above after deficit (takes that long for the brain to realize there's more calories around). The body just does not work that way to abrupt changes...things are slow to adapt as they are slow to rebound. Also, Leptin never returns to it's previous levels unless you gain back the bodyfat you lost.

Cycling's main benefit is to put into play a protocol to take advantage of carbs timed around activity. So being that nutrient timing has been shown to have "some" benefit (maybe up to 10% in the scope of things...info gleaned from Eric Helms' and Dr. Mike Israetel's nutritional charts), for the general populace, the added complexity and/or possible adherence issues just aren't worth it (i.e... so in 4 months times instead of losing 4 lbs, you lose 4.5lbs type of difference as a loose example).

OP, like others have mentioned, it all boils down to the net caloric deficit over time for weight loss, not some special diet that people think bio-hacks the body by playing around with hormones to losing weight. How you create that deficit and can adhere to whether its IIFYM, Calorie Cycling, Paleo, Low Carb, Intermittent Fasting, etc... is up to you.

MityMax96

arb037 wrote: »

MityMax96 wrote: »

Low leptin is only a concern if you are at a low body fat %
When overweight/fat/obese, then your body is full of leptin.

Negative, leptin is a concern when running a calorie deficit for any length of time.
http://breakingmuscle.com/nutrition/leptin-the-secret-key-to-getting-shredded

We will agree to disagree.

Leptin was once thought to be the miracle supplement for burning fat due to tests performed.

But then they started studying people that were fat/overweight and found their bodies were full of leptin.

They just quit responding.

http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/the-hormones-of-bodyweight-regulation-leptin-part-1.html/

http://www.leangains.com/2010/03/intermittent-fasting-set-point-and.html

MityMax96

Also of note, if you don't read those links.
Leptin is secreted by fat cells.....
Thus if you body fat, then you produce leptin.
The lower you get in body fat, the less leptin you will produce.....it is a survival adaptation.

The body knows that if stores of energy (body fat) are low, then it needs to take measures to ensure that the remaining energy stores (body fat) are used at a slower rate.

So thus it will lower levels of leptin in the body

Db8688

Amazon has a book for $3.99 "Carb Cycling: The Recipe and Diet Book" also one for $2.99 - Carb Cycling for Women: The Breakthrough Diet for Rapid Fat Loss that Will Turbo-Charge Your Metabolism - Discover the Super Simple Methods for Blasting ... Cycling Diet for Rapid Fat Loss Book 1)

blueboxgeek

I generally eat higher calories on weekends and lower during the week. Just because I find it easier to control my calories while sat working in the office and I "save" some calories for weekends, maybe for an ice cream while at the park with the kids or a couple of glasses of wine.

Although I am generally much more active at the weekend, doing things with the kids and cleaning the house so that probably burns a few more calories too.

MityMax96

blueboxgeek wrote: »

I generally eat higher calories on weekends and lower during the week. Just because I find it easier to control my calories while sat working in the office and I "save" some calories for weekends, maybe for an ice cream while at the park with the kids or a couple of glasses of wine.

Although I am generally much more active at the weekend, doing things with the kids and cleaning the house so that probably burns a few more calories too.

Past couple months I have been doing similar. Works for me.
I will say though that if my intention is to cut down and get more lean, I have to stay on point all 7 days...