Calorie cycling

demorelli

Has anyone here tried calorie cycling? I stumbled across something about it today and got curious. What are the benefits and drawbacks you've experienced with it? Can it be followed loosely or does it have to be stringently adhered to to work?

leanjogreen18

I did it for 6 months. There's no weight loss advantage. It does allow you to have high days and low days which fit my social calendar nicely when eating out. I've lost 40lbs so far.

I wouldn't say you need to be strict but you do have to be mindful of your weekly deficit because one really high day could wipe out your deficit. I stuck pretty closely to my "schedule" of calories for each day. I used a zig zag calculator to set each days calories. A lot of folks here eat lower during the week and higher during the weekend.

I'm in a bit of a diet fatigue period so I've switched it up to set calories everyday just to get out of my slump. Once I'm up and running again I will probably cycle again.

mellowadam

I love it. I don't follow a particular plan. I just sort of fell into it. I just shoot for 4 really solid days with spot on macros at a tiny deficit. Then I have 2 slightly higher days and one really fun day. Usually the fun day is a small surplus and I end up eating a lot more fat on that day. That's usually when I have prime rib or a burger with chuck and bacon.

I still track everything diligently and I've noticed that I've slowly nudged up my calories and I'm not gaining weight. I've been tracking for almost 7 years and it feels like I'm getting to eat more than I ever have.

For me it is a lot easier this way and I know if I have a special occasion coming up I can just stay really dedicated during the week and enjoy my weekend without guilt.

deannalfisher

I'm working with a RD who has me on a calories rhythm - 1 super day, 2 high days, 3 medium days and 2 low days - protein stays the same throughout - fats and carbs vary depending on the day

8lbs down since November

demorelli

Thanks for the input!