Calorie cycling

candyheart442019

Well I went off the rails for a couple of days then jumped back to watch my calories. When I went for my end of the week weigh in I was ready to face the music. I could not believe what I saw! I am down! And more than usual! Is there a real science behind the idea of calorie cycling? Does anyone else practice this? There are some very convincing articles about it.

SnifterPug

That has happened to me before - or else I hold steady when I absolutely don't deserve to. So long as my pig out lasts no longer than a couple of days the damage generally seems pretty negligible. I've not studied calorie cycling, but purely from my own experience I have come to the conclusion that a short-lived calorie binge is not a problem so long as I get straight back on the plan afterwards. My theory has always been that the body simply cannot process and store every calorie consumed in such a short time. But as I am totally making that theory up, gallons of salt are needed!

NovusDies

There is a way to fight downshifted BMR but I do not believe that is what you mean.

Fat weight loss often takes time to show up. What I do today may not show up on the scale for 2 more weeks.

I can't prove this but I also believe that for some people there is more stress associated with weight loss and scale results. Eating more food and relaxing in general reduces cortisol and water retention which causes the scale to go down.

AnnPT77

Oversimplifying: If one over-restricts, it creates stress (physical, not just psychological). Stress can result in holding onto relatively a bit more water weight. Eating at/over maintenance for a day or two can be a counter-measure, allowing the body to release the "extra" water weight, and unmask fat loss that was there all along. None of that involves fat loss per se.

Does calorie cycling result in more fat loss, over the long haul, at equal calorie intake? Unlikely. Can re-feeding periodically be a good/useful strategy for some people? Sure. For people with specific fitness goals and a defined exercise schedule, can structured calorie cycling around workouts make a performance and energy-level difference that could slightly boost results? Possibly.

Does structured calorie cycling accomplish much for the average Jane or Joe, if the most important goal is fat loss? Probably not, IMO, but it has an aura of "doing something", and potential for the rewarding water-release effect, so it might be psychologically helpful.

Yah, I'm an evil skeptic.

I'd point out that the standard MFP routine, varying calorie intake with varied exercise levels, inherently results in varying ("cycling") daily calorie levels, though not in the the structured way suggested by most calorie-cycling protocols.

For a better take on the relevant science and practice, I'd suggest this thread from the "stickies" ("Most Helpful Posts" section):

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10604863/of-refeeds-and-diet-breaks/p1

HoneyBadger302

So, perhaps the question is more how much did you actually overeat? I've had a day here and there where I had a "binge" meal, but when I actually tallied up what I ate that day, it was at or barely above maintenance. In order to eat enough to actually result in a scale-noticeable fat gain, you'd have to eat a LOT above your normal.

Instead, a day here and there at maintenance or even slightly above may (hardly noticeably) stall progress, and may help you stay on track better the rest of the time, creating a bit of a wash. Also, the extra energy may translate to extra movement that you don't even measure, again, negating the effects of the overeating.

If you were to keep up the overeating, however, I'm pretty sure you'd be "facing the music" before too long.