Does zig zagging work?

Fatlorenzo

I would like to try this, and want to know if it works

Msaip

Just got done with a week of zigzaggin and gained two pounds.. so I would say no!

♥♥YoungMrs♥♥

It works for me..Ive zig-zagged from the start and i have yet to hit a plateau

spcr0428

I haven't had luck either; but I heard that people who have reached their goal weight use it to maintain.

koondoggie_99

What is zig zagging??

lemonychick

Ummm, what's zig-zagging???

RunHardBeStrong

Worked for me, I lost 80 lbs in a year and never plateaud!

koosdel

Ummm, what's zig-zagging???

Varying your calorie daily Intake.

keeponkickin

I've hit a plateau and it's been suggested here (as well as checking the Dr. Oz website) that zigzagging will get me off my plateau. So starting this week I am going to give it a try. I'll let you know if it works for me.

smitty328

It works for me!!!!! Everyone is different though. Good Luck!! :smooched:smile:

Fatlorenzo

I want to lose about 30lb. How long did it take you all?

bgeer34

I don't follow the actual zig zagging, but I do make sure that I vary my calories different days of the week at the high end of my range a few days and at the low end a few days and the rest about average. It's not as technical or as advanced as the zig zagging but I have been eating healthier and exercising since Jan 1 and I have not had a week without at least a small weight loss since I started. I think the main idea is to adapt the zig zagging to you and your body but it doesn't let your body get into a "routine" of exactly what to expect all the time.

keeponkickin

I lost 53 pounds in 4 months. Now, I'm on a plateau and going to try zigzagging for the first time.

wannabalozer

Just got done with a week of zigzaggin and gained two pounds.. so I would say no!

I'm not an expert but I read that this can happen. You should give it two weeks. Also, if your diet wasn't giving you enough calories before and then you suddenly start eating them again, your body gains at first while your metabolism figures things out.

I personally used the zig zag method to break a plateau that I was having. I lost for 4 weeks in a row. Then (because sometimes I think I'm so smart) I decided "to change it up a bit" (yes, again) and lowered my calories and then had a gain that same week. I'd say whatever you try, zig zag or the conventional method, give it time to work.

allisoncook87

I was totally stuck and now I'm down like 3-4 lbs!!!!

Heatherbelle_87

Lol this is a popular topic today. I zig zag but I dont vary it as much daily as I do 1-2 weeks at a time. YES you RISK gaining initially with it, but then the weight drops, whatever little amount you gained plus more. Also you have to still use healthy food choices when you do it, if you eat more high-sodium foods when you eat your higher cal weeks, obviously itll cause water retention. Sometimes your body needs that reassurance you can and will give it extra when it wants it

DixieDarlin1987

Yep, it definitely works, but you have to be ready to see a gain once and a while, then suddenly.....you lose it and then some. That and exercise is how I lost my last 10 lbs. Just posted my befores and afters this morning as a matter of fact.
Here they are:
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/247123-15lbs-down-w-embarrassing-underwear-shots-eek

SimplyDeLish

I find consistency works better for me than zig-zagging. I try to keep my calories between 1200 and 1300 every day. If I hit a plateau I bump my calories up about 400 per day for a week and gain a couple of pounds. Then I drop them back down to 1200-1300 and the pounds I gained drop immediately plus a few more!

Good luck!

beckajw

Yes, it works, just like any other calorie counting diet. As long as you burn more than you eat, you will lose weight. The nice thing about zig zagging is that it is all set up for you ahead of time. So, it's not like I get up in the morning and don't know how many calories I will burn, so I don't know how much I will get to eat in total. It's also nice because you can set it up so you eat more on a certain day (my highest day is saturday). That way, whether or not I work out on Saturday, I have extra calories that day.

I first used freedieting.com to get the amount of calories to eat. You don't add your exercise calories on top of the amount it gives you, because it figures those calories in automatically.

However, I have a bodymediafit. So after a couple of weeks, I just too the average calories I burn each day, subtracted 500 (for 1 pound per week). That gave me an average of 1330 calories per day. Sunday, Monday and Thursday, I eat 1330. Tuesday, I eat 1100, Friday I eat 1200. Wednesday I eat 1430 (always a bigger day after a small day). Saturday, I get the rest of those "saved" calories back, so I eat 1590.

You don't have to worry about starvation mode, because you aren't eating low enough long enough for it to happen. It keeps your body guessing, which helps to avoid plateaus. I don't know that it burns any more calories than if I ate 1330 every day, but I like being able to eat more some days than others and not having that tied to exercise alone.

copperdave

It busted my plateau!

PeachyKeene

What works for some people may not work for others. The best way to know is try it for a few weeks, if it don't try something different. I have a friend that does zigzaging to maintain, but she has never really been overweight, just only a short period after having children, but she breast feed after having them for a year and lost below her recommended weight. Now she uses the zigzag method to stay down.

lauristewart

I am on my 3rd day of zig zagging and have lost 1 lb. This is what I am doing:

Saturday 1800 cal
Sunday 1200
Monday 1400
Tuesday 1400
Wednesday 1800
Thursday 1200
Friday 1400

I had been eating about 1400 cal a day, so Sunday was kind of a struggle for me. I am hoping this works! I want to lose about 10 lbs......I have heard great things about it and it does makes since. Like the others said, give it time for your body to adjust. Good luck!

Heatherbelle_87

I find consistency works better for me than zig-zagging. I try to keep my calories between 1200 and 1300 every day. If I hit a plateau I bump my calories up about 400 per day for a week and gain a couple of pounds. Then I drop them back down to 1200-1300 and the pounds I gained drop immediately plus a few more!

Good luck!

Techincally a form of zigzagging^^^^^

anytime you increase then decrease cals its a form of zig zagging. Everyone on here has a digfferent method for it that has done it

Msaip

so is there a site that anyone uses to figure out their calorie needs for zigzagging?

abcwhite10

Yep - here is a calculator that I used

http://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm

At the bottom under the "results" there is a little arrow that says "zig zag 7 day calorie cycle" click and you got it!