Carb Cycling Question..

Options
ChantelleFowler
ChantelleFowler Posts: 208 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I am looking into trying carb cycling to bust through a plateau I am at. I did a "test" day yesterday and ate under 100 g of carbs (I did some extensive googling and found a website that said 50g-100g is "prime weight loss" carb levels). I also upp'ed my calories from 1200 to 1500 because I thought maybe that was why I wasn't losing anymore (for the record, I never ate less than 1200 and always ended up somewhere in the 1400-1600 range after my workouts). For those of you who have carb cycled, is 100g of carbs considered low? And on my high carb days, do I just eat how I would "usually" and try to meet my MFP carb requirements?

Replies

  • tbduchess
    tbduchess Posts: 4 Member
    Options
    Hi
    The way I do it and Im not suggesting it works for everyone is that on the days I dont lift weights (2 days) I have a low carb intake and have my carbs in the form of broccoli or sweet potato or a rice cake. On low carb days I have no oatmeal/brown rice/pasta. So far this seems to be working for me and on the days I lift weights I get to have my more filling carbs. Today is a low carb day for me and I've only had 65g.
  • mmapags
    mmapags Posts: 8,934 Member
    Options
    I generally keep my carbs between 80 and 100 per day. Then once every 2 weeks or so, I eat low fats and jump my carbs up over 200 for a day. Then back to my regular plan. I don't increase carbs on lifting days. This took a little adjustment for my body for a couple of weeks but it's fine now. Be aware that after running at lower carb for a week or 2 and then having a high carb day, your body will pump the glycogen and water into your muscles and suddenly you'll get on the scale and you'll be up 5 pounds! It's nothing to freak out about and normalizes over a few days. It is a surprise when it first happens but it's most water gain.
  • glpennington
    glpennington Posts: 14
    Options
    Rob Faigin's book at extique.com called "Natural Hormonal Enhancement" is the most complete book that I've seen about explaining the science of carb cycling. It fails to go into mapping out your exact plan but it has pulled all the science together for understanding what works. Consider putting your carb spike right after your HIT workout as that is when carbs can carry the most protien and nutrients into your rebuilding muscles.

Categories