Calorie cycling doesn't work for me.

XLMACX
XLMACX Posts: 346 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Well Last Friday I went over my calorie by 200 and Saturday i went over calories by 1500.
I'm allowed 1700, my maintenance calories according to tdee is 2100 so I was even over on my maintenance by a lot.

Any way I decided I would cut down 400-500 calories a day and work extra hard at gym ect to claw back the damage.
I weigh myself every day and I could see from Saturday I had gained 2lb but gradually the scales dropped down and that 2lb disappeared.

yesterday the scales showed I had lost 1lb for the week then I hopped on scales today (for my official weigh day results)and nothing I had stayed the same as last week.

I'am happy I didn't gain but with all the water I drank and exercise I did and days I ate under my calorie Goal I really thought I would have lost.

I have heard many stories of people calorie cycling on a regular basis and lose weight so not sure if I had done so,eating wrong there but my weekly net was all in green.

The week before this (my first week) I kind of calorie cycled I went over Saturday by 500 then on my rest day Tuesday ate 500 less this resulted in 2lb loss.

I suppose it's all trial and error I wouldn't normal eat/ drink 3200 calories in one day it was a one off and it defiantly shows that no matter how hard i worked to try and lose this week it was never going to happen! Back to fresh start today eating my. 1700 calories and no major calorie cycling!

Replies

  • Fitforevermore
    Fitforevermore Posts: 399 Member
    It works for me, but not every week, i think sometimes your body is adjusting. I eat 1000 calories a day during the week, sometimes 600 on a Monday, but Saturday and Sunday probably eat between 2 and 3000. I work out hard 3 days during the week and maybe a run on the weekend. I tend to consistently lose 2lbs a week if I do this, except some week where it sticks.

    I think if you have a binge its prob just as well to be grateful to maintain sometimes, and do better next week! keep at it.
  • _KitKat_
    _KitKat_ Posts: 1,066 Member
    1700 calories is a deficient to lose less than a pound a week (2100 - 1700 = 400 x 7 = 2800/3500 = I am too tired but it is less than 1). Also a few pounds here and there are just your body, I have been tracking my fluctions and if it is not a brand new number for a few days I don't even count it. Water weight, hormones and who knows what else can cause fluctuations even up to 10lbs. Mine is 3-4 lbs. Just keep doing what your doing and the scale will move.
  • Alatariel75
    Alatariel75 Posts: 18,224 Member
    You will fluctuate day to day, that's why a set weigh in day needs to be taken with a grain of salt. You may be retaining fluid, or needa poop. In weight loss you can't try something for a week and say it doesn't work, bodies are weird.
  • la_te_ra_lus
    la_te_ra_lus Posts: 243 Member
    Weight loss/fat loss isn't linear. Certain programs work well for some and not so much for others. You're in it for the long haul.. I usually try programs for 2-3 months to see how they affect me.. I find weighing myself everyday becomes a numbers game that usually ends with disappointment..
  • Abi198111
    Abi198111 Posts: 76 Member
    Weight loss/fat loss isn't linear. Certain programs work well for some and not so much for others. You're in it for the long haul.. I usually try programs for 2-3 months to see how they affect me.. I find weighing myself everyday becomes a numbers game that usually ends with disappointment..

    This ^^^
  • XLMACX
    XLMACX Posts: 346 Member
    thanks for all the replies, and i'm very very happy i didnt gain! :) and i thought 1700 cals would result in 1lb loss???? is this wrong i thought 2151-20% of the TDEE = 1lb loss??
  • amwbox
    amwbox Posts: 576 Member
    What I've started is mon-fri, heavy caloric restriction, sat-sun, eat whatever. Basically 5-2, though I can swap on and off days if need be.

    Cycling is a pretty good strategy, as it keeps the metabolism from falling into a rut. Stick with it man.
  • tern73
    tern73 Posts: 18 Member
    thanks for all the replies, and i'm very very happy i didnt gain! :) and i thought 1700 cals would result in 1lb loss???? is this wrong i thought 2151-20% of the TDEE = 1lb loss??

    It works over the long term, not the short term.

    I eat at a deficit to lose about 1 lb per week. Over a three week span, I find that my weight ticks up slightly or stays steady over the first two weeks and drops way off in the third.

    One week is not nearly long enough to decide that something is or isn't working.
  • XLMACX
    XLMACX Posts: 346 Member
    Ah ok thanks for the tips. i only went over that much because i was drunk then because i was drunk i ate lots of chocolate! lol. i wont probably eat that much again because 1700 - 2100 calories that i normally consume on Saturday is more then enough for my wine and a slap up meal. its just the odd night out on the tiles were my calories are going to probably clock up from all the vodka diet cola's! so its good to know at least i can maintain that week.

Categories