Chris Powell 7 day carb cycle

I got the app. I think it is similar to the book but you are suppose to buy products which I simply refuse to do. I just use my own smoothies and follow the 2 low 1 high 2 low 1 high and free day pattern. I have found that I do need more carbs if I am working out harder. It seems to be working even though I am not really following it to the letter.

I typically stay on low carb. I allow myself a free day (usually Tuesday) then I taper back the next day and following five days low carb. It works for me. Most of all, you have to find what works for you and can be maintained as a lifestyle.

I keep my carbs under 100g 5 days a week...and carb load on saturdays. I did the under 30g and cycled, but I was to hangry all the time. This is more sustainable for me. Plus I've upped my daily cardio.

i am just starting. I am doing the low, high, low, high, low, high, reward day. I just started on Tuesday. I wish i could find what number of carbs we are to stay at though. I know he said 1500 cal on high carb day and 1200 cal on low carb day but how does that translate in to how many carbs to eat those days?

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Can anyone tell me how many carbs i should be eating on a high carb day and how many on a low carb day. I am doing the chris powell turbo 7 day carb cycle. I am a 5'4 160 lb female. Im so confused. thanks.

I think it's helpful to refer to his guidelines in the book. We're building a sustainable eating lifestyle, not a strict plan! Going by the "hand portions" works surprisingly well. On the low-carb days, you eat at a deficit; on the high-carb days, you eat at your future self's "maintenance" level.

But let's pick apart the book a bit. From Choose More, Lose More For Life.

On the high-carb days, men should aim for "around 2000 calories" and women "around 1500 calories". On low-carb days, men aim for "around 1500 calories", and women "around 1200 calories". But he immediately stresses to not get hung up on that number! And this past season of the show backs it up: between a very short lady who had such a low BMR that she could only lose weight by exercising and not diet alone, and a man who lost enormous amounts of muscle as well as fat and had to radically change his workouts to a body-building style and eat FAR more protein than is "normal" for Extreme Weight Loss, it's important to stay flexible in the plan to manage your unique body and your unique challenges.

The important part, though, is in his "Cycling Specifications" section. The rules to follow, which really help most people with fat loss:
"Carb cycling doesn't ask anything of you that you can't handle, but you do need to follow a few rules. Any day you're carb cycling:
"* Eat five meals
"* Eat within thirty minutes of waking and every three hours thereafter.
"* Include both protein and carbs in your breakfast.
"* Choose the right food combinations and portion sizes for *you*, given in Chapter 6, "Feed Your Fire: The Recipes".
"* Drink a gallon of water daily."

Then in Chapter 6:

"For weight loss, not only is it essential to eat the right foods, it's essential that you eat the *right amount* of food. It boils down to calories. Uggh. Calculating calories is no fun, and it's easy to get it wrong, but you need to watch 'em: They measure how much fuel you're putting into your body. Even a little bit of extra fuel can quickly accumulate in your body, so it's important to make sure portions are right *for you*."

He has a handy table that I'm going to convert to a histogram because text formats poorly in the forums!
* Protein: "1 palm", men's portion 5 ounces, women's portion 3 ounces.
* Carbs: "1 fist", men's portion 1.5 cups, women's portion 1 cup.
* Veggies: "2 fists", men's portion 3 cups, women's portion 2 cups.
* Fats: "1 thumb", men's portion 2tbsp, women's portion 1 tbsp.

The important thing is that those are AVERAGES, and probably won't work for perfectly you. If you're taller or shorter than average, your hands are proportionally larger or smaller than those estimates, so you compensate automatically. For an idea of the averages Chris worked with for the portion sizes, an average male in the USA is 69.3 inches tall, and an average woman is 63.8 inches tall. An average-height man at a healthy weight at age 30 with a sedentary lifestyle burns around 2000 calories per day.

But if you're taller, shorter, older, or younger than that average, your calorie burn varies proportionally. Activity levels play a large role as well; if you're getting in your 9-minute missions in the morning, and your Shredders in the afternoon, you can afford a little more slack in your diet if you need it!

And this is why at six feet tall and in training for various endurance events, I don't do just 1500 calories per day on my low-carb days. My maintenance level is more like 2200 instead of 2000, and my total energy expenditure closer to 3,000 calories per day. So I aim for closer to 1600-1800 on the low-carb days, and 2100-2200 on the high-carb days. I lost a solid 2 pounds a week for 12 weeks on my first cycle of the Turbo plan as a result: down from 32% body fat to 25%. Could have been faster if I'd have done better about my workouts and if I'd ensured that I ate enough and avoided hunger-induced binges because I was trying to over-do it!

EDIT: When I did the math after my first twelve weeks of very careful record-keeping, factoring in the average of all my workouts and foods, my fat loss was incredibly close to the estimate for my intake and exercise. I've become a believer in the TDEE calculations, and I know that if I'm honest about how much exercise I do they are almost exactly correct for me. Which also means I can trust that as long as I stay honest, my results should continue to match predictions in an almost creepy-scary-accurate fashion...