I wouldn't call them re-feed days, but there are days when I eat more carbs than usual. One of those days will be tomorrow at my kids' birthday party. Its going to happen because I'm not planning and fixing a separate meal for myself. That said, I've been REALLY low carbing it this week. I'm part of a LC group on Facebook and several ladies there recommend the re-feeding to help the scale move.

Keep in mind that results aren't always weight related.

That said, check out the CarbNite program. It might be of use to you and is one of the big, named carb cycling programs. More generically, what you're asking about is often referred to as cyclical ketogenic dieting or CKD. Search on that in Google, and it should turn up a slew of resources, since it's common among people who are already fairly lean and looking to lean out more or want the benefits of keto without the leptin screwiness that sometimes comes with doing keto while lean.

Also, check out toying with your carb levels, even just temporarily. I know I didn't start seeing the scale move until I went zero carb (not saying you have to, but that's what did it for me), and some people use things like egg fasts (3-5 days of eggs, a little butter, and a little cheese) to break a plateau. Conversely, some people, even when overweight, stall out at very low carb levels, so it might be worth toying with higher levels of carbs to see how that works for you, if you haven't already.

Intermittent fasting is another option, as well. Check out Leangains and Eat Stop Eat for some common methods.

On my carb refeed/cheat days (call them what you will) I found that if I eat the bulk of the carbs earlier in the day, the effects aren't as bad.

Fat4Fuel2 wrote: »

I am wondering if any of you doing Keto have done a carb refeed day. If so, what were you reasons? Did it help with weight loss? What was it like the day/week after (ie. Keto Flu Symptoms?)

I've been toying with the idea since I have gained and lost the same 3-4 lbs for 4 months now with no other big indicators that I have indeed lost weight (progress pics, measurements, clothes, etc.). I want to know others' experiences as well as the after math.

Personally, any time I slip significantly makes it harder for me to fight junkie cravings. No matter what my reason for going up. So if you don't have that issue, I don't know, but for me personally, that kind of cycling will never work because my triggers are still hyper-sensitive.

I am fairly lean and typically have a refeed meal on Saturday . I also have a margarita on Friday night date night with my hubby . On Friday my carb intake with the margarita is around 50-56. Which for my is still low . I make sure on Friday I limit my carbs so that the margarita fits my macros. I have a stressful job and long commute so I look forward to it. On Sunday's I fast 18-20 hours . This helps burn off my refeed .

My goal weight is 135 which I reached within 6 months of LC.
Since doing Keto 5 out of 7 days my weight has gone down as low as 131.5. I have been maintaining like this for over 2 1/2 years .

I do have a body fat goal which I would like to reach which is 20%. I have been at 23% for over 1 year. I'm sure if I stopped the refeed meal , give up my margarita , and kick up my weight lifting I would reach that goal .

My personal experiences with planned "splurges" or whatever you want to call them has been that after I lose the initial water weight gain from the extra carbs, I end up with a pretty good dip. That was while losing, though. Now that I'm trying to ease into maintenance, hunger is getting me. I have been trying to increase my calories and carbs slowly, but the more I do, the hungrier I get. I ended up having a big ice cream sundae and some homemade candy this weekend (stress related totally), and I'm up in weight a bit, but once I'm back into full ketosis, I imagine it will drop down again. Whether or not I get a new low remains to be seen. Let us know how this works for you if you do it.