You’re likely up to speed on how important calorie control is for fat loss, but carbohydrate (carb) cycling is the next step to accelerate that process. Many people assume they should cut back on carbs when they want to lose weight, but that's not necessarily prudent. Carbohydrates are protein-sparing nutrients that play an important role in maintaining lean muscle mass during a cutting phase.
In fact, the initial rapid weight loss after switching to a very-low-carb/ketogenic diet is largely a result of glycogen and body water fluctuations. So yes, cutting carbs can help with fat loss, but carbs aren't intrinsically the enemy. Frankly, they can be your ally with the right strategy in place.
This guide will explain what carb cycling is, how it works physiologically, and how to create your own carb-cycling diet to improve body composition!
Metabolic rate is affected by these hormonal alterations for two reasons:
Hopefully, now you can see why eliminating carbs altogether can actually be counterproductive for fat loss.
Fat loss requires us to burn more calories than we consume, but if you do that for a long period of time the body adapts by reducing metabolic rate. The human body is smart and its primary concern will always be survival; intuitively, it wouldn’t make much sense for your body to burn more energy when calorie intake is limited.
Contrary to popular belief, if you are looking to shred body fat, you want to have an inefficient metabolism. An inefficient metabolism will require more energy than an efficient one. Still confused how that makes sense?
A good way to think of this is as your metabolism being a vehicle and food is your fuel source; you want a less efficient vehicle as it will need more gas to travel the same distance as a more efficient vehicle. So in metaphorical terms, if you’re going to eat more (e.g. maximize the amount of gas you need to get from A to B), you better decrease your metabolic efficiency…or start shopping for a Hummer.
In fact, the initial rapid weight loss after switching to a very-low-carb/ketogenic diet is largely a result of glycogen and body water fluctuations. So yes, cutting carbs can help with fat loss, but carbs aren't intrinsically the enemy. Frankly, they can be your ally with the right strategy in place.
This guide will explain what carb cycling is, how it works physiologically, and how to create your own carb-cycling diet to improve body composition!
What Is Carb Cycling, Exactly?
Carb cycling is a dietary protocol that modulates your daily carbohydrate intake throughout the week. The general terminology for carb cycling is as follows:- No-Carb Day
- The word “no-carb” in this case means you will avoid all starchy and direct carb sources. It is acceptable to ingest some carbohydrates from vegetables and fat sources, but the amount will be rather trivial. As a rule of thumb, you should consume less than 5% of your total calorie intake from carbs on no-carb days.
- Low-Carb Day
- A starting point for low-carb days is to aim for 25% of your total calorie intake in the form of carbohydrates. Highly insulin sensitive individuals may be able to consume upwards of 35% of their calories from carbs on these days and still lose body fat at a consistent rate.
- High-Carb Day
- On high-carb days, sometimes called "refeed days," you'll get to splurge a bit and eat a generous amount of carbs. We recommend aiming for 40% of your total calorie intake from carbohydrates on these days, and eating slightly more calories overall.
The Science of Carb Cycling: How It Works
The most significant hormonal changes that come from chronic calorie restriction are reductions of thyroid hormones and leptin [2, 3]. Cycling your carbohydrate intake is a way to "revive" metabolic rate on a fat-loss diet, notably by stimulating thyroid and leptin production [1].Metabolic rate is affected by these hormonal alterations for two reasons:
- First, the main role of leptin is regulating how many calories you burn and how many calories you consume.
- Second, thyroid hormones interact with nearly every cell in your body to control metabolic rate; when thyroid levels drop, metabolic rate tends to decline and vice versa.
Hopefully, now you can see why eliminating carbs altogether can actually be counterproductive for fat loss.
METABOLIC EFFICIENCY EXPLAINED
Fat loss requires us to burn more calories than we consume, but if you do that for a long period of time the body adapts by reducing metabolic rate. The human body is smart and its primary concern will always be survival; intuitively, it wouldn’t make much sense for your body to burn more energy when calorie intake is limited.
Contrary to popular belief, if you are looking to shred body fat, you want to have an inefficient metabolism. An inefficient metabolism will require more energy than an efficient one. Still confused how that makes sense?
A good way to think of this is as your metabolism being a vehicle and food is your fuel source; you want a less efficient vehicle as it will need more gas to travel the same distance as a more efficient vehicle. So in metaphorical terms, if you’re going to eat more (e.g. maximize the amount of gas you need to get from A to B), you better decrease your metabolic efficiency…or start shopping for a Hummer.
