Are you ready to make changes to your nutrition but have a hard time going without your favorite foods? Then consider starting with the Easy Cycle. In this cycle you alternate low-carb and high-carb days, and on every single high-carb day you can have a reward meal, as long as that meal ISN'T your dinner meal.
That’s right, you can eat the foods you love—four days a week— and still make progress toward your weight loss goals. And by favorite foods I mean pizza, ice cream, bacon, chocolate cake, cheesecake—they’re all okay. The power of this cycle is that if you get those favorite food cravings on low-carb days, you only have to wait until the next day to satisfy them. Anyone can do that! Success can be yours with this cycle.
How is this possible? First of all, you’ll be following the low-carb/high-carb eating plan for your non-reward meals, and the success of this pattern has been proven many times over. And even though you’ll be rewarding yourself, you’ll be rewarding yourself less often. Let’s say you usually eat seven desserts a week. With the Easy Cycle you’re eliminating three desserts a week, and that’s a lot of calories! You’re satisfying your cravings without depriving yourself, and losing weight.
Here’s what an Easy Cycle week looks like:
- Monday: Low-carb day
- Tuesday: High-carb day w/ reward meal
- Wednesday: Low-carb day
- Thursday: High-carb day w/ reward meal
- Friday: Low-carb day
- Saturday: High-carb day w/ reward meal
- Sunday: High-carb day w/ reward meal
For all your meals, on both low and high-carb days, you will strive to eat smaller portions than you would prior to Carb Cycling. The more calories you can cut, the faster you’ll lose that extra weight!
No, you won’t lose weight as quickly as you would in other cycles, but the important thing is that you will lose weight, and you’ll also be forming healthy habits that will last. And, as you exercise self-control in your choices on non-reward days, this practice will become easier, and you will find yourself wanting to replace those reward cravings with better choices. Then when you’re ready, you can move onto another cycle if you want to. Or you can stay with the Easy Cycle throughout your weight loss journey. It’s totally up to you!
You can also modify the Easy Cycle and have less days with a reward meal. Perhaps you start with 4 days with a reward meal and move toward 2 days with a reward meal. It also doesn't have to be a whole reward "meal"! Let's say the family wants to go out for ice cream. Make that happen on a reward meal day, and that is your reward.
Classic Cycle:
Unlike the Easy Cycle, which has a reward meal incorporated into every high-carb day, the Classic Cycle has an entire reward day every week. You target a whole day to satisfy those cravings for your favorite foods! And you’ll still lose weight.
Here’s what a Classic Cycle week looks like:
- Monday: Low-carb day
- Tuesday: High-carb day
- Wednesday: Low-carb day
- Thursday: High-carb day
- Friday: Low-carb day
- Saturday: High-carb day
- Sunday: Reward day
With the Classic Cycle, besides losing weight at a constant pace, you’ll also be able to tune into what is happening in your body during this carb cycle process. You’ll learn and actually feel how food affects your body, and while you may experience some brief periods of nausea, headaches, low energy and other symptoms as you change the way you fuel your body, these will be temporary. In the end, you’ll have a whole new appreciation for this marvelous body you have! And as with the Easy Cycle, you can stick with the Classic Cycle throughout your weight loss journey or move onto another cycle. You are in control!
You can also choose to do a combination of the Easy and Classic Cycles - have one day with a reward meal and still have the reward day. I have done this for years - if we are travelling and want to stop at Dairy Queen (which the Niemann's do quite often!), I enjoy a chocolate cone. Then every Sunday is my reward day and that's the day I enjoy chips & salsa, a bowl of ice cream, a favorite candy or a little extra bread.
Turbo Cycle: If you want to shed those extra pounds a little faster, the Turbo Cycle is for you. Of the four carb cycles, this cycle takes off weight the fastest. Unlike the Easy and Classic cycles, which alternate low and high-carb days, the Turbo Cycle pits two low-carb days against every high-carb day. That means you’ll burn fat two days in a row before your body’s furnace (metabolism) is re-stoked on your high-carb day, and you’ll lose weight faster!
Even though the Turbo Cycle has an extra low-carb day as compared to the Easy and Classic cycles, it is not a severely calorie-restricted cycle that will crash your metabolism. As with the other cycles, women should not consume fewer than 1,200 calories a day, and men should not consume fewer than 1,500 calories a day. And those numbers are low! If you are exercising regularly, women should strive for closer to 1,400 calories, and men at least 1,800. Since you’ll have two low-carb days in a row, you may feel less energetic on the second low-carb day. But this is okay. Grab some extra protein and/or fats, and let the low-carb days be your powerful weight-loss accelerators!
Here’s what a Turbo Cycle week looks like:
- Monday: Low carb day
- Tuesday: Low carb day
- Wednesday: High carb day
- Thursday: Low carb day
- Friday: Low carb day
- Saturday: High carb day
- Sunday: Reward day
As with the other cycles, you can stay with the Turbo Cycle as long as you want, or you can change cycles. Or, you can add a reward meal on one of your high carb days. This program is tailor-made to you and you alone! Don't feel like you have to stick to the exact plan as it is laid out above. If you have too many restrictions, you will be stressed about it and that's what we are working to avoid.
Fit Cycle: If you are serious about fitness and exercise 6 days a week, or if you to train for long periods of time but you want to “lean up” without compromising your athletic performance, you might consider the Fit Cycle. The Fit Cycle not only eliminates fat, but it also supplies your body with the fuel it needs to perform successfully, no matter what sport you choose to excel in.
Unlike the other three carb cycles, the Fit Cycle only has two low-carb days per week, and there’s a very important reason for this: The extra high-carb day allows your muscles to absorb more fuel (glycogen), which you’ll need for maximum athletic performance. During your low-carb days, when this supply of glycogen gets depleted, your muscles will develop insulin sensitivity. When you then have a high-carb day or your reward day, these insulin-sensitive muscles will actually soak up more carbs, your body will burn this extra fuel instead of storing it as fat, and you’ll still lose weight. It’s an amazing process!
Here’s what a Fit Cycle week looks like:
- Monday: High-carb day
- Tuesday: High-carb day
- Wednesday: Low-carb day
- Thursday: High-carb day
- Friday: High-carb day
- Saturday: Low-carb day
- Sunday: Reward Day
With the Fit Cycle, you won’t lose weight as fast as with the Turbo Cycle, but you will be able to maintain your athletic performance. However, if you do experience a slight decrease in your athletic performance with this cycle, and you’re not as concerned about losing weight, try combining the Fit Cycle with pre- and post-workout supplements or meal replacement shakes with some extra macronutrients.
And as with the other cycles, you can stay on the Fit Cycle or change cycles at any time. It all depends on your weight loss and athletic goals.
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