Carb cycling is the foundation of what I do every day and with every client. I know through years of experience with many different clients that carb cycling works, so I’m going to introduce you to the basics and the five different carb cycling plans—Easy, Classic, Turbo, and Fit, and Extreme. I’m stripping it down to the basics to get you started:
What is Carb Cycling + How Does it Work?
Carb cycling is an eating plan with alternating high carb and low carb days. It’s that simple. It also has built-in reward days or reward meals (depending on the plan you’re following), so you can still eat your favorite foods on a regular basis. Sounds pretty much perfect, right? You can eat healthy foods, enjoy foods you love, and still lose weight.
While each plan has a different mix of high carb and low carb days, each day works basically the same:
- Eat five meals—no more, no less.
- Eat breakfast within 60 minutes of waking or whenever your feeding window opens if you’re an intermittent faster.
- For breakfast, you’ll eat a portion of protein, carbs, and fat.
- For your next 3 meals (snack, lunch, snack), you’ll eat either a low or high carb meal depending on which day you’re on. So, if you’re on a low carb day, those three meals will be low carb. If you’re on a high carb day, those three meals will be high carb.
- Your last meal of the day will ALWAYS be a low carb meal. Always.
- Choose approved foods.
- Drink ½ your body weight in ounces of water every day. So, if you weigh 150 lbs, you’ll drink 75 ounces a day.
How Does Carb Cycling Work?
Carb cycling is based on the right combination of proteins, carbs, and healthy fats. In order to lose weight, our bodies need the right combination. Here’s why:
- Protein builds and maintains muscles and these muscles burn calories like an inferno. Protein also breaks down more slowly than carbs and fat, which burns even more calories and helps you feel fuller longer.
- Carbs are the preferred fuel source for your muscles and organs, and they come in healthy versions (vegetables, fruits, grains, and legumes), and not-so-healthy versions (cakes, cookies, soda, doughnuts, candy, and many processed foods). Healthy carbs are also crucial for burning calories, and since they break down more slowly than those not-so-healthy carbs, they keep your blood sugar and energy levels steady, and they also keep your calorie-burning furnace hot so it burns more calories!
- Healthy fats (unsaturated fats) eaten in moderation help the development and function of your eyes and brain and help prevent heart disease, stroke, depression, and arthritis. Healthy fats also help keep your energy levels steady and keep you from feeling hungry.
Why do we alternate high carb + low carb days in carb cycling?
On high carb days you’re stocking your calorie-burning furnace so that on low carb days your furnace burns fat, and lots of it! This pattern tricks your metabolism into burning a lot of calories, even on those low carb days. It’s an amazing and well-proven process.
What are the Benefits of Carb Cycling?
Carb cycling has many benefits:
- It fits any lifestyle.
- You’ll learn how to shed weight and body fat and how to make smart lifestyle choices for the rest of your life. This puts YOU in control.
- You’ll feel better and have more energy.
- You’ll eat the foods you love.
- You’ll build lean, strong muscles.
- You’ll be empowered physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.
I’ve only skimmed the surface of carb cycling, so learn more about our five carb cycling plans to find your ideal cycle, and let’s get cycling!
Get even more information on carb cycling in both or our books: Extreme Transformation (the newest edition to our carb cycline lineup featuring the Extreme Cycle) and Choose More, Lose More for Life (which features our other four cycles).
If you’d like some help creating your own meals, there’s a handy “Create Your Own Meals” chart in this post! To get a customized cycle for you and your goals + several workout programs (from gym-based to bodyweight to dance) + the all-important life lessons (the key to long-term transformation), check out The Transform App.
Note: If you’ve been carb cycling using our book, Choose Lose More, Lose More for Life, you’ll notice that we’ve changed a couple of things since that book was published: You now include a fat for breakfast, and every final meal of the day is a low carb meal. Like with a lot of things in life, the more you do them, the more you learn about how to do them even better!
xo,
1,381 Responses
I read Choose More, Lose More for Life cover to cover today but I am a little foggy on where fruits fit into the equation. Also I am confused if I should base my portion on hands or the 100 calorie serving guidelines. Thanks for any clarification.
Hi Amber: Fruits are considered carbs, and use the portion guide to put your meals together. The calorie counts are only for reference purposes, but if you want to also count calories, you certainly can!
Only on the first week of carb cycling. I feel full all the time…hard to eat all the food actually! I’ve been on target with my food, drinking my gallon of water, and am UP several pounds instead of down. Is this common to gain weight on this program initially??
Yes, it can be common to gain weight at the beginning as your body is adjusting to a new way of doing things. Carbs, even healthy ones, can cause you to retain water, so if you’re eating those fruits, veggies, and healthy grains, you can have some water weight. Your body should get used to carb cycling soon, and you’ll be good to go! Just make sure your portions sizes are right and that you’re getting all your exercise in. You got this!
Can I eat marinara sauce? Zucchini “noodles” are great for a low-carb day, or marinara with wheat spaghetti for a high carb day. Just not sure if marinara is ok!
Yes! Marinara sauce (meatless) counts as a veggie portion, so you can eat it on any day. If it has meat in it, it should count as a protein too.
On my low carb day I sometimes am up early and late to bed. What do you recommend I eat or snack on? That last meal comes early and I feel hungry 2-3 hours later. Thank you!
Hi Janelle: It’s important that you not eat more than those 5 meals a day, so try to do other things when those cravings hit. Here’s a blog post that might help: https://heidipowell.net/9285/tip-of-the-day-curb-those-cravings/. And maybe put together a list of activities you can do that will keep your mind off those cravings too. Sometimes we only need to distract our brains for a few minutes and those cravings go away. It’s pretty common to have these at night, so you’re not alone. 🙂
Hi! I’m turbo-cycling with great results. However, my “Sunday Funday” was not so great– I felt yucky afterward and it stalled my weight loss. Is it OK to skip that day and keep on the low-carb/high-carb rotation schedule?
Reward days are a key to weight loss, so keep doing them. If you don’t want to, you don’t have to eat all of the extra 1000 calories, and you can totally eat any extra calories in healthy foods. And while it seemed like it stalled your weight loss, just be patient – it really does work!
I like the carb cycling plan but I was wondering how do I figure out my macros with it? How do I figure out how many calories I should eat a day? Is it possible to build muscle and lose fat on this program?
Hi Tony: In carb cycling, we don’t count macros or grams, we count portions. There’s an awesome graphic in this post (as well as some other helpful info) that shows you how to put together all your meals in carb cycling: https://heidipowell.net/4514/carb-confusion/. And men eat 1500 calories on low carb days and 2000 calories on high carb days, and women eat 1200 calories on low carb days and 1500 calories on high carb days. And yes, it’s very possible to build muscle and lose fat on this program. You can get Chris and Heidi’s complete carb cycling program in their book, “Choose More, Lose More for Life.” (Here’s a link to purchase the book if you’re interested: http://amzn.to/1rhkPaQ). You can do this!
What if I like to workout in the morning before eating breakfast? Not because of any fasted cardio or whatever but just because I prefer it. I wake up at 5:50 and get to the gym by 6:15. I drink BCAA’s and a preworkout before and then eat breakfast after (usually oatmeal with berries and a protein shake). In this situation, is it THAT vital that I am eating within 30 minutes of waking up? I am super active and workout 5-6 days a week (weights, HIIT and biking) and my calorie intake is between 1800-2100 calories per day. I don’t want to lose weight, per say, but I would like a bit more ab definition 🙂 I was thinking of testing out the fit cycle.
Here’s a post from this blog with some great info on eating and working out: https://heidipowell.net/9194/qa-with-the-powells-to-eat-or-not-to-eat/. I hope it will give you some great ideas!
um can I just say that I’m loving Extreme Weight Loss Club. After reading the Choose More Lose More book I still had a few questions about the program. Whoever has been responding here has been very helpful and the Extreme Weight Loss Club really simplifies it even more, anyone who is serious about carb cycling should join!! You’re whole team is amazing, wish I could be a part of it!
https://www.ewlclub.com
Why, thank you! We do our best! 🙂
Hi! I have a question regarding the shredders.
My husband and I are going to start the carb cycling and doing the 9 Minute Missions in the am. With regards to the shredders, we currently Crossfit four to five times a week, so how do we count that towards the shredders? It isn’t a full hour of straight cardio but it is a workout. Do you have any suggestions?
Thanks so much!
Hi Sandy: CrossFit definitely counts as Shredders! And the recommendation is up to 60 minutes a day, so do the best you can to hit that number, but don’t stress too much if you don’t as long as you’re happy with the progress you’re making towards your goals.
My issue is I am an RN in a busy ER… I realistically cannot break to eat every 3 hours… Between codes, and accidents coming in I some days will literally go a 12 hour shift with 2 bites to eat ( or a quick meal on the fly) and only one potty break… Let alone trying to even get down 12 oz. of H2O… Any suggestions?
Hi Shawna: With a crazy schedule like yours, just do the best you can. Keep healthy options close by, drink your water as you can, and make sure your nutrition is spot on when you’re not working.