Do you have a hard time going without your favorite foods, but you still want to lose weight? Then the Easy Cycle is for you. 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 reach 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 servings of ice cream a week. With the Easy Cycle you’re already eliminating three bowls of ice cream 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
Every breakfast—on both low and high carb days—will consist of a portion each of protein, carb, and fat. For the next three meals, you’ll either have a high carb or low carb meal (depending on which day you’re on), and then your last meal of the day will ALWAYS be a low carb meal. Follow the portion size guide, and you’re good to go!
And yes, 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 a lifetime. And 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!
For more information on the Easy Cycle, check out our book, Choose More, Lose More for Life.
Interested in learning about our new cycle, the Extreme Cycle? You can get all the info in our new book, Extreme Transformation.
And if you’d like some help creating your own meals, there’s a handy “Create Your Own Meals” chart in this post!
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!
151 Responses
Hello, my issue is that I am a picky eater and don?t like a lot of foods. I?m not really sure where to even start en I eat so bland.
Hi AJ: Try eating foods prepared differently, and give yourself several tries to find new foods you like. It can take that long to develop a taste for new foods. And it’s totally okay to repeat meals as long as you’re getting in all the nutrients you need. 🙂
I?m finding that the high carb days are really triggering my over eating tendencies. Is there a benefit to having one high carb day in the middle of the week and then just a reward day/reset day on Sunday? So my week would be (sun-sat) RD, LC, LC, HC, LC, LC, LC? I don?t want to sabatoge myself- but I tend to over eat on my high carb days. Thanks so much.
Hi Joanna: We recommend no more than 3 LC days a week, and no more than 2 in a row. What types of carbs are you choosing? Maybe choose those that don’t make you want to overeat. Remember, fruits and starchy vegetables are considered carbs, so those might be good options if you’re not already including them as much as you could. Hope this helps! 🙂
Thank you so much for the quick reply. I appreciate it so. And I was thinking the very thing about carbs- and maybe making my carbs the starchy vegetables and fruits and not grains. The grains are what seem to ?trigger? my desire to overeat. I don?t want to set myself back.
Hi, I’ve been exploring the next step in my diet since being in lockdown and am finding it less easy to follow the strict keto diet I had been on for quite a while. I saw carb cycling and wondered if this might be the answer. I do yoga / pilates / HIIT and a lot of walking. But don’t enjoy long workout or running! Do you think one of these cycles might work for me? I’m 5’7 and 56kgs. I just want to tone up and lose some lockdown puppy fat!
Hi Ange: Yes, carb cycling can be a great option for you! 🙂
Hi. I’m thinking of starting this easy beginning plan. I’m 56 and a pretty 80% healthy eater and cook. I do like my wine and occasional vodka. Is this allowed on the carb cycle plan. I do notice I’m getting soft around the middle.
Ps I do love baking!! My mental therapy!!
Hi Cynthia: We recommend you keep any alcohol as part of a reward meal. We hope you love carb cycling!
I’m 32yrs old 5’3 and 155lbs…I have battled my weight my whole life and I’m sick of the never ending cycle…I need a lifestyle change!! I have already have had knee surgery and dont want to have another, heart failure/diabetes runs deep in my family and I can already tell its puttin a strain on my heart/lungs…no energy and shortness of breath …I tried applyin for the show but doesnt start til spring can u pls HELP ME!!!
255lbs*
Hi Annie: The show was cancelled, and here’s a post that offers you Chris and Heidi’s top transformation tools so you can begin your transformation journey today! https://heidipowell.net/9060. Pay attention to the part about promises, and this will be your first step. And please discuss any nutrition and exercise program with your healthcare team first and then follow any modifications they may recommend. You can do this!
Hi I am a 20 year old girl and have never carb cycled before. What plan is best? I am 160 lb 5′ 6. I workout 3-5 times a week.
I also am a collegiate water polo athlete in the spring and workout 9+ times a week and am usually around 155/150 during this season. Can I still carb cycle? Does my plan change?
Hi Allison: Yes, you can totally carb cycle! With your busy workout schedule, I’d begin with either the Fit Cycle or the Extreme Cycle to see which one works best for you. You can get links to both cycles in this post: https://heidipowell.net/2713 Hope that helps! 🙂