Do you want to “lean up” without compromising your athletic performance? Do you want to train for long periods of time? Then the Fit Cycle is the cycle for you. 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 Easy, Classic, and Turbo 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
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 of the day, you’ll eat either a low or high carb meal depending on which day you’re on. Your last meal of the day will ALWAYS be a low carb meal. Follow the portion size guide to put all of your meals together. And 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.
For more information on the Fit Cycle, check out our book, Choose More, Lose More for Life. Interested in learning about the Extreme Cycle? 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!
183 Responses
Hi Heidi!
I’m 5’8 and 145 pounds. I want to lose weight and also start to develop some muscle. I’m not sure if I should do the fit or turbo carb cycle. I work out 4-5 times a week for about an hour. I do both cardio and strength training. Any suggestions ?
Hi Emily: Either cycle could work for you, and you can change cycles at any time. An hour of exercise is built in to all of the cycles, so that shouldn’t really make a difference. Hope that helps!
Hi Heidi!
I just started the plan and the Turbo fits best for me. I am not sure how to incorporate fruit into my meals. Would I have that in place of bread, potato, rice etc? So far it has been VERY easy to stick to and I am very hopeful that I will see results soon!
Best regards,
~ Kim
Hi Kim: Fruit can be the carb portion of any high-carb meal. Welcome to carb cycling!
Hi! What are the recommended macro’s for high carb and low carb days for women? I looked in the book and only found the hand measurements.
Thank you!
Hi Mariesa: In carb cycling, we don’t count macros or grams of anything, just portion sizes (and calories, if you’d like to). This makes it so much easier! If you follow the portion size guides, you’ll be getting all the macros you need. 🙂
I’m considering competing in a figure competition in the spring. I’ve talked briefly w/a coach by the name of Kimberly Doehnart & she told me I need to put on some weight/muscle (Im 5’0″ 108lbs) and I’m just trying to figure out if carb cycling is something I should consider or find a plan thats more protein driven. Im currently eating about 1500 calories & trying to get in140g of protein, 105g carbs, & 47g of fat. Lifting everyday and trying to figure what cardio I should be doing and does cardio fall on high or low carb days?
Thanks so much!
You guys ROCK!!
Heidi, I loved your Facebook post showing your before & after pictures for your competition. I so relate to the fear you described of gaining weight and I need to get over using the number on the scale!
Thanks again,
Christi
Hi Christi: With your specific (and awesome!) goal, you might want to talk with some figure coaches and get their opinions as far as nutrition and exercise go. Heidi has tweaked carb cycling to fit in with her competition prep, and you’ll need to do the same since your body and what you’ll need to do to achieve your goal are unique to you. Here’s what Heidi’s doing right now, but again, you’ll need to do what’s best for you: lower-carb days: 120P 225C 60F, high-carb days (leg days): 120P 425C 40F. Hope that helps!
Hi, I’m 37 5ft5 and weigh 131lb, I want to do a bikini body competition in April. I want to slowly burn the fat and and build muscle at the same time. Is fit cycle the best on for me. I went Keto for 12 weeks before summer and dropped a dress size. I’ve been eating 150 carbs 150 protein and 33 fat the last few weeks to build muscle but I’m not loosing any weight just gaining. help pls
Yes, of any of the cycles, the Fit Cycle could work best for you. As you get closer to your goal weight/competition, you might want to consult with a competition coach who can help you adjust your macros and training program to help you meet that awesome goal! 🙂
Oh man, I have so many questions and don’t know where to start! I recently lost 40 pounds and now I want to start building serious muscle, like Heidi muscles. I just started working out with a new trainer that talks more about nutrition. He wants me on a 40% protein, 20% carbs, & 40% fat. I’m a 35 year old women, 5’4″, 155 lbs, 27% body fat. I feel the carbs are way too low and my husband feels that the protein is too high. My goals now are to lose body fat and increase muscle, the scale is not my concern anymore. Would the fit cycle work for me and how much protein should I be eating each day then? Thanks so much for what you do for all of us, you are the best!!
Hi Janel: Yes, the Fit Cycle can work for you, and you can change cycles at any time. There?s an awesome graphic in this post (as well as some other helpful info) that shows you how to put all your meals together: https://heidipowell.net/4514. You can do this!
hi there! so started the classic cycle monday and have the hang of it already hoping to see results .. … i found my self more tired and hungry on the high carb day then on the low carb day … all my portions and food groups are there… fat day except breakfast is fat- thumb size, protein palm size and veggies two fists worth.. and carb day protein same,veggie , and carb fist size….maybe its cause paleo i ate unlimited proteins and meats and veggies, nuts and now my meals are smaller than im portioning every meal …am i doing everything correct
You’re doing great! When you begin a new way of doing things, it can take your body a bit of time to adjust. Make sure you’re drinking all your water too, because thirst can mask itself as hunger. You got this!
So I need to have 2300 calories right now to reach my next goal. I’m down 30 lbs from 300. I assume I never go above those calories, but is it possible to go to low? I’ve been at a plateau for awhile. I think I’ve been eating too less calories and exercising too much. Not really too much. I’m just not eating enough for the amount I’m exercising. My macros say that I need 152 grams of protein per day and 60 grams of fat and keep that within the 2300 calories. If I need more calories is it okay to eat more protein and fat on those low carb days?
Thank you,
Hi Amanda: In carb cycling, Chris and Heidi recommend that women eat 1200 calories on low carb days and 1500 calories on high carb days. If you need to adjust those calories for your activity level, here’s another post that might help you figure out what will work best for you and your goals: https://heidipowell.net/5366/all-about-calories/. And you’ll want to have the right ratio of proteins, fats, and carbs to make sure you’re getting all the nutrients you need. And congratulations on those 30 pounds gone – that’s awesome!
Hi Heidi! Love your inspiration & blog/instagram! Just started the Fit Cycle and it’s my first time doing carb cycling. How long does it usually take to see results from carb cycling and how long do you recommend doing it? Should you periodize it or adjust your training too?
Hi Gianna: How quickly you’ll see results depends on your starting weight/how many pounds you want to lose and how strictly you stick to the program. And it can take a bit of time for your body to adjust to a new way of doing things, so please be patient. 🙂 And you can actually follow carb cycling for life!
Hi Heidi! So my husband are very active; I own a fitness studio so basically work out all day and we also enjoy lift weights. I am looking to do a bikini completion in the near future and we have been playing around with different meal plans to see which one works best for us and we have recently been getting in to carb cycling and I saw a post on your IG about how you and Chris carb cycle, So I’ve read chris’s book and see how y’all have it set up. but I am wondering how you do it to fit your calorie intake. Obviously 1500 calories is not enough to build muscle for someone like me ( i am built small, only 5’2 and petite) so I am curious to know how you adjust the carb cycling for you, since you take in more calorie for bodybuilding?
Thank you!
Hi Hope: Right now Heidi is following a 50/30/20 program and consuming 2600 calories a day to achieve her competition goals. I’m so sorry, but that’s all the information I have about her nutrition program. Good luck with your competition!