If you want to shed those extra pounds extra fast, the Turbo Cycle is for you. Of the four original carb cycles (Easy, Classic, Turbo, and Fit), 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 really, really fast!
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. And 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. These low carb days are 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
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 high carb or low carb meal (depending on which day you’re on). Your final of the day will ALWAYS be a low carb meal. Follow the portion size guide to put all your meals together. And as with the other cycles, you can stay with the Turbo Cycle as long as you want, or you can change cycles at any time. This program is tailor-made to you and you alone!
Learn more about the Turbo Cycle in our book, Choose More, Lose More for Life. And if you’re interested in learning about the Extreme Cycle, check out our 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!
950 Responses
I’m thinking about doing this but I was wondering if I should do the turbo cycle or the extreme cycle? I need to lose about 80 lbs.
Hi Devon: Either one can work, and you can change cycles at any time. I’d start with the new Extreme Cycle, and go from there. You can do this!
I’ve started the Turbo Cycle as of last week, and had some more questions so I’ve bought your book and am waiting for it to arrive. I tried doing a keto diet for 5 weeks, however my sleep suffered and I felt my stress levels were higher, even my hair seemed to start falling out more by the end of the 5 weeks, so that’s why I decided to start carb cycling instead, I think it’s more suited to my hormones. However my main question is this: if I make sure to stay at 1500 calories on higher carb days, is there still a reason why I can’t eat fats (i.e. coconut oil or olive oil) on those days? I’m finding myself getting very hungry on higher carb days, and was thinking maybe eating more fat would help with satiety. Or is there a metabolic reason for not having fat along with the carbs? Thanks for the info!
Hi Tara: It’s best to not include those fats on high-carb days. Fats and carbs play slightly different roles in carb cycling, so that’s why they’re separated into different days (except for that carb portion for every breakfast). If you’re hungry, you can add in more veggies to your meals, which can help.
Hi thank you for this amazing information. I will be starting the turbo cycle. I have just ordered your book I can’t wait for it to arrive. One question I have is I lift heavy three times a week ( 80 kg). i am suppose to have 140g of protein a day as it goes by 1g per lbs of body weight. What i want to ask is just having a palm size of protein per meal be enough ? as I don’t want to loose any muscle or would i need to measure it per meal ? also I normally have a casein shake with unsweetened almond milk before bed would this still be ok on my low carb days ?
I would love to hear from you
Thank you.
Hi Natasha: Are you doing the Turbo Cycle to lose weight? If so, it’s best to follow the program as outlined. Chris and Heidi have had clients who also lift heavy and who have also lost weight on these cycles. You might also want to look into the Fit Cycle (since you do lift heavy) or the Extreme Cycle. You can find these cycles here: https://heidipowell.net/2719/carb-cycling-the-fit-cycle/ and https://heidipowell.net/10503/carb-cycling-the-extreme-cycle/. If you feel you need to tweak your chosen cycle a bit, you’re welcome to do so, and it might affect your rate of weight loss a bit, but do what you feel is best for you and your goals. We wish you the best – you can do this!
Hi thank for the rapid response yes I am doing the turbo cycle to loose weight. But I am lifting weight to build my glute muscles so want to make sure that following the programme will still build my muscle mass if that makes sense. But i don’t want to consume more protein if it is not needed. also is a casein shake with unsweetened almond milk okay before bed ? or would only water be ok on low carbs days ?
Thank you so much and my book arrived today I am absolutely loving it 🙂 you guys are awesome !!!
I’d give the Turbo Cycle a try as it’s outlined, and you can substitute your weight lifting program for the 9-Minute Missions in the Turbo Cycle. As for your nighttime shake, it’s best to stick to the 5 meals a day, unless this shake is your 5th meal of the day. You got this!
I was thinking of doing the turbo cycle! Is there a number of carbs I should aim for on both low and high carb days?? Also, should high carb days be workout days?
Hi Angela: All your macros are figured out for you in the program, you just need to follow it! We try and make it super easy. ? And what works as far as working out is different for each person. The Turbo Cycle is designed for up to 60 minutes of cardio Monday-Friday, but do what works best for you! You can do this!
I have been following the turbo carb cycle for about a month now and really love it! However I have not lost as much weight after the first week or so. I am a 6 foot tall woman and wonder if those same calorie guidelines of 1200 for low carb and 1500 for high carb are an appropriate amount? Do I need more calories because of my height? Thanks!
Hi Tracy: Your rate of weight loss can depend on several factors like the amount of weight you’d like to lose, your body composition (bone and muscle mass), and others. The 1200 and 1500 calorie daily consumption recommendations are general recommendations and should work for most people. You can find more information on calories in this post, and it might help you figure out what will work best for you: https://heidipowell.net/5366/all-about-calories/. And remember, you can change cycles at any time, so you might want to check out the new Extreme Cycle (https://heidipowell.net/10503/carb-cycling-the-extreme-cycle/), which has a 1500 calories/day recommendation and a few other tweaks as well. I hope this helps – you can totally do this!
I love carb cycling and absolutely love love love this article, I am never able to explain to people carb cycling but this definitely helped. Im looking to change up my meals, do you have an example high and low carb days somewhere on your website
Hi Colleen: We’re so excited this article was helpful! Here are some meal ideas for low- and high-carb days (all recipes are from Chris and Heidi’s books: “Choose to Lose” and “Choose More, Lose More for Life”): Low-carb day: Breakfast (within 30 minutes of waking): Basic Omelet with a corn tortilla to make it a wrap. Snack (3 hours later): A protein shake with a portion of a healthy fat, like peanut butter, mixed in. Lunch (3 hours later): Tomato Basil and Garlic Chicken with a portion of olive oil drizzled on top. Snack (3 hours later): Sonora Cottage Cheese with a portion of avocado. Dinner: (3 hours later): Lemon Chicken drizzled with salad dressing.
High-carb day: Breakfast (within 30 minutes of waking): Denver Omelet with a portion of your favorite fruit or oatmeal on the side.
Snack (3 hours later): Greek Yogurt Parfait with a portion of low fat granola. Lunch: (3 hours later): Caribbean Jerk Chicken with a portion of brown rice. Snack (3 hours later): Protein shake with a portion of oatmeal mixed in. Dinner (3 hours later): Apple Cider Chicken. And remember, you can have veggies (the non-root/non-starchy type) with every single meal, and you can use any of the foods on Chris and Heidi’s approved foods list – in the proper proportions – to create meals to fit your needs. I hope this helps! ?
Hi,
Are larabars and think thin bars considered a protein and a carb?
Hi, I posted this once and my question disappeared so I thought I would give it another try. Between turbo and extreme which offers faster results? Also which book is best to purchase for each? Thanks!
Hi Glinda: All posts have to be approved before they post, so that’s why you’re not seeing your post. I’d purchase Chris and Heidi’s newest book, “Extreme Transformation,” as it’s their most updated program, and it contains the Extreme Cycle. http://amzn.to/1RKDIgo. Good luck – you can do this! ?
Hi!
I find that on the low-carb days, I am very weak and it is hard to exercise even moderately (I am on the turbo cycle). Should I have a pre-workout meal in addition to my normal meals (breakfast, morning snack, lunch, afternoon snack, and dinner)? If so, should it be carb based or protein based? Thanks!
Hi Nadia: This can happen for some people. One thing is to make sure you’re eating those two fist fulls of veggies with every meal, and that can help since veggies are technically carbs. Here’s another post that might help too: https://heidipowell.net/9194/qa-with-the-powells-to-eat-or-not-to-eat/. And if you’ve only been carb cycling for a short time, your body should get used to this new way of doing things. And make sure you’re drinking all your water (1/2 your body weight in ounces every day) too, which can also help. I hope this helps!
Hello! A couple questions. First, if I’m on a low carb day and do an intense workout, how do I refuel? Normally it’s taught that you eat something like fruit to replenish, but since that is out of the picture, would you recommend a fat? And also- I left a similar question on your Instagram, Heidi- If I am turbo cycling, do I add in the new Extreme Transformation rules (fat during breakfast on high carb and replace carb with fat for last meal of high carb days)? Thank you!!
Hi Andrea: You can refuel with a protein and a veggie (the non-root/non-starchy type), which is technically a carb. And get more info about eating and working out here: https://heidipowell.net/9194/qa-with-the-powells-to-eat-or-not-to-eat/. And if you’re doing the Turbo Cycle, you’ll want to follow the guidelines for putting meals together for that cycle. Good luck – you got this!