Typically, when you want to lose weight it requires a slight cut in calories or a deficit. This method is effective in shedding fat, but it also causes an individual to lose muscle which can create a less toned appearance. Carb cycling is an effective method to lose fat while retaining your muscle mass.
Carb cycling is an approach to dieting where you systematically increase and decrease carbohydrates on specific days in order to lose weight while retaining muscle. For example, Sunday through Tuesday and Thursday through Friday are low-carb days while Wednesday and Saturday can be high carb days.
Protocol:
Monday - Wednesday: Low carb day
Thursday: Medium Carb Day
Friday - Saturday: Low Carb Days
Sunday: High Carb day
Simple Protocol:
Sunday - Tuesday: Low carb days
Wednesday: High Carb day
Thursday - Friday: Low Carb Days
Saturday: High Carb day
If you lift heavy or train a lot of cardio, it's better to implement two high carb days per week. A high carb day doesn't mean to eat extreme amounts of carbs, you should still follow a regiment or guidelines you set. For example, a high carb day can be an increase in potatoes, brown rice, and other good sources.
It supplies your body with enough nutrients to allow fat loss without crashing your metabolism. Often times, when individuals try to lose weight, they decrease their calories by extreme levels which is counterproductive. It doesn't work because your body responds by decreasing the rate of your metabolism. Actually, your body will use muscle to burn.
Carb cycling spikes Leptin levels. Leptin is a fat burning hormone, the more leptin in your body the more fat is burned. The high carb days spike your leptin levels and the low carb days while slowly decrease it.
Carb cycling also increases insulin sensitivity helps maintain your muscle mass and improved your muscle building capabilities.
