I have a tendency to just throw my diets together, without having to think too much about details. Even when I want to change up my diet to try something new like I have this year, with my nutritional knowledge I’ve acquired over the years, I roughly work things out to suit me in my head.
I did decide this year (2015) to play with Carb Cycling, Back loading and Carb Nites, things I haven’t really tried before. I back loaded off season and all through the start of my diet, so ate all my carb later in the day and only proteins/fats in the morning, and every 7 – 10 days threw in a carb nite. And it worked, I liked it. (More to come on those). And for the last few weeks of show prep I thought I’d carb cycle too, doing it for the last 3 weeks. It was only when I asked a couple of pals, and researched online what they would consider a Low/Med/High carb day. And there response was far different to what I was doing. BUT my way IS working. So, I am going to go through the traditional way of carb cycling and what it is...and then going to share with you my way. What is Carb Cycling, and how does it work? Carb cycling is a diet that works by rotating low/medium/high levels of carbohydrates, shaking up your metabolism and helping speed it up by not eating the same old stuff every day, and incorporating low carb days with low calorie deficits to increase fat loss. There are three types of days when carb cycling- High Carb days Medium Carb days Low Carb days Some go with No carb days on the lows, but I am not a great believer in athletes running on no cars at all, so I advise low everytime. THE 'TRADITIONAL' RULES ARE - If you do three days the three days are rotated, or cycled, equally, but there are many ways people set up a carb cycle. You can also do low/high or low moderate high. An example would be - Monday - Low Carb Tuesday - Med Carb Wednesday - High Carb Thursday = Low Carb Friday = Med carb Saturday = High Carb Sunday = Low Carb OR Monday - Low Carb Tuesday - Low Carb Wednesday - Low Carb Thursday = Med Carb Friday = Med carb Saturday = Med Carb Sunday = High Carb You play with these to find one that suits your body, and routine. Traditionally, the most common way to carb cycle around your training is where you will place higher carbohydrate days on your heaviest training days and then lower carb days on off/low-intensity training days. Plans are normally based around eating six times per day. You may decide on 5 meals and more food per meal and less food per meal if you do 7 for instance. Protein is the foundation of a carb cycling diet. Normally 1 lb weight = 1.2 g Protein for woman or 1.5 g for men. Keep dietary fats consistent throughout your plan. You will need to raise your fats on your low carb days and lower them on high carb days to make up some calories. To achieve maximum results, you must calculate the ratio of carbs to fat and proteins for each low/med/high cycle day. LOW CARB DAY - Your protein intake is higher during the low carb phase. A woman during carb cycling will multiply her current body by 1.2, men will multiple his weight by 1.5. This number reflects the grams of protein required per day; multiple this total by 4 for your number of calories consumed by protein sources. E.g. 9.5 stone woman = 136 lbs x 1.2 = 163.2 g protein x 4 (Calories) = 652.8 calories of protein needed. To calculate your grams of fat, a woman will multiple her weight by 0.5 and a male by 0.8. This total number times 9 will reflect your fats calorie consumption. E.g. 9.5 stone woman = 136 lbs x 0.5 = 68 x 9 (Calories) = 612 calories of fats needed Find carbohydrates by multiplying a woman's weight by 0.6 and a man's by 0.9. This total multiplied by 4 will reflect total calories consumed through carbohydrates. E.g. 9.5 stone woman = 136 lbs x 0.6 = 81g carbs x 4 (Calories) = 326 calories of carbs needed. Totalling 1590.8 calories per day MEDIUM CARB DAY - The medium carb day is worked out the same way but increase your protein and carbohydrate (slightly) intake while decreasing your fats. To determine the grams of protein, a woman will multiply her weight by 1.3 and a man by 1.6. Carbs, a woman will multiply her weight by 0.9 and a man by 1.2, Fat grams are found by multiplying 0.4 by a woman's weight and 0.8 by a man's weight. SO - 9.5 stone woman = 136 lbs x 1.3 = 176.8 g protein x 4 (Calories) = 707.2 calories of protein needed. 9.5 stone woman = 136 lbs x 0.4 = 54.4 x 9 (Calories) = 489.6 calories of fats needed 9.5 stone woman = 136 lbs x 0.9 = 122.4 carbs x 4 (Calories) = 489.6 calories of carbs needed. Totalling 1686.4 calories per day HIGH CARB DAY - The high carb day is worked out the same way but increase your protein and carbohydrate intake while decreasing your fats. To determine the grams of protein and carbohydrates, a woman will multiply her weight by 1.4 and a man by 1.7. Fat grams are found by multiplying 0.3 by a woman's weight and 0.6 by a man's weight. SO - 9.5 stone woman = 136 lbs x 1.4 = 190.4 g protein x 4 (Calories) = 761.6 calories of protein needed. 9.5 stone woman = 136 lbs x 0.3 = 40.8 x 9 (Calories) = 367.2 calories of fats needed 9.5 stone woman = 136 lbs x 1.4 = 190.4 carbs x 4 (Calories) = 761.6 calories of carbs needed. Totalling 1890.4 calories per day You may choose to do no carb day. I personally feel no carbs isn’t the way to go for athletes. A small amount of carbs will help with better workouts and energy, and will be worked off quite easily and can still leave you depleted if required. The carb cycle examples below are standard but can be adjusted to fit your needs. You can take the ratios given and increase them to make them fit your training regime, lifestyle. Carb Cycling Program Macronutrient s Men: High Carb – Protein 1.7 g Carbs 1.7g Fat 0.6g Med Carb – Protein 1.6 g Carbs 1.2g Fat 0.7g Low Carb – Protein 1.5 g Carbs 0.9g Fat 0.8g ** All recommendations shown in grams per pound of bodyweight Women: High Carb – Protein 1.4 g Carbs 1.4g Fat 0.3g Med Carb – Protein 1.3 g Carbs 0.9g Fat 0.4g Low Carb – Protein 1.2 g Carbs 0.6g Fat 0.5g ** All recommendations shown in grams per pound of bodyweight MY OPINION IS THE ABOVE STATS SHOULD ONLY BE USED FOR THE LAST 3-4 WEEKS OF SHOW PREP IF YOU ARE NOT ON TRACK. THESE ARE VERY LOW CALORIES, LOWER THAN BMR'S WHICH i DONT GENERALLY RECOMMEND. NOW TO BREAK THE RULES. Now, how I work mine. I want to show you this so for you to understand that these things are not written in stone. They are guidelines for you to work with. You would generally start trying it this way. Then next time change it up depending on your lifestyle, training and metabolism. When a friend of mine heard my levels of carbs, they were amazed. But it works for me. I often get up at 4.30 am, do my cardio, drive 3 hours to work, run my business during the working day, drive back, do my weights, eat and do more cardio before bed, then do it all again. I would not survive on 80 g carbs. I would be living in a state of depletion which could effect my growth and state of mind. My low carb days are 120g, my medium are 170g and my high are 190g. I still lose weight, lose fat and grow. I currently weigh 136 lbs during my show prep. Based on this my carb days are – High Carb – Protein 1.5g Carbs 1.4g Fat 0.3g - 136 lbs x 1.5 = 204g protein x 4 (Calories) = 816 calories of protein needed. 136 lbs x 0.3 = 40.8 x 9 (Calories) = 367.2 calories of fats needed 136 lbs x 1.4 = 190.4 carbs x 4 (Calories) = 761.6 calories of carbs needed. Totalling 1944 calories per day Med Carb – Protein 1.3g Carbs 0.9g Fat 0.3g 136 lbs x 1.3 = 176.8g protein x 4 (Calories) = 761.6 calories of protein needed. 136 lbs x 0.3 = 40.8 x 9 (Calories) = 367.2 calories of fats needed 136 lbs x 1.25 = 170g carbs x 4 (Calories) = 680 calories of carbs needed. Totalling 1808 calories per day Low Carb – Protein 1.3g Carbs 0.9g Fat 0.5g 136 lbs x 1.3 = 176.8g protein x 4 (Calories) = 761.6 calories of protein needed. 136 lbs x 0.3 = 40.8 x 9 (Calories) = 367.2 calories of fats needed 136 lbs x 0.9 = 122.4g carbs x 4 (Calories) = 489.6 calories of carbs needed. Totalling 1618 calories per day On my low carb days, I never go under 120g. It works for me. It is high for a cycling diet. But I can deplete in 6 days on the above macros. It shows how different we are. And you need to play with it, until you get it right. What's right for one isn’t right for another. And there is no secret to getting it right. Trial and error is normally the name of the game. Another way to try, is sticking to your BMR recommendations, but playing with the breakdown of macros. As follows - My active BMR was 2382. This is what I should eat off season on a daily basis. To loose 1lb a week, I subtract 500 calories which equals 1882. To continue to grow you need to keep your protein high. So you could do something like this in the early stages of your diet - Low Carb day - 1882 made up of 45% Protein, 25% Carbs, 30% Fats, Med Carb Day - 1882 made up of 45% Protein, 35% Carbs, 20% Fats High Carb Day - 1882 made up of 30% Protein, 50% Carbs,20% Fats You have kept to your body's BMR, just played with the macros. I find this works well too. You will learn what works for you over time. Practice makes perfect! Happy carb cycling. xx
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