So many people talk about carb cycling. What is it and is it beneficial?
I think it depends on the aim of your question. I see other responses just say it is another way to restrict calories. I guess that could be the case. It could also be the case that you are using it to influence athletic performance which is about much more than calories. I have used it in running. I believe body builders might use it as well. For running I increase my carb intake the week before a marathon to ensure I get to the race with enough energy stores. I did not increase my overall food consumption, but I did increase carbs above my regular levels. It’s a thing.
A technique people use to reduce their caloric intake. Nothing more nothing less.
It can be done many different ways but a common way to do it would be carbs on workout days and low carbs on off days. 3 days low carb, 3 days moderate, and one day high carb. 6 low to moderate carb days and one refeed day. It can be so many different variations to be honest. But in the end the benefits all come down to a caloric deficit.
Google description: Carb cycling involves going back and forth between high-carb days and low-carb days. There may even be “no-carb” days.
It’s the new vibe/invention that sliming companies launch a bit before the new year so peoples can buy there program with the new resolutions of the year, and then coachs and ‘’influencers’’ try to ride the wave to make money themselves.
In practice it’s just another type of diet where you may controle your calorie intake easier, maybe. You will still need to have less calories intake than burned along your day as it’s the only way to loose weight.
I can’t speak to what other people mean by it, but I “eat socially” on weekends, and it works great. It’s more fasting with coffee than simply restricting carbs, but I’ll do canned fish sometimes, for example. I shoot for the low keto range on carbs.
Another great term is ‘metabolic flexibility’, which is one of the reasons to constantly touch base with your fasted state. You want to be able to run off zero carbs without repercussions. Zero food, ultimately, as you get old and your metabolism slows down a bit. A day or two shouldn’t hurt much.
Bear in mind, though - running off ketone bodies will deplete some electrolytes, which is a whole topic. Cycling makes this less of an issue. I suppose the bursts might stave off the gradual slowing of your metabolism, or ‘starvation mode’, if you like, but maybe just accept it.
And someone already noted the athletic performance factor; insulin is anabolic, and all that. Power output can be affected; some people can perform just fine on keto, others never will quite adapt completely. Using it to perform at specific times is often referred to as CKD.