Today I will be telling you about carbohydrate cycling which
is a method used by bodybuilders to get shredded. Last month I wrote a post
about carbohydrates, so this post will feed you more information on how to use
carbs to get the body you dream of having. I will just be telling you about the
basics of carb cycling and why bodybuilders and fitness models use this method
of carb intake manipulation.
What is carb
cycling?
Carb cycling also known as a cyclic ketogenic diet is when
you have a low carbohydrate diet where you consume very low levels of
carbohydrates for most days followed by a day/period where you increase the
amounts of carbs you consume (period of carb loading). Most of your calories in
this kind of diet come from fats and proteins when you are not on carb loading
days/periods. Carb cycling is meant to maximize fat burning while also building
muscle which makes it a favourite in bodybuilding circles.
you have a low carbohydrate diet where you consume very low levels of
carbohydrates for most days followed by a day/period where you increase the
amounts of carbs you consume (period of carb loading). Most of your calories in
this kind of diet come from fats and proteins when you are not on carb loading
days/periods. Carb cycling is meant to maximize fat burning while also building
muscle which makes it a favourite in bodybuilding circles.
 |
| a bowl of carbs/rice |
Carb cycling is done to bring the body to a state of
ketosis, which is when the body burns fat instead of glucose for fuel (glucose
coming from carbohydrates, with the lack of carbs in this diet you force the
body to use fat as fuel). Carb cycling is a smart way to trick the body into
burning fat, now you know how those bodybuilders manage to maintain their size
and still look lean with low body fat. This is the best way to get cut the
natural way without the aid of performance enhancing drugs.
ketosis, which is when the body burns fat instead of glucose for fuel (glucose
coming from carbohydrates, with the lack of carbs in this diet you force the
body to use fat as fuel). Carb cycling is a smart way to trick the body into
burning fat, now you know how those bodybuilders manage to maintain their size
and still look lean with low body fat. This is the best way to get cut the
natural way without the aid of performance enhancing drugs.
Most diets are very high carbohydrate based so it could be
tricky at first cutting your carbohydrates to very low amounts. Cutting your carbs since they are What is
usually used as fuel by your body will have an instant effect on your energy
levels, you will have a dip in energy as your body adjusts and that will affect
your daily activities and your workouts, you will not be able to exert yourself
as you did before at first but you will adapt and get used to it.
tricky at first cutting your carbohydrates to very low amounts. Cutting your carbs since they are What is
usually used as fuel by your body will have an instant effect on your energy
levels, you will have a dip in energy as your body adjusts and that will affect
your daily activities and your workouts, you will not be able to exert yourself
as you did before at first but you will adapt and get used to it.
Why you need high
carb days?
Your body was not made to function on low carbs, carb
cycling just tricks it into using fat as fuel. You need the high carb days or
periods of carb loading to replenish your energy stores (muscle glycogen
levels) so that you have energy and are not the living dead, to keep your
metabolism high (if you are without enough carbs for too long your metabolic
rate will decrease making it harder for you to lose fat) and so you do not
start losing muscle.
cycling just tricks it into using fat as fuel. You need the high carb days or
periods of carb loading to replenish your energy stores (muscle glycogen
levels) so that you have energy and are not the living dead, to keep your
metabolism high (if you are without enough carbs for too long your metabolic
rate will decrease making it harder for you to lose fat) and so you do not
start losing muscle.
Simple way to manipulate carbs for minimum fat
gain
On my last post on carbohydrates I wrote that one way to
make sure that you do not gain unnecessary fat by storing carbs as fat is to
eat more carbs on days when you are the most active and that is on workout days
and to eat less carbs on days when you are not active, that is on rest days.
This is a form of manipulating your carb intake to suit activity level.
make sure that you do not gain unnecessary fat by storing carbs as fat is to
eat more carbs on days when you are the most active and that is on workout days
and to eat less carbs on days when you are not active, that is on rest days.
This is a form of manipulating your carb intake to suit activity level.
