Tips and Tricks to get started!

The Basics of Carb Cycling

Carb Cycling follows a set 3-Day pattern

Day 1 LEAN: eat as few carbs as humanly possible (so no sugar, no grain, no fruit, no starchy veggies, no nuts, no legumes, etc.....)

Day 2 MODERATE: eat very little carbs (ok to eat fruit and nuts, maybe a little bit of grain but something whole grain like brown rice or oatmeal)

Day 3 CHEAT: eat whatever the FUCK YOU WANT!  NO RULES!  WHEE!!!

The cycle is designed to keep your metabolism at peak efficiency for a prolonged period of time.  Cutting out most of the junk carbs we typically eat will lead to weight loss (essentially you're following the Atkins diet, just once every three days) but the problem is that a consistent decline in calorie intake will make your body think that calories are scarce and clamp down on metabolism AND up fat storage for survival.  Boo.
Also, any time the body adjusts to a strict and repetitive routine, progress will plateau. (This is also why I favor the Muscle Confusion approach to exercise)

Throwing in a cheat day to spike blood sugar provides sufficient signal to your body that all is well, no need to go into survival mode!

When and how long do we have to do this?

Good news!  We don't do this forever.  Carb Cycling is a tool to help re-set metabolism, I generally only do it for 4-6 weeks at a time.  It's a great way to jumpstart a new fitness program, and also revive one when progress hits a plateau.

More good news!  You'll be amazed by how much less your crave junk carbs even after the first couple of weeks.  Another huge benefit of cycling that I have found is that it really helps me break my carb addiction.

I propose we aim to Carb Cycle from July 10 through August 20

Layering in Exercise 

Do whatever fits in your life best but this is what I aim for -

Day 1 LEAN: take the day off (and will probably feel cranky at the beginning)

Day 2 MODERATE: light exercise, try get 20 min of sweaty cardio activity in

Day 3 CHEAT: balls to the wall!  spinning, hard-core yoga or weight training all good choices (your body is pumped will fuel to burn on cheat days, don't let it go to waste!)

DRINK TONS OF WATER!  

I know you're already a pro at this, but I have to be pretty regimented about my water intake or I'll forget about it.  I aim for a gallon a day, and measure progress by counting the # of sports bottles I finish throughout the day.  I have a 160z bottle, so I try to finish 4 before noon, and 4 more between noon and bed.

Pro Tip from Anna:  Emergency Chocolate

Get a bag of semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips.  Sometimes, especially at the beginning, my brain just screams at me "BITCH FEED ME SUGAR NOW!" and it's impossible to ignore it.

I find that when this happens, if I eat 3-5 chocolate chips it will make the screaming abate.  So I try to keep emergency stashes around.  

Honestly, you'll probably need Emergency Chocolate once a day for the first couple of weeks, as your break your carb addiction, just don't go shoveling a handful of chips in at a time!  3-5 chips should do it.