What Is Keto Cycling, and Can It Help You Stick With the Ketogenic Diet? (2024)

FAQs

What Is Keto Cycling, and Can It Help You Stick With the Ketogenic Diet? ›

That's where keto cycling comes in: Touted as a less restrictive, more sustainable way to get the benefits of a ketogenic lifestyle, keto cycling involves following a ketogenic diet for a few days in a row, then taking a break and eating high (or at least average) levels of carbohydrates for a day.

Keto cycling involves following the keto diet for a certain amount of time and then taking a day (or more) off. “It's also called carb cycling,” says Molly Devine, RD, the founder of MDS Nutrition in Durham, North Carolina. “That's another term for it, because there are higher-carb days and lower-carb days.”

“If the patient can maintain a steady calorie deficit, I expect them to lose one to two pounds per week,” says Dr. Seeman. So after 12 weeks, her clients are usually down around 20-25 pounds. She adds, however, that this is very patient-specific and would depend on their initial body fat percentage.

Stick with your low-carb lifestyle during the day and only consider eating carbs after dinner. This helps in two ways – it limits the window for cheating and keeps your body in low-carb mode for the majority of the day.

Users can choose between a 3, 6, or 12-month subscription. A 3-month subscription is $2.75 a week, a 6-month subscription is $1.92 a week, and a 12-month subscription is $1.25 a week. However, prices are subject to change based on available discounts and promotions; there is no Keto Cycle app free version.

A 72-hour fast, or fasting for three consecutive days without any food intake, can help your body enter a state of ketosis. Ketosis is a metabolic state in which your body burns stored fat for energy instead of glucose from carbohydrates.

Severe carb limits can cause your body to break down fat into ketones for energy. This is called ketosis. Ketosis can cause side effects such as bad breath, headache, fatigue and weakness. It's not clear what kind of possible long-term health risks a low-carb diet may pose.

Cyclical ketogenic dieting involves adhering to a standard ketogenic diet protocol 5–6 days per week, followed by 1–2 days of higher carb consumption. These higher-carb days are often referred to as “refeeding days,” as they're meant to replenish your body's depleted glucose reserves.

The keto diet changes the way your metabolism works by encouraging it to use ketone bodies instead of glucose for energy production. In the first couple of weeks, it's possible to lose up to ten pounds. After that, you could be losing one to two pounds per week.

Peanut butter can definitely be part of a keto diet, but it's best to stick to plain options that are free of extra flavors and sweeteners. Almond butter is a good choice, too, and it's slightly lower in carbs. Additionally, you should be mindful of your portion size if you're trying to lose weight.

Will one slice of pizza take you out of ketosis? ›

Regular Crust

This type of pizza crust can have up to 33g of carbs without any added sauce or cheese. If you're limiting your carbs to 20-50 grams per day, one slice of this type of crust will likely kick you out of ketosis.

“If you feel better off eating carbs occasionally and it doesn't seem to interfere with your weight, keto cycling may be a good fit for you. On the other hand, many people do seem to benefit from staying consistently keto or alternating keto with low carb (around 30-60 grams of net carbs per day),” she explains.

That's where keto cycling comes in: Touted as a less restrictive, more sustainable way to get the benefits of a ketogenic lifestyle, keto cycling involves following a ketogenic diet for a few days in a row, then taking a break and eating high (or at least average) levels of carbohydrates for a day.

Keto Diet App is free to download. The upgrade to Premium gives you access to voice input, free typing input, barcode scanning feature, live support, full recipe and insights library. Should you choose to upgrade to a Premium Membership, payment will be charged to your iTunes account at confirmation of purchase.

To recap, the best exercises to help get you into ketosis include HIIT, resistance training, steady-state cardio, and sprinting. However, remember that listening to your body and starting slow is essential if you're a beginner.

Nuts, Seeds and Healthy Oils

Olive oil and coconut oil are the two oils recommended on the keto diet. Olive oil is high in oleic acid and is associated with a lower risk of heart disease. Coconut oil is high in saturated fat but contains medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs), which can increase ketone production.

#1: Not enough time

If you're doing everything right but not in ketosis, you may simply need more time. Getting into ketosis isn't like cooking a roast. You don't just set the oven at 275 degrees for 2 hours, go watch a movie, and come back to a perfect result. Your body is unlike any other body.

In theory, carb cycling may help you maintain physical performance while encouraging your body to burn fat for energy. As with any diet, the main mechanism behind weight loss is a calorie deficit, meaning that you eat less than your body burns over a prolonged period ( 15 ).

Carb cycling involves going back and forth between high-carb days and low-carb days. There may even be “no-carb” days. You would usually have a high-carb day when you plan on exercising hard. On those days, your body needs more fuel, so you might eat 2 to 2.5 grams of carbs for every pound of your body weight.

How many carbs will break ketosis? ›

Eating more than 50 grams of carbs may disrupt ketosis.

Some people can eat more and still stay in ketosis, whereas others may need to restrict their carb intake more in order to stay in ketosis.

The classic carb cycling schedule alternates between high- and low-carb days, six times a week, saving the seventh day for reward meals. Depending on your health and fitness objectives, however, you might want to alter your setup for the week.