So I spent the last couple of days doing some research on this topic.
I found some good quality information but very little of it. Here’s a sort of summary of what I found based on this recent research, and my past understandings.
So most of the people out there are suggesting that some form of cycling (whether it be calorie or carbohydrate)is beneficial for bodycomposition improvements.
The problem I found, is that most trainers/authors out there have no understanding of why carb cycling would be beneficial. Most of them suggest that carb cycling is used as a form of nutrient timing and/or a way of changing the weekly net calorie balance.
But the purpose of carb cycling is much more than just this.
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Nutrient timing – take in higher amount of calories/carbs when they are needed
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Regulation of key hormones – (insulin, glucagon, cortisol, leptin, etc…
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Pyschological benefits – its easier to follow for some, because you are not restricted from certain foods. Under the cyclical approach, there are NO BAD FOODS, but the right times for the right foods.
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Supercompensation – There wasn’t much info on this, but supercompensation potentially leads to larger muscles, and also can provide extra fuel for more intense, higher volume workouts
And im sure there are many more benefits of carb cycling.
As far as using this method for improvements in body composition, I feel that 1 and 2 are the main agents.
As far as nutrient timing goes, it makes sense that you should take in the proper nutrients at the proper times. If you aren’t going to workout on a day, then there is no reason to load up on carbs. You are likely to top off your glycogen stores and add extra fat.
As for hormones, things are more complicated, and Im not going to claim that I really understand how it works. Here is my understanding.
-You want insulin levels to remain below the critical point at which your body will use an increased amount of fat for fuel.
-Low insulin levels are associated with higher glucagon/cortisol levels which are associated with increased fat loss
-Insulin spikes are desired at key times. Mainly after your workout. But after consumed carbohydrates are delivered to your muscles, you want insulin to quickly return to lower levels.
I know I probably butchered that a bit. But basically you want all of these hormones to be very stable for the majority of the time, and trigger spikes at key times. (insulin after workouts, glucagon/cortisol during workouts, etc…)
If you are aiming for fat loss, then the aim should be at keeping insulin down low most of the time, and use smaller less frequent insulin spikes. And if you are trying to pack on mass, you are going to want larger insulin spikes more frequently. (This coincides with a greater frequency for mass, and less frequency/volume for cutting)
Thats basically it for what I came up with. Here’s my weekly plan for the first 2 weeks, and then i’ll increase the number of high carb days.
Sunday: Low-no carb
Monday: Low-High carb
Tuesday: Moderate-low carb
Wednesday: Moderate carb
Thursday: Moderate-low carb
Friday: Low-high carb
Saturday: Moderate-low carb
This seems confusing at first, but is VERY simple. Basically there are two main rules.
- Never have two high carb days in a row
- Always have a period of low-no carb before high carb
And some other less important rules:
- When carbs are high, protein, and fat drop lower
- When carbs are low, fat should be higher, and protein should be very high.
- For the most part, high carbs should never occur with high fat.
I am going to coincide my high carb periods with training. Prior to training there will be low-no carbs, then i’ll workout, and then i’ll take in a large amount of carbs. Then the intake of carbs will rapidly decrease until the next workout.
I happen to workout at night (around 6-7pm) so on workout days (m,w,f) im low-no carb all day, then workout, then high carb. I may have a moderate carb snack before bed, and then a moderate carb snack upon waking, and then stat to decrease carbs again. Its probably not optimal, but evening workouts are the only thing that will work at this moment.
I know im missing some stuff in here that ive forgoten, so if i remember i’ll post it up.