I lost 110 lbs, and I drank red wine most of the time. There is a lot of controversy about alcohol and whether it is a friend or enemy to weight loss efforts. It's a very individual issue. Moderation is the key.

Also, I don't believe that carb cycling is only beneficial for people that lift weights. My idea of carb cycling is about 30 carb grams on an LC day and 100-200 on an HC day.

I think a variety of people will get a variety of results. There is nothing cut-and-dried about the human body.

Wow congrats on your weightloss!! I think I have decided to try this carb cycling out for about a month and see how it works. If it doesnt cause fat loss, then I am just going to enjoy life and not worry so much about it anymore. Ive learned a healthier lifestyle, added in exercise and have stopped my horrible habbits. I say I am pretty lucky considering I could have it a lot worse. But thank you everyone!!!!!!!

I kind of fell into carb cycling to make my diet plan work. I down from 187.8 beginning of February and today weighed 166.8.

I have to say I was exercising (turbo jam videos) 4-5 times a week but lately have just been walking.

My food plan is Monday-Friday Fruits, Veggies and a soup recipe made with lots of veggies and kidney beans for protein. Weekends are free.....FREE!!!!
Anything and everything goes...sometimes I'm better than others...sometimes I'm BAD! But this has taken away all my cravings and allowing me to stay on course without wanting to cheat cause I know come my carb up days I can endulge.

Now that I've gotting most cravings out of my system I'm making better choices on my carb up days. I am really happy with this plan and hope to reach my goal in the summer sometime. The hard part will be maintaining but at least I know I can jump back on this WOL to get back on track quickly.

PS: I did low carb many times and only had success short-term...but developed stomach cramps and severe constipation. All these fruit and veggies are making my tummy very happy!!!

Yes, I am starting to see that I do need to monitor my calories, and can do so more now that the semester is done, thankfully. And intensify my workouts too. Am looking forward to running more and back to the weights at the gym. I know you stressed heavy weights, but I do need to start slowly so I don't hurt myself. BTW, have you heard of lifting SUPER heavy weights like three-five times (really slowly) to improve strength and toning? I saw a report on this once on TV and it was interesting. Just curious.

Here I am, done with this semester thankfully! I have basically been eating lowish carb during the week, under 50 grams. No sugar, no breads, only carbs are veggies and fruit. Carb up on the weekend, maybe a serving of bread each day in addition to the veggies and fruit. Fruit does seem to help before I run. I noticed that breakfast and then more fruit seemed to give me more energy for afternoon weight training, so I may incorporate that more often. I think I know the next step is to watch the calories for the last 10-15 pounds, they seem to love to stick with me, even with low carb. I am very glad I have been taking measurements or I may really be depressed by the numbers on the scale.

I know with carb cycling, I do not feel so deprived of "treats", because when you are not used to eating junk anymore, fruit tastes and feels like a treat! I am feeling so much better physically and my self esteem has improved also. I really feel like this is a plan I can follow long term, and even if weight comes off only a pound a month, I will still reach my goals eventually and feel good getting there! Let us know how you fare chels and best to you!

Hi,

I hope I'm not too late to join in on this thread. For years I've been trying different eating plans trying to find the one that works for me. I've always liked low carb since that seems to be the only plan that keeps my blood sugar levels even but found it very hard to stay on for long term. I then stumbled across carb cycling and I really felt that this was for me. I started cycling today so I can't tell you how it is working. Even though I've read everything I could find I still have a ton of questions. I tried to follow the guidelines of 1 gram protein for each pound of body weight but there is no way I can eat that much food. And I read about the guidelines for fat and how many carbs on both types of days but it doesn't seem possible to stay within the limits. I find that in order to keep lc I have to have high fat. My quesiton is how much fat should I be getting? Today my numbers are:
fat grams = 122
net carbs = 21
protein = 110
calories = 1673

Any advice would be appreciated. I'm tired of being uncomfortable in my own skin.

Hi there davidsmom and welcome!

The info at the beginning of this thread was a compilation of information I found on the internet. I think this is really geared more toward those really working out intensely. (See MaggieO's and joel's postings).

I agree, I simply cannot eat the amounts recommended, I think the calorie count would be way too high for me to lose, possibly because I am so close to my goal weight.

This is what I have been doing since January, and while the pounds have not been flying off, I am down 20+ inches total (chest, waist, hips, lower hip, each thigh, each calf). And I am feeling better too. The protein is what keeps our blood sugar level, so I believe this is very important to maintain a steady level, however I have been unable to eat the 2 X body weight of protein daily.

All LC and HC days are similar in these respects:

- I try to eat 1/2 my body weight in protein every day as a minimum, up to 100 grams or so--for both low and high carb days. This is my priority.
- I add vegetables and fruit up to about 50 grams a day. I notice I feel better when I eat carbs 1/2-1 hour before exercise. (example: I eat a banana/with peanut butter before I run in the morning). I may have a serving of fruit later in the day before weight training. I try to have veggies with each meal if I can.
- I try to only eat foods high in fat if protein is included in the meal or snack. (example: if I have salad dressing, the salad must have a significant amount of protein-whether meat or cheese or combo-- in it). I don't really count my fat grams.


HC days:
- I may add a piece of toast or a serving of pasta or a tortilla or even a bottle of beer. I limit myself to 2 servings, and otherwise extra carbs come from more veggies or fruit.

I have noticed in general, except for when I was just starting this woe, I really don't write down my #'s, calories, etc. anymore. I do have a glass of red wine in the evening maybe three times a week if I can stay under 50 grams--I do occasionally go over. I do have a tiny dessert every once in a while or share dessert with my husband when we go out to eat.

Let me know if this helps and if it gives you some ideas for direction. And please let me know how you progress.

Thanks for the info. I'm hoping that after a while I can find the right combo that works for my body. Right now I'm not exercising. I don't want to feel overwhelmed by trying to change too many aspects of my life and then just quit like I've done so many times before. I hope that once I get the eating part down I can get the exercise part started. So far for the last two days I've been staying under 25 net carbs and around 100 grams of protein. For now I won't stress about the fat. One day at a time. I'm really glad I found this. I feel that this is something that I can do for life and still eat with my family.

Sounds like you are off on the right foot. When I did what you are doing and had more weight to lose, I didn't stress about the fat either and the weight came off (relatively) painlessly--except for the emotional ties to it! I think this continues to be a struggle for all of us, as we have very strong connections with what we have told ourselves, or what others have told us for sooooo long.

I hope you start a journal, would like to check in from time to time to see how you are faring...you can do it!!! Yes, this lifestyle / WOE is totally do-able. And you won't feel so deprived when you can take a break once in a while and still see results. Best to you.

davidsmom, one thing I really want to encourage you to do is to take and monitor your measurements. As you continue this WOE and then start to exercise, your body will change and may not always register as pounds lost as quickly as you would like to see. Also, try on your smaller clothes occasionally to see how they are fitting to keep you on track and motivated.

fat intake should be about 65% of your calories, protein 35%, and 5% carbs (for low carb days) for maximum results. remember, thats what your body is using for fuel...so feed the machine! if your body is satisfied, its easier to stick to the diet, i have found.

im jealous you guys have TROUBLE getting that much food in...i have trouble getting ONLY that much food in!

sooooooo true...i needed to hear this too. lately i havent seen the scale move quiiiiite like i like it to, but when i actually pry my eyes away from the digital scale readout and look at myself naked in the mirror, i can see things are happening. i also have one pair of jeans that i keep trying on randomly, just to see how things are going...haha

journaling, measuring, etc...makes a huge diff. ya, its kind of a pain in the ass sometimes, but it keeps me honest, helps get things off my chest, and reminds me of small victories ive made.

mattie, seriously, your pic looks AWESOME, I can't believe you call this a small victory!! I guess to each of us, everything is relative...

Okay so this is how I'm doing. I had a high carb day on Wednesday and it really didn't turn out like I would have liked. But I didn't beat myself up over it. I went back to low carb for Thursday and today and feel that tomorrow (a high carb day) won't be as crazy. First I should say that on Wednesday it was a day that we celebrated a 20 year milestone (with food) and also the end of our audit. So as much as I tried to just eat fruit and veggies I ended up eating noodles and had a root beer float. Not as bad as I could have been. People bring way too many sweets at this kind of thing. Well that about sums it up for me. My weigh in will be next Friday. I'm actually looking forward to stepping on the scale. I just hope I'm not too disappointed.