Hi mrsqrn! And welcome to carb cycling!
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Originally Posted by mrsqrn
Are you writing down everything you eat? Measuring? calculating? what about activity? do you exercise? have you changed anything else that may have increased your weight loss? do you limit fat or calories in any way on carb down ,or do you only count carbs?
Bernadette
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OK, here goes:
I record my menus most days in my journal. I am learning to be much more careful on carb down especially with this, because I think that may have been my reason for only losing 1 pound net on cycle 5. I think I got a little careless with calories. We will see here in a day or two with this cycle, as I am being MUCH more careful. So far for this cycle I've had days of 10 net carbs/1148 cals and 9 net carbs/1099 cals. I've lost two of the pounds I gained on carb up and hope to get into virgin territory tomorrow. Today is day 3 on Carb Down for me.
Yes, I measure on carb down, but not on carb up. On carb up I try to eat the way I think I will one day on maintenance. For me that still excludes grains, virtually all sugars, and starchy vegetables. This is all about health, so on carb up don't make it an excuse to eat carbage! Still continue eating protein and fat, lots of vegetables, and add in fruits and nuts. Some lcers may also be OK with adding small amounts of grains, but I would proceed here VERY cautiously!! Don't think carb up is a license to eat foolishly, or in the manner that got you into the problem in the first place.
I calculate only on carb down, posting to fitday. To get the most bang for my buck, so to speak, I want to make sure I keep my carb down to Induction rules, and as close to 1200 calories as possible. Basically I eat meat, eggs, a small amount of cheese, a protein shake, and a salad for dinner.
I exercise at Curves 3x a week faithfully. But, that's all. I started at Curves about one month before I started carb/cal cycling. The speed of my weight loss did not increase until I started the cycling.
I do not pay attention to fat at all, on either carb up or down. But, the last two days of carb down for me have been at about 65% fat, so I'm getting plenty. I DO try to push protein. I am sure to have protein at every snack/meal whether on carb up or carb down. This helps to keep blood sugar levels stable.
I count both carbs and calories on carb down, limiting to under 20/under 1200. On carb up I only count carbs, trying to stay somewhere around 60 or so, but I'm a little more flexible with that. Remember, if you are heavier you will need more calories, even on carb down.
The basic rules are: Stay on carb down until you stop losing weight, for me I use 3 mornings at the same weight. So, it usually lasts about 5-7 days. Stay on carb up for as long as you care to, OR until you've gained 2-3 pounds. My length of time on carb up has varied widely. DO NOT let yourself gain more than that! Those gained pounds should just be some retained water if you haven't gone nuts during the carb up, and should come off quickly when you return to Induction levels.
I take a high-potency women's multi-vitamin and a few other supplements, but all of those have to do with controlling my blood pressure, not with weight loss. I also take one tablespoonful a day of a flax oil blend. I've been doing all of those things for quite some time, I did not see the good weight loss until I started cycling.
Also - remember that there are lots of different ways to carb cycle. This is just the plan that I put together FOR ME and it is working FOR ME! YMMV. I sure hope others can use this to formulate a plan that will work FOR THEM!!!
I hope all this helps. Let us know if you have any more questions.
Good Luck!
Anita