One of the biggest fears most people have about the ketogenic diet is the realization that they would have to say goodbye to so many of their favorite foods. Carbs are in nearly everything and it’s understandable why people see the ketogenic diet as such an overwhelming commitment.
But it doesn’t entirely have to be that way.
Let me introduce you to the cyclical ketogenic diet.
The cyclical ketogenic diet is a form of the basic ketogenic diet that we all know and love. But with the cyclical version, you can eat carbs. Yes you heard that correctly, you can eat carbs on the cyclical ketogenic diet. But! These carbs are incorporated strategically and periodically.
What is the Cyclical Ketogenic Diet?
Let’s dive into this a little bit deeper. To accurately define the cyclical ketogenic diet we need to make sure we’re all on the same page with the basic ketogenic diet.
While the vast majority of people get most of their calories from carbohydrates through their food, the keto diet is all getting the majority of those calories from fats.
A typical breakdown of what the average person consumes compared to someone on the keto diet would look like this:
In a true strict keto diet carbs are almost completely out of the question. So it may sound a bit suspicious when you hear someone say that there is a form of this diet that allows for carbs.
The fact is, keto is all about changing your body’s PREFFERED energy source. So if carbs are put into the picture but in a limited fashion, this can be done.
Why the Cyclical Ketogenic Diet Approach?
You may be wondering what is the benefit of adding carbs into your keto diet if the whole point of the diet is to stray away from these types of calories.
Well adding some carbs into your keto diet regimen is done with the purpose of restoring glycogen levels.
When we eat carbs, our body converts those carbs into glucose. Glucose is a form of energy that our bodies are able to use rather quickly. However, the glucose that isn’t used up gets stored in the form of glycogen in our liver and muscles.
When we’re on the keto diet, you can think of glycogen as our reserve energy tank. It is there for us when we need some quick high intense energy. A typical scenario where this would be necessary is during exercise.
Now our bodies do have the ability to restore glycogen without intaking any carbs at all. This is done through a process called gluconeogenesis. This process is our body’s ability to make glucose on its own. The body will take from protein, fats, or other non-carbohydrate substrates to do so.
However, it is debated upon how efficient this process actually is. Especially if you are a highly active person, as you may be burning through your glycogen stores at a fast rate. Some would think that your body may have a difficult time keeping up on replenishing your glycogen stores through gluconeogenesis alone.
Eating carbohydrates is a way to replenish these glycogen stores much faster. If you are someone that is working out often, you might see some benefit to this. If you live a more sedentary lifestyle, then you may not see as much of a benefit to this cyclical ketogenic diet approach. This would be because many of the benefits to this version of the diet would be an increase in energy during your workouts.
How to do the Cyclical Ketogenic Diet
Unfortunately there isn’t one simple answer for how to do the cyclical ketogenic diet routine as everyone’s body is so different. But I can give you some ideas.
Keep in mind that there are many factors that could determine how you should best approach this cyclic version of the ketogenic diet and which way would work best for you.
Some of these factors may include:
Age
Gender
Weight
Activity level
Length of time spent on the basic ketogenic diet
The list goes on. So the best way to find out how to schedule your cyclic ketogenic diet routine would be to try a few different strategies and then see what works best for you.
Now if you want the best results with this cyclical ketogenic diet, it would be a good idea to put your time in with the basic ketogenic diet first. For a few months at least.
This will get your body more accustomed to using fats for energy. Therefore, when you finally try the cyclical approach, your body will have a much easier time switching back to burning fats after your carb meals. This will make for much smoother transitions.
After spending a few months in strict keto, try one high carb meal and see how it goes. Take note of how you feel the next few days and how your workouts improve. If all goes well, try a high carb day next time, or two high carb meals the next week. It may take some trial and error but see what works best for you.
They key here is not to go overboard. Remember that this is still a keto diet. If you’re having multiple high carb days you’ll be kicking yourself out of ketosis too often and for too long that you’ll be losing the benefits of the keto diet itself. The goal should be to find a balance where you are still reaping the benefits of keto while also benefiting from higher glycogen levels.
Common patterns that I’ve seen usually consist of one full high carb day or 2 high carb meals a week. This seems to be the right amount of carbs each week that most active people benefit from.
Now if you want to actually count your carb intake you can. For example on a high carb day you could take in around 2 grams of carbs per your bodyweight in pounds. Or for a high carb meal, take in 1 gram of carbs per your body weight in pounds. I personally don’t think it is necessary to count, but it makes you feel better then go for it.
When you do have your high carbs meals, try and keep fats to a minimum. This is because the carbs you consume will spike your insulin levels. The insulin is what will be responsible for pushing the glucose from your blood into your muscles and liver to be stored as glycogen. However, insulin is also capable of pushing fatty acids into fat stores. Keeping fats out of your high carb meals will help negate this risk.
My Experience
I have experimented with many different approaches to the cyclical ketogenic diet and I believe that I have found something that is the perfect fit. If you want to stick with the cyclical ketogenic diet long term, it is important to find something that fits your lifestyle. I have figured out a good approach to this that works for me and maybe it would work for you to.
I find that it can sometimes be hard to enjoy your social life while on the ketogenic diet. Sharing meals with family, friends, and co-workers is common in many cultures and keto options may not always be available.
I don’t want to stress myself about determining what on the menu may be keto-friendly or not every time I go out to eat with friends. So I save my high carb meals for when I do so. This helps me to live in the moment and just enjoy my social life.
As far as these carb meals affecting my workouts, there was definitely an improvement. I workout everyday and after a week of almost no carbs, I start to feel the intensity of my workouts fall.
When I started including carbs sparingly in my diet, I started to notice my muscles fill out more and my workouts were back to a high intensity. It may take some experimentation to find out how to take this approach to the ketogenic diet, but once you figure it out it will be worth it. So have some fun with it and keep dialing it in until you find what works best for you.