Dear Cassey: What’s the deal with carb cycling?
Hi Cassey 😊
I love your videos, energy and positivity! I was wondering if you ever heard of carb cycling and I wanted to know your thoughts about it. I want to try it out, but I’m afraid that it will make me gain more weight than I lose.
Sincerely,
Curious About Carbs
Hey Curious!
Thanks for the question! I’m so glad you asked because even though I’ve heard of carb cycling, it gave me a chance to do a little more research and talk to my favorite Registered Dietitian, Breanna Woods. And fun fact – we worked together to co-create the 90 Day Journey Meal Plans!
Okay so… carb cycling.
Basically, it’s rotating high, moderate, and low carb days throughout the week. Some say it can help with weight loss, while some athletes carb cycle to improve performance during competitions and workouts.
Cycling carbs supposedly gives you the “best of both worlds,” offering benefits from a low and high-carb diet. It potentially improves insulin sensitivity, fat burning and stabilizes hunger hormones. But… there’s not really a ton of research yet to know if those benefits are solid.
As far as weight loss goes, carb cycling COULD help you lose weight, but a big part of that is still going to come down to putting yourself in some kind of calorie deficit. In other words, you still need to be burning more calories than you’re consuming in the long run. Carb cycling also isn’t a way to “cheat” by eating tons of sweets etc. one day just because you know you’ll have a low-carb day the next to “make up for it.”
I guess I’d just question how sustainable carb cycling is! It seems like it takes a lot of planning, and even though one appeal of cycling is supposed to be more diet flexibility, following this kind of diet might not be as flexible as it seems.
That being said, it definitely wouldn’t hurt to try! Different things work for everyone. If you’re eating healthy foods and carb cycling works for you, I don’t think it’s going to make you gain weight. If you try it and it seems too forced or just not right for you, you don’t have to stick with it!
Personally, I’ve tried a ton of similar “dieting” techniques in the past, and I’ve had better luck just focusing on overall balance and healthy, whole foods! Eating this way has been the most sustainable because I’m not on a “plan” or “diet.” I just build meals around lean protein, lots of fruits and veggies, healthy carbs, and of course, I indulge in ice cream from time to time 🙂
Remember, it took me a LONG TIME to figure out this way of eating for myself. My way might not work for you! So my best advice is to do your research, experiment, and be open to making a lot of changes until you get it right.
TRUST ME – it’s worth all of the effort in the end 🙂
PS – If you have a burning question you want to ask me, leave your questions below! I may answer it in an upcoming Dear Cassey post!
15 thoughts on “Dear Cassey: What’s the deal with carb cycling?”
There are 15 comments posted by our users.
Dear Cassey
I have been hearing about this hormone called Irisin which, according to scientific research, certain types of exercise can produce. Apparently it is supposed to help burn fat rather than store it, but where some types of exercise help create this hormone, others apparently do not. Apparently this is to do with the different in ‘white fat storing cells’ and ‘brown fat burning cells’.
I’m always really sceptical about things I read online (especially when it results in someone trying to sell you something), so I was wondering if you know anything about this, what your thoughts are, and how this might relate to your workouts. Can detective Cassey do some myth busting on this?
I’m not looking to get out of doing exercise , as I love doing your workouts, but I’m intrigued to learn something new!
Thanks!!
This is so interesting!!! Let me look into it and see what I can find for you!!
Dear Cassey, how do you deal with fitness fakers? My best friend has been struggling with being overweight for a few years now. She posts edited photos and cliche fitness quotes on her social media all the time to make it appear like she is making progress, but has not actually made a change to her workout routine or diet. She has recently begun making negative remarks about my fitness and diet, as I have made significant progress toward my weight and fitness goals. I want her to succeed, but I am not sure how to help her when she is essentially faking a healthy lifestyle.
Sincerely, Frustrated with Fakers
But how, Cassey? Where do i start? Any tips please..
Dear Cassy💖Hey, I’m only 14 but I’m going on a fitness journey to gain muscle and your channel has been a huge help. I admire you so much! I was wondering what your thoughts are on how to be more confident, what are some practical things I can do to feel better about myself? How do I truly feel like I am working out to be strong and not to please others? And what if I am doing it just for others, is that so bad? I love you so much and I wish I could meet you one day 🥺
Dear Cassey-
My friends all put each other down as jokes, and all find it funny, but i think its damaging my self esteem. Ive been working extremely hard through ‘self improvement and growth’ to better my self over lockdown, but everyone still puts me down and never notices my hard work, even though i dont see anything wrong with myself…until now. From someone who hates confrontation, how do i stop this? Ty x
Dear Cassey,
in one of your videos you mention ed some kind of hair removal that wasn’t shaving and that you were very happy you had switched to – but I can’t hear what it was! Would you explain that again? I am not satisfied with any of the method I have tried (shaving, epilating, home waxing, creams), so am very curious if there is another option that works better!
Thanks so much for all of your great workouts! I hadn’t worked out regularly EVER before I found you – and now I come back every day and have done so for five years! Amazing, right? Oh, and the weighted workouts during the 21 Day Challenge have really strengthened my arms. I was stagnating, so that was great.
Stay safe and give Sir George a hug from me!
Tanya
Hi Cassey,
Recently I was Covid-19 Positive and found myself not being able to workout and eating right. I also have an auto immune disease and find myself too weak to workout somedays. How can deal with the guilt of not being able to eat right or workout while sick and tired?
Sincerely,
Sick and Tired
Dear Cassey,
I started my fitness journey in the beginning of quarantine, and I’ve been doing bodyweight workouts ever since. I heard how beneficial strength training can be, and as a 14 year old, I want to try it out myself!
However, my parents are not so convinced by this idea, they think it might stunt my growth. I am not very tall to begin with, and I still have more time to grow, but I was wondering if using light dumbbells (1-3 kgs) and resistance bands could affect my height??
Sincerely,
Wants To Try Strength Training
Hi cassey I am doing your 21 days challenge. You said not to have carbs like cereal and bread but Is it okay to oatmeal
Hi Cassey, I’ve been doing Intuitive Eating since covid. It has really boosted my mental health but lately I would also want to physically improve my body. However, everything I’ve read says I can do IE and want to change my body. Your videos have shown me that’s not true at all.
Can you help me find ways of doing IE and physically improve my body?
Dear Cassey,
I started my fitness journey in the beginning of quarantine, and I’ve been doing bodyweight workouts ever since. I heard how beneficial strength training can be, and as a 14 year old, I want to try it out myself!
However, my parents are not so convinced by this idea, they think it might stunt my growth. I am not very tall to begin with, and I still have more time to grow, but I was wondering if using light dumbbells (1-3 kgs) and resistance bands could affect my height??
Sincerely,
Wants To Try Strength Training
Hi Amira! I just answered your question in my latest post!!!
https://www.blogilates.com/dear-cassey-am-i-too-young-to-work-out/
Hey Cassey! I am an 18 year old, full-time college student with no income, and still living at home with my mom and dad. My parents don’t necessarily buy “healthy” food, which makes it hard for me to attain my body goals (mostly abs, haha!) I know you can’t out-train a bad diet, (and abs are made in the kitchen) so can you give me some advice on how I can still attain my body goals even with this big obstacle in my way? Thanks so much!
Dear Cassie, I’ve recently decided to start a fitness journey because i want to become stronger and healthier. I tried to train more often and eating healthier. The problem is that as a student i have a load of work to do all the time and since i live with my parents i don’t get to choose what i eat everytime. Also, I suffered from a disordered eating pattern few months ago and even tho I’m pretty much recovered now but im scared I’ll fall on it again. I was hopping you could give me some tips on how to become healthier without triggering myself and without having to bother my family with the foods i have to eat.
Thank you in advance
Confused on how to succeed