carb cycling
So in my last post, I asked if you would like to what’s in my daily food schedule. Here it is! Or at least part 1: Low-carb! As you could read before I have a personal food (and training) schedule from Health Advies Breda. I think this is my 3rd food schedule so far, as it is a good thing to switch every now and then.
CARB CYCLING
Right now, I’m following a carb-cycling schedule. This means I am switching between low-carb days and high-carb days. Low-carb on non-training days and high-carb on training days. As I have a training schedule of 4-5 days, I eat 2-3 days low-carb and 4-5 days high-carb.
Carb Cycling is perfect if you do weight training and love to gain muscles but loose some excessive body fat at the same time. The high-carb days are great to refuel muscle glycogen, which may improve performance and reduce muscle break-own.
BREAKFAST
I start the day with three eggs. Yes.. 3(!) eggs, along with an unlimited amount of veggies. I like to add some spinach, mushrooms, tomatoes or onion (but this last one only when I wake up late) to it! If wondering: I only bake in coconot oil! On a working day, I take my breakfast with me to work and eat it around 08.30.
SNACK 1
Around 11.00 it’s snack time! 250 grams of fat free quark or Skyr with 30 grams of nuts. Love love this snack, as I really like unsalted nuts. The macro’s of fat-free quark (I choose for Magere Franse Kwark) and Skyr are almost the same. I prefer Skyr because it has a bit more creamy texture, but of course quark is cheaper (also important)!
LUNCH
12.30/13.00 woohoo lunchtime! For lunch I eat a salad with an unlimited amount of lettuce, tomatoes and cucumber (at least 200-300 grams) and 3 eggs again. I hear you thinking.. again? In my food schedule I got several options to add protein to this meal. I could substitute 3 eggs for a can of salmon, tuna of mackerel as wel, but I’m not a fan of this kind of smoked/raw fish. Not on photo: 1 plain whole-wheat cracker.
SNACK 2
Around 15.00 I do my afternoon snackie. Love, because a salad makes you craving food a bit earlier. 2 rice crackers with a 50 gr. protein-rich topping like chicken! I always choose the “Oer-Speltwafels” with no added salt at Albert Heijn (link), because it contains more protein and fibers than regular/naturel ones.
DINNER
Ha, this one seems to be the most difficult low-carb meal to many. But you get more creative along the way, trust me ;). My food schedule tells me to eat 150-200 grams of protein-rich, low fat fish or meat and unlimited amount of veggies to create some volume -preferable green vegetables like beans, spinach, brocolli. Although it seems hard, I think it isn’t because we have Pinterest + Internet to the rescue, woohoo! The dinner above was super delicious: Courgetti with chicken, spinach, eggplant and radish!
SNACK 3
Oooooh favorite snack! I think because it’s so nice to have something to eat at night instead of going to bed with an empty stomach! This is also the reason people don’t like being on a diet: feeling hungry! My evening snack is 200 grams of low-fat quark or Skyr with 90 grams of pineapple. The combination of these to are perfect for the protein intake in your body!
For me, carb-cycling really works! Maybe also because I never been a carb addict and in need of bread on a daily basis. But I think it’s mostly do-able because the variation of high and low. Low-carb makes you crave more and I have to say I do feel a bit more hungry throughout the day, but it’s not extreme. Because you still have 6 meals a day and you eat a lot of protein and healthy unsaturated fat!
TIPS to make low-carb days easier
– drink a lot of water and tea, this also makes you feel less hungry
– keep adding them greens, when it’s unlimited go for a lot of volume
– go for a lot of protein, this makes you less craving for food
– replace carbs with cauliflower rice or courgetti, this gives you the idea you’re having a complete meal
I will soon post a high-carb diary too!
Have you tried carb cycling before? Or have any questions? Happy to help you out!
(Note: I’m not a qualified health or diet coach. This blog is purely my experience and vision on this subject and might not have the same effects for you.)
