When to Carb Up on a Ketogenic Diet
If you’ve been doing the ketogenic diet for long, you may have heard the term “carb up” used. We are going to explain When to Carb Up on a Ketogenic Diet to help you make the most of your recent choice to live a healthier lifestyle and work toward losing weight.
When to Carb Up on a Ketogenic Diet
A ketogenic diet is mostly a low-carb and high-fat dietary option. However, many individuals restrict carbohydrates strongly and use what they call a cyclic keto diet by using a few days on a regular basis to “carb up”. Below, I will explain more about the process, and some tips for when you should choose this method.
Have you hit a plateau with weight loss?
If you have been doing the ketogenic diet for a length of time, your body may be at a point where it just needs a change. That includes those who have lost a lot, but have just a few last pounds to reach their goal. A carb load can switch your body out of ketosis just long enough for the change back to ketosis to boost you back into loosing mode.
Are you training regularly for building muscle?
Many who are focused on building muscle find that doing a carb up day helps give them the extra boost of energy needed to really push to a goal. This is especially found with those who are preparing for a competition or a marathon of some sort. A carb up day allows them to add extra energy for 1-2 full days to get past that event.
Most who do this follow a weekly regimen of ketogenic for a week, then follow that with 1-2 days of carb loading. They may limit this to once a month or do it routinely each week. However, they are using this as part of their high-intensity workout regimen.
Do you have the discipline to go back on plan?
If you don’t have the discipline to stop and go back on plan after 1-2 days, then this may not be a good choice for you to do. While a carb up day can help your body get back to burning fat again, it can also be detrimental to success if you are unable to get back on track. If carbs are a serious temptation and hard for you to stop eating in the first place, then you may want to simply say no to the cyclic ketogenic diet.
More Keto Diet Tips:
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Melissa is a football and soccer mom who has been married to her best friend for 24 years. She loves sharing recipes, travel reviews and tips that focus on helping busy families make memories.
I have been eating a ketogenic diet since March…so getting close to 4 months. The last two months I have stalled on weight loss, the scales not budging at all. Last weekend I decided that I was going to have a cheat meal. It was glorious…breaded, deep fried scollops, whole clams and onion rings. After that meal I have been keeping a close eye on the scales to see how much I’d gain, and guess what! I have lost 3 pounds this week! Scales never did go up. Now I’m researching and finding out that this is actually ‘a thing’. I had heard of carbing up, but figured it was for those who hit the gym regularly.
Awesome! Thank you for sharing! We have found it is a great way to break weight loss plateaus!
Thanks for this article. I’m new to Keto and I have also increased my workouts while embracing Keto. I was thinking about a cheat meal and how often I could embrace it. Thank for some direction with that
How often do you do the carb up? Is it only when you hit a stall or do it every 2 weeks?
When you stall.
I’ve been doing Keto for 6 weeks! What is the best thing to do the day after carbing up. HIIT? Long duration easy cardio, weight training? All of the above? Also, is it good to fast the day after or go back to clean Keto?
Thanks!
When you carb up the best thing to do is weight training on a high carb day. I would follow it up with a fasting day and then head right back into Keto. On fasting day I drink bone broth and push water. I eat a low calorie high protein meal for dinner around 6 pm and that is it for the day. So I stop eating on Monday at 6 pm (carb up day) and follow it with a (fasting day). Take a rest day on the fasting day