The Cyclical Ketogenic Diet: True Fat Loss

[SouthernLord]

Personally think the idea of carb loading on that will get you fat. It makes no sense. It is merely a temporary, costmetic fix. It doesnt make you leaner.

I like carbs on the first meal and pwo. Maybe a trash meal once a week.

I was under the impression that the whole point of the carb load was to increase Leptin and decrease Ghrelin levels witch would increase your metabolism and stoke the fat burning fire.

Leptin

Leptin is a Protein hormone responsible for sending a signal to the brain to indicate how much fat we have in reserve and how many calories we have coming in. Leptin is released primarily from the fat cells and the level of Leptin in the body is directly proportional to the amount of body fat we are carrying. The higher the level of body fat, the higher the level of Leptin in the body. As body fat levels drop, Leptin levels also decline.

It is widely understood that the body attempts to maintain a “set point” with regard to body weight. Leptin is a key player in maintaining this set point. When we begin dieting and the body enters a state of caloric deficit, Leptin levels immediately begin to drop. Levels of Leptin can drop as much as 50% within 48 hours of beginning a diet. This drop in Leptin triggers a chain of events designed to maintain the body’s set point and prevent the body from losing weight. Steps in the chain of events to prevent weight loss include; decrease in the levels of brain dopamine, increase in hunger, increase in circulating Cortisol, decrease in thyroid hormone output, decrease in production of testosterone, and decrease in overall metabolic rate.

It can clearly be seen that this chain of events is counterproductive to our bodybuilding goals of maximizing fat loss and maintaining lean muscle. Therefore minimizing the drop in levels of Leptin when dieting is certainly key to reaching our goal of a lean muscular physique.

Ghrelin

Ghrelin is a hormone released from the stomach that is directly responsible for stimulating hunger. Studies suggest that the body’s release of Ghrelin actually adapts according to meal frequency and is a major reason that a person dieting becomes hungry in advance of regular meal times during the day. Increases in the release of Ghrelin cause increased hunger, increased fat storage and decreased overall metabolism. Levels of Ghrelin in the body are closely related to levels of Leptin. As Leptin levels fall, levels of Ghrelin increase. Therefore, as your body senses a caloric deficit and a decrease in stored fat, it signals an increase in the release of Ghrelin to stimulate hunger, and to decrease your metabolism; talk about counterproductive to your goals!

In addition to Leptin and Ghrelin, other hormones such as insulin, peptide YY, and CCK also play significant roles in fat metabolism and anabolism and decreasing lipolysis when the body is in a state of prolonged caloric deficit. insulin secretion and sensitivity and it’s specific role in anabolism and fat metabolism will be the topic for part 2 of this series.

With our bodies seemingly fighting us right from the start when we begin to diet, how can we ever succeed? Fortunately, we have a method to combat these hormonal signalers that seek to derail our plans to get ripped. The secret weapons in our arsenal are carbs and calories! That’s right, when used properly the much maligned carbohydrate can help us prevent the reduction in Leptin levels and rise in Ghrelin levels which would otherwise stop our fat loss in it’s tracks.

The key to maintaining fat loss and keeping the hormones responsible for fat metabolism in the optimal ranges while dieting is the cycling of lower carb and calorie days with periodic higher carb and calorie days at regular and specific intervals. Increasing your carbs and calories in a planned and controlled fashion can and will help you burn more fat.

Cycling Your Carb Intake

Increasing total carbohydrate and calorie intake for one day, every 4-7 days during a contest prep diet can significantly increase Leptin levels and decrease Ghrelin levels preventing downregulation of the body’s metabolism. It’s important to note that increased carbohydrates are necessary for this process to occur. Simply increasing total calories without increasing carb intake does not create the same effect. Increasing carbohydrate consumption once every 4-7 days also has the added benefit of replenishing intramuscular glycogen stores and improving intramuscular cellular hydration.

 

[future]

That's their theory.

What I dont agree with is the idea that you can just load up on carbs. At some point you CANT digest all of that. There need to be limitations. At some point it just comes down to a certain amount of calories in versus out.

Still its always worth trying.

 

[SouthernLord]

That's their theory.

What I dont agree with is the idea that you can just load up on carbs. At some point you CANT digest all of that. There need to be limitations. At some point it just comes down to a certain amount of calories in versus out.

Still its always worth trying.

Gotcha. I'm basically going to shitload while on this diet. It will be my first time doing so. I'm kinda excited about the prospect of pizza and ice cream after a week of strict diet. We'll see how it works.

 

[RickO'Shea]

Yea but Rick, that won't happen if you are providing enough dietary fat. The body will learn to use that plus your own bodyfat efficiently and readily for fuel. Then you carb load on the weekend, and you'll be burning both glycogen stores AND fat. The 1st two weeks are a bitch getting your body adjusted, but once you make the shift you will not run out of energy! I have been on it now for 3 weeks and I have made the adjustment and feel really good. In fact the only day I felt like shit was on the carb load. Total carb coma! hahaha...

Well, I actually was getting from 80-100g of Fat all good too. You go that low and you can geta ketogenic induced Acid reflux. The fat helps combat that. I ran a ketogenic diet for 6 weeks. Weeks 1-2 were great leaned out very well. weeks 3 started tapering off and weeks 4-6 major rebound. I was lethargic and nothing was working. I'm just not a fan of going that low on carbs. I think like future said, it's a cosmetic short term fix.

 

[bluejay]

OK bro, well stick with whatever has obviously been working for you! I am just really pleased with how it has worked for me and I wanted to share my experiences.

 

[RickO'Shea]

That's what it's all about man! Doin what works!
PS. I in no way wanted to sound condesending so if I did, I appologise sincerely.
PSS. Great job in the success Bluejay!

 

[bluejay]

That's what it's all about man! Doin what works!
PS. I in no way wanted to sound condesending so if I did, I appologise sincerely.
PSS. Great job in the success Bluejay!

Hehe no mate... You don't have to walk on eggshells around me.
This is the way we all learn from each other!!