Carb Cycling: Sample Meal Plan & Tips

Carb cycling is a great way to lower body fat without losing any performance in the gym. If you’ve experienced a weight loss plateau, this is always a great way to break out of it. I’m carb cycling this week because 1) It’s always summer in Los Angeles 2) I’m never hungry when I follow a plan like this 3) It’s an easy way to stay on track without taking drastic measures.

I’m following a plan similar to Autumn’s Countdown to Competition plan from 21 Day Fix EXTREME. On my lower-carb day, I teeter between the 1,500-1,799 bracket: 4 green, 7 red, 1 yellow, 3 tsp bracket to the 1,800 – 2,099 bracket: 5 green, 9 red, 2 yellow, 4 tsp. and on my higher carb day I stick to the 1,500-1,799 bracket: 4 green, 3 purple, 4 red, 3 yellow, 1 blue, 1 orange & 4 tsp. During the week, I like to do Monday & Tuesday – Lower-Carb, Wednesday – Higher Carb, Thursday & Friday – Lower Carb, Saturday & Sunday – Higher carb. Here are some tips for when you’re carb cycling:

1. Plan your harder training days with the higher carb days (I.e. leg day, intense cardio sessions etc)

2. Drink A TON of water

3. Stick to low-sodium seasonings like Flavorgod

4. Stick to lean proteins like chicken, fish or lean ground turkey for the best results especially on lower carb days (Autumn loves cod)

5. Choose lower-carb veggies like broccoli, asparagus, string beans, peppers, & cucumbers (I break the rule here and still incorporate veggies like cherry tomatoes & cauliflower since I’m not actually competing and I like to cut myself some slack.)

6. Pick smart complex carbs like sweet potato, yams, & oatmeal (Obviously you can mix in brown rice, quinoa etc but those are the ones the 21 Day Fix EXTREME plan recommends and I like to stick to those personally.)

7. Incorporate a quality form of healthy fat (While you may keep your fats lower too, it’s still important to get some high quality fats in. From coconut oil to MCT oil to krill oil supplementation, make sure to not completely skip on the healthy fats.)

Again, if you order the full 21DFX product you can calculate what calorie bracket you fall into (male or female), see the full food list and customize the plan for you! This is just a breakdown of how I do it but make sure to consult an expert or get the program yourself.

Lower-Carb Day

6:30am Pre-Workout + Kaged Muscle BCAAs
9:00am Meal 1: Oatmeal & 3 Egg White Cups + 1 Whole Egg Cup & MCT oil + coffee (1 red, 1 yellow, 1 tsp)
11:00am Meal 2: 4 oz. shredded chicken with Flavorgod seasoning, sweet potatoes, Melissa’s Produce broccoli & cauliflower (1 green, 1 red, 1 yellow)
1:00pm Meal 3: 4 oz. baked chicken with Melissa’s Produce chopped bell pepper (1 red, 1 green)
3:00pm Meal 4: 4 oz shredded chicken with Melissa’s Produce cherry tomatoes and cucumbers (1 red, 1 green, 1 tsp)
5:00pm Meal 5: 4 oz ground turkey with Melissa’s Produce asparagus, onion, mushroom & tomatoes & olive oil (1 red, 1 green, 1 tsp)
7:00pm Meal 6: 4 oz shredded chicken with Melissa’s Produce cherry tomatoes & cucumber (1 red, 1 green, 1 tsp)
8:30pm Meal 7 (if I’m hungry): 4 oz baked chicken with Melissa’s Produce cucumber & chopped bell pepper (1 red, 1 green)

Higher-Carb Day

The main differences you’ll notice 1) 3 more servings of fruit vs. no fruit on low carb day 2) an extra serving of complex carbs 3) protein from different sources like Shakeology vs. just lean meat

7:00am Pre-Workout & Kaged Muscle BCAAs
9:00am Breakfast: 3 egg white cups, 1 whole egg cup, steel cut oats & 1 cup pineapple (1 red, 1 purple, 1 yellow)
11:00am Snack: Shakeology blend with water & ice and an orange (1 red, 1 purple)
1:00pm Lunch: Shredded chicken, broccoli, cauliflower & sweet potato (1 green, 1 red, 1 yellow, 2 tsp.)
3:00pm Snack 2: Kombucha, walnuts & a bell pepper (1 purple, 1 green, 1 blue)
5:00pm Post-Workout: Ezekiel toast with sunflower butter (1 yellow, 2 tsp.)
7:00pm Dinner: @chris.rocchio_fit curry chicken recipe with Melissa’s Produce baby bok choy, cherry tomatoes, & mushrooms (1 red, 2 green, 1 orange)