What Is the Cyclical Ketogenic Diet? Everything You Need to Know

Although it is often considered a complication, there are many variations in the ketogenic diet.

The standard ketogenic diet is by far the most popular, but there are several ways to follow this low-carb, high-fat rule, including cyclical ketogenic diets.

Cyclical ketogenic diets involve a rigorous high-fat, low-carb ketogenic eating plan and higher carb intake in stages.

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This article explains the advantages, disadvantages, and basic steps of the cyclic ketogenic diet.

What is the cyclic ketogenic diet?

The ketogenic diet is a high-fat, low-carb diet.

When you are on a ketogenic diet, you usually limit yourself to 50 grams fewer carbohydrates per day.

When carbohydrate intake is severely reduced, your body needs to burn fat for energy instead of glucose or blood sugar, in a way known as ketosis.

During ketosis, your body uses ketones, a by-product of the fat breakdown produced by your liver, as an alternative fuel source.

Although the cyclic ketogenic diet is a variant of the standard ketogenic diet, there are major differences between the two.

Cyclic ketogenic diets involve a standard ketogenic diet protocol 5 to 6 days per week, followed by 1 to 2 days increased carbohydrate intake.

These high-carbohydrate days are often referred to as "feeding days" because they are meant to replenish your body's depleted glucose stores.

If you are on a cyclical ketogenic diet, you will skip ketosis on feeding days to reap the benefits of taking carbohydrates for a temporary period of time.

Cyclic ketogenic diets are popular for those who improve muscle growth and exercise skills.

Although there is a lack of research to support this claim, some people speculate that the cyclical diet is better than the standard version for strength and muscle growth.

Is it like a carbohydrate cycle?

Cyclic ketogenic diets are often compared to carbohydrate cycles, but this is not the same.

The carbohydrate cycle is about reducing carbohydrates on certain days of the week as well as increasing your intake on others. It is usually divided into 4 to 6 days less carbohydrate intake per week and more than 1 to 3 days use.

Although the method is similar, cycling carbohydrates does not reduce your total carbohydrate intake to achieve ketosis.

Carbohydrate cycles are often used to lose weight, increase athletic performance and encourage muscle growth.

SUMMARY:

The cyclic keto diet involves modifying the standard ketogenic diet with higher carb days to get your body ketosis in and out.

How to follow it

There is no standard set of rules for a cyclical ketogenic diet.

However, anyone looking to start should follow a standard ketogenic diet 5-6 days a week, taking more than 1-2 days of carbohydrates.

Follow a standard ketogenic diet 5 to 6 days a week

Standard Keto During the day, it is important to take 20 to 50 grams of carbohydrates per day.

During this phase of the cyclic ketogenic diet, healthy fats provide about 65-90% of your total caloric intake.

Healthy fat options include:

• Eggs

• Coconut oil and unsweetened coconut

• Avocado

• Full-fat dairy products

• Low-carb nuts and seeds

• Nut butter

• Fatty meats

• MCT oil

Protein should be about 10-30% of your total calories, while carbohydrate intake is usually limited to less than 5%.

Make sure you are on a standard ketogenic diet 5-6 days a week.

Increase your carbohydrate intake 1 or 2 days a week.

The second step in a cyclic ketogenic diet involves choosing between 1 and 2 days a week to “refuel” your glycogen stores.

On feeding days, you need to consume more sugar to break down ketosis

In response days:

• Carbs should be 60 to 70% of your total calories.

• Proteins need to represent 15 to 20% of total calories.

• Fat should provide only 5-10% of the total calories.

Although the goal of the reaction phase is to increase the amount of sugars, the quality of the sugars is also important.

Instead of relying on unhealthy sources like white bread and baked goods, most of your sugars should come from healthy sources.

Some examples of complex and nutritious sugars include:

• Sweet potatoes

• Butternut squash

• Brown rice

• Oats

• Quinoa

• Whole-wheat or brown-rice pasta

• Beans and lentils

These carbohydrates are rich in vitamins, minerals, and fiber that fuel your body and keep your blood sugar levels stable.

Avoid foods and beverages that are high in sugar like candy, juices, sodas, and cakes as they are nutritious and cause blood sugar irregularities, increasing appetite and irritation.

Returning to Ketosis quickly

After your high carb days, you should consider fasting occasionally to quickly return to ketosis.

The most common intermittent fasting methods include fasting for 16 hours a day.

High-intensity workouts are also recommended in the days after eating to achieve ketosis while optimizing muscle growth.

SUMMARY:

On a cyclical ketogenic diet, you follow a standard ketogenic diet most days of the week and then "go back to eating" carbohydrate-rich foods a few days a week.

Potential benefits

Research on cyclical ketogenic diets is very limited. However, it can provide benefits.

Can help you gain muscle

While there is some evidence that the standard ketogenic diet is effective in creating lean body mass for prevention-trained athletes, some argue that the cyclical version is better for muscle growth.

Muscle-building, or anabolic hormones, such as insulin, are suppressed when following a very low-carb diet such as the Keto diet.

Insulin increases protein synthesis through the use of amino acids and glucose in muscle cells and regulates muscle growth by reducing protein breakdown in muscle tissue.

Using a cyclical keto diet to strategically increase insulin levels on certain days allows you to use the anabolic effects of insulin to stimulate muscle growth.

Note that there is not enough research on this diet to show the effectiveness of this method.

It can improve the performance of athletes.

Carbohydrate eating can benefit elite athletes who follow a very low-carbohydrate diet.

A study of 29 elite walkers found that athletes benefited from regularly eating high carbohydrates, although this did not specifically test the cyclical keto diet.

The study found that walkers who were periodically fed high-carbohydrate before the training session had a significant improvement in performance compared to those who followed a standard ketogenic diet.

The researchers concluded that athletes who consumed large amounts of carbohydrates periodically improved their performance, but those who followed a strict ketogenic diet did not.

Reduces keto-related side effects

The ketogenic diet is collectively associated with unpleasant side effects known as keto flu.

Symptoms of the keto flu include nausea, fatigue, headache, constipation, weakness, trouble sleeping, and irritation.

These symptoms arise when your body struggles to adjust to using ketones as its primary fuel source.

Cycling carbohydrates 1 to 2 days a week can reduce these symptoms.

Add more fiber to your diet

Constipation is a common complaint among early migrants on the Koto diet.

This is because some people struggle to get enough fiber when they eat a high-fat, very low-carbohydrate diet.

While it's possible to get enough fiber on a standard ketogenic diet, switching to a cyclical ketogenic diet can make it easier.

On feeding days, fiber-rich carbohydrates like oatmeal, sweet potato, beans, and quinoa are allowed.

Following the ketogenic diet makes it easier

The ketogenic diet is associated with a variety of health benefits, such as weight loss, blood sugar control, and reduced risk of heart disease. Still, long-term follow-up can be difficult.

Since you need to significantly reduce your carbohydrate intake to achieve ketosis, there are plenty of healthy, carbohydrate-rich foods with no limits.

By using a cyclical keto diet, you can eat carbohydrate-rich foods on feeding days, which can make the diet more sustainable in the long run.

However, there is currently very little research on cyclical keto diets, so their long-term benefits are unknown.

SUMMARY:

Following a cyclical keto diet can reduce symptoms of the keto flu, make the standard keto diet more achievable, increase athletic performance, increase fiber intake, and promote muscle growth.

Possible Downsides

Since research on cyclic ketogenic diets is limited, its side effects are largely unknown.

It is impossible to determine the full effects of diet until the study is completed.

Keep in mind that a lot of people can eat more calories on refined days, which prevents the weight loss benefits of the standard ketogenic diet.

Also, it should be noted that a cyclical change from a standard ketogenic diet can lead to temporary weight gain, essentially excess water that is retained during carbohydrate-rich foods.

In fact, your body stores at least 3 grams of water per gram of sugar in the muscles.

For those who want to increase muscle mass or improve athletic performance, it is unknown whether a cyclic ketogenic diet is more effective than quality.

Since research supports standard ketogenic diets for professional growth and exercise performance for muscle growth, there will be no need to switch to a cyclical ketogenic diet just to reap those benefits.

SUMMARY:

Although little is known about the possible side effects of a cyclic ketogenic diet, it may be easier to consume too many calories on the day of feeding.

BOTTOM LINE

A cyclic ketogenic diet consists of adhering to a standard ketogenic diet 5 to 6 days a week, followed by 1 to 2 days of intake of excess sugar.

This method claims to reduce keto flu symptoms, increase athletic performance and promote muscle growth, but there is a lack of research on its effectiveness and potential flaws.

No matter what type of ketogenic diet you choose, choosing healthy, nutritious foods is always important to achieve your goals.

Article source healthline.com