Unless you've been living under a rock, you are most likely to be familiar with ketogenic diet, which has been endorsed by scores of celebrities all around the world, for weight loss. A number of these celebs swear by the ketogenic diet to lose weight quickly and that it is why it has picked up steam, globally. A number of keto-friendly products have nowadays started making appearance in the market, promising to result in quick weight loss. But this diet is not very easy to follow. This is when a relatively newer form of ketogenic diet has started doing the rounds. Known as keto cycling or cyclical ketogenic diet, this weight loss diet is a relatively lenient form of ketogenic diet, which allows the consumption of some carbohydrates. It's basically a less restrictive form of the ketogenic diet and is meant for people who experience continued symptoms of the "keto flu". People who follow the ketogenic diet come down with the keto flu in the beginning, as their body shifts from burning carbohydrates for energy to burning fat.
Symptoms of the keto flu include headaches, nausea, dizziness, sugar cravings, irritability, fogginess in the brain, lack of motivation, etc. Keto cycling is considered a middle ground for people who wish to deal with the symptoms of keto flu quickly. Therefore, in this fad diet, people follow the extremely restrictive ketogenic diet and consume mostly fats and proteins for five or six days a week and designate one day for consumption of slightly higher amounts of carbs.
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What Is Keto Cycling?
So essentially in keto cycling, you eat according to your strict meal plan for most of the week, but allow yourself to cheat on your diet for one day. What eating more carbs for one day does to your body is that it moves the body out of ketosis for that day. So in cyclical ketogenic diet, you're moving in and out of ketosis. The purported benefits of keto cycling include an improved ability to deal with your cravings, as well as a better hormonal balance.
However, the benefits of this form of ketogenic diet are all anecdotal and theoretical and there isn't enough scientific evidence to support these claims of the supposed benefits of this form of cyclical ketosis. This assumption that keto cycling is good for regulating your hormones is based on the fact that prolonged restriction on carbs may end up disrupting levels of thyroid hormone in your body.
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Keto cycling may help you regulate your hormones better
Should You Follow Keto Cycling?
If you have been following the ketogenic diet for a long time, it may be easier for your body to transition in and out of ketosis. However, allowing yourself to cheat on your diet for a day doesn't mean that you can eat all the unhealthy foods that you've been craving. On your day off, you may eat a good amount of healthy and high-fibre carbs from sources like brown rice, fibrous fruits and vegetables and whole-grain foods. It is highly advisable to consult an expert nutritionist or a certified dietitian, before making any changes to your diet.