Calorie Shifting?

W

WinterBreeze

New member
I was reading about calorie-shifting, or calorie zigzagging today. Has anyone tried it and is it a good idea?

The examples I read didn’t seem to be extreme calorie shifting (as in 500 etc.) but rather like: day 1 - 1200, day 2 - 1500, day 3 - 1300, day 4- 1600 , day 5 - 1200.

Or is it better to always stick to a consistent number?
 
I've been looking and I've yet to find one creditable source to give me any real science behind this idea. I've also asked and no one has given me one either.
 
I agree that there is very little scientific evidence to prove this. However, there are quite a few pieces of anecdotal evidence - people who have used the method successfully.

I suspect that part of the reason for this may be because someone who calorie shifts probably takes in around 500 calories less due to zigzagging their calories throughout the week. However, some people insist that they eat the exact same amount of calories as usual - just in a zigzag form. I’m not quite so sure how that would work successfully.
 
I did read somewhere (not sure where) that eating your new calorie intake for 3 days, and then eating the recommended amount on day 4 to maintain your weight, is a good way to keep your metabolism up to gear. I forget the link...

either way, why not try it yourself? Some things work better for others. Just because it hasn't been proven to work in terms of science, doesn't mean it wont work.
 
Yes, calorie shifting/zig-zagging/carb rotation/cheat days/etc are a great way to ensure you lose fat consistently and prevent plateaus.

The main reason this works is due to the boost in leptin levels, which generally plummet upon consistent low cal eating (dieting).

This is the anti-starvation response that our bodies used back in the hunter and gatherer days when fast food wasn't available 24/7! Now that we have so much access to food, this survival technique does us more harm than good...in the form of making it extremely difficult to achieve weight loss through dieting.

To prevent a drop in leptin and the nasty cascade of hormonal events that take place when you start a diet, you can "outsmart" your body by zig-zagging your daily cal intake.

There are many ways to do this - the most extreme would be a cheat day followed by a fast day (my personal fav...but a lil extreme for some ppl)...or you can use a much more moderate approach like you suggested.

Either way, my research and real life experiences have shown that not only is this technique useful for weight loss, but it may even be one of the keys.

Hope this helped!

Brad
 
I have to tell you after doing a bit of research, the Calorie Shifting Diet also known as the FatLoss4Idiots diet is basically a scam, as are most of the diets that promise incredible fat loss in a short amount of time.

Your metabolism is not based on the food you take in and at what time. It is directly related to the amount of exercise you do and how healthy your thyroid is. If you have dieted up and down over the years you probably have beat the shit out of your thyroid and if that is the case there’s really no diet that can fix that, only a hormone called “Thyroxin,” which is prescribed by a doctor.

To answer your question about calorie consumption, 1200 calories doesn’t seem like enough calories to take in unless you are 100lbs. A good estimate to go by when you are committed to an exercise program is to base your caloric intake on adding a zero onto your own weight. So, if your weight is 130lbs, then your minimum calorie intake should be 1300 calories and if you exercise add 400 calories for a grand total of 1700 calories per day.

If you are trying to lose fat you can reduce your caloric intake but never go below what your goal weight is. So if you are 160lbs then you should be taking in 1600 calories plus 400 calories to equal 2000 calories per day. Then, the next week you would reduce your caloric intake by 200 which would give you 1400 with 400 for exercise. If your goal weight is 126lb,s then you would only reduce your caloric intake to 1260 calories with 400 for exercise.

FYI- this formula doesn’t not work if you do not exercise, so if you’re lazy, you’re SOL.



PS: Hey Brad, you are presenting yourself as a research expert. Could you give us your background, medical schooling, etc.

Double PS: Never mind, I looked it up. You are a Doctor of Pharmacy. In the United States, the PharmD. (Doctor of Pharmacy) degree is a professional degree that prepares the graduate for pharmacy practice. It is awarded after four years of pharmacy school, including one year of practice experience. Students may apply to pharmacy school after taking an entry test (PCAT) and completing 60-90 credit hours (2-3 years) of university coursework in the sciences, mathematics, composition and humanities. Many pharmacy students complete a bachelors degree before entry to pharmacy school.

Total time: 2-4 years undergraduate (Associate or Bachelor degree), 4 years professional (PharmD), optional 1-3 years of specialization (residency/fellowship).

Previously, in the United States, the bachelor's degree in pharmacy was the first-professional degree for pharmacy practice. Some schools and colleges of pharmacy offered a post-baccalaureate graduate Pharm.D. degree. These graduate level degrees became prevalent in US programs in the late 1960s.

In 1990, the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP) mandated that a doctor of pharmacy degree would be the new first-professional degree. Currently all accredited schools and colleges of pharmacy in the US offer the Pharm.D. degree. Many also offer post-Pharm.D. graduate programs in specialized areas of the profession.

The current PharmD degree curriculum is very different than that of the prior BS in pharmacy and now includes extensive didactic clinical preparation and a full year of hands-on practice experience.
 
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Jericho said:
I have to tell you after doing a bit of research, the Calorie Shifting Diet also known as the FatLoss4Idiots diet is basically a scam, as are most of the diets that promise incredible fat loss in a short amount of time.

Your metabolism is not based on the food you take in and at what time. It is directly related to the amount of exercise you do and how healthy your thyroid is. If you have dieted up and down over the years you probably have beat the shit out of your thyroid and if that is the case there’s really no diet that can fix that, only a hormone called “Thyroxin,” which is prescribed by a doctor.

To answer your question about calorie consumption, 1200 calories doesn’t seem like enough calories to take in unless you are 100lbs. A good estimate to go by when you are committed to an exercise program is to base your caloric intake on adding a zero onto your own weight. So, if your weight is 130lbs, then your minimum calorie intake should be 1300 calories and if you exercise add 400 calories for a grand total of 1700 calories per day.

If you are trying to lose fat you can reduce your caloric intake but never go below what your goal weight is. So if you are 160lbs then you should be taking in 1600 calories plus 400 calories to equal 2000 calories per day. Then, the next week you would reduce your caloric intake by 200 which would give you 1400 with 400 for exercise. If your goal weight is 126lb,s then you would only reduce your caloric intake to 1260 calories with 400 for exercise.

FYI- this formula doesn’t not work if you do not exercise, so if you’re lazy, you’re SOL.



PS: Hey Brad, you are presenting yourself as a research expert. Could you give us your background, medical schooling, etc.

Double PS: Never mind, I looked it up. You are a Doctor of Pharmacy. In the United States, the PharmD. (Doctor of Pharmacy) degree is a professional degree that prepares the graduate for pharmacy practice. It is awarded after four years of pharmacy school, including one year of practice experience. Students may apply to pharmacy school after taking an entry test (PCAT) and completing 60-90 credit hours (2-3 years) of university coursework in the sciences, mathematics, composition and humanities. Many pharmacy students complete a bachelors degree before entry to pharmacy school.

Total time: 2-4 years undergraduate (Associate or Bachelor degree), 4 years professional (PharmD), optional 1-3 years of specialization (residency/fellowship).

Previously, in the United States, the bachelor's degree in pharmacy was the first-professional degree for pharmacy practice. Some schools and colleges of pharmacy offered a post-baccalaureate graduate Pharm.D. degree. These graduate level degrees became prevalent in US programs in the late 1960s.

In 1990, the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP) mandated that a doctor of pharmacy degree would be the new first-professional degree. Currently all accredited schools and colleges of pharmacy in the US offer the Pharm.D. degree. Many also offer post-Pharm.D. graduate programs in specialized areas of the profession.

The current PharmD degree curriculum is very different than that of the prior BS in pharmacy and now includes extensive didactic clinical preparation and a full year of hands-on practice experience.
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Thank you for the detailed post.

I do exercise on a regular basis - usually 30 minutes-1 hour a day, 5-6 times a week at a fast pace (75-90% of my MHR.) I do find myself getting confused over how many calories I should be consuming. I weigh 206lbs (5ft 8 inches,) and aim to lose 1.5- 2lb a week. I tend to consume about 1500 calories a day, which I believe isn't too low from the research I have done. Apparently I need 2800 calories "with" exercise to stay the same weight, so a 1,300 deficit doesn't seem too bad as it only equals to around 2lbs loss per week which is not too extreme. I don't always lose that much, anyway. I have been advised that I may lose more weight if I ate more calories (2,000 for example,) but everytime I have tried that I seem to either gain weight, stay the same, or only lose a little bit (0.5lb or less.) All in all I have concluded that 1500 seems to be about right for me. If I did as you suggested (ate 2000 + 400 for the exercise,) then I would lose less than 0.5lb a week. I have calculated my BMR and its 1700, you're supposed to eat around 200 less than your BMR (1500 in my case,) so hopefully my calculations are correct.

I want to reach 140 lbs long-term, so given what you suggested, I should never go lower than 1400 calories?
 
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