calorie cycling?

[timtim]

currently doing something new. modified the fred hatfiled zigzag diet and it works out to a 3 week phasing process (sounds scientific). this is for cutting, i'm already in very good condition because i diet year round (just finished clean bulk, put on 10 pounds in 5 months, top 4 abs and the obliques still visible throughout - around the lower abs and handles, alittle weight gain there but nothing big) but want to try something new. what i do is:

week 1 and week 2 are lower calorie weeks. each week the calories vary but are low, at around 11 x bodyweight. i use this method because i have a slower metabolism and cant consume high calories or i gain muscle and a good amount of fat. the harris benedict and all the other calculators were off, been trying them all over the last 6 years (been dieting year round since 2000). so i settled into recognizing i am a low calorie guy. during these 2 weeks i vary my carb and fat levels, protein is always a constant. week 3 then is a higher calorie week, 13 x bodyweight, both carbs and fats are higher. then repeat. the process.

does this sound like a good method? first time trying this as i usually have done lower calories on cardio days then higher on training days (i would have more fats than carbs on cardio days and then more carbs and less fats on training days). it works but i want to try something else where i can do less cardio for results. so far seems to be working but i want input. this is unchartered territory for me.

all opinions please. thanks.

[1buffsob]

Looks like something relatively simple made complex. I don't have any experience in the Fred Hatfiled zigzag diets, but don't find the idea of calorie cycling appealing. Carb cycling I can understand, but not calorie cycling. I think just a well mapped out diet would work better than the complex one you have there, but that's just me

Either way, good luck with it and let us know how it goes.

1buffsob

[timtim]

yea, it does seem complex but its not that bad. i eat the same foods day in and day out: turkey burger, london broil, egg whites, whey, olive oil and flax, and a ton of veggies. the reason i'm trying this is because after so long dieting i want to make progress without the high cardio levels. i get into single digits yearly so i'm not worried about muscle lose while dieting, i know my body. i just want to see if this maybe more efficient with less effort.

thanks for the response.

[1buffsob]

I don't know about the more effiecient part, but am curious to see how this does for you. Maybe someone with more knowledge will chime in about the calorie cycling. It doesn't make logical sense to me however.

1buffsob