Calorie shifting keeps your metabolism in high gear, switching between slightly fewer calories and a high caloric intake. This maximizes your body's capacity to burn plenty of calories without severely restricting your food intake. Drastic caloric and nutrient restrictions such as low-carb and very-low-calorie diets decrease your metabolism, making it difficult to keep off the weight you do lose. Use a monthly calendar to easily help you keep track of your calorie-shifting plan.
Step 1
Write down an estimate of the number of calories you eat every day to maintain your weight. Subtract 250 calories from this average for the high end of your calorie range.
Step 2
Schedule your high-calorie days for the days in which you complete moderately intense exercise sessions lasting longer than one hour. Schedule no more than three high-calorie days per week.
Step 3
Subtract 500 calories from your estimated daily intake to determine the low end of your calorie range. Schedule low-calorie days for the days in which you do not exercise or when your exercise bout lasts less than one hour. Alternate between high- and low-calorie days for four weeks.
Step 4
Schedule high-calorie days for two weeks, but shift the percentage of your total daily calories between the major nutrients. For instance, if the high end of your calorie range is 2,000 calories, multiply 2,000 by 45 percent, or 0.45, to get 900 calories. Multiply 2,000 by 55 percent, or 0.55, to get 1,100. On Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, 55 percent of your calories, or 1,100 calories, should come from carbohydrates. Forty-five percent, or 900 calories, of your total daily calories should come from carbohydrates on the alternate days.
Step 5
Resume your daily caloric shifting for another four weeks, but vary your local calorie days between 300 and 500 fewer calories. Continue to alternate between daily caloric shifts for four weeks and nutrient caloric shifts for two weeks.
Tips and Warnings
- Have a very-high-calorie day every other week by adding 500 calories to the high end of your calorie range. To burn more calories, increase the intensity or the duration of your aerobic and resistance training workouts, losing weight more quickly.
References
- "Personal Trainer Manual"; American Council on Exercise; 1997
- "ACSM's Health and Fitness Journal"; "Your Clients Are What They Eat: Balancing Weight with Diet, Part One"; Gary Miller; January/February 2005
- "Strength and Conditioning Journal"; "Low-Carbohydrate Diets Promote a More Favorable Body Composition Than Low-Fat Diets"; Jeff Volek et al; February 2010
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