Is Carb Loading Good for Weight Loss, and What Are the Best Foods With Carbs?

Carbohydrate loading is a diet designed to improve athletic endurance by increasing the amount of fuel that's stored in your muscles. While carb loading has its place in improving long-distance or high-endurance athletic events, it's not an effective method for weight loss.

Carb loading is most commonly associated with high-endurance athletes. However, you may be wondering if carb loading is good for weight loss, too. 

While carb loading has its place in improving long-distance or high-endurance athletic events, it's not an effective method for weight loss. Here's why.

Carbohydrate loading is a diet designed to improve athletic endurance by increasing the amount of fuel that's stored in your muscles. When you carb load, you eat extra carbs during the days leading up to an endurance event while simultaneously cutting back on physical activity. The extra carbohydrates can then fuel physical activity. 

If you're engaging in extremely strenuous activity, your normal carbohydrate stores may not be enough. Your body will need extra carbs for fuel. Carb loading can give you the energy you need to perform without hitting a wall and burning out during intense exercise. 

However, unless you're engaged in swimming, running, or cycling that will last more than 90 minutes at a strenuous level, the carbohydrates in your normal diet are probably enough. 

Carb cycling also aims to provide extra energy during high-intensity workouts but adds an extra step. Carb cycling combines eating fewer carbs on some days and more carbs when you're preparing for peak performance events. Carb cycling is useful for endurance athletes who want to lose weight or maintain their weight. However, it's only useful for serious athletes. If you're a casual exerciser, carb cycling isn't your best option.

Who can benefit from carb cycling? 

Bodybuilders, fitness competitors, and people whose weight loss has plateaued may benefit in the short term from carb cycling. It's not intended to be a long-term diet, though. 

Carb cycling diet

There's no one best way to carb cycle. You can adjust your diet to suit your exercise plan and lifestyle. Carb cycling always involves planned increases and decreases in your carb intake, though. A typical example includes keeping your carbs very low for two or three days and then increasing your carbs for one day, during which you engage in strenuous physical activity. Low-carb days usually restrict carbs to 50 to 150 grams per day. High-carb days may allow up to 400 grams of carbs daily. 

Bear in mind that carbs are only one of three macronutrients your body needs to function. Protein and fat are the other two. During carb cycling, your protein intake should stay about the same each day. Your fat intake will typically vary based on your carb intake. On days you eat fewer carbs, you'll eat more fat. On days you eat more carbs, you'll eat less fat. 

Side effects of carb cycling

If you maintain a low-carb diet for more than one or two days, you may experience some of the following effects as your body switches to burning fat for fuel instead of carbohydrates: 

• Tiredness
• Carb cravings
• Constipation
• Moodiness
• Irritability
• Problems sleeping
• Bloating

These symptoms are often temporary and will usually pass if you stay hydrated and take in enough electrolytes. 

If you decide carb loading or carb cycling is a good option for you, you should make sure to only eat healthy carbs. Carb cycling shouldn't be used as an excuse to eat a lot of empty calories and excess sugar. Carbohydrates are found in a wide variety of foods, from saturated-fat-laden pastries to healthy whole grains. The type of carbs you eat is more important than the specific amount. 

When you're choosing carbs, whether it's for a high-carb day or a low-carb day, you should pack in as much nutrition as possible. Complex carbohydrates include a range of nutrients found in vegetables, fruits, beans, and grains. Fiber, in particular, plays an important role in maintaining a healthy weight and fighting diseases. 

These good carbs typically come from minimally processed, plant-based foods, including: 

• Whole grains
• Oatmeal
• Potatoes with skins
• Fruit
• Vegetables
• Beans
• Lentils

Bad carbs, in contrast, are those that have been stripped of their fiber and nutrients and are used alongside harmful added ingredients such as added sugar or saturated fats. These foods include: 

• White bread
• Sugary cereal
• Cakes
• Cookies 

What if you're just trying to lose weight, but you aren't an endurance athlete? Can carb loading still benefit you? Probably not, but you may still be able to benefit from the concept of using carbs for extra energy at the right time. By eating within your normal level of carbohydrates but consuming them when you're most likely to need energy, you can benefit from the extra energy they provide without overdoing it. 

Under normal circumstances, spreading your carbs out is fine. However, it may be better for you to eat most of your carbs earlier in the day if you: 

• Exercise in the morning for more than an hour
• Want to lose weight 
• Want to control your blood sugar levels 
• Have trouble sleeping
• Have heartburn

Although many diets prescribe a certain amount of carbs daily, you don't have to obsessively count carbs to watch your intake. Consider using a 9-inch plate for your meals and try to fill roughly half of the plate with vegetables, one-fourth with protein, and one-fourth with healthy carbohydrates. If you're physically active, you can instead divide your plate into thirds and fill one-third with vegetables, one-third with protein, and one-third with healthy carbohydrates.