Keto and Carb Cycling for Women
Most people are walking around in chronic sugar burning mode dependent on high-carb, sugar-laden foods. This way of eating depletes your energy, causes irritability, and prevents you from thinking clearly. Consuming high-carbohydrate, high-sugar foods causes inflammation, weight gain, accelerates aging, and results in chronic disease.
This is all due to massive fluctuations in blood sugar that occur when consuming this type of diet. To make matters worse, the addictive nature of these foods causes people to crave the very foods that are harming them. A ketogenic lifestyle with carb cycling can help reverse this damaging cycle.
To put an end to this cycle, more and more people are turning to the ketogenic diet. The ketogenic diet transitions your body from chronic sugar burning mode to relying on fat for fuel. For women, implementing a ketogenic diet can pose unique challenges. This is where carb cycling become very important.
Keto for Women
To maximize the effectiveness of the ketogenic diet, women should employ carb cycling in sync with their menstrual cycle. The female hormones estrogen and progesterone have significant impact on carbohydrate metabolism. To follow a cyclic style of ketogenic diet, you eat a very low-carb meal plan for several days, then increase your carbohydrate intake to restore and replenish glycogen in the body. The amount of carbohydrates you cycle in will depend on the phase of your menstrual cycle.
This article will discuss the ketogenic diet and how the ketogenic diet benefits women. I will discuss the importance of carb cycling for women on the ketogenic diet and how to carb cycle around your menstrual cycle. I will also explain how to get started on the ketogenic diet and give tips for success on the ketogenic diet.
Keto Vs. Standard American Diet
The typical American diet is comprised of around 55% carbohydrates, ranging from 200-350 grams a day (1). This way of eating can cause extremely harmful effects on the body. A greater intake of refined carbohydrates is associated with a 44% increased prevalence of metabolic syndrome and obesity and a 20% increased risk of developing diabetes. It is estimated that 45.4% of deaths from heart disease, stroke, and diabetes are associated with this type of unhealthy diet.
A beneficial alternative to the standard American diet is the ketogenic diet. The ketogenic diet is a nutrition and lifestyle plan that helps your body use fat (stored fat and dietary fat) rather than sugar for fuel. This plan helps the body produce ketones from fat. Ketones are byproducts of the body breaking down fat for energy. Introducing carb cycling helps to further boost metabolic health and improve fat burning.
When the body is in ketosis, it utilizes ketones as an energy source instead of sugar. Burning fat for energy is much more efficient and produces less inflammation than burning sugar.
The ketogenic diet is a high fat, low carbohydrate, moderate protein nutrition plan. 60-80% of calories are from healthy fats, 20-30% are from protein sources, and 5-10% are from net carbs (total carbs minus fiber). This style of eating encourages healthy metabolism and enables your body to function at a more efficient level.
How the Ketogenic Diet Benefits Women
A low-carb, high-fat ketogenic diet is associated with many health benefits. The ketogenic diet lowers inflammation, balances blood sugar levels and your mood, improves mental performance, gives you energy, ends cravings, helps with fat loss, slows down aging, and reduces your risk of chronic disease.
Lowers Inflammation
The ketogenic diet drastically lowers inflammation. This is important because chronic inflammation is the root cause of most chronic health conditions.
Chronic inflammation is caused by free radicals and oxidative stress. Free radicals damage cells causing illness and aging. When you are burning ketones for energy instead of glucose, there is a reduced amount of free radical production.
The ketogenic diet also lowers inflammation by stabilizing blood sugar and insulin levels. Less inflammation means more energy production and a more efficiently functioning body.
Balances Blood Sugar and Your Mood
Have you ever heard the term “HANGRY”? This term refers hunger caused anger. What is actually causing your “hunger” and irritability is blood sugar instability. Blood sugar imbalances can cause rapid changes in a person’s mood and behavior.
When you are consuming a ketogenic diet, your blood sugar and insulin levels will decrease and stabilize. This provides your brain with a stable source of energy to balance your mood and eliminates cravings for carbohydrates and sugar. Including carb cycling helps to further maintain blood sugar levels and keep you feeling stable and energized.
Improves Mental Performance
You have probably heard the terms “Mommy brain” or “brain fog”. Many women notice some decline in their cognitive abilities after having children. Even if you have not had children, you may be experiencing issues with remembering things, thinking clearly, and focus. Ketones provide steady, clean fuel to energize brain cells. You will notice improved cognitive speed, memory and focus with a ketogenic diet.
Consuming healthy fat is critical for a healthy brain. The body uses fat to make new brain tissue and insulation for nerves. Ketones can be used by brain for energy, can shut down neuro-inflammatory pathways, and stimulate BDNF (brain derived neurotrophic growth factor). This is critical because neurological inflammation has been linked with depression, anxiety and poor cognitive function (2). By reducing inflammation in the brain, a ketogenic diet can improve cognitive function.
Gives You Energy
Women need energy for the many roles we lead. A ketogenic diet can give you abundant energy. The ketogenic diet creates the metabolic flexibility to use fat for an energy source. Your body produces significantly more energy from fat as fuel than when your body is using glucose for energy.
With lower levels of inflammation and stabilized blood sugar levels, there is more Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP) production. ATP is the energy carrying molecule found in our cells. ATP is produced in the mitochondria (the energy factories of the cells).
The ketogenic diet also stimulates the growth of new and stronger mitochondria. Mitochondria have many important roles in addition to producing ATP. Mitochondria maintain glutathione levels, protect DNA, signal cell reproduction, activate cell apoptosis, and maintain cell electrochemical integrity.
Ends Carb and Sugar Cravings
Cravings for sugar and refined carbohydrates are caused by chronic blood sugar instability. Blood sugar instability signals the brain that you are starving and need food. The body naturally favors sugar over fat as an energy source so we turn to sugar and high carb foods. These foods are very addictive and a harmful cycle is created.
The perpetual cycle looks like this: When you eat sugar, your blood sugar levels spike, dopamine is released in the brain, and mass insulin is secreted to drop blood sugar levels. Next, blood sugar levels fall rapidly and high insulin levels cause immediate fat storage. Then hunger and cravings increase because of the low blood sugar levels.
The key to breaking the destructive high sugar/high carb cycle is to convert from being a sugar burner to a fat burner. Healthy fats are stable source of energy that help balance blood sugar. Transitioning from a sugar burner to a fat burner with the ketogenic diet will eliminate those cravings for carbohydrates and sugar.
Helps you Lose Weight
A ketogenic diet can help with your weight loss efforts. When in ketosis, you are burning fat for energy. The fat burned is both dietary fat and stored fat so say goodbye to body fat! You are also less hungry and feel satiated quicker and longer on a ketogenic diet. This is due to the healthy fats, protein, antioxidants and fiber in the diet.
Several studies show that a high-fat, low carb diet is superior to a low-fat, high-carb diet for improving weight loss (3). Excess body fat, particularly in the gut, is associated with toxin accumulation and hormone imbalances. Implementing the ketogenic diet can be an effective fat and weight loss strategy.
Slows Down the Aging Process
The ketogenic diet has anti-aging and longevity benefits. A recent study found that a ketogenic diet extends longevity and health span (4).Ketones create more metabolic energy and significantly less free radicals and metabolic waste than glucose metabolism (glycolysis).
This is equivalent to a vehicle that gets better performance and gas mileage and creates significantly less exhaust and carbon emissions.
Reduces Your Risk of Chronic Disease
The ketogenic lifestyle can improve many risk factors for metabolic and other chronic diseases. By reducing inflammation and improving mitochondrial function, the ketogenic diet allows the body to heal and mitigate disease processes more effectively.
Now that you know some of the benefits of a ketogenic diet and lifestyle, it is important to have guidelines for successful implementation of the ketogenic diet. For many women, one of the more important strategies you can use is carb cycling. This approach may help you get the best benefit from the ketogenic diet and lifestyle.
Carb Cycling for Women on the Ketogenic Diet
Carb cycling can be important for many women who want to be successful on the ketogenic diet. This practice is simply alternating periods of lower and higher carbohydrate content in your diet. For example, you can eat low-carb for 3 days, higher-carb for 1 day, low-carb for 3 days, or low-carb for 5 days and higher-carb for 2 days. For example, on the lower carbohydrate days, you would consume 50 or fewer grams of carbohydrates (perhaps less than 20). On the higher-carbohydrate days, you would consume 80-150 grams of carbohydrates.
The theory behind carb cycling is that it optimizes your body’s metabolic needs. While eating low carb, your body produces glucagon to help you burn fat, is more sensitive to insulin, and is more metabolically efficient.
The problem comes when you eat a low-carbohydrate diet for too long. Over long periods, your thyroid hormones may drop, you may become less sensitive to insulin, and you may gain weight. This is not the case with everyone, some women thrive in ketosis for months at a time without any of these issues. However, if you are struggling and noticing hair loss, lower energy, constipation, mental lethargy, coldness and possible weight gain then doing a carb cycling approach may be needed.
It is important to sync carb cycling with your menstrual cycle. The menstrual cycle lasts for 28 days. The female hormones estrogen and progesterone are elevated at different points during the menstrual cycle. These important hormones impact insulin sensitivity and carbohydrate metabolism. Consequently, it is important to consider your hormone levels when determining the amount of carbohydrates to include in your diet.
Follicular Phase
The first two weeks of your menstrual cycle are called the follicular phase. Menstruation lasts from days 1-5 of this phase. Estrogen levels tend to be more dominant in these two weeks but especially at the end of the follicular phase as the body prepares for ovulation. Day 1-10 are great days for fasting, keto and low-carb diets as the body doesn’t need to build a lot of hormone during this period.
The female body is naturally more insulin-sensitive during the last 4 days of the follicular phase as it needs to build up hormones for ovulation. This means it tolerates carbohydrates better during these final 4 days. Carb cycling to meet this hormonal change is an excellent strategy.
When cycling carbohydrates during the follicular phase, you may need up to 150-200 grams of net carbohydrates (total carbs – fiber). Overweight women who struggle with insulin resistance usually do better on lower levels of carbohydrates (50-80 grams net carbs when they carb cycle). Normal or underweight women may need more carbohydrates and especially so if they are very active. Again, it is important to listen to your body. The infographic below explains more about this.
The ideal foods to use to increase carb levels would be nutrient dense sources such as beets, sweet potatoes, pumpkin, squash, carrots, legumes, berries and other fruit. These have tons of key trace minerals, phytonutrients and anti-oxidants that support the body much better than grains, corn, sugar and white potatoes.
Luteal Phase
The third and fourth weeks of the menstrual cycle are called the luteal phase which occurs after ovulation. During this phase, progesterone levels are at their highest.
Right after ovulation which is on Day 14 but can vary a few days, the body becomes less insulin-sensitive and does not tolerate carbohydrates as well. It is important to reduce carbohydrate intake during this phase when insulin-sensitivity is at its lowest. I recommend practicing intermittent fasting and low-carb, keto style nutrition during days 17-22.
The final week of the luteal phase the body needs to build hormones again to prepare for menstruation and this is a great time to carb cycle and consume larger amounts of carbs and protein. The key to carb cycling during your menstrual cycle is to listen to your body. If your body is signaling that it needs more carbohydrates, you can up your intake to around 150 grams. If you are feeling great on fewer carbohydrates, keep your intake between 50-80 carbs when you cycle in carbohydrates.
We are all different and respond to the ketogenic diet in our own unique way. These suggestions are guidelines for determining what may work for you.
How to Get Started On A Ketogenic Diet
When getting started on the ketogenic diet, I recommend that you transition to the ketogenic diet slowly. It can be extremely difficult for an individual to go from hundreds of grams of carbohydrates a day to 50 or less on the standard ketogenic diet. If you are already on a low-carb diet, you can transition quicker than someone who is eating a higher carbohydrate diet.
For anyone new to a low-carb lifestyle, the best way to start is to remove sugars, refined carbohydrates and industrialized seed oils from your diet. Eliminate grains and starches like bread, pasta, potatoes, and cereals that are prevalent in the standard American diet. Replace grains and starches with low to moderate carbohydrate fruits and vegetables such as cruciferous vegetables, leafy greens, berries, and lemons.
Increase Healthy Fats
You should also increase your healthy fat intake. Healthy fats are found in things like grass-fed butter, coconut oil, MCT oil, pastured eggs, olive oil, olives, avocados, and avocado oil. High fat nuts like macadamia nuts can be great as a snack. By increasing your intake of healthy fats and decreasing your intake of carbohydrates, your body will adjust to this beneficial way of eating.
The body will begin to produce ketones within a few days of eating the ketogenic diet, but usually takes about 2-3 weeks for someone to become “keto adapted”. Keto adapted is when the body begins to convert fatty acids into ketones which are then used by the cells in the brain and body to produce energy. Once you are keto adapted, you can begin carb cycling as discussed above.
Tips for Being Successful on the Ketogenic Diet
The following tips will help you be successful on the ketogenic diet:
- Maximize nutrition and minimize toxins. To get the maximum benefits from a ketogenic diet, it is important to consume healthy fats, clean protein sources, and organic, antioxidant-rich vegetables and herbs. You do not want to consume processed animal products or commercially raised meats. It is also critical to avoid processed vegetable oils that are high in polyunsaturated fatty acids.
- Get plenty of sodium and minerals. On a low carbohydrate diet, your body will not retain sodium as it does on a high-carb diet. You will need to get plenty of sodium from generous amounts of pink Himalayan sea salt. Celery and cucumber are excellent to add to your diet because they are low carb and have natural sodium. 1-2 teaspoons of high quality salt daily is a good goal.
- Supplement with Betaine HCL, ox bile and digestive enzymes for proper digestion. I recommend Super Digest HCL for optimal fat digestion. Also include MCT oil to support ketosis. MCT oil is refined from coconut oil and provides a readily absorbed source of ketones for energy.
- Make sure you are consuming enough calories. Calorie restriction for a prolonged period can shift your body to a state of conservation and negatively affect hormone levels.
- It is critical to stay very hydrated when on a ketogenic diet. Drink at least half of your body weight in water. Try to super hydrate first thing in the morning.
Incorporating these tips along with cycling carbohydrates, can help you be successful on the ketogenic diet.
Conclusion
The ketogenic diet is a high-fat, low-carb, moderate-protein diet that influences the metabolism to promote fat burning over sugar burning. This lifestyle can be extremely beneficial to women due to the amazing health benefits associated with the ketogenic lifestyle. The ketogenic diet lowers inflammation, balances blood sugar levels and your mood, improves mental performance, gives you energy, ends cravings, helps with fat loss, slows down aging, and reduces your risk of chronic disease.
For women, following a cyclic style of ketogenic diet in sync with their menstrual cycle is important. With a cyclical ketogenic diet, you alternate low-carbohydrate days with slightly higher-carbohydrate days. This cycles the body in and out of ketosis and is beneficial for hormone levels while keeping inflammatory levels very low.
During the follicular phase of the menstrual cycle, estrogen levels tend to be more dominant, the female body is naturally more insulin-sensitive, and women may need higher amounts of carbohydrates. During the luteal phase, progesterone levels are at their highest, the body is naturally less insulin-sensitive, and does not tolerate carbohydrates as well. It is important to reduce carbohydrate intake during this phase.
Additional tips for success on a ketogenic diet are maximizing nutrition and minimizing toxins, using helpful supplements, getting adequate amounts of minerals and calories, limiting protein, and super hydrating. Cycling carbohydrates in sync with your menstrual cycle and following these tips will greatly benefit women on a ketogenic diet.
If you are looking for more great keto meal ideas than check out our complete Navigating the Ketogenic Diet program here
Sources for this Article Include
1. Masood W., Uppaluri K., Ketogenic Diet. 2018 May, Campbell University. PMID: NBK499830
2. Lucas, M., Chocano-Bedoya, P., Shulze, M. B., Mirzaei, F., O’Reilly, É. J., Okereke, O. I., … Ascherio, A, Inflammatory dietary pattern and risk of depression among women. 2014 Feb., Brain, Behavior, and Immunity, 36, 46–53. Link here
3. Steckhan, N., Hohmann, C.-D., Kessler, C., Dobos, G., Michalsen, A., & Cramer, H., Effects of different dietary approaches on inflammatory markers in patients with metabolic syndrome: A systematic review and meta-analysis. 2016, Nutrition, 32(3), 338–348. PMID: 26706026
4. Roberts, M., Wallace, M., et al., A Ketogenic Diet Extends Longevity and Healthspan in Adult Mice. 2017 Sept., Cell Metabolism, Vol. 26, Issue 3, p539-546. Link here
Great article!!!!–but I am curious as to your recommendation for someone (like myself) in menopause. Is there a best time to cycle carbs? I have been eating Keto for almost 2 years and have not done much carb cycling during this time. For the past few months I have been seeing weight gain. Thank you for any suggestions!
I have the same question since I am 62. But I am new to the diet. I have only been doing it a few weeks so far and have not been able to get my fasting blood sugar under 100.
Here you go Nancy: https://drjockers.com/high-fasting-blood-sugar/
I am 72 and have low blood sugar, would the keto diet work for me?
Yes it can be very helpful! Be sure to follow the strategies in this article here https://drjockers.com/hypoglycemia-natural-solutions/
Hi maria im 71 with stage 4 heart failure and many other things. Have been doing keto since january and have lost 40 pounds. I was in my hospital bed 18 hours a day. Wracked with pains. 100 units of insulin a day. The first month lost weight just from reducing carbs because i had no idea what i was doing. You can lose weight while you learn! Now my cardiologist doesnt was to see me every 3 months but 6 months! He was floored by the changes! I can stand up straight, dont use my power wheel chair. Sound good? God has shown me it is never too late to change! Dr jockers is a wonderful christian man. His web site has tons of info and you tube his videos. Just take one step at a time. Follow his steps , drink your water!, Take the salt, really important. Listen to your body. Dont rush through the steps. Each phase your body needs to adjust. Your body needs time to detox and rebuild, that takes time. My brain is clear of fog, i feel joyful instead of depressed.every penny i have spent on my health has been worth it! I forgot what it was like to not be in pain. Now i have very little pain except for my heart. Its only been 11 months, it will probably take more time! My very best wishes for your success. Linda pruss 👵
I am glad this topic is finally being addressed as i feel many males in this keto space haven’t given much credence to female cycles and how everyone needs to be open to trying different approaches. I think a focus on amenorrhea would be helpful also. Thank you for this article and not demonizing eating fruit, starchy carbs, etc when our bodies most need it.
Yes diet variation is key for optimal hormone balance for many people!
I would recommend once per week Alice (such as Saturday) followed by a fast until dinner time on Sunday!
I would also be interested in that above ..,in menopause…can gain weight easily if I don’t watch calorie intake .. but keeping steady for 4 years .. I do some carb cycling but it often leads to having more hunger pangs and cravings for carbs .. on keto really none of that
Hey L, we will be doing an article on this in the future!
Hello Dr. Jockers
I think it’s a great article dedicated to women’s health.
They give us love, give us a family and give us a home to be happy.
Thank you
Thanks Pascual! We have to take care of the women in our lives!!
Very good article, very complete.
Tnks
Thanks so much!!
I’ve been searching for this. Keto initially lowered FBG and slept well.. 15 months later FBG is up and sleep is awful.. cortisol!!! Carb cycling is what I need but so afraid of triggering hunger with them. I’m 53 hysterectomy kept ovaries. How often should we carb cycle when not menstruating still need to lose some weight was really only maintaining and recently put on a few lbs.. thank you for this article but is there one for us older gals.
I would recommend starting with 1 higher carb day each week and see how you respond to that!
Hello,
I’m 31 and I have noticed that my period has changed since Keto (1 year now)- its more frequent ( 2 times per month) even though I have a hormone birth control that usually stops the period. Its hard to track my period, how should I start?
That is interesting! I would discuss that with your Ob and see if it continues. Be sure to follow the strategies in this article.
Help!
When you say don’t eat too much protein what does that mean? 5’10, 170 lbs and 40yrs
Do you offer private sessions ?
Thanks!
Best to stay around 1 gram per kg of body weight. So roughly 70-80 grams per day for you. You can find out about our health coaches here: https://drjockers.com/functional-nutrition-tips-to-find-a-great-health-coach/
How about post menopausal women with hypothyroidism? I lose about 20lbs then stall. It’s frustrating. Maybe carb cycling will help.
Hey Cindi, here is a helpful article to figure this out: https://drjockers.com/weight-loss-hacks/
Hi Dr,
I am 33 years old.
I’ve been on keto for 6 months and it has worked great for me except for the last 3 months my period skipped & I just recently got it.
Would you advise to carb cycle in order for this not to happen?
Yes I would Jennifer! Try one higher carb, higher calorie day per week
I have a mirena IUD and do not menstruate so what would you suggest?
I would focus on carb cycling in a way that you feel best with. It may be 6 low carb days and one carb up day each week…that is usually a good place to begin.
What if I am 28 yo, underwight and tired woman, who is frequently felling cold? Can I do keto? Can keto help me to get my life back?
Sorry to hear about your struggles Sharona. Yes a keto lifestyle can very much help but I would be cautious as you get started with keto. Here are some helpful articles to review. Supporting adrenal health on keto and how to prevent weight loss on keto: https://drjockers.com/adrenal-health/ & https://drjockers.com/prevent-weight-loss-on-keto-top-10-strategies-to-apply/
Thank you for this resource. The information about the “healthy” cycle being 28 days long and each phase starting and ending on a specific number of days is misguided and can be confusing for young woman who don’t track their fertility. I’ve tracked my cycle for years as natural birth control and there are months where it varies in length and ovulation. I feel it would be beneficial for your readers to be aware of this and the best advice would be to learn about their unique cycle by tracking and apply your advice to their specific patterns. After all, a woman’s cycle is so personal and can vary greatly from woman to woman and many different circumstances. A good resource for tracking is the book “Taking Control of Your Fertility” by Toni Weschler and YouTube has a few great women that explain the process very clearly. Thank you for the information about carb cycling. It’s an invaluable resource and makes so much sense as to why I’ve failed at a few attempts to just drop to the standard less than 20 carbs and struggle through it.
Thank you so much for sharing Leslie! Blessings!
I have been keto since early March with 32lb loss. I am interested in cycling so that my body remembers what to do with carbs and hopefully not have future at gain. I am on Progesterone for birth control. Does this mean I would be more sensitive to carbs at all times..meaning, still to really keep the net carbs low?
Hey Gail, You may be more carb sensitive while taking this medication. However, every individual is unique and you should do what works best for you!
Thank you for the strategies and info but got confused towards the end of the article so I’m unsure how to apply carb intake during my menstrual cycle. Could you please rephrase?
Thanks for your feedback, we will take a look at that. Here is another article that explains how to do this: https://drjockers.com/menstrual-cycle/
Thank you for this great article. I’m 38 and would like to carb cycling for reasons like prevent hair loss and period going missing. I only have 5lbs to lose but it won’t budge for me at all. I’m pretty skinny and workout 5 days a week. Strength training 3 days and 2 days HiTT. Would I benefit from carb cycling? Don’t want to gain weight but don’t mind gaining muscles and shedding belly fat from pregnancy. That looks like shaggy skin mostly. I love the benefits from keto but carb cycling will kick you out of keto which makes me nervous. I did 2 days carb up last month and I was kicked out for a full day. Is it bad to be in and out of ketosis. Thanks in advance
Yes carb cycling around your menstrual period is a very good strategy to help improve lean body mass!
Please clarify the instructions for carb cycling with your mensural cycle. Should I be consuming higher carb on all feast days listed (days 11-14 and 22-28) or picking one day out of each range to go higher carb? I’ve been keto for 5 years and have started gaining quite a bit of weight in the last year without changing my diet. I’m willing to try this strategy, but want to make sure I have the correct information. TIA!
Hello Melissa – yes, try doing higher carb on those days and see how you respond. Over time, you can experiment and see what works best for you.