What happens in your body when you carb cycle?

Jan 5, 2025, 3:06 PM•lumen

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Carbs are your energy, not your enemy

With the rise of fad diets, many people’s views on carbohydrates have been distorted

While it’s important to avoid ultra-processed carbs, which can lead to blood sugar spikes and insulin resistance, we shouldn’t cut out healthy complex carbs that balance blood glucose and improve insulin sensitivity.

Carbohydrates are essential to our body. Mitochondria, our cells’ powerhouses, use them as a primary energy source, influencing everything from cellular function to metabolic health.

It’s all about striking a balance between high- and low-carb days so your mitochondria can shift between burning carbs and fats for fuel. This is why carb cycling has emerged as a sustainable nutrition strategy to improve metabolic flexibility.

Learn more

Carb cycling is not a one-size-fits-all approach

How to personalize your carb cycling plan

Using a metabolism tracker like Lumen can help you identify which days to eat low carb versus high carb based on your real-time metabolic measurements. When you take a breath measurement in the morning and determine whether you’re burning carbs or fats for fuel, Lumen provides a nutrition plan for the day with a breakdown of how many carbs, proteins, and fats you should consume to reach metabolic flexibility.

Head to the Lumen Journal to find out what happens in your body on low-carb and high-carb days and how to get started with your customized carb cycling plan.

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