Are you a curvy individual who is tired of the constant struggle to lose weight? The concept of metabolic confusion for endomorphs can help make your journey less of a struggle. Metabolic confusion is a dietary pattern that will help you fight your biggest enemy as an endomorph: carbohydrate sensitivity.
What is metabolic confusion for endomorphs? How does it work and what are some tips to make sure you gain maximum benefits? Keep reading to find out.
What is an Endomorph
Endomorphs are described as full-figured, small-waisted, and curvaceous. They have a pear-shaped round body with medium to large bone structure. Other physical characteristics attributed to endomorphs include short limbs and small shoulders. However, all endomorphs do not have short limbs. Some have long limbs and can be taller.
All endomorphs have an uneven distribution of weight. Most of them carry a large proportion of weight in their lower abdomen, thighs, and hips.
From a metabolic perspective, endomorphs usually suffer from insulin and carbohydrate sensitivity. Their bodies have a natural tendency to store most of the consumed carbs in the form of fat rather than storing them. As a consequence, people with this body type are more prone to gaining weight.
What is Metabolic Confusion
When it comes to metabolic confusion for endomorphs, most people get confused about what it actually is. Metabolic confusion is a way of eating in which you alternate the calories you consume daily to ‘confuse’ their body’s metabolic processes.
When your body consumes a similar number of calories every single day, it adjusts its resting metabolic rate according to it. This often leads to weight loss plateau in which you are unable to lose weight no matter how hard you try. In these circumstances, the best solution is to confuse your basal metabolism by eating a variable amount of calories every single day.
Consuming different calories on different days resets your metabolisms over and over again and helps make weight loss easier. This strategy makes metabolic confusion for endomorphs the ideal weight loss strategy.
Best Approach for Metabolic Confusion for Endomorphs
By now, it is clear that metabolic confusion for endomorphs is extremely beneficial for effective weight loss. So the next question to raise is what is the best approach to effective metabolic confusion for endomorphs?
The answer is simple: carb cycling.
What is Carb Cycling?
Carb cycling refers to a dietary approach in which you consume varying amounts of carbohydrates on a daily, weekly, or even monthly basis. This is an effective approach to lose weight, improve physical performance, or break the weight loss plateau.
The Science Behind Carb Cycling
Carb cycling is a relatively innovative dietary approach based on strong evidence. The science behind this method involves the biological mechanisms directly related to carbohydrate manipulation.
In carb cycling, you designate low-carb days and high-carb days. In the former, you limit your carbohydrate intake whereas, in the latter, you eat more carbohydrates. The cycle continues throughout your diet.
Carbohydrate cycling is an attempt to match your body’s requirements for glucose or calories. For instance, it focuses on supplying carbohydrates on your workout days when your body needs it the most. Doing this refuels your muscle glycogen and minimizes the risk of muscle breakdown.
Strategically alternating the number of carbs you consume daily also improves the functioning of leptin and ghrelin, the hormones that regulate appetite. [1] [2] This, in turn, helps you lose weight.
On the other hand, the low carb days help your body switch to a system that predominantly uses fat to generate energy. This improves metabolic flexibility and increases the body’s ability to burn fat as fuel. [3]
Another mechanism through which carb cycling works is the manipulation of insulin. Eating the minimal amount of carbs on low-carb days and focusing on a higher carb intake on workout days improve insulin sensitivity and, in turn, controls body weight. [4]
In short, carb cycling is the best technique to create metabolic confusion for endomorphs and maximize the benefits of the carbs in their bodies.
How to Cycle Carbs
The exact schedule of carb cycling depends on your training schedule. For example, consider a 7-day carb cycling method in which you eat a low amount of carbs (around 75 to 100 grams per day) in the first two days and on days five and six. Then, you increase your daily carb consumption on days four and seven to 175 to 225 grams per day.
Shown below is an example of a 7-day carb cycling plan to attain metabolic confusion for endomorphs.
- First Day: 75 grams
- Second Day: 100 grams
- Third Day: 75 grams
- Fourth Day: 200 grams
- Fifth Day: 100 grams
- Sixth Day: 75 grams
- Seventh Day: 225 grams
10 Tips for Practicing Metabolic Confusion for Endomorphs
To create effective metabolic confusion for endomorphs through carb cycling, the following tips must be kept in mind.
1. High Carb Days Should be on High Training Volume Days
When you are performing a high-intensity exercise, your body generates most of its energy from carbs. It either breaks the carbs using oxygen or without it, eventually leading to the production of lactic acid. While this process is occurring, introducing a high amount of carbs into the body is beneficial as they will be immediately broken down to release energy instead of being stored as fat. [5] For this reason, try to schedule your high carb days on days where you plan on exercising and try to have a more intense workout.
2. Choose Complex Carbs Low Glycemic for your Diet
Complex carbohydrates, also known as polysaccharides and starches, are the type of carbohydrates that contain at least three or more sugars. They have long structures and low glycemic indexes due to which they are easily digested and absorbed more slowly by the body as compared to simple carbs. Due to this feature, using complex carbs do not cause spikes in the blood sugar and insulin levels.
Some best sources of complex carbohydrates include:
- whole grains like brown rice, oats, and wheat
- beans and legumes like peanuts, chickpeas, and peas
- nuts and seeds like chia seeds, cashews, and walnuts
3. Drink at least 64 ounces of water each day
Around 60% of the average adult body consists of water. Water forms a major content of your heart, brain, skin, muscle, and lungs. Even 30% of your bones are made up of water. Besides being the major component of the human body, water is also responsible for other functions like regulation of internal temperature, transportation of nutrients, the formation of saliva, lubrication of joints, etc.
Additionally, water is extremely helpful for weight loss. It is calorie-free, an appetite suppressant when consumed before meals, and a beverage that helps you burn more calories overall.
Therefore, it is important to drink at least 64 ounces of water daily, irrespective of whether it is a low-carb or a high-carb day.
4. Avoid dropping calories too low on low carb days
While carb cycling is an efficient way to induce metabolic confusion for endomorphs, you must take care never to drop calories too low on low-carb days. As a general rule of thumb, there must never be more than 33% of the difference in the total calories you consume from one day to another. A variance higher this can hurt your recovery process and make it difficult for you to follow carb cycling for a longer duration of time.
Therefore, it is advised to at least eat 68 percent of your normal energy intake, even on low-carb days.
5. Eat carbs earlier in the day
Research has proven that your body is naturally more efficient at burning carbs in the morning hours and burning fat in the evening. This means that you must consume more carbs as early as possible during the day to optimize fat burning. [6]
6. Avoid large meals before directly before bedtime
Several studies have indicated that weight gain mostly occurs when you eat more calories close to bedtime. So, you must avoid eating larger meals in the evening to maximize fat loss.[7]
7. Keep fat intake low on high carb days
On high carb days, you must make sure not to eat too much fat. The main reason is eating high amounts of fat and carbs together can lead to increased cravings in the brain. Increased cravings mean overeating which can make weight loss more difficult.
8. Consume large amounts of leafy green veggies on high carb days
Leafy green vegetables are rich sources of minerals, vitamins, and antioxidants. They have a high amount of fiber that improves the digestive processes and improves satiety; hence, it helps in weight loss. Consuming fiber also slows down the rate of absorption of carbohydrates and controls blood sugar levels which help endomorphs lose weight.
Some fiber-rich leafy green vegetables include lettuce, spinach, and kale.
9. Eat Lean Protein at Every Meal
Research has indicated that diets with higher levels of protein improves satiety and keeps you fuller for longer durations of time. Experts believe that a diet rich in protein and low in carbohydrates can cause more weight loss. So make sure to include lean protein in your daily meals.
10. Eliminate Refined Carbs and Sugary Drinks
While carb cycling does permit you to eat carbohydrates to lose weight, not all carbohydrates are suitable for it. Refined carbohydrates and every food item that contains it such as sodas, pasta, cookies, etc. are strictly prohibited as they cause sugar spikes in the blood and make weight loss extremely difficult. So, these foods must be avoided at all costs.
Concluding Thoughts on Metabolic Confusion for Endomorphs
Metabolic confusion for endomorphs is a great way to lose those stubborn pounds that fail to go away with any other method. The best way to achieve metabolic confusion for endomorphs is carb cycling. By simply varying the number of carbs you eat daily, you can now achieve the physique of your dreams. So try it out now!
