Tried many diets still you are struggling with weight gain. Then why not give a try to another diet. Yes, another new diet is still fresh in the market to react with your metabolism. The diet is called the metabolic confusion diet. From the name itself, we can say that it changes your metabolic rate by changing your calorie intake. Read further to check whether it really confuses the metabolism and results in weight loss or is it really a metabolic confusion diet?
What Is Metabolic Confusion Diet?
The metabolic confusion diet is the diet having some similarities with intermediate fasting. But it is not equal to intermediate fasting in which you will be in complete fasting or consuming very low calories before regular meals. In a metabolic confusion diet, you fixed to the low and high calories between alternate days or between certain periods of time. It is also known as calorie cycling and calorie shifting.
To elaborate on this in detail, in the metabolic confusion diet, you suggested taking 2000 calories or more on high-calorie intake days and restricting it to 1200 calories on low-calorie intake days. The calories count may vary for every individual. There is no defined guideline for calories; the most suggested calories are 2000 and 1200 for high and low calories intake days. Doing regular exercise along with this restrictive diet has better results than without exercise, though it is not a compulsion.
How Do You Eat With Metabolic Confusion Diet?
When we talk about diet, we may think that there is some restriction or we need to follow some nutrition-based diet plan. But it is not the case here; we can take whatever foods we like with some restricted calories on cyclic days. That means if you are having a high-calorie intake one day and the next day you have to follow a low-calorie intake.
The metabolic confusion diet has no strict rules on the calorie count. It varies for everyone based on age, gender, and activity level. You have guidelines from the US Department of Health and Human Services from which you can get some information on what is low-calorie or high-calorie intake.
Generally, it requires 2000 to 3000 calories for an adult, for metabolic confusion diet mostly suggested restricting around 1200 calories on low intake days and 2000 calories on high intake days. And this diet should follow in cycles between days or weeks or months. For example, if you are eating high calorie 2000 in one day and the next day you will be taking low calorie 1200, likewise, it can follow on weekly basis or monthly.
Does Metabolic Confusion Really Work For Weight Loss?
It will be the doubt that everyone may have whether the metabolic confusion diet works in reducing the weight. To get evidence for this, we will see what the studies are saying.
In one study, a group of people followed the metabolic confusion diet or calorie cycling. In that, they ate low calories for 11 days and high calories for three days. The other group followed a restricted-calorie diet. The result of the study showed that both groups show the same weight loss. And also study proved that the group that followed the metabolic confusion found no change in their resting metabolic rate. The resting metabolic rate is defined as the rate at which the body burns energy when the body is at complete rest. Doing exercise has a positive result on RMR and thereby it contributes the most to weight loss and decreasing body mass.
In another study, women followed a low-calorie diet for one month and a moderate diet for the next month. They continued for five months with three hours of exercise per week and their result showed that they lose weight without getting affected their metabolic rate.
Learn More About This…
Though the studies are showing positive results in weight loss, we cannot come to conclusion with this limited study. More studies require studying humans as they are of different sizes, genders, environments, and genes. In addition to these, there are other factors that affect weight loss and they are leptin and dopamine.
Leptin: Leptin is a hormone that signals the brain when you have reached the intake threshold. The production of leptin increases when you are eating more than usual and it will sustain for long hours. During calorie cycling or metabolic confusion, the leptin produced on high-calorie days makes you feel satisfied on the next day.
Dopamine: Dopamine is a pleasure chemical that releases from the body when your stomach is full. Dopamine is also released when you are in physical activity, so you can feel full with low calories by doing exercise.
To answer whether it works or not, from the studies and experts, the conclusion is that calorie shifting is better than a restricted-calorie diet in reducing weight. At the same time, there is a lack of studies and evidence.
Benefits Of Metabolic Confusion Diet
More flexible: There is no restriction of food choices in the metabolic confusion diet as in other traditional calorie-restricted diets. You can choose the high and low-calorie intake as you wish.
Less hunger: You are free to choose the low-calorie diet for limited days without making you feel hungry. You can avoid binging and overeating. You may not feel stomach bangs and low energy. Similarly, the high-calorie intake is also designed well planned which will not be like cheat days. In a cheat-days diet, you will take an unlimited amount of food and feel overfull.
Fewer feelings of deprivation: if you are following well designed metabolic confusion diet you can prevent the feeling of deprivation. It is necessary to eat more than 2000 calories on higher intake days matching your age, sex, activity levels, and body size.
Conclusion
As the name suggests, in metabolic confusion diet, you will not see drastic changes in metabolism. You will have a steady metabolic rate and attain your weight loss due to low-calorie intake. If you want to lose weight without following any strict restricted-calorie diet, then the best option is a metabolic confusion diet.
Also Read: Try The Mediterranean App To Easy Your Mediterranean Diet Plan
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The article written by me is for information purposes only. It is not intended to provide medical advice. The reader should always consult a Medical practitioner concerning any medical condition.