Why would eating a low carb diet with adequate calories, trigger a starvation response? I would think this is only true if the appetite suppression you experience, leads to a very low calorie intake to the point where you ARE in starvation mode.

I am more inclined to believe what that Ellis fellow said, that people given license to eat as much fatty food as they desire, overeat and take in more calories than they can burn. And that this results in a failure to lose at the point where their lower body mass burns the same as their intake. I know from personal experience, that I can still eat like a 215lb person. But I'm not that much of a man anymore, so I am training myself to eat portions commensurate with my current weight.

One thing that jumping back and forth between carbs and fats as primary energy source might do, is to keep you from metabolizing the fats efficiently. The long-term response of increased enzyme production might never kick in if you keep your body thinking it is going back to carbs as the energy source. This may keep the "metabolic advantage" at its maximum.

One thing the carb cycling may offer, is a way for people who are mentally unprepared or otherwise unable to stick to low carb for life, to be able to utilize lc as a weight loss tool. Knowing you can have your carby foods now and then, probably is a lot easier to live with for many folks.