Little known secret about fat loss: ⠀
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When you are done with your cut or have reached your goal, you’re halfway there.⠀
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Hopefully that didn’t take the wind out of your sail because there is good news.⠀
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Yes, you’ve ascended the mountain, but now you get to find your way back down to a place where the air isn’t so thin and you can breathe a little easier.⠀
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This way —> to the path of reverse dieting.⠀
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What is it?⠀
Reverse dieting is the process of slowly increasing your calories from a deficit or very low, unsustainable place of maintenance that has been established, whether intentionally or not. ⠀
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How does it work?⠀
By adding in 50-150 calories/day each week or two, you slowly close the deficit gap and your body adapts to the added energy. This process results in an increase in your total daily energy expenditure (also known as TDEE or ‘maintenance’ calories).⠀
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Why do it?⠀
Our metabolism adapts to the amount of energy we give it. So under-eating at 1500 calories for example (either on purpose or not) will over time, cause your metabolism to slow and match that calorie burn. Weight loss will not continue because it won't be FEWER calories than you are burning in a day. ⠀
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Body recomposition (reduction of fat/increase in muscle or what people often mean when they say ‘toning’) will be next to impossible because you have nothing available to fuel the growth of lean tissue. ⠀
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This is known as metabolic adaptation. ⠀
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No one wants to live on poverty macros or be stuck in body-comp purgatory. ⠀
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What next? Enter the reverse diet process.⠀
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One of the highly coveted takeaways from a well-timed and -executed reverse diet is improved body recomposition. How?⠀
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You’re strategically increasing calories while still in a deficit, so if you’re prioritizing protein, you MAY continue to lose fat.⠀
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But don’t be fooled by the scale; the increased calories often result in a reduction of stress, which can trigger an early flush of water weight (not fat).⠀
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But wait, there’s more.⠀
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📍Grounding your expectations in reality based on where YOU are coming from is critical.⠀
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Next post, I’ll cover how to anticipate what you can expect based on your circumstances!