Reverse dieting and maintenance is…to be perfectly blunt…fucking awesome. Even so, it’s not without its mental challenges – particularly if you’re new to intentionally eating more. If you’re hitting a maintenance phase or reverse dieting out of a fat loss phase per our Nutrition Blueprint guidelines, to help manage expectations, there are a few key things you need to be very aware of as you make your way through your reverse diet/maintenance phase.
1. The point is NOT to lose weight.
These days, it feels novel to start a new nutrition approach that’s NOT targeting fat loss. That’s not to say fat loss can’t be on the table in the future, but if you’re going through a reverse diet right now, it’s likely because your body is not in a good place to attempt a fat loss phase. This might be because you’ve been chronically under-eating for months or even years, or that you need to work on solidifying some basic fundamental nutrition habits, or maybe you just completed an intentional 12 week fat loss phase and it’s time to periodize with a maintenance phase!
Regardless of the “why”, entering a reverse diet/maintenance phase with the expectation of weight loss is a huge miss and will only set you up for bouts of frustration. This brings us to #2…
2. Your weight WILL fluctuate.
Fluctuations during a reverse are normal, expected, and healthy. You can expect weight to swing by anywhere from 1-5lbs on any given day of your reverse or maintenance period. This is usually a function of water retention and nothing to panic about.
3. Upward weight fluctuations does not change the approach.
When you see a scale increase, your knee jerk reaction might be to restrict calories.
RESIST THE URGE TO DO SO!
Slashing calories and panic dieting just puts you right back into the vicious restrictive dieting cycle we’re trying to break. Remind yourself of WHY you’re reverse dieting, stay the course, and trust the process!
4. While the point isn’t fat loss, it WILL make future fat loss efforts easier.
A benefit of reverse dieting is the up-regulation of your metabolism. As you feed yourself more, your body’s total energy expenditure and maintenance needs will increase by default.
We love this, because if/when it’s appropriate to enter a fat loss phase, you can cut on MORE calories, which makes a calorie deficit much easier to stick to. Gone are the days of chasing 1200 calorie diets to lose weight!
If you’re pairing your nutrition with a consistent training routine (I.e. 4x/week at MADabolic), your reverse diet will directly support muscle mass preservation and growth – another key player in seamless future fat loss phases.
5. You will feel AMAZING.
There are infinite positives to reverse dieting and maintenance. As you continue to increase calories, pay attention to the NON-aesthetic progress markers at play:
- Your energy should improve
- Your sleep quality should improve
- Your workout performance should improve
- Your relationship with food should improve
- Your mood should improve
- Your sex drive should increase
Win, win, win, win!
