Of refeeds and diet breaks
Replies
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Week after Diet Break: (Data for those interested) (All days eating somewhere around 1200 give or take 50)
Day 1: 193.6 weighed in am
Day 2: 192.4
Day 3: 191.8 (my pre-diet break weight was 191.5)
Day 4: 192.2
Day 5: 191
Day 6: 191
Day 7: 191.4
This morning: 190.6!
Takeaways:
1) I struggled to eat at 1200 deficit and was very hungry most of the week. Just like the first week I started (Aug 1).
2) @anubis609 I'm a wine drinker and during my diet-break I went back to drinking a glass or two every night. I continued it this week, but I can't do that again and have enough calories to eat my nutrition goals. I'm going back to saving it for the weekends. Food much more important.
Looking forward to Thursday! Yum Yum. I am planning an additional 100 cal deficit leading up to Thursday so I can eat them back Thursday and Friday leftovers. (I'm not even going to pretend that I'm going to even try to track calories Thursday)
@Nony_Mouse Great pics!
I will check in from week to week from now until my next diet break, but don't worry, I won't be giving you a day by day playback.
Peace out.
Do you need to be eating that low? What are your current stats?0 -
Do you need to be eating that low? What are your current stats?[/quote]
I'm not sure what you mean? Height? 5'0"0 -
Haha well spotted. Though, I must say I’m also quite articulate when I’m not sober on the rare occasion
Though, that’s just carryover from years of experience... consider it periodized sobriety 
Your articulateness was never in question, sober or not
I've read everything you've posted on here with great interest, both for the content and because you express yourself very well. I consider myself your fan 5 -
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I am both delightfully and horrendously puffy. Whooshed 1lb off of 3lb bloat already though. And after week off to sleep 12 hours a day and feel like utter crap I got a workout in today. Can no longer feel my legs.8
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VintageFeline wrote: »
Sorry, height, weight, incidental activity (steps per day/active job) and any exercise. If you do exercise do you eat any of those calories back?[/quote]
5'0" 190# Desk job, I try to keep active after work, but I don't do traditional exercise yet because I have hip problems. I plan on adding exercise when my hip can handle it.3 -
Morning all. I am a puffy, bloated beached whale, and my quad still hurts like a mofo. To the point that I think it would be unwise to strength train today, and will probably drive to work to rest the stupid muscle completely. Bah. I will use the opportunity to do some errands in the next town over beforehand and take some heavy things in (bench top blender I never use at home so I can make protein shakes with the free work milk), so I don't feel so bad not walking on a pristine day.
Thank god I'm on diet break so I can still eat a decent amount even if I end up barely moving.
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collectingblues wrote: »Up two pounds this morning. Am reminding myself that it's water weight/fluctuations, and that hey, it's still a pound lower than last week's peak, which also was coincidentally on a Monday, as were the two weeks before. (AKA: Why I freak out on Mondays.)
So went down the Google rabbit hole, and found this: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24504358
Was very reassuring to see that this Monday peak cyclical peak could just be a normal fluctuation, and that I'm not some freak of the universe.
Very interesting. I was way up this morning, but I had a really salty dinner last night. I'm so bloated that I had to change the hole I use to strap on my Fitbit.
And of course, today was the day I had to go to a doctor's office and face a weigh in there 4 -
collectingblues wrote: »Up two pounds this morning. Am reminding myself that it's water weight/fluctuations, and that hey, it's still a pound lower than last week's peak, which also was coincidentally on a Monday, as were the two weeks before. (AKA: Why I freak out on Mondays.)
So went down the Google rabbit hole, and found this: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24504358
Was very reassuring to see that this Monday peak cyclical peak could just be a normal fluctuation, and that I'm not some freak of the universe.
That's actually a really good find. I assure you most people tend to fluctuate up after the weekends simply because most relaxed and social occasions happen then. By contrast, most people tend to be at their leanest toward the end of the week, Thur/Fri/Sat, depending on what day they observe to be the end of their work week/beginning of relaxation 1 -
Nony_Mouse wrote: »Morning all. I am a puffy, bloated beached whale, and my quad still hurts like a mofo. To the point that I think it would be unwise to strength train today, and will probably drive to work to rest the stupid muscle completely. Bah. I will use the opportunity to do some errands in the next town over beforehand and take some heavy things in (bench top blender I never use at home so I can make protein shakes with the free work milk), so I don't feel so bad not walking on a pristine day.
Thank god I'm on diet break so I can still eat a decent amount even if I end up barely moving.
Optionally, you could do an upper body strength routine, but that's dependent on how the rest of your body feels lol.
Today is apparently #puffday for most haha.Haha well spotted. Though, I must say I’m also quite articulate when I’m not sober on the rare occasion Though, that’s just carryover from years of experience... consider it periodized sobriety
Your articulateness was never in question, sober or not I've read everything you've posted on here with great interest, both for the content and because you express yourself very well. I consider myself your fan
Ah, thank you @HDBKLM You have my condolences and my gratitude on your taste 
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I thought about just working around the quad @anubis609, but figure I'll train tomorrow all going well, and just do back to back days for workouts A and B this week.
Puff will hopefully subside today or tomorrow. Stupid cycle has decided to change again after lulling me into a false sense of security by staying the same three months in a row. My feet are so chubs I don't even want to wear shoes. Luckily, no one seems to be enforcing that whole shoes at work thing anymore (technically it's a construction site, I got told off for wandering around barefoot outside early last year when my lab was first moved to that complex).2 -
collectingblues wrote: »Up two pounds this morning. Am reminding myself that it's water weight/fluctuations, and that hey, it's still a pound lower than last week's peak, which also was coincidentally on a Monday, as were the two weeks before. (AKA: Why I freak out on Mondays.)
So went down the Google rabbit hole, and found this: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24504358
Was very reassuring to see that this Monday peak cyclical peak could just be a normal fluctuation, and that I'm not some freak of the universe.
That's actually a really good find. I assure you most people tend to fluctuate up after the weekends simply because most relaxed and social occasions happen then. By contrast, most people tend to be at their leanest toward the end of the week, Thur/Fri/Sat, depending on what day they observe to be the end of their work week/beginning of relaxation
I was really interested to see that the effect was more pronounced in those who were looking to lose or maintain.
I don't tend to go up on calories during the weekend (the weekend is usually when I'm having to remind myself that Oh, Right. Food needs to happen), but I do tend to do more things involving body weight -- moving furniture, mowing the lawn, back to back workout days, etc -- so I could totally buy some temporary swelling from that increased usage.1 -
GottaBurnEmAll wrote: »collectingblues wrote: »Up two pounds this morning. Am reminding myself that it's water weight/fluctuations, and that hey, it's still a pound lower than last week's peak, which also was coincidentally on a Monday, as were the two weeks before. (AKA: Why I freak out on Mondays.)
So went down the Google rabbit hole, and found this: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24504358
Was very reassuring to see that this Monday peak cyclical peak could just be a normal fluctuation, and that I'm not some freak of the universe.
Very interesting. I was way up this morning, but I had a really salty dinner last night. I'm so bloated that I had to change the hole I use to strap on my Fitbit.
And of course, today was the day I had to go to a doctor's office and face a weigh in there
Yeah, tonight I've got the MRI on my foot. If they ask a weight, I am *so* giving them Sunday's number instead. 2 -
That's actually a really good find. I assure you most people tend to fluctuate up after the weekends simply because most relaxed and social occasions happen then. By contrast, most people tend to be at their leanest toward the end of the week, Thur/Fri/Sat, depending on what day they observe to be the end of their work week/beginning of relaxation
Yep, that's me. Monday is almost always my highest weight of the week, and I'll hold that usually until about Wednesday. Thursday is down and Friday/Saturday are my lowest of the week. So I use Thursday as my weigh day 2 -
collectingblues wrote: »collectingblues wrote: »Up two pounds this morning. Am reminding myself that it's water weight/fluctuations, and that hey, it's still a pound lower than last week's peak, which also was coincidentally on a Monday, as were the two weeks before. (AKA: Why I freak out on Mondays.)
So went down the Google rabbit hole, and found this: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24504358
Was very reassuring to see that this Monday peak cyclical peak could just be a normal fluctuation, and that I'm not some freak of the universe.
That's actually a really good find. I assure you most people tend to fluctuate up after the weekends simply because most relaxed and social occasions happen then. By contrast, most people tend to be at their leanest toward the end of the week, Thur/Fri/Sat, depending on what day they observe to be the end of their work week/beginning of relaxation
I was really interested to see that the effect was more pronounced in those who were looking to lose or maintain.
I don't tend to go up on calories during the weekend (the weekend is usually when I'm having to remind myself that Oh, Right. Food needs to happen), but I do tend to do more things involving body weight -- moving furniture, mowing the lawn, back to back workout days, etc -- so I could totally buy some temporary swelling from that increased usage.
Ah, then it's possible that residual fluid retention from muscle is carrying over. But typically the weekends tend to be different from the average work week in terms of activity/mind set.
Since on the topic of maintenance and diet breaks, Sohee Lee just posted this and I thought it was appropriate given the holiday season:4 -
I'm 3 days in to my diet break and I'm kinda panicking. I'm up slightly, which is to be expected. This just goes against so much ingrained diet "knowledge" that I've acquired over the years. I've finally started adding strength training into my routine and everything hurts, in a good way.
I've run my numbers to try to determine my maintenance and I'm not sure if I trust the numbers. I tend to want to make things harder than they have to be. When in doubt, is it better to go a bit over or a bit under for a diet break? I'm sure Thursday and Friday will be over, but not sure what I should attempt for the rest of the week.
I guess it all doesn't SUPER DUPER matter, once I'm back to my deficit things will work themselves out. I just need to remind myself I won't pack on 20 lbs in the next week.
It's a little heartening to see everything else is a little up this week as well, maybe the earths mass has suddenly increased which influences gravity which of course influences weight. At least I'm in good company.6 -
I'd say a little over given we're trying to reset all the hormones and shiz. And like you say, rationally you can't pack on 20lbs of fat in two weeks. Just keep repeating that to yourself.
New strength training = water. More food = water and just food in your system. Stress about scale increase = water. It's the great water trifecta.
I'm literally a human balloon over here today. If one of the cats scratches me I might pop like a water balloon and flood the place.3 -
If the photo loads, this was me 2 days before giving birth. I was retaining all the water in southeastern Pennsylvania. Hyperbole but not much. If you can see my feet, they were rising up out of my shoes like loaves of dough. I couldn't even close my jaw properly so smiling was awkward. All this to say, I feel ya on the water retention. I remember having words with one of the nurses during a prenatal appointment when the scale jumped 11 pounds in a week - she lectured me on my eating habits - as if I had consumed 35,000 extra calories in 7 days.3 -
eponine1984 wrote: »
If the photo loads, this was me 2 days before giving birth. I was retaining all the water in southeastern Pennsylvania. Hyperbole but not much. If you can see my feet, they were rising up out of my shoes like loaves of dough. I couldn't even close my jaw properly so smiling was awkward. All this to say, I feel ya on the water retention. I remember having words with one of the nurses during a prenatal appointment when the scale jumped 11 pounds in a week - she lectured me on my eating habits - as if I had consumed 35,000 extra calories in 7 days.
When I was my biggest my feet would look like that after a flight. Sexy.3 -
Definitely better off over-shooting cals on a diet break. You need your body to recognise that the food shortage is over so those hormones will come back in line.
Consoled myself for bloatiness by finally buying new shorts. Two pairs, different lengths, one size 10 NZ, the other size 9. The 10s fit perfectly so hopefully won't loosen up too much with wear. The 9s in the longer style were necessary because the 10s were way too loose around the bottom of my thighs, look fine and will loosen off a bit around the top anyway (and hopefully not around the cuffs!). Why can't they just make things for my hourglass hips?? Oh, and 10s were tried on a few days ago before bloatiness but not bought. They were out of 9s in black so I was dilly dalying not being sure if they'd be a better fit allowing for loosening.4 -
eponine1984 wrote: »I'm 3 days in to my diet break and I'm kinda panicking. I'm up slightly, which is to be expected. This just goes against so much ingrained diet "knowledge" that I've acquired over the years. I've finally started adding strength training into my routine and everything hurts, in a good way.
I've run my numbers to try to determine my maintenance and I'm not sure if I trust the numbers. I tend to want to make things harder than they have to be. When in doubt, is it better to go a bit over or a bit under for a diet break? I'm sure Thursday and Friday will be over, but not sure what I should attempt for the rest of the week.
I guess it all doesn't SUPER DUPER matter, once I'm back to my deficit things will work themselves out. I just need to remind myself I won't pack on 20 lbs in the next week.
It's a little heartening to see everything else is a little up this week as well, maybe the earths mass has suddenly increased which influences gravity which of course influences weight. At least I'm in good company.
The more reliable measurement of maintenance is to track your weight over a few days minimum up to a week, and take the running average. Calculators are fine for providing a rough estimate of what to aim for but individual response is always going to be the determining factor. Since we're not machines, weight is going to fluctuate up and down.
Just remember if you were on a hard cut/deficit prior to a diet break, maintenance calories might look something like 25 - 100% more than your current intake. Think of a bowl or glass of water filled halfway or a little over. That empty space represents your deficit. If you dropped some ice cubes in there, you'll see that the water will rise.. if you drop enough ice cubes in all at once to get the water up to level, you'll see some spill out because of displacement - this represents weight fluctuation. The water will settle eventually and be level with the rim of the bowl/glass - this will represent your maintenance.
So it's going to take at least a few days for your body to settle into the new caloric influx.. once it's at a settling point, you can fine tune the calories over a few more days to see if your weight stays at that range, if it's still fluctuating, then take the average of those ups and downs.
Sometimes maintenance is a more difficult concept to grasp, but try not to freak out about it is about the best way I can put it. Most of us have been on a deficit for a long time.. relieve yourself of deficit hell and enjoy (not binge) the relaxed increase in calories.7 -
Oh and driving to work was absolutely the right choice. Damn quad doesn't even want to let me walk properly.1
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Seems appropriate given the time of the month lol.. courtesy of Lyle. I haven't read it yet.
https://www.dropbox.com/s/o8ox71dd806ygyj/Stachon.MenstrualChangesBodyCompositionFemaleAthlets.pdf?dl=03 -
Seems appropriate given the time of the month lol.. courtesy of Lyle. I haven't read it yet.
https://www.dropbox.com/s/o8ox71dd806ygyj/Stachon.MenstrualChangesBodyCompositionFemaleAthlets.pdf?dl=0
He's done some podcasts on this and of course the book (come on with the book!) will detail it all too. He also drops snippets in his FB group. It's pretty fascinating.2 -
VintageFeline wrote: »Seems appropriate given the time of the month lol.. courtesy of Lyle. I haven't read it yet.
https://www.dropbox.com/s/o8ox71dd806ygyj/Stachon.MenstrualChangesBodyCompositionFemaleAthlets.pdf?dl=0
He's done some podcasts on this and of course the book (come on with the book!) will detail it all too. He also drops snippets in his FB group. It's pretty fascinating.
That book is designated as a Christmas present to myself (I'll pretend it's from the cats), so it had better not be far away!!
Speaking of cats, my youngest fur child is now counting calories too, because he's turned into a wee butterball post officially joining the family and moving inside (indoor/outdoor). Are cats allowed MFP profiles?4 -
I thought I'd post something after stalking this post for a while. A couple of weeks ago I finished my first diet break after being in a deficit for about 4 months. Was planning on 2 weeks but cut it off after 10 days after having a huge binge... it freaked me out. Something I will need to work on before I am maintaining full time.
Anyways, after reading through this I decided to refeed on the weekends. I've been hanging out around 192-195 lbs for probably a month and a half. I am going to tighten up logging though and try to get to 185 lbs before vacation in mid January.
It's been great reading all the advice on here, I've learned quite a bit!11 -
Oh and P.S. I am an INFP as well. It's been a while since I took the test but I am pretty sure I was near 100% introverted which is accurate 4
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Welcome out of the woodwork @dancefit2015 4
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Nony_Mouse wrote: »VintageFeline wrote: »Seems appropriate given the time of the month lol.. courtesy of Lyle. I haven't read it yet.
https://www.dropbox.com/s/o8ox71dd806ygyj/Stachon.MenstrualChangesBodyCompositionFemaleAthlets.pdf?dl=0
He's done some podcasts on this and of course the book (come on with the book!) will detail it all too. He also drops snippets in his FB group. It's pretty fascinating.
That book is designated as a Christmas present to myself (I'll pretend it's from the cats), so it had better not be far away!!
Speaking of cats, my youngest fur child is now counting calories too, because he's turned into a wee butterball post officially joining the family and moving inside (indoor/outdoor). Are cats allowed MFP profiles?
Good luck getting a solid time frame out of him lol. My cat is a large butterball.. I think he's embraced the HAES movement and has conceptualized "hangry" through nipping at my calves if food isn't in his bowl in a timely manner.
@VintageFeline - yup, I lurk in the group all day, but just in case whoever is still in request limbo may not be able to see some of the pertinent stuff. Other than that, I make odd comments here and there, but I have nothing substantial to add haha.2
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