Is it true it's best to change up calories?

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Someone told me recently that it's best if you change up your calories daily, while maintaining a deficit. For example eating 2000 calories one day, then 500 the next, then 1200 after that. So overall 3700 over 3 days so remaining in deficit but he said this way your body/metabolism doesn't get used to lower calories and it helps you lose weight quicker. Is this true?
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  • Momepro
    Momepro Posts: 1,509 Member
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    Why would that help? Just eat less than you burn, and theres nothing extra to store.
  • lizzyleveille
    lizzyleveille Posts: 3 Member
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    But there is no reason to eat 500 caps a day
  • lizzyleveille
    lizzyleveille Posts: 3 Member
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    *Cals
  • sardelsa
    sardelsa Posts: 9,812 Member
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    I calorie cycle in a deficit.. but I do it for adherence and better workout performance.
  • sdolan91
    sdolan91 Posts: 250 Member
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    nope. you can't "confuse" your body lol. your body does the same thing everyday regardless of what you're gonna eat.
    eat in a deficit and youll lose weight. look at your calories for a week instead of a day. i "bank" calories during the week to eat/drink more on the weekends and i still lose weight.
  • PoppyFlower1
    PoppyFlower1 Posts: 62 Member
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    Even when I was severely anorexic, I rarely ate 500 calories a day. That is so little food it's not a good plan (which is why I'm glad to see the 5:2 diet doesn't seem as trendy anymore...)

    Consistency is fine! Sometimes there's variation--appetites can cycle a bit, or exercise calories may change intake. Just follow MFP guidelines and you'll be groovy.

    Aww congrats on beating anorexia that's amazing x
  • vingogly
    vingogly Posts: 1,785 Member
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    Other names for it are "calorie shifting" or "calorie cycling". Too complicated for my taste (and not a regime I'd want to do for the rest of my life), and the research results are less than convincing to me:

    http://www.berkeleywellness.com/healthy-eating/diet-weight-loss/article/hype-calorie-shifting-diets
  • riffraff2112
    riffraff2112 Posts: 1,757 Member
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    You can bank calories for an expected large meal or holiday but changing up daily amounts for any other reason than that seems pointless. Whatever benefit you would gain would be so minimum as not worth the effort. Your metabolic rate isn't like a muscle that benefits from changing and shock.
  • christibisti
    christibisti Posts: 1 Member
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    Yeah, I think your are referencing the 5:2 intermittent fasting. 5 days regular healthy calories, 2 days low 500 calories intake.

    I just started this, and am at a healthy weight and fitness level. Just wanted to get beach ready for a trip. Now I understand that Basal Metabolic Rate may not change/ change easily. But here is what my first anecdotal experience:

    I have been doing Orange Theory Fitness classes for 4 months and my cardio is decent and my strength was increasing, but I still want to drop into the 19.5 BMI range before our vacation. So I did one day 500 cals, and the next day regular breakfast, and then workout.

    I never worked that hard in a workout before. I was barely hitting my cardio rate and weight lifting milestones I would regularly do. But my heart rate and calorie burn rate (which OTF measures) was the highest it had ever been.

    So I think my body did respond to this diet. It made my regular fuel less available and my body had to work harder to do the same things.

    But it would take a few more sessions to see if this trend continues.

    I do like the feeling of really understanding hunger though. A lot of the times I graze at the slightest hint of a feeling towards hunger. Versus a day later, and my body felt the urgent need to eat that it work me up early. So I fed it and it was satisfying!
  • nowine4me
    nowine4me Posts: 3,985 Member
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    IMO, the only reason to stagger calories is to accommodate workouts. I get ridiculously hungry on lifting days, so I eat more. I shave extra calories from non-lifting days to stay at goal.
  • peggy_polenta
    peggy_polenta Posts: 323 Member
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    what you are saying sounds like intermittent fasting (to me it sounds like your referencing alternate day fasting) and yes, it works for many people.