Diet Break Study-Fat Loss Goal

emily23dw

Hi all, I recently read a study on diet breaks which compared 2 groups of obese men. The first group ate in a deficit for 16 weeks straight while the second group ate in a deficit for 2 weeks alternating with 2 weeks at maintenance for a total of 30 weeks (to ensure both groups had the same net deficit). Results showed the group that took breaks lost considerable more amounts of fat and metabolic adaptation was kept to a minimum.

Currently I'm around 24% body fat (22 year old female, 5'1, 120ish pounds) and I'm looking to lose about 4%-6% body fat. I've done a little experiment on myself the last 2 weeks to try to find my maintenance. I tracked my weight everyday the last 2 weeks and took the average from each week and compared. My average week 1 weight was 120.8 and my week 2 average was 120.3. I have been eating 1900 calories and making sure to hit a minimum of 90 grams protein each day (this is my LBM). So according to this my current maintenance is around 2150, do you think according to my goal of fat loss I should do 2 week diet breaks every 2 weeks? I'm not in a rush and want to make sure all fat loss i achieve is maintainable. I know this approach will take much longer, but metabolically speaking I feel this will be healthier. Also I understand as time goes on when returning back to maintenance, it will decrease. Ideas on how much I should account for this slow down?

Current workout split:
mon: upper body + 15-20 min HIIT sprints
tues: lower body
wed:keep active, LISS outdoor activity
thurs: upper body +15-20 min HIIT sprints
fri: lower body
weekend: rest but usually go on 1 hike or long walk

NovusDies

Here is a very detailed thread about diet breaks:

https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10604863/of-refeeds-and-diet-breaks/p1

3 weeks in deficit and 2 weeks off is popular and going even less aggressive is even better when you get to a lower bf.

You may have to adjust your calories some more since it is hard to get a reliable figure with 2 weeks of data especially for a woman.

sardelsa

Every two weeks is a bit frequent and as Novus mentioned it could be hard to gauge if you are actually losing weight with the increases from the breaks, especially as time goes on and you have to lower calories. I am fairly lean and take diet breaks every 8-12 weeks. I do incorporate higher calorie refeed days though which help me. Best thing to do is experiment and see what works for you.

lalalacroix

I've worked in full week diet breaks about every 6 weeks. I've also taken a maintenance eating day whenever I've felt the need. For me, diet breaks lead to much greater long-term adherance to my deficit. And help keep me sane.

emily23dw

Thanks for the replies! Makes sense that 2 weeks might be a little to frequent. I think I'll try taking a 2 week break every 8-12 weeks like suggested and just pop in a maintenance day every couple weeks when I feel I need one. Quick question: I've been in eating in what I think is small deficit the past 2 weeks and have not been restricting carbs (usually around 50% of total cals) but the last few days I've been craving sugary foods like pastries, ice cream, sugary coffee drinks etc. Do you think this is a sign to increase calories for a few days and do a refeed?

pierinifitness

We like studies when they confirm what we believe, tend to dismiss them when at odds. This is normal human behavior.

While now eating at maintenance having achieved my goal, I never took a break in my 6 month journey of getting there. Never had a stall that was in the way of my path. Sure, I had streaks where the scale didn’t move as much as I would have liked. Those moments tested my resolve of how bad I wanted that which I was chasing. My response was to double down my efforts, to cultivate my discipline rather than to relax it as a break seems to me it would do.

My two cents as you ponder your course of action. Wishing you the best.

sardelsa

emily23dw wrote: »

Thanks for the replies! Makes sense that 2 weeks might be a little to frequent. I think I'll try taking a 2 week break every 8-12 weeks like suggested and just pop in a maintenance day every couple weeks when I feel I need one. Quick question: I've been in eating in what I think is small deficit the past 2 weeks and have not been restricting carbs (usually around 50% of total cals) but the last few days I've been craving sugary foods like pastries, ice cream, sugary coffee drinks etc. Do you think this is a sign to increase calories for a few days and do a refeed?

For me a refeed is more for adherence and workout performance. It also fits into my schedule since on weekends I tend to have higher carb and calorie foods, family dinners, events or meals out.

You can incorporate the foods you are craving into your calories, maybe not all at once, but either a small portion into a day or you can save up calories for more of an indulgence. I find the more I restrict my food choices, the more I want them so nothing is off limits for me.

texasredreb

This is all very interesting to me. I'm planning on eating at maintenance during the first week of August as I'll be on vacation. That will be 4 months and 3 weeks into my deficit eating. I'm already looking forward to it!!