What are Your Opinions on Diet Breaks?

Spadesheart

... So I haven't paid for groceries in over a year as I work somewhere that throws out a staggering amount of food, and it drives me nuts so I try to save what I can. This was helpful for doomsday planning at the start of the Pandemic, and have a very full freezer (that I will someday work through) because of it. This week I basically have brought home enough for three weeks. All great stuff; pork ribs, salmon Wellington, coq au vin, assorted veggies and desserts, etc. Good enough protein content, that's for sure.

I have dieted relatively strictly for about 80 days in a different fashion than I used to, utilizing some water fasting on the weekends. This seems to be more sustainable for me presently as it lets me have more flexibility with food, and fuels training better during the weekdays. I haven't missed a gym session during a weekday for over 5 weeks, as I am vaccinated and they opened about 5 weeks ago. This also has been going quite well; I am going to exceed my previous PRs on a lot of my work very shortly.

I will be doing a training deload this week, and I am considering taking a week off the calorie deficit as well. One, to help with healing, as some parts of me are starting to feel a bit beat up. And Two, TO WORK THROUGH THIS INSANE AMOUNT OF FOOD.

What are your guys thoughts on taking diet breaks?

MsCzar

My biggest challenge is also delicious free work food in ever-glorious abundance. I have little trouble maintaining calorie deficit when at home - but I haven't yet worked out how to say no to free Filet Mignon and chocolate mousse.

I take diet breaks and avoid the scale for the week after returning to calorie deficit eating. If I land in the neighborhood of 3lb./1.33kg either up or down, I'm OK with it.

I'd enjoy the bounty and plan to spend twice the number of break days in strict calorie deficit to get back to where you were pre-break.

callsitlikeiseeit

many do. I do not, with the exception of vacations/ holidays/trips/etc and even then I try to not be overly gluttonous LOL

sijomial

"What are Your Opinions on Diet Breaks?"

A very useful tool especially for people either on an aggressive deficit or a prolonged deficit. Mentally and physically refreshing.

penguinmama87

I haven't done a diet break but I'm intrigued by the thought of doing one, especially to manage holidays or when I start feeling burned out a bit, which has happened to me in previous weight loss attempts. The idea that I could just let up on the gas a little, instead of giving up entirely, is really appealing!

On a completely unrelated note, I love how neat and organized your full fridge is!

MsCzar

I have found that about Day 3-4 of increased calories (NOT talking about binging) - I can feel the difference in my body and don't like the feeling. I still log my calories - but with much more guesstimating. After a brief diet break, I am champing at the bit to return to deficit eating and resume mindful eating with a renewed vigor.

lgfrie

I've been at this almost two years. I'd say that while there may be some people who can go on a long time without a diet break, most are much better off realizing that your body does not want to be in a calorie deficit until the end of time and will start to fight you at some point. The diet break will happen, either willingly or unwillingly, planned or unplanned. If you plan for it and set some parameters around it, it can be an integral part of your overall effort, in which you "recharge the batteries", so to speak, and are ready to dive back in. If you don't plan for it, the train can go off the rails. This doesn't impact people in the first couple of months of a diet, I think, but later on ... big time.

kenyonhaff

For me, I don't take "diet breaks" as much as I am fine with taking a day here or there to really enjoy a meal or dessert--life's too short not have an amazing meal once in a while.

Also, it can be hard to stay on track at certain times. Vacations can be tricky. There's a weeklong business trip and your usual exercise schedule's now out the window, and you have limited power over the food choices. And so on.

What would be more difficult for me would be a freezer full of food that's not necessarily supporting good food choices for me, and the feeling I'm beholden to eat said food. My first instinct is to be ((((really)))) careful of not only food choices, but portions -- restaurant type food is usually generous with the fats and so on.

Although it's admirable to not waste food, make sure it's not at the expense of your waist.

cupcakesandproteinshakes

I did have periods where I didn’t eat at a deficit. I lost most of my weight pre mfp and I hadn’t heard of diet breaks as a concept then. I think they are helpful for some people.

There’s research suggesting they are a good idea.

steveko89

I used to be against the idea but there's mounting evidence they are beneficial, if not essential to regulating psychological and physiological factors. The crew over at Renaissance Periodization recently put out some findings based on their user base that suggests limiting a diet phase to be moderately aggressive (~0.5% body weight or less) and no more than 6-9 weeks has a much higher correlation to success than longer and more aggressive diets. Their advice is also to have a maintenance phase (i.e. diet break) for at least half as long as the diet phase before either another diet phase if on needs to lose more weight or a massing phase. The thinking is that is serves as some semblance of a reset for the body in terms of hunger cues, hormones, etc. It has the added benefit of forcing the practice of maintenance, which many can struggle with at the end of an extended diet phase. On the face of it the approach taking longer compared with losing weight continuously will likely be received negatively, but given the propensity for people to struggle with unintended diet breaks, as @lgfrie noted, or significant weight rebound at the end of a loss phase there's definitely some merit to a controlled diet break beyond the common advice of "slow and steady" is better.

Spadesheart

MsCzar wrote: »

My biggest challenge is also delicious free work food in ever-glorious abundance. I have little trouble maintaining calorie deficit when at home - but I haven't yet worked out how to say no to free Filet Mignon and chocolate mousse.

I take diet breaks and avoid the scale for the week after returning to calorie deficit eating. If I land in the neighborhood of 3lb./1.33kg either up or down, I'm OK with it.

I'd enjoy the bounty and plan to spend twice the number of break days in strict calorie deficit to get back to where you were pre-break.

It drives me nuts. Like I used to give stuff away because there's too much for even me to save, but I don't have as many people to even give things to now. I hate it so much when they throw out meat. Something died man; that's like the ultimate form of disrespect.

Spadesheart

alisdairsmommy wrote: »

I haven't done a diet break but I'm intrigued by the thought of doing one, especially to manage holidays or when I start feeling burned out a bit, which has happened to me in previous weight loss attempts. The idea that I could just let up on the gas a little, instead of giving up entirely, is really appealing!

On a completely unrelated note, I love how neat and organized your full fridge is!

On my first really productive stage of weight loss, I went straight down the whole way, 70ish pounds over 7-8 months. Looking back now, I was definitely grinding my body down. I put on some weight and worked out less, and according to my smart scale, I gained a disproportionate amount of muscle. For a few of those covid months, I didn't work out at all. That indicates that I definitely wasn't giving my body enough.

There is a need for some moderation for me, but I don't know what form will stick, because it's such a fine balance of needing to see some kind of measurable result, and sustainability. Right now, my weekly fasts seem to be the best thing to stick for a while, but I imagine soon that will become difficult.

Also regarding fridge organization, I didn't have a choice 😭

Arralethe

This time round (after many successful attempts but shot through with recidivism) I'm planning to do 12 weeks in deficit and 2 weeks of maintenance before entering deficit for another 12 weeks. I'm going on maintenance next Monday, and I've already found this plan to be psychologically helpful. Instead of thinking "Omigod, I'm going to be at this forever and ever", I can see a period where the stress will be a bit less, and if I want a couple of treats, it's easier to factor in. It also means the "end goal" is never more than 12 weeks away at any given time, which, given I'm looking to lose a total of 125 lbs (half my body weight), means it's going to be in "bite size chunks", rather than a desert of deficit for all eternity. Much kinder on the mental outlook!

Spadesheart

kenyonhaff wrote: »

For me, I don't take "diet breaks" as much as I am fine with taking a day here or there to really enjoy a meal or dessert--life's too short not have an amazing meal once in a while.

Also, it can be hard to stay on track at certain times. Vacations can be tricky. There's a weeklong business trip and your usual exercise schedule's now out the window, and you have limited power over the food choices. And so on.

What would be more difficult for me would be a freezer full of food that's not necessarily supporting good food choices for me, and the feeling I'm beholden to eat said food. My first instinct is to be ((((really)))) careful of not only food choices, but portions -- restaurant type food is usually generous with the fats and so on.

Although it's admirable to not waste food, make sure it's not at the expense of your waist.

Luckily it's a really swanky elderly care facility so it's all pretty healthy... Other than maybe the desserts sometimes. I have a pretty well varied diet right now

Spadesheart

steveko89 wrote: »

I used to be against the idea but there's mounting evidence they are beneficial, if not essential to regulating psychological and physiological factors. The crew over at Renaissance Periodization recently put out some findings based on their user base that suggests limiting a diet phase to be moderately aggressive (~0.5% body weight or less) and no more than 6-9 weeks has a much higher correlation to success than longer and more aggressive diets. Their advice is also to have a maintenance phase (i.e. diet break) for at least half as long as the diet phase before either another diet phase if on needs to lose more weight or a massing phase. The thinking is that is serves as some semblance of a reset for the body in terms of hunger cues, hormones, etc. It has the added benefit of forcing the practice of maintenance, which many can struggle with at the end of an extended diet phase. On the face of it the approach taking longer compared with losing weight continuously will likely be received negatively, but given the propensity for people to struggle with unintended diet breaks, as @lgfrie noted, or significant weight rebound at the end of a loss phase there's definitely some merit to a controlled diet break beyond the common advice of "slow and steady" is better.

In this way, it's the same logic as reverse dieting, in so far as retraining the body to handle resources properly.

Spadesheart

Arralethe wrote: »

This time round (after many successful attempts but shot through with recidivism) I'm planning to do 12 weeks in deficit and 2 weeks of maintenance before entering deficit for another 12 weeks. I'm going on maintenance next Monday, and I've already found this plan to be psychologically helpful. Instead of thinking "Omigod, I'm going to be at this forever and ever", I can see a period where the stress will be a bit less, and if I want a couple of treats, it's easier to factor in. It also means the "end goal" is never more than 12 weeks away at any given time, which, given I'm looking to lose a total of 125 lbs (half my body weight), means it's going to be in "bite size chunks", rather than a desert of deficit for all eternity. Much kinder on the mental outlook!

I might steal this as an idea. In the past the goals were usually more milestone driven, like when I hit a certain weight or strength goal, but these can kill you when you're close but it just won't move. There is something nice about it being on an interval, provided you actually did stick with it and give it honest effort.

simplysonya4996

Good question. I’m thinking of doing one next week. It will be after 6 was of keto and I plan on low carving for 4 days before I return back to another 6 was of keto. I might have one “bad” meal a day but just won’t go super crazy with fast food or sweets. Pray it works out for both of us.

saintor1

I lost a lot of weight 10 years ago, having a day off every 14 days. It makes life MUCH easier for social happenings.

It had a cost though. Every time it was 3-4 days to return to the best scale figure of before. It probably reduced the weight loss by 25%. Which is nothing if the goal is long term.

Tomorrow I will complete a streak of full 3 months without it. I am not missing that day off in the crazy situation we are in. And I would not hesitate to do it again when we will get our world back.

BTW I had a Big Mac for lunch. All 563cal of it.

Arralethe

Spadesheart wrote: »

I might steal this as an idea. In the past the goals were usually more milestone driven, like when I hit a certain weight or strength goal, but these can kill you when you're close but it just won't move. There is something nice about it being on an interval, provided you actually did stick with it and give it honest effort.

Please feel free to deploy this tactic if you think it would be beneficial! I can say that in this cycle, by the end of week 11 I had lost 18lbs (I'm hoping for a strong finish to week 12), and so far I've not found hunger to be a problem as I'm focused on hitting my macros (40% carbs: 30% fats: 30% protein). This is despite being in an average deficit of around 7k a week.

I'm actually not sure how I'm going to eat an extra 750 - 1,000 cals a day, but my maintenance will cover my birthday so I think cake might be involved....

wunderkindking

sijomial wrote: »

"What are Your Opinions on Diet Breaks?"

A very useful tool especially for people either on an aggressive deficit or a prolonged deficit. Mentally and physically refreshing.

This.

I've done diet breaks quite a few times now - every 10lbs early, every 5lbs later on, and at this point every 2 weeks off for every 6 on (my weights really close to healthy BMI at this point - like 3lbs close).

I get tired. Mentally and physically. A week/two weeks eating at maintenance helps me reinforce my eating habits to make sure I know HOW to maintain and not just go hog wild once I get those 250-300 calories a day back when I'm not in a deficit, or freaking out mentally in some other way when I change the 'plan' and routine. It also gives my body a break and seems to help keep me from turning into a cranky slug.

It's worked for me for roughly 40lbs. It can work for me for another 10-15, I'm pretty sure.

And. Diet break isn't just 'don't log' as some of the posters here suggest. It's just eating at maintenance. At my current rate of loss it nets me, as mentioned above, an extra 250-300 calories a day. We're all calorie counters here. We KNOW that isn't a lot.