Should we take a break from eating at deficit?
momar23
Posts: 292 Member
let me start by saying I didn't use the term diet break because not once in the past 7 months have I referred to what I'm doing as a diet.
Sooo anyways... I have been eating at a deficit since January and I've lost 40lbs. I'm not feeling burnt out or deprived but I've seen some posts about taking diet breaks. I've read a lot of different links and I am still not sure that it's actually necessary if I'm consistently losing.
I am set up on mfp to lose 1lb a week. Up until the end of June I was losing more averaging 5-6lbs a month. I considered taking a break during vacations but I didn't because I seriously still manage to eat and drink and go out and do stuff so figured what was the point.
For July-August I've lost 8-9lbs.
I'm set for lightly active and eat most of my exercise calories back so I'm averaging about 1800 cals a day.
I've eaten at maintenance about once a week, occasionally a little over but I usually try to make up for it on a day where i may not have as much exercise so I'll eat less and bank those for fun time.
So is there any advantage to me actually eating at maintenance for a couple of weeks?
Sooo anyways... I have been eating at a deficit since January and I've lost 40lbs. I'm not feeling burnt out or deprived but I've seen some posts about taking diet breaks. I've read a lot of different links and I am still not sure that it's actually necessary if I'm consistently losing.
I am set up on mfp to lose 1lb a week. Up until the end of June I was losing more averaging 5-6lbs a month. I considered taking a break during vacations but I didn't because I seriously still manage to eat and drink and go out and do stuff so figured what was the point.
For July-August I've lost 8-9lbs.
I'm set for lightly active and eat most of my exercise calories back so I'm averaging about 1800 cals a day.
I've eaten at maintenance about once a week, occasionally a little over but I usually try to make up for it on a day where i may not have as much exercise so I'll eat less and bank those for fun time.
So is there any advantage to me actually eating at maintenance for a couple of weeks?
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Replies
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i seriously doubt it.
it sounds like (like me) you have days or periods where you eat at maintenance anyways. shoot, this weekend i was crazy over. oh well
but i think a deliberate break is unnecessary, especially if you are feeling good and not deprived.
i dont purposely set days where im over on calories, but when it happens, its no biggie. to ME, thats the way it SHOULD be....0 -
I'm a big fan of the diet break. It's nice to reset mentally and physically. I don't like being in a deficit for long periods of time.
@vismal has a nice video on this topic.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r0jqAXpjCV0 1 -
Honestly, if you can eat within your calorie range and are satisfied there's no need to take a break. The last time I took a week off, it ended up being a year. And I gained back an entire years worth of weight. Just my .02 cents.0
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Is the amount of calories needed for maintaining at your goal weight higher than at your current deficit? ( for me it is, MFP currently suggests 1200 kcal for a 450 kcal deficit, at my goal weight, maintaining will be at 1450 kcal). In that case, I would up my intake but no higher than my maintenance amount of kcals at goal weight for your 'break'.0
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If you need a break, then take one. If not, I don't see why you should. I wouldn't take one just to take it, because I know at some point I WILL get tired so I might as well wait until then.
(too many words, sorry)0 -
Hmmmm... I wouldn't say I really take breaks, but I do eat at maintenance... A lot. Probably at least once a week. Some days, however, I have a really good plan and lots of low-calorie stuff in the fridge, so I can eat 1200 calories and be satisfied. It all balances out and makes it kind of easy to keep going.0
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I have not taken a break from monitoring and eating with purpose for 2 years
I do take a 2 week muscle build phase every few months
That can feel like a diet break.
But it is just more eating with a desired end result in mind.
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If you don't feel you need a break, and are losing consistently, then there's no point to taking a break. I usually suggest them when someone is complaining they've lost motivation, feel like quitting, etc. You aren't one of those people.0
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Thanks for the comments. It sounds like most of you are on the same page. Just keep on keeping on unless I need a break. And to be honest I really have been taking daily breaks throughout the summer.
Arditarose I will watch the vid when I have a chance for some reason I am getting no sound when I open it on my phone.
Elkeknj that is a fair point I'll have to check it out but I suspect maintenance once I get to goal will be around 2000 a day based on my activity level0 -
I did my first diet break of one week after being on a 1 lb/wk deficit program since February. I made sure I logged my additional 500 daily calories. I don't know if doing this had anything to do with a breaking through a 4 week stall but after one week back on my cutting diet, I was down 3 lbs.0
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I did my first diet break of one week after being on a 1 lb/wk deficit program since February. I made sure I logged my additional 500 daily calories. I don't know if doing this had anything to do with a breaking through a 4 week stall but after one week back on my cutting diet, I was down 3 lbs.
This happens to me too. I don't think there is any science to back it up and it shouldn't be expected. Don't know why that happens.0 -
i dont take big calorie breaks like 8 weeks or so because it does'nt work that way for me.. what i do now is be in a deficit 5 days of the week then the other 2 days i eat at maintenance or slightly above it by 200 calories sometimes... i think this works better to keep losing steady and not be at a stand still for that long period of time... why not have both.. that extra food some days and a defict all together in ur weeks?
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I take one every 6 months for two weeks. No logging.0
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A few times this summer I ate at maintenance when I was out of town for vacations. I tried to be mindful of what I ate. Sometimes I logged. Occasionally logging was just too hard like at a wedding where I had zero idea what I was eating. I always managed to come back from vacation at almost the exact same weight where I started. Overall I lost steadily this summer despite that. I also feel like I was able to enjoy my summer fully and never felt deprived. For that reason this really does feel more like a lifestyle change to me, something I can do long term. There are going to be those occasions where we eat more than normal and it's ok.0
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Sounds like you are taking mini breaks already, a day here and there at maintence. And that is perhaps what is keeping you from feeling like you need a bigger break. I would say if it's not boke, don't fix it.
I took a maintenance break while I was on vacation for 3 weeks this summer. It was a lot of wild guessing at logging, beer or cider every night and lots of walking. I came back about 2 lbs heavier, but I think over a pound was water weight from a long flight. So maybe 0.5-0.75 lb gain. And that was gone within a week. I would do it the same way again.0 -
Over a year at a deficit. I have never seen any real reason to have a break. Always wishy washy reasons like mentioned above, resetting mentally etc
Seems to me if you need a break your probably going at something too hard, too large a deficit, to much exercise, too restrictive on carbs or sugars etc
I have had days where I over ate like Christmas etc but never weeks or months at a time.
Seems just like personal preference.
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Great replies thanks everyone!0
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When I'm traveling I always take a break. This summer I've traveled 3x in the last 2 months so I've pretty much been maintaining since June but I'm okay with this as I had some good vacations and didn't worry about CICO and at the same point as where I started. I'll take it.0
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I did my first diet break of one week after being on a 1 lb/wk deficit program since February. I made sure I logged my additional 500 daily calories. I don't know if doing this had anything to do with a breaking through a 4 week stall but after one week back on my cutting diet, I was down 3 lbs.
Did that last year. I was 2 pounds from my goal weight and went on vacations and we had to eat out all the time... Took me 3 months to lose one of the pounds I gained and I haven't managed to get back so low again. Never managed to go back to the same deficit again because I'm just SO HUNGRY. That was over a year ago...
Don't recommend it at all, personally, if you can avoid it.0 -
Keep going as its working, but have it ready for when you hit the bump and you wnat a time out.0
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arditarose wrote: »I'm a big fan of the diet break. It's nice to reset mentally and physically. I don't like being in a deficit for long periods of time.
@vismal has a nice video on this topic.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r0jqAXpjCV0
Interesting - I've been on a constant deficit (without any treats, eek) for around 5 months. I have willpower of steel, luckily but I've just seen this post and wondering if you could let us know what you get from the maintenance break? How long do you do it for? Do you find it generally speeds up the loss once you get back on to the deficit method?
Thanks!
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PinkPixiexox wrote: »arditarose wrote: »I'm a big fan of the diet break. It's nice to reset mentally and physically. I don't like being in a deficit for long periods of time.
@vismal has a nice video on this topic.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r0jqAXpjCV0
Interesting - I've been on a constant deficit (without any treats, eek) for around 5 months. I have willpower of steel, luckily but I've just seen this post and wondering if you could let us know what you get from the maintenance break? How long do you do it for? Do you find it generally speeds up the loss once you get back on to the deficit method? Thanks!
I TRIED to take a diet break for two weeks after seeing this and it was difficult to get in the maintenance mind set, but all in all I logged and ate close to maintenance for almost two weeks. First off, it was fun. I had not been losing anyway, so I figured why not really eat at maintenance by logging accurately instead of accidentally eating at maintenance by logging poorly. I got to eat and my lifting/gym time was better too. When I got back on track, I was losing better. No science to back that up. Who knows, it could have just tightened up my logging.
It was definitely refreshing.0 -
I take a break when I go on vacation (usually works out to 1-2 weeks a year).
It works for me because it's a defined period of time, meaning that there's no "oh I'll just do another couple of days". When I get back, I'm back to tracking. No excuses.
By "break" I mean that I don't log my food. I have no idea if I'm eating at a deficit, maintenance, or a surplus. I eat what I feel like eating and get to try yummy foods while I'm traveling, but it gets balanced out by a lot of walking. We walk everywhere, usually at least 10 miles a day.
I think breaks are needed to keep you sane. I fit treats into my calories on a regular basis, but sometimes I just need to not have to think about everything I'm eating.0 -
arditarose wrote: »PinkPixiexox wrote: »arditarose wrote: »I'm a big fan of the diet break. It's nice to reset mentally and physically. I don't like being in a deficit for long periods of time.
@vismal has a nice video on this topic.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r0jqAXpjCV0
Interesting - I've been on a constant deficit (without any treats, eek) for around 5 months. I have willpower of steel, luckily but I've just seen this post and wondering if you could let us know what you get from the maintenance break? How long do you do it for? Do you find it generally speeds up the loss once you get back on to the deficit method? Thanks!
I TRIED to take a diet break for two weeks after seeing this and it was difficult to get in the maintenance mind set, but all in all I logged and ate close to maintenance for almost two weeks. First off, it was fun. I had not been losing anyway, so I figured why not really eat at maintenance by logging accurately instead of accidentally eating at maintenance by logging poorly. I got to eat and my lifting/gym time was better too. When I got back on track, I was losing better. No science to back that up. Who knows, it could have just tightened up my logging.
It was definitely refreshing.
Thanks for this. I may try this at some point - probably christmas as I know that's a week I'm going to struggle with. Sounds like a fantastic idea to keep on track
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KittensMaster wrote: »I have not taken a break from monitoring and eating with purpose for 2 years
I do take a 2 week muscle build phase every few months
That can feel like a diet break.
But it is just more eating with a desired end result in mind.
I really like the concept of a two week "muscle build phase" every few months. Very similar to a diet break, except of course, it infers that you will spend that time attempting PR's at the gym. Makes sense to me that the additional LBM should help your metabolism when you resume your deficit. I'm going to try this.
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When losing, I take maintenance breaks when I start to feel super hungry all the time. I believe that they are good for me, both psychologically and physiologically. I still exercise as usual and log. I just eat at maintenance. Here are a couple of articles about them:
Diet breaks
* http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/the-full-diet-break.html/
* http://strengthunbound.com/when-to-take-a-diet-break/0 -
When losing, I take maintenance breaks when I start to feel super hungry all the time. I believe that they are good for me, both psychologically and physiologically. I still exercise as usual and log. I just eat at maintenance. Here are a couple of articles about them:
Diet breaks
* http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/the-full-diet-break.html/
* http://strengthunbound.com/when-to-take-a-diet-break/
I have not seen that Lyle one in awhile. Thank you.0 -
When losing, I take maintenance breaks when I start to feel super hungry all the time. I believe that they are good for me, both psychologically and physiologically. I still exercise as usual and log. I just eat at maintenance. Here are a couple of articles about them:
Diet breaks
* http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/the-full-diet-break.html/
* http://strengthunbound.com/when-to-take-a-diet-break/
Fantastic, thanks for this. I love learning something new!0 -
I'm a fan of diet breaks as a concept myself.
It seems weird that many people would accept the concept of periodisation in training but not in dieting for some reason.
All dieting, no matter how mild, imposes stress on the body. Stress accumulates and builds over time. A diet break is like a valve which releases the pressure (both mentally and physically), allows accumulated stress to disperse, and generally leaves a person more focused to deal with the next block of dieting.0 -
JeffBrown3 wrote: »Honestly, if you can eat within your calorie range and are satisfied there's no need to take a break. The last time I took a week off, it ended up being a year. And I gained back an entire years worth of weight. Just my .02 cents.
Yes, yes and yes to this!0
This discussion has been closed.
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