When should I take a diet break?

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emilysusana
emilysusana Posts: 416 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I’ve been back at this for 6 weeks and have lost around 10 lbs. I feel great and am enjoying life. I plan to lose about 25 more over time (I know it won’t always be at the rate I lost for this first month and a half).

I did this two years ago with success, except that I blew it at maintenance. I’d like to give myself all the chances to not do so this time around. One thing I didn’t try 2 years ago is diet breaks along the way.

When should I do the diet break (eating at maintenance)? For how long? How often? I’ll admit I’m a bit scared that increasing my calories even for a few days will make it harder to go back... Part of me is like, “If it ain’t broke...”

Thoughts/advice? Merci.

Replies

  • emilysusana
    emilysusana Posts: 416 Member
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    LivingtheLeanDream wrote: »
    Have you been eating at a high calorie deficit so therefore more likely to need that diet break? with only having 25lbs to lose your aim should be 0.5-1lb per week.

    Its normally after long periods of eating at deficit people would choose to do a diet break but they can be done at any point - its not a break as such, its more eating at your maintenance calories so therefore we're only talking approx 250-500 calories extra per day (for example that's calculating your weekly loss of 1/2-1lb). This wont make you gain but rather maintain your weight.

    You do what feels right for you, we all have to find what works for us, what we can do consistently is what gets the results.

    All the best.


    No, I haven’t been eating at a high deficit for a long time. I’m still in the early days of logging and observing... this time around I have a Fitbit in the mix (I logged everything manually when I lost weight 2 yrs ago) so right now I’m only eating back about 1/2 the exercise calories that I get from that. After about 6 weeks my average loss is about 1.5 lbs a week which maybe seems aggressive, but much of it came in the first couple of weeks. I seem to be evening out to about a pound a week, which is what I’d like to do for the next few months (until that gets harder to swing as I get closer to my goal weight).

    I understand that a diet break isn’t a break from logging CICO, and that it’s just raising my calories to maintenance. I think I probably will wait till the 12 week mark as suggested. I also like the idea of practicing a day or two at a time.

    Thanks everyone!
  • lalalacroix
    lalalacroix Posts: 834 Member
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    I am personally taking diet breaks whenever I feel the need. I initially had 67 pounds to lose. About 5 times I have gotten down to 190, been derailed by something, and ended up gaining back 10-25 pounds (never back to my initial weight though). So not only have I stopped eating at a deficit I also have eaten over maintenance many times.

    I'm pretty good at eating at a deficit, weighing food, and losing weight. I haven't been good at maintenance. So if I'm sick, which I am, I'm eating over my deficit but within my maintenance. If I feel extra hungry then I'll eat at maintenance. Or I can take a week off if psychologically I feel I need it. My weight loss will be slower but I really don't care if it means that I will keep it off this time

    I do have rules about this. The first rule is that I have a maintenance day/week for a specific amount of time. The second rule is that I still weigh and log whatever I eat. This isn't a free for all like in the past. I am practicing maintenance. So this isn't really advice for anyone, just sharing how I am approaching the practice of maintenance.


    I just want to add that I know my reply is rambling. My head is filled with snot and I literally feel like I can't put together a decent sentence.
  • rosiorama
    rosiorama Posts: 300 Member
    edited February 2019
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    lalalacroix wrote: »
    I am personally taking diet breaks whenever I feel the need. I initially had 67 pounds to lose. About 5 times I have gotten down to 190, been derailed by something, and ended up gaining back 10-25 pounds (never back to my initial weight though). So not only have I stopped eating at a deficit I also have eaten over maintenance many times.

    I'm pretty good at eating at a deficit, weighing food, and losing weight. I haven't been good at maintenance. So if I'm sick, which I am, I'm eating over my deficit but within my maintenance. If I feel extra hungry then I'll eat at maintenance. Or I can take a week off if psychologically I feel I need it. My weight loss will be slower but I really don't care if it means that I will keep it off this time

    I do have rules about this. The first rule is that I have a maintenance day/week for a specific amount of time. The second rule is that I still weigh and log whatever I eat. This isn't a free for all like in the past. I am practicing maintenance. So this isn't really advice for anyone, just sharing how I am approaching the practice of maintenance.


    I just want to add that I know my reply is rambling. My head is filled with snot and I literally feel like I can't put together a decent sentence.


    Thanks for posting this. Youe experience sounds similar to mine. I have been doing MFP since late 2014, and I have successfully gotten to a weight I’m happy with multiple times, and then I get derailed... and start over again. I do seasonal field work in summer, which wrecks my body, so I come home and ignore CACO until around Christmas, and then I start over. I’ve never gained ALL the weight back during the cycle but enough - and I need to learn the maintnance thing so I can end the yoyo.

    I’ve only started spending time in the forums this year, and the refeed/diet break/practicing maintenance idea is new to me. I need to learn/apply this.
  • lalalacroix
    lalalacroix Posts: 834 Member
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    rosiorama wrote: »
    lalalacroix wrote: »
    I am personally taking diet breaks whenever I feel the need. I initially had 67 pounds to lose. About 5 times I have gotten down to 190, been derailed by something, and ended up gaining back 10-25 pounds (never back to my initial weight though). So not only have I stopped eating at a deficit I also have eaten over maintenance many times.

    I'm pretty good at eating at a deficit, weighing food, and losing weight. I haven't been good at maintenance. So if I'm sick, which I am, I'm eating over my deficit but within my maintenance. If I feel extra hungry then I'll eat at maintenance. Or I can take a week off if psychologically I feel I need it. My weight loss will be slower but I really don't care if it means that I will keep it off this time

    I do have rules about this. The first rule is that I have a maintenance day/week for a specific amount of time. The second rule is that I still weigh and log whatever I eat. This isn't a free for all like in the past. I am practicing maintenance. So this isn't really advice for anyone, just sharing how I am approaching the practice of maintenance.


    I just want to add that I know my reply is rambling. My head is filled with snot and I literally feel like I can't put together a decent sentence.

    I’ve only started spending time in the forums this year, and the refeed/diet break/practicing maintenance idea is new to me. I need to learn/apply this.

    Considering that a staggering percentage of people who lose weight will regain it, learning how to successfully maintain is enormously important.
  • rosiorama
    rosiorama Posts: 300 Member
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    lalalacroix wrote: »
    rosiorama wrote: »
    lalalacroix wrote: »
    I am personally taking diet breaks whenever I feel the need. I initially had 67 pounds to lose. About 5 times I have gotten down to 190, been derailed by something, and ended up gaining back 10-25 pounds (never back to my initial weight though). So not only have I stopped eating at a deficit I also have eaten over maintenance many times.

    I'm pretty good at eating at a deficit, weighing food, and losing weight. I haven't been good at maintenance. So if I'm sick, which I am, I'm eating over my deficit but within my maintenance. If I feel extra hungry then I'll eat at maintenance. Or I can take a week off if psychologically I feel I need it. My weight loss will be slower but I really don't care if it means that I will keep it off this time

    I do have rules about this. The first rule is that I have a maintenance day/week for a specific amount of time. The second rule is that I still weigh and log whatever I eat. This isn't a free for all like in the past. I am practicing maintenance. So this isn't really advice for anyone, just sharing how I am approaching the practice of maintenance.


    I just want to add that I know my reply is rambling. My head is filled with snot and I literally feel like I can't put together a decent sentence.

    I’ve only started spending time in the forums this year, and the refeed/diet break/practicing maintenance idea is new to me. I need to learn/apply this.

    Considering that a staggering percentage of people who lose weight will regain it, learning how to successfully maintain is enormously important.

    So true! It took a long time for it to click that the fitness part of the equation is a lifelong effort. I still have to get it through my head that the food part is too.

    At least I am getting better: the yoyo swings are getting smaller.
  • patrickaa5
    patrickaa5 Posts: 70 Member
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    I'm on week 30 of my diet. I've had 4 diet breaks ranging from 3 days to 7 days. I averaged over 2,000 calories for the entire week of those 4 diet breaks. I gained weight each of those weeks. The other 26 weeks, I've been under 1,800 calories. I've lost weight every one of those 26 weeks. I'm starting to see a pattern.

    Anyway, I enjoyed my diet breaks and will continue to have more. Next one is scheduled for Spring Break in March when the family goes on vacation. I'll probably pig out, but continue to track my calories.
  • vanillaorange2
    vanillaorange2 Posts: 63 Member
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    My husband and I are eating 5-6 small meal a day every 2-3 hours. We have a cheat meal once a week. And only drink one day a week, red wine or vodka soda. ( only 2-3 ) drinks at most) We save our cheat meals for a night out with friends when events come up or just enjoy a night inn not feeling guilty for the extra calories. Helps keep us on track with out feeling deprived all the time.

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