Be responsible for your future!
Ok, ok... maybe not robots and such, but you may be shocked to find out that people can lose weight really well. Is it a difficult, daunting, timely and conscious task? Yes it is. But, where people really seem to have trouble is the time after the diet keeping the weight they lost off.
If you've been dieting for a while or even just started your dieting phase ask yourself these important questions:
1. How long is this dieting phase going to last?
2. Do I have a back-up plan incase shit hits the fan?
3. Do I have a plan for when I am finished or reach my goal?
In order to have a successful dieting phase you need to determine how much weight you want to lose and how long it'll take you to get to that goal. Once you do that how are you going to maintain your progress AFTER your time is up?
Most people think of dieting like a dead end road. You diet and then you kinda just stay there eating really small portions of bland food forever. It doesn't have to be like that. Taking time to invest in reverse dieting (which is exactly what it sounds like) can help you keep your gains while trying to get rid of all the metabolic adaptations that come along with dieting.
Reverse dieting is when you take the steps needed to "get out" of a dieting phase (no longer in a caloric deficit) and back to maintenance calories so you can feel free of the food focus, lowered sex drive, zombie like energy, etc. you feel from dieting for a while.
While some prefer to do this slowly to minimize fat gain you're actually spending more time in that deficit range from dieting. Moving to your maintenance sooner than later (e.g from deficit to maintenance for about ~2 weeks) will be a good spot for you to feel less of what was previously stated above.
After sitting at maintenance for about 2 weeks you can progress your calories upwards continuing to reverse diet and set-up your next dieting phase potentially with more calories and less activity than before.
Simply, "trying to get shredded, bro" will only work for so long before you realize you need a plan to keep your results and improve later on in your life. This may sound daunting but it's entirely worth it to keep your results.
This also bring me to my next point. The sustainability of your nutritional style!
This is something people don’t ask when they choose to go follow a certain style of eating or dieting. But why should you think long-term? Because if something is a fad it’s popularity will rise and fall (just like wearing really oversized clothing, it came & went —also, fads are short-lived by definition). If something is an extreme, it likely isn’t sustainable because the restrictions or rules to adhere to are extreme by nature.
It’s possible to eat the foods you love, in addition to fruits, veggies, carbs, fats, & proteins, in balance & still get amazing results. *Anecdotally speaking*, most of my clients have seen some significant changes in weight, body fat, and composition just from eating whole, nutrient dense, foods *most of the time* and not stressing if they indulge every now & then (in addition to consistent exercise, activity, and habit practices).
None of them are following a super restrictive diet. None of them are completely cutting out carbs or fats or proteins or focusing on their body’s pH levels. None of them are “not allowed” to eat a certain food. Most of them don’t even track macros or calories yet still get results!
When you start something like a diet ask if you’ll still adhere to it in 6 months, a year, 5 years from now. If that’s a yes, feel free. If there’s doubt, consider stepping back and focusing on the simpler methods for long-term sustainability like focusing on sustainable behaviors, keeping your eye on the big picture (long term success), allowing some flexibility, and celebrating the little wins that add up for the sustainability of your results!
Don't we want to keep what we've earned from weeks, months, and years of hard work?
Need help reverse dieting or finding the best diet for you? Send me a message and sign-up for coaching to do it the right way.
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