CRASH DIETING – HOW TO DO IT RIGHT!

METABOLIC DAMAGE REPAIR PART 2 of 3

This is part 2 of a 3 part series, so if you haven’t yet read part 1, please do so now…or don’t…you can always go back if you’d like after reading this post…or not…no worries either way.

 

FIXING THE CRASH

So, there I was, losing weight while eating more – 700 more calories a day to be exact…and at a loss as to why…?

 

But lucky me, and lucky you if it’s the first time you’re reading about this, as mentioned in the previous post, over the last couple of years studies have been showing that:

 

  1. Metabolic Damage is real – BUT NOT AS DRAMATIC OR DRASTIC as we initially thought.
  2. Metabolic Damage CAN BE REVERSED!

 

F-ED UP YOUR METABOLISM? IT’S NOT THAT BAD!

So, if you were like me, suffering from Metabolic Syndrome, and took drastic measures to kick off your weight loss, then the brutal truth is you may have “damaged” your metabolism…

 

…BUT A “BAD,” “SLOW,” OR “DAMAGED” METABOLISM IS NO EXCUSE NOT TO LOSE WEIGHT!

 

Yeah, it’s hard to hear, but the truth hurts sometimes…especially if one’s weight-loss issues are due to a “damaged” metabolism.

 

Until recently, it had been thought that if one hit a weight-loss plateau or had trouble losing weight from the start, they simply had a “slow” or “damaged” metabolism, and, to be 100% accurate, there is truth to this train of thought (something we’ll touch on in another post), BUT WE NOW KNOW THE OVERAL “DAMAGE” TO THE METABOLISM IS MUCH LESS THAN PREVIOUSLY THOUGHT.

 

METABOLIC DAMAGE / A “SLOW” METABOLISM

To help clarify what “They” mean by “metabolic damage,” a quick example….

 

So, lets say that you were a consistant “normal” weight all through high school and maybe even your college years and then, in what seemed like an overnight happening, you found yourself carrying around an extra 75 or so pounds. Now, let’s say you carry those extra 75 pounds around for the next few years.  Your “set point” (or the weight your body naturally wants to be at) will shift up from what was once your “normal” weight.  Now, lets say you try and start a diet but you either have trouble losing weight or you hit a plateau along the way. If this were to happen then you most likely shifted your “set point” and “They” would consider your metabolism “damaged” or even “broken.”

 

Now, in the past, “They” would tell you one of two things:

 

  1. Just cut more calories or start burning even more calories (i.e., workout more)…WHICH WOULD JUST MAKE THE SITUATION WORSE!
  2. You may just have a “damaged” or “slow” metabolism…this might just be the way it is for you…WHICH IS TOTAL BULLSHIT!…SORRY FOR CURSING.

 

But today there is a new approach we can take – REVERSE DIETING!

 

REVERSING YOUR METABOLIC DAMAGE

“Reverse Dieting?! That sounds awesome!”

 

Yes, it does sound awesome, but it’s a bit less awesome than you think…though still pretty awesome.

 

Reverse Dieting is exactly what it sounds like – Reverse Dieting is coming off a diet, BUT, though it sounds like everything we want out of life, it does come with a price!

 

It is important to note that Reverse Dieting DOES NOT mean we simply stop dieting and throw our healthy eating plans out the window.  Instead, Reverse Dieting means we very thoughtfully and with the UTMOST SELF CONTROL introduce incremental increases into our total daily caloric intake.

 

“So, what’s the price?”

 

WILL POWER AND SELF CONTROL!

 

Reverse Dieting, though it sounds too good to be true, actually works BUT ONLY IF YOU HAVE SELF CONTROL AND WILL POWER TO DO IT RIGHT!

 

“So, what you are saying is Reverse Dieting IS NOT A FREE-FOR-ALL?”

 

YES, THAT IS EXACTLY WHAT I AM SAYING.

 

REVERSE DIETING

A VERY, VERY, VERY QUICK & SIMPLIFIED HOW TO

Please note that everyone is 100% unique and the generalized examples below are just that, generalizations (and/or examples) to give one a frame of reference from which to start their own Reverse Dieting Plan.

So, if you start Reverse Dieting and you find yourself gaining too much weight too fast then lower the number of calories you are adding or visversa if you are not gaining weight.  Remember to take note of how you feel and what the scale + tape measurer say and adjust accordingly.

Reverse Dieting is not an exact science and though IT DOES WORK it’ll be different for every individual.

 

“So, what exactly does Reverse Dieting look like?”

 

With Reverse Dieting the goal is to slowly, very slowly, start increasing your daily caloric intake to around your TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expenditure)…in other words, the goal is to get you out of your crash diet and into an eating plan that works.  Then, once one has slowly increased their total daily caloric intake to around their TDEE and have achieved a steady weight, it will be time to restart the weight-loss journey.

 

NOT TOO HOT, NOT TOO COLD

As mentioned above, the exact calorie count will vary from person to person, but below we have provided an example (a spring board if you will) to help illustrate how one might start Reverse Dieting.

 

The process will be slow, very slow if you’re doing it right.  You will want to start adding x-amount more calories every one or two weeks.  In other words, you won’t go from 1,000 calories to 1,500 calories in three days.  Adding 500 more calories to your daily caloric intake would take more like 6-8 weeks…and maybe even more for some people.  Be sure to take a look at the scale and try not to gain more than a pound a week.  If you find yourself not gaining any weight over a two week period, GREAT, now just add a bit more calories and see what happens over the next two weeks.  Remember that the goal is to reach a steady weight at a daily calorie intake that is somewhere around your TDEE.

 

Reverse Dieting Example Starting Points 

SEDENTARY LIFESTYLE

100 calories or less a day…i.e., anywhere from an extra 5 – 10 grams of carbs per day.

 

MODERATELY ACTIVE LIFESTYLE

100 – 200 calories a day (or about 700 – 1,400 more calories a week)…i.e., an extra ½ to a full serving of carbohydrates a day (20 – 40 grams).

 

VERY ACTIVE LIFESTYLE

200 -300 calories a day…or maybe even more…. especially if you are strength training and trying to build muscle!

 

Now, it is very important to note that once you start Reverse Dieting YOU WILL GAIN weight BUT YOU SHOULDN’T BE GAINING MORE THAN 1 pound a week…or even less than that.

 

Yes, when Reverse Dieting, you should notice a slight gradual weight increase for a number of weeks if not months, BUT there should eventually be a weight-gain plateau

 

…And once you hit the weight-gain plateau IT’LL BE TIME TO START LOSING THE WEIGHT FOR REAL THIS TIME!

 

HOW TO RELOSE THE WEIGHT RIGHT!

So, now that you’ve learned:

 

  1. How a “crash diet” can “crash” your metabolism
  2. That Reverse Dieting can repair your “crashed” metabolism

 

…all that’s left to learn is how to use “crash dieting” to “crash” through your weight-loss plateaus!

 

SO STAY TUNED FOR PART 3!

 

Man…what a cliffhanger no?