Reverse Dieting: is it the cure for the yo-yo dieting curse?

Lately, reverse dieting has gained some traction- and for good reason! It’s a method that increases calories with a goal of revving up the metabolism. Let’s break it down.

What is “reverse” dieting? Sounds like a contradiction!

No, reverse dieting is not just a calorie surplus. It’s not the “opposite” of a diet, and it’s not a foodie free for all (sorry). It’s a method that slowly creeps up your calorie intake.

The slow increase of calories allows the body to regulate to intaking more food at a time. Eventually, your body will adapt to having more calories and adjust the metabolism to burn more energy at a time. This way, the body burns more calories at a time, allowing you to eat more without gaining weight.

This works because of metabolic adaptation. This means that the body’s metabolism will adapt to what it is regularly exposed to over a long period of time. Reverse dieting uses metabolic adaptation to allow the body to regulate to eating more calories.

This is also the reason that after an extreme diet, the body adapts to smaller amounts of food and may have a weight-gain reaction if you increase the amount quickly. Metabolic adaptation happens regardless of the amount of food.

The end goal of reverse dieting is to raise the body’s metabolism. This is inclusive to all energy burning categories (BMR, resting, active, NEAT, etc.) and ultimately burns more food into energy quicker & more efficiently.

How do I know if reverse dieting is for me?

Reverse dieting is a great idea for a myriad of people. I think it works great for a specific few groups, which also happen to be the majority. Its absolutely worth a try if you fall into any of the following categories.

Category 1: you’ve yo-yo dieted on and off, and in order to maintain your weight, your calories have to be under 1500.

Yo-yo dieting is something that many of us have done before. Jumping on and off the wagon of dieting down and regaining the weight, hoping the next time you diet, it finally works.

This, even if you’ve just dieted once, can significantly slow down the body’s metabolism. Your body regulates to having less and less food, so when you eventually eat more, it holds onto it because it is simply not the norm. Eventually, you will find yourself having a lot of trouble losing weight because even if you eat very little, your body is used to it. It just doesn’t make much of a difference.

In short, extreme diets aren’t good for you or your metabolism. Unfortunately, they’re also super common. If you’re in this category, you can use reverse dieting to slowly raise your calorie intake to eating enough food for your frame & likely be more energized and full. As you’ll read later, it’s a very slow increase so that your body adapts to more calories on a regular basis.

No, you should not gain a significant amount of weight with this. Also, if you still want to lose weight, this is a great approach. You may at first feel like you’re eating too much because it’s not an extreme calorie deficit. Keep it up, and incorporate the calorie increase until you’re eating an amount you feel you can sustain longterm (or more). Once you’ve made it there, you have the option to cut your calories a bit. This way, your calorie deficit is at a much more doable number instead of something like 1500. A much less stressful way to diet down.

Category 2: you recently went on a very strict diet and want to come off of it.

Like the above category, if you don’t come out of a strict diet in a careful and concise way, you are likely to have slowed down your metabolism. To come off of a diet, it’s smart to slowly increase calories to allow your body to regulate to having more food. If you don’t do this, it’s super easy to gain the weight back. Easing in to upping your calories is a great place to start. This avoids falling into the above category and maintaining weight loss at a higher caloric intake.

Category 3: you feel like no food is enough food and/or have negative feelings around food.

Whether you’re a part of the above two categories or not, food & dieting in general can be tough to even think about. There is a LOT of nuance, and diet culture has cultivated several types of eating disorders, guilt around food, terrible habits & so on. These things can diminish hunger/fullness cues, turn food into a coping mechanism, or even relieve food of it’s actual function: to nourish.

No, reverse dieting isn’t the cure for all bad eating habits (it’s never a bad idea to hire a professional for help with this.) However, sometimes, in order to cultivate healthy food habits, it may take a lot more time around food. You may have to eat a little more and not be so focused on a diet or what food is going to do to your body. You can base things more on how you feel rather than how you look. Food shouldn’t be demonized, and you should be able to eat until your full (and also know when you’re actually hungry).

Eating a little more over time can do the body good. It’s definitely worth a shot, especially if you’ve been undernourished for a while.

Reverse dieting if your goal is weight loss

Using a reverse diet as a weight loss goal can be done two ways: the reverse diet alone, or a reverse diet followed by a calorie deficit. Both of these are great options for weight-loss, and really depend on your goals.

A reverse diet alone is simply a very, very gradual increase in calories. This is a great option to do alongside strength training and/or cardiorespiratory exercise because it encourages recovery and strength gains. Win, win, win! If you choose this one- make sure to prioritize the heck out of your protein intake.

A reverse diet followed by a calorie deficit increases the calories and then cuts them in small increments to provide the body with a more sustainable calorie deficit. While you may be eating less after the increase- you will likely be eating more than the majority of fad diets recommend. You can lose weight much more comfortably, and won’t have your body in starvation mode all the time.

You can always start with the reverse diet alone. If you feel you’ve gotten to a point you’re very full when you eat, then cut your calories a bit. Both of these methods are good to use for weight loss.

*Please understand as your metabolism regulates and your body adjusts to having more food, you weight may fluctuate. This should not be a significant number, up to about 5lbs. It’s nothing to worry about. If you find you’re gaining more than 5lbs, decrease the calories you’re adding just a little bit (i.e. +50 cals per week instead of +100) or stay where you’re at for a few more weeks.

If you’re super concerned with the number on the scale or weight loss in general, check out this article about the many benefits of exercise & a healthy lifestyle other than your weight.

Reverse dieting if your goal is weight gain

It may seem to make more sense to use reverse dieting for weight gain because of the increase in calories. While it’s actually more often used as for weight loss, a metabolic boost, or healing a food relationship- it can and should be used if your goal is to gain weight. Here’s what I mean.

The idea of reverse dieting is to slowly add more and more calories into your regimen. This means gradually add 100-200 calories per week over a long period of time. Sure, this may be slower than adding a 1500 calorie protein shake a day… but you will likely feel much better with this method. This is, however, the long game.

The difference between using a reverse diet for weight loss & weight gain is where you stop. For weight loss, you may stop at an amount of calories that feels comfortable or cut down a little after you reach that number. For weight gain, you keep going.

You may feel super full, and it may be a little uncomfortable. Keep increasing in very small increments, while also getting your strength gains in the gym & hitting your protein goals. Works like a charm and is a lot more comfortable than chalky shakes & handfuls of almonds.

Reverse dieting if your goal is a healthy relationship with food & a sustainable diet

My favorite goal: a sustainable diet and a good relationship with food. Even if you want to change your body, this should still be first priority.

Reverse dieting can help with this because it introduces more food into your diet, has you eating what you need (or more) and doesn’t demonize eating any certain amount. It can possibly disassociate the negative feelings around food and allow you to enjoy it rather than resent it.

No matter the goal, reverse dieting requires you to take some serious inventory of the food you eat, the habits you have around it & the way it all makes you feel. It is good to use if you have felt a bit wonky about your diet and really want to make sure you’re getting the energy you need.

Reverse dieting with a calorie tracker

Reverse dieting is super easy if you plan on or are currently tracking your calories. Again, it’s a gradual increase of 100-200 calories at a time. Find your current regular calorie intake, and increase a little every 2-3 weeks.

If you aren’t used to tracking, start by tracking the first 2-3 weeks. Don’t change a thing. Nothing. DON’T do anything differently, okay?! Eat what you normally eat, when you normally eat, and how you normally eat. This will give you a general idea of what your current calorie intake is and can be your starting point.

If you are used to tracking, great. You may have a better idea of your regular calorie intake. If not, do it honestly and consistently for a couple weeks.

Once you have your base number, add 100-200 calories to it for the first 2-3 weeks. Then, after that 2 weeks, add another 100-200 calories. This is the gist of what you’ll be doing over time. You can stop when you reach a certain calorie goal, or when you feel like you’re eating a good amount for your body. Simple as that!

Reverse dieting without a calorie tracker

Okay, you may be saying that it’s impossible to reverse diet without tracking your calories. The entire method is slowly creeping your calories up over time! Yes, I know. While this may not be a calculated and precise reverse diet, these tips will allow you to slowly eat more.

Awareness of meal content and timing

Rather than focusing on a number, try to lightly increase portion sizes. This can look like using a little bit of a bigger plate or adding in a regular side to your meals. It can also be simply remembering how much you had of something. A small increase in food every 1-2 weeks isn’t too hard to keep track of if you’re active about it.

Upping your protein intake

A higher protein intake is almost always a good idea. It keeps you full, fueled & allows for proper recovery. Adding extra protein to each of your meals can be simply just adding a little more of whatever source you usually have. For example, if you usually have 1 chicken breast, add a wing to it. Or add some bone broth on the side! There are so many ways to add in more protein to your diet. This will add some calories ensure your body is getting what it needs to recover and repair. If you want to learn more about protein, check out this article.

Add in a regular snack that’s easy to remember

Choose a healthy, nourishing snack to add to your regular routine that you can easily increase. For example, eat a half of an avocado everyday for the first couple weeks as a snack. After this, eat the whole thing or add in something to it such as half of a boiled egg. Then, after another 2 weeks, have a whole avocado and a whole egg! This is a simple example, so feel free to get creative. Increasing even your regular snack can be an easy way to add in a little extra calories for your body to regulate to.

Take away distractions while you’re eating

It’s way too easy to watch TV or scroll Instagram while you eat, especially if you’re alone. However, this might be a good opportunity to build awareness tap into your hunger cues. If you’re way too focused on something other than eating, you may eat more or less than you planned. Set aside the time to eat & be present while doing so, even if it’s just for one meal a day. If you don’t want to track your calories, some paying attention may be required. Embrace it and enjoy it! This is a healthy habit.

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Alongside a reverse diet, there are several other methods that can help with weight loss that don’t include tracking calories. Check out these other great tips.

The ultimate goals of reverse dieting are to be able to eat enough food to energize your body, be at a comfortable weight and have a well-working metabolism. With these things may come weight loss, weight gain, strength gains, etc. depending on your lifestyle & approach. Hopefully this provided another possible option for you. Let me know if you benefit from it! As always, much love & see ya next blog.