“In addition, reverse dieting may normalize levels of circulating hormones, such as leptin, which regulates appetite and body weight,” says Antoni, adding that “research shows that leptin, which is produced and excreted by the fat cells in your body, decreases in response to reduced calorie intake. When leptin levels fall, appetite is increased and calorie burning is reduced. In fact, in a six-month study in 48 people, calorie restriction decreased leptin concentrations by 44%.”
The downsides
A big one: Antoni says most info around reverse dieting is anecdotal (like this article), and that few studies have been done on it.
By disrupting your body’s basal metabolic rate (BMR), you can also risk everything from physical and emotional side effects, like constipation, low energy, nutrient deficiencies, gallstones, slow metabolism and impaired concentration. Personally, I was much more irritable than I had been.
“Reverse dieting also poses the risk of yo-yo dieting, in which you rapidly lose weight and gain weight,” Antoni warns.
When should you do it?
If the aim of reverse dieting is to build yourself back up, post-cut—without adding on weight—it makes sense to do it when you’re at your most shredded. Whenever you do it, the key is to do it gradually.
“Since you have been on a calorie deficit, you do not want to start eating loads of calories again all of a sudden,” says Antoni. “If you were eating 1,200 calories per day, over the next week, you will add maybe 50-100 calories taking it to 1,250 or 1,300 calories per day. The next week, you’ll repeat the process. After two weeks, you can add another 50-100 calories, and so on until you get to an intake you’d like to stick to.”
Is it difficult?
Antoni talks about a client of his, ‘Client X’ who “both struggled and succeeded in a few ways.”
“He struggled most, in terms of not indulging in sugary and higher fatty food that they were trying to avoid, when eating out” at restaurants, says Antoni.
“Checking calories felt like a chore for them, but with apps like MyFitnessPal and a little bit of more knowledge this did subside slightly,” says Antoni. “Peer pressure from friends and family who didn’t have the same goals didn’t help.”
By scaling back and slowly introducing more food, in the end Client X was able to see what foods bloated them or made them feel sluggish, and which foods helped them make better choices.
“This made Client X physically and mentally more happier as they understood their body better,” says Antoni.
How to stay focused
Antoni has some advice:
- Get a food tracker app: “Track what you are eating, and the content,” i.e. how much protein, fats, carbs, and calories you’re ingesting.
- Ask friends and family to keep you accountable: “Join Facebook groups where like-minded people are going through the same reverse dieting process to help you stay on track.”
- Up calories every two weeks: “Choose similar foods to what you have been eating before for ease.”
- Adjust according to exercise levels: “If you are not so active, maybe stay around the 1,500/1,600 calorie mark. If you’re working out four to six times per week, I would say 2,000-2,500 calories should do it.”
Follow this, and after just one week, Antoni reckons you’ll see improved energy levels.
Don’t worry if it’s not a linear process in terms of progress; it takes four to six weeks for your metabolism to stabilize. By this time, your hunger should be reduced and your mood and concentration levels will have increased.
This story originally appeared on British GQ.