Let’s chat about reverse diets and calorie deficits. When should you transition into a calorie deficit after a reverse diet? Should you reverse diet after a calorie deficit? How quickly can you go into a calorie deficit after a reverse diet?

Buckle in because there’s a lot to break down here! 

Transitioning Between Calorie Deficits and Reverse Diets

A lot of women hyper-focus on only restricting calories and losing weight as fast as possible.  They do the reverse diet then immediately cut calories again to lose weight. 

While I completely understand the excitement of seeing those physical changes, it is important to recognize how long it took you to get into the space where your body was desperately asking for a little bit of love.

Many women come to me after having been in a space of calorie restriction for years, sometimes even decades. We get into the headspace of wanting to be free from dieting NOW. So consider this your gentle reminder that if you’ve been conditioning your body to function on the least amount of calories possible, it might take a year or more to fully heal.

What Happens to Our Body When We Are Reverse Dieting

When you are in a prolonged calorie deficit, your body adapts to that lower intake. For example, if your body thrives at 2,400 calories but you are only eating 1,200, your body loses out on 1,200 calories it needs to function at its best. Your body then starts to ration its resources, downregulating systems that aren’t immediately necessary for survival. This is why you might find your libido tank and your digestion slow down.

If you’ve been in this long-term deficit and then start a reverse diet to fuel your body at its best, it will help upregulate those systems again through a reverse diet. However, this isn’t going to be an overnight process. If you have spent years dieting, I want you to take your time healing and strategically planning the next steps so you can heal once and for all.

What Happens When We Hit Our Metabolic Set Point

After finishing a reverse diet, our body reaches a point where it can function optimally with the increased calorie intake. For example, one of my clients in my Beautiful Peach Mastermind (BPM) has been reverse dieting with me for close to a year. During this time, she has experienced significant positive changes, such as losing multiple inches, regaining her libido (which has positively impacted her relationship with her significant other), no longer feeling the need to binge (which has allowed her to gain confidence back around “bad” food), and having a regulated her cycle (for the first time in YEARS).

She realized that healing 20 years of dieting doesn’t happen overnight – she was ready to put in the work for the long term, sustainable change. This client case study is a perfect example that while the process of reverse dieting is a slow and steady process, the results are 110% worth it. 

The question gets to be:

Do you want a quick fix that leaves you worse off than before? Or do you want to put in the patience and dedication for the long term, lasting change? I know which I pick!

What Happens When We Go Into a Calorie Deficit After Reverse Dieting

Let’s chat timelines. Many women want to know the exact timeline and specifics of how and when to change their caloric intake for the most weight loss (and I get it – I am a Type-A gal myself who loves timelines), but the truth is, while macros are science-based, they are not cookie-cutter. Every woman is different, with unique diet histories, metabolisms, bodies, lifestyles, and day-to-day lives.

When reverse dieting, I ensure my clients hit their minimum metabolic baseline goal, then continue increasing their intake as their body allows. This gives the body ample time to heal and systems to function optimally again, plus it allows way more room for a future calorie deficit down the road (if that is the goal).

For example, let’s say you are eating 1,200 calories and spend 5 months reverse dieting. You end your reverse diet at 2,000 calories, with your body feeling absolutely amazing: natural energy, regulated cycle, regulated digestion, no more bloating, and some kick butt muscle growth. You are feeling great!

Rather than jumping into a deficit from here (and risking your body and metabolism “crashing”), we continue in the reverse diet for a few more months, allowing you to increase your intake to 2,500 calories (as an example) without the unwanted mass fat gain, which in turn allows you to have way more room to do a safe calorie deficit without undoing all your hard work or restricting your intake to an unhealthy level.

So, should you do a calorie deficit after a reverse diet?

If your ultimate goal is to lose more fat, YES! But make sure you do a true, full, proper reverse diet first. If your goal is not losing more weight, then once you finish your reverse diet, you can [1] continue tracking your macros at that maintenance intake, or [2] transition into intuitive eating. Many of my BPM clients opt for intuitive eating after hitting their goals.

If you’ve been struggling for years with restricting calories and are feeling like your body just isn’t functioning the way it used to, I want to hear from you! Send me a DM on Instagram and we can chat through your struggles and whether you’re a good candidate for coaching.

You are also always welcome to DM me the word “quiz” on Instagram to take my quiz that tells you EXACTLY where to start based on your personal goals, history, and metabolism! All you need to do is DM me the word “quiz” on Instagram and I will send it your way

Don’t forget how worthy you are of reaching your goals!