Do you do diet breaks? For how long?

Hi

I read some posts and articles talking about the benefits of diet breaks and eating at maintenance and I was wondering if people around here really do it. I have been dieting since the 22nd of July and I didn’t take a real break since then. I probably ate at 2000 cals on some days /weekends when I went away with friends or visited families but nothing longer.
To be honest I have been eating around 1400-1600 for a very long time (2 years) but I also had ED (bulimic) so the tracking was probably wrong and not representative. I have been on the right track and no ED episodes since 22nd of July and I weight everything I eat so I’m now confident on my cals.

I am 30, 5’6-5’7 and I weight 56kg (124lbs). I know that I’m not overweight but I actually gained some weight eating 1400-1600cal so I’m kind of hesitant to go higher even if my bodymedia says that I burn at least 2000cal on rest days and 2200 on gym days. I went back to the gym end of August starting SS.

Would you recommend a break? The key thing for me is to avoid going back to ED while not putting too much weight on and still make so progress in the gym….
For how long should I go up and what would be the right number? Should I trust my bodymedia or would I just end up gainning fat? Any opinion will be welcomed and apprecaited!

[QUOTE=Stroumphette;1153034213]Hi

I read some posts and articles talking about the benefits of diet breaks and eating at maintenance and I was wondering if people around here really do it. I have been dieting since the 22nd of July and I didn’t take a real break since then. I probably ate at 2000 cals on some days /weekends when I went away with friends or visited families but nothing longer.
To be honest I have been eating around 1400-1600 for a very long time (2 years) but I also had ED (bulimic) so the tracking was probably wrong and not representative. I have been on the right track and no ED episodes since 22nd of July and I weight everything I eat so I’m now confident on my cals.

I am 30, 5’6-5’7 and I weight 56kg (124lbs). I know that I’m not overweight but I actually gained some weight eating 1400-1600cal so I’m kind of hesitant to go higher even if my bodymedia says that I burn at least 2000cal on rest days and 2200 on gym days. I went back to the gym end of August starting SS.

Would you recommend a break? The key thing for me is to avoid going back to ED while not putting too much weight on and still make so progress in the gym….
For how long should I go up and what would be the right number? Should I trust my bodymedia or would I just end up gainning fat? Any opinion will be welcomed and apprecaited![/QUOTE]

To be honest I'm very hesitant to give you any advice except see a professional due to how recent your ED has been in remission.
At your height and weight if you aren't happy it's due to lack of muscle, going any lower in weight will not give you the physique you want.
If you gained weight eating 1400-1600 then you are actually eating more than that and something is off in the way you're tracking.

Thanks for your answer. I realise that I’m just recovering but I feel really good now with no urge to eat. The first few weeks were hard nut I’m kind of back in a good routine. To be honest I’m not too unhappy with how I look. Yes I could have more muscle, less fat on my thighs and have a better shaped butt but at the moment my goals are:
Upping my lifts (it’s frustrating when I don’t see any progress)
Not going back to ED
Fixing my metabolism if it needs to or not damaging it if it’s fine

I kind of guess that the muscles and better body shape will come with the stronger lifts… Maybe I’m just dreaming there but I’m keen to try.

Re my tracking I really don’t think I’m not doing it properly. I weight everything and if I don’t I average over 2 or 3 days (ie I had half a cookie yesterday, I didn’t weight the piece to make sure it was half the weight but I ate the other half this afternoon so overall I had the full cookie and I logged the full cookie). This is why I’m wondering if my metabolism is damaged. Is it possible that I gain at 1400-1600 because I ate like that for too long? Should I go full speed at 2000 and try not to think too much about the fat gain?

[QUOTE=Stroumphette;1153069683]This is why I’m wondering if my metabolism is damaged. Is it possible that I gain at 1400-1600 because I ate like that for too long? Should I go full speed at 2000 and try not to think too much about the fat gain?[/QUOTE]

My gut feeling is that this is the case - your metabolism has slowed down and you need to rev it up again and refuel your body so it doesn't think you're starving it and subsequently latches on to fat. The fact that you state you have "no urge to eat" is difficult for me to fathom - my opinion is that you should increase your calories, focus on macros, and focus on lifting heavy and not the number on the scale. Good luck!

Sorry I wasn't clear I do want to eat but I no longer feel the urge to binge and have lots of junk food at once.
I'm also really confused now because I weighted this morning and ended at 55.4kg so it's almost like I maintain. I wish I could bring myself to go up to 2000 but each weekend I think next week you do it and then Monday I just eat like the week before and then Tuesday and by Wednesday I think I'll do it next week...
I got a blood test last month to check I was all right and not have hypothyroidism and it came back good so it's not the problem either. Just messing with my mind.

Bump up calories gradually, add 100 calories each week, so it would take you about a month to get to a 'maintenance' intake. I would not weigh yourself until the end of the month because you may get some water retention that might throw you off.

Just focus on eating foods you like and enjoying yourself in the gym. You should find you have more energy too so you can improve your performance. I know it is hard but I think you need to 'trust the process' because you need to do this to be happy and healthy : )