Cheating On Your Diet To Increase Fat Loss.

Howdy folks.... no I have not lost my mind. I have come only bearing gifts! The gift of knowledge. Okay, that sounds totally corny, but this might have you smiling all the way back to the fridge.

So many people hit plateaus. The fat will not go anywhere, and your measurements and scale weight at the same.  My longest plateau was 7 weeks long. Depressing yes, but in my quest for the truth about fat loss, I discovered something..... Cheating once or twice a week, actually helped with moving beyond that plateau.

A fluke? Wishful thinking?  Nope... it is actually based in medical science. It has to do with Neuroendocrinology. Seriously!

We talk about insulin, we talk about testosterone, we talk about estrogen, but have we every talked about LEPTIN?

Leptin? What the, who the huh?

Yup Leptin, a hormone. There not just for sex anymore.

Named after leptos, the Greek term for "thin," leptin is a hormone released by your fat cells. Although it has a number of functions, one of leptin's main roles is to let your brain know how fat you are.  It actually controls your metabolism. Yes I am serious. Leptin is produced by fat tissue and is secreted into the bloodstream where it travels to the brain and other tissues. Leptin causes fat loss and decreased appetite. It also plays a very important role in calorie intake and calorie burning. Hmmm, that sounds pretty important to all this hubbub we are all going through doesn't it?

The bottomline is that by mastering Leptin hormone in your body you will be mastering your body weight. Why?

Leptin causes you to burn stored fat; most fad diets, or unrealistic dieting robs the body of both fat and muscle. When you diet, your body compensates for reduced calorie and fat intake by lowering your energy and metabolism. Leptin can actually enhance your energy and metabolism. What does this mean, well what it means is best diet and exercise plan in the world will not work unless the Leptin levels are correct. Something Nutrisystem does not share with it's customers I assure you.

Leptin levels are related to a number of things, including insulin, your caloric intake, and your current level of bodyfat. Think of it as one of the big ?fat-loss decision makers.? Generally speaking, the leaner you are, the lower your baseline levels of leptin are. Under normal conditions, though, leptin is plentiful. However, while your calorie intake is at sub-maintenance levels, and particularly if you're on a low-carb diet, which lowers your levels of circulating insulin, leptin levels drop.

Decreased leptin levels cause a number of other regulatory changes ? namely, decreased thyroid output and metabolic rate and increased catabolic hormone activity and appetite. In an attempt to become more efficient, your body will try to slow down to make that lowered caloric intake its new maintenance intake. That is, it'll try to do the same amount of work with less energy. And unfortunately, this usually means having to continuously lower calories to maintain your progress, which inevitably makes it very hard to hold on to all your hard-earned muscle. None of this sounds too good to me. However, periodic days of high calorie and carbohydrate intake may help with this.


Remember our bodies want to adapt. That is a good thing and a not-so-good thing when trying to lose body fat. So how do we increase levels of leptin enough to kick start the fat loss again. (exercise is still required here people)

Researchers have identified a system that 'senses' nutrient flux (flux = what's going in versus what's going out) through both fat and muscle cells.  This affects a lot of process. When dieting, more calories are leaving the fat cell than are going in (negative flux). This nutrient sensing system  'senses' this and affects many processes, one of which is leptin production (decreasing leptin production).  So leptin drops.  When overfeeding, more calories are entering the fat cells than are leaving (positive flux). The system 'senses' this and  affects many processes, one of which is leptin production (increasing leptin production).  So leptin increases.  Hence the need for cyclical dieting: when dieting, leptin drops and your body fights back. 

What is cyclical dieting... well to make a long story short. A cheat day. Now I do not mean go nuts with the KFC, I mean, eat more carbs, protein and fat, don't worry. Meaning try 4 days of dieting per week.  Meaning consume 500 -800 Calories less than your Maintainance Level, and then have 2 days at the maintainance level, and one day with maybe an extra 500 calories above your maintainance level.  Keep working out, drink plenty of water... try this for a couple of weeks, and see if this works, remember change it up each day.  mix it up.

Your plateau will start to vanish.  It did for me.

Eat people.... it is what gives us the energy to live.

ok WOW.  

I usually feel guilty if my calories vary more than 200 a day.  some days just a hair under 1200, some days just a hair over 1400.  I do my best to stay in that range.

I felt horrible that last weekend I hit the 2K mark.  I hadn't done that in what seems like ages now!   Maybe a few more slip-ups like that will do me good...

how often tho can you let yourself get off the beaten path and still not really screw up?  Twice a month the limit?  Once a week?  

I've allowed myself a maintenance day at least once a week for the last three months. it helps to switch up your cals-keeps your body from getting complacent. also keeps me from eating the fridge, because I know Saturday is coming. XD

Hi guys - I know it's CoachDee's post - but according to the book I read - you should stick to your diet of choice for 5 days, and then for 36 hours you should up your calories 10 calories per pound you weigh.  I had a hard time getting to an extra 1300 a day on top of the 1200 I was already eating.  One of the author's of the book left me a message on my Blog telling me it's ok to up ot 5 - 10 cals per day. 

Definitely good information to be made aware of.  I have heard of this and I actually believe it.  Years ago when I dieted I consumed 1200 calories a day but before I reached my goal, my weight loss was at a stand still.  I noticed that sometimes on the weekend I would eat whatever I wanted and of course I would feel guilty afterwards and I remember thinking that I would definitely weigh more when I check my weight on Monday's.  To my surprise, I didn't weight anymore, I usually loss a couple of pounds.  It was kind of weird but I think your information is more accurate.

Oh Coachdee,

       &nb sp;             You have no idea how good you have made me feel.

Your post made so much sense!  I have been on Jenny Craig for almost 2 months now.  I have lost some weight, but not as much as I would like.  Tonight I cheated and had a hamburger!  I had only been cosuming maybe 1100 calories a day if that.  I am going to try your plan and see what happens.  I will keep you posted.

Robin

Wow, blast from the past.  I'm glad though as I wasn't even here when this was posted so I never saw it.  It makes me feel better about my occasional binges though.  I have continued to lose in spite of them, however.

"Eat people.... it is what gives us the energy to live."

OH MY GOD!  YOU WANT US TO EAT PEOPLE!!!  You sicko!!

I eat dinner a little on the bad side once a week. it really does help the body get your metabolism back up and running. YAY!

Actually you only need to increase your diet by 200 calories for a few days to get it going.  Ive been dieting extra 'good' lately I'm on a platue right now for the past 2 weeks, and I'm having the hardest time mentally allowing myself to eat bad for a few days. I should be happy, but i feel so horrible.

Wow! I'm glad someone found this post! This is really useful information. I'll definitely keep it in mind. :)

ravenlark's right, though. "Eat people..." That just makes me giggle. :)

The scale hasn't budged in almost 12 days.  So tonight, I had an extra helping of my whole wheat alfredo pasta!  I think I am severly underdoing it calorie wise and need to bump it up a notch.  I think we are so trained to think "eat as little as possible" that it is hard to grasp the fact that we need to eat to lose weight!

Thanks for the wonderful and insightful post! 

I think we should just keep bumping this post so people are aware that they need to fill the glass until it's full sometimes to be able to empty it... or whatever I'm trying to say with this dumb analogy...

I really does work! The tough thing is OCCASIONAL cheating, can lead to all the cravings coming back and turn in to CONSTANT cheating! Keep it in check. I try to have Saturday be my cheat day every week. I dont get crazy, but it is something to look forward too, and helps me behave all week......I know that "Saturday I can have the donut, or the pizza, or the cheeseburger and fries from Mcdee's!" It keeps me from wanting it every day knowing on Saturday I can have it with no worries! If a MAJOR craving strikes, write it down and eat it Saturday!!

This explains why, after the superbowl, when I went "off" my diet (ate to maintenance level) I finally lost a pound!

Ravenlark--haaa!  Eat people!

Coachdee--thanks for the info!  I haven't lost a lb in a couple of weeks now, and I finally got annoyed on a business trip (yeah, try eating healthy when they provide all nasty food--I was eating like a rabbit) and had a big huge burrito w/ cheese AND sour cream last night.  Glad to know it might actually help me!

want to link to this

Does the calories from alcohol count? I went to a bachlorette party last night and drank beer and sweet cocktails for the first time in a long time. I felt so guilty! The only reason I stopped drinking was because of the calories. Then once I was drunk and we were on the way home my ride saw that crispy cream had a drivethrough :( I had two donuts! (Something I would not have done if I was sober) 

But mabey it will help

does this work for maintenence also? im totally intruigued (sp?)....

WOW, I have a cheat day just so I don't go crazy busting my butt dieting and exercising. I usually feel guilty after cheat day, Now I feel happy and excited that the Italian meatloaf and bread and cheese cake and 2 amereto sours I had last night were a good thing! woowoowoo Thanks Coachdee!!!!

This makes so much sense to me!  I am always struggling to lose a pounbd per week but I am definitely going to try this method.  Maybe if I have 6 good days per week and one day when I eat just a little bit more!

Thanks - I'll let you know how it goes - if anyone would be interested.  BTW I am an older slimmer at 59 so I'm finding it harder.  I also have rheumatoid arthritis so can only do so much exercise per day - but my energy levels are slowly increasing at last!

Many thanks for your suggestions!  Great stuff!

Coachdee, I liked what you wrote and your writing style is awesome! Thank you.