You Can Increase Your Calories Without Gaining Weight. Here's How:

I'm going to walk you through this process step by step.

When you understand this, you'll be able to eat more AND maintain your results without continuously restricting yourself after a diet.

Unfortunately, many people skip this step and end up with less-than-ideal results.

This is why you risk weight re-gain if you skip a maintenance phase:

• You go straight from 'dieting 'not dieting’, and all structure gets thrown out the window, encouraging a f*ck it mindset

• Your appetite is increased post-diet, and if you eat intuitively, you'll be very likely to eat too many calories

• You aren't aware of what maintenance calorie portions look like, so it's pretty impossible to eat at maintenance.
  
  

These issues can easily be avoided by taking the time to do a maintenance phase and continue eating a structured diet for a short period to become accustomed to the increase in calories.

Here's how to do it, step by step:

Step 1: Work out your new 'predicted' maintenance calories

This is your TDEE (total daily energy expenditure)- a fancy way of saying calories out.

TDEE comprises four segments: your metabolism + your exercise + your non-exercise activity, and the thermic effect of digestion.

Jump into this site here https://tdeecalculator.net to estimate your new calorie burn post-diet. You'll notice this is a little lower than your previous estimated calories (pre-diet), as you're lighter now, and your calorie burn will be proportionately lower.

The metabolism segment of your daily calorie burn is directly proportional to your mass (weight), so as you've reduced your weight, this will be different to pre-diet.

Step 2: Create a maintenance nutrition plan

You now need to create a rough outline of a nutrition plan for yourself that allows you to eat what you've worked out in step 1.

For example, if your predicted TDEE is now 1800 calories, you can simply create a day's worth of meals that add up to 1800 calories.

You can make this easier by splitting the day into segments and creating a calorie allowance for each. E.g., 900 calories before midday and 900 calories after, or 500 calories at each main meal + 300 calories for snacks. What suits you best? If you outline these parameters in advance, it'll be easier to follow them daily.

In order of importance:

1. Work out calories first

2. Allocate protein at each meal

3. Follow with adding fats and carbs

4. Stick to it and repeat.

Step 3: Expect a small amount of 'weight' gain (not fat gain).

This is scale weight gain, not fat gain.

If you eat at maintenance, you've likely increased your total food intake.

What happens when we increase total food intake?

The actual volume and weight of the food consumed goes UP. This means higher gut volume, higher sodium (and therefore water retention), and likely higher total carbohydrate intake - again, leading to higher water retention throughout the body. This is not a bad thing; it's normal and to be expected.

I'd expect a net increase of about 500-1000g of increased mass overnight. Maybe you finished your deficit at 60 and now weigh 61kg when you eat at maintenance.

This doesn't mean freaking out and slashing your calories back down; it means accepting the new 'weight' and knowing that you look the same as you did yesterday when you were dieting.

Readjust your post-diet weight to this new weight in your mind.

Step 4: Follow this plan for 2-4 weeks.

If your weight (the new post-diet weight) remains stable for 2-4 weeks, then you've found your accurate maintenance calories - congratulations!

If your new weight decreases slightly over the 2-4 weeks, then you're still eating in a deficit. Increase by 100-200 calories and repeat steps 2-4.

If your new weight increases consistently over the 2-4 weeks, you're overeating. Decrease by 100-200 calories and repeat steps 2-4.

Easy, right?

It's easy in theory but requires you to calculate, plan and stick to it!

Think of it as the post-diet diet to ensure your results stick.

Save all the hard work and commitment you poured into the deficit phase by bypassing this critical phase.

If you need help with the maintenance phase, I recommend nutrition coaching 

Yours in health,

Dom xx