Anyone who has dieted down to low body fat knows that at the end of a fat loss phase is an inevitable rebound phase wherein the individual packs on pounds of fat in what feels like just a few days. This rebound phase is pretty common among competitive bodybuilders when they start eating everything in sight after a contest. However, this see-food diet may not be optimal if the individual wishes to compete again in the future, or to keep fat gain to a minimum for lifestyle purposes. This is where a reverse diet can and will shine.
What is a Reverse Diet?
To put it simply, a reverse diet is a diet after a diet, basically. After the show date, beach day or photoshoot day, you basically keep dieting for weeks after the "deadline" but with a smaller deficit. This will help increase your metabolism without causing excessive fat gain.
When is a Reverse Diet Beneficial?
Excessive fat gain after a diet occurs because the individual is primed to put on fat after being starved for weeks. This means that calories eaten will be utilized efficiently in an effort to protect the individual from another diet or starvation phase. However, when calories are increased very slowly, there will be little to no excess food that will be stored, and the individual can maintain good conditioning while increase the metabolic rate back to normal levels.
If you worked hard to get lean and want to stay lean after the target date, a reverse diet can certainly help.
How to Reverse Diet
Reverse dieting involves a slow, methodical increase in calories to help the individual regain metabolic health and to get to healthy body fat levels without overshooting his/her previous condition.
This can be done straight out of the diet, beginning from he individual's dieting calories. So for example if a 100 lb. woman was at 1300 kcals at the end of her diet, her reverse diet would begin from that point. Increases of 20-30 kcal increases may be enough for smaller individuals, while 50-100 kcal increases may be more suited for larger/heavier individuals. These increases will occur weekly, until such time that the individual reaches a sufficient amount of calories.
Another approach would be to return to maintenance calories before starting inclemental increases. This may result in a more noticeable body fat gain, but it may help with individuals who simply cannot stay on the diet for much longer. While not optimal, starting from maintenance calories may still be better than binging on food with no structure at all.
Eat More and Stay Lean
If the reverse diet goes well, the individual should be able to increase calories by 100-500 kcals in a few weeks, without causing too much fat gain. For those who are looking to build muscle while staying relatively lean, this is a great way to do that.
Also, it's possible to build one's metabolic capacity so that he/she can eat more food without gaining fat. This will help for lifestyle purposes and performance purposes as well. Athletes have to keep their diets in check, too, especially for sports that have weight classes. Reverse dieting can be the best of both worlds, helping them with weight management but at the same time giving them more leeway to eat for fuel and satiety.