As someone who reentered the dating world a few years ago, I never fully understood the concept of red flags. And then, suddenly, I understood the dialogue. It seemed like I was in a parade, and red flags were readily available and in abundance. But dating doesn't have the monopoly on red flags. Our bodies often wave a giant red flag in front of us, and we seem to be colorblind to it. But I want to draw your attention to calorie deficit red flags, how a reverse diet can address those red flags, and whether a reverse diet may be appropriate for you.

Reverse diets may also be helpful if you’ve been eating a deficit for a long period of time and want to get an idea for what your current maintenance calorie needs are.  It can be beneficial to slowly increase calories to make sure you’re keeping the habits you established while in your calorie deficit, rather than just considering the end of your deficit to be a signal to just stop being mindful of your nutrition altogether. Chances are that your ideal maintenance nutrition doesn’t look much different than your deficit nutrition – just slightly larger meals and a little extra flexibility.

Diet culture is a system that places value on our weight and size over our health. Diet culture is supported by a multi-billion dollar industry that pushes weight loss through every medium possible.⁣ Diet culture tells men, women, and children that they are not small enough, strong enough, or lean enough. ⁣DIET CULTURE IS HARD TO IGNORE.⁣ Anti-diet culture is not the same thing as anti-dieting, and let’s talk about why.

When considering fat loss, the number one thing we talk about is energy balance. In order to lose fat, it’s necessary to eat a calorie deficit (eating less calories than you expend). However, our bodies aren’t made to exist in a calorie deficit forever.

Let’s get one thing straight: fat loss isn’t supposed to be easy peezy. It requires hard work and some sacrifices, but it doesn’t mean you have to be completely miserable. Today we’re talking about the changes you can make to your diet to help you manage hunger, eliminate feelings of deprivation, and increase your chances of successfully reaching your fat loss goals and, more importantly, maintaining those changes long term.