- Joined
- Aug 24, 2017
- Messages
- 5,856
This is a concept I shared in my fat loss journey thread, which I just wanted to share here as well. Maybe this can be helpful to others as well (that don't follow the fat loss thread).
-----------
The reasons why I'm embracing a deficit now:
> I've near maxed out my natural potential. I can still gain maturity and more definition, but that will be a long journey over many years. Doing a deficit for 3 months or so isn't going to set me back
> It's possible to keep on gaining strength and size on a deficit; recomping. Which all depends on how much fat someone has. The leaner you get, the harder it gets. In the past, I dieted down to roughly 8% BF and didn't lose any strength. This time I'm dieting slower and might even gain strength during this phase. Also, the reduction in weight will make calisthenic exercises easier, which is one of my main strength goals (get better in certain calisthenic movements).
> 3 months of dieting is short term and will not set me back in the long run. After the diet, I can lean bulk slowly and maintain my leanness, which I didn't do last time. So that will be a win.
> I can be an example that I practice what I preach. I always practice what I preach, but I used bulking as an excuse to eat a lot.
Mental processes that held me back
> Sleep will tank
> Energy will tank
> Mood will tank
> Libido will tank
> Stress will be through the roof
> I can rather spend this time building muscle and strength (discusses above)
Research shows that when people are not aware that they are on a diet, they don't get worse mood, sleep, energy, etc, than the other people who are not in a deficit. It's the mental recognition/thought that you're going into a deficit and that believe that deficits are the cause of these problems. You manifest your own fears because of a belief. This is why I cheated on my diet on the first day multiple attempts in the past. When I found out that if someone is unaware when they are in a deficit and that they won't get stress responses then, my "stress response" symptoms immediately went away. All placebo-induced stress.
When someone does get symptoms, their deficit is usually too big or they have been dieting for too long, or their macros are suboptimal. It might be beneficial to be unaware of the deficit, but it's not a good idea to not control your diet. Another example is that if someone is doing a fast, they are not primarily doing it for fat loss, but to "improve their health" or "improve insulin sensitivity" or "gain metabolic flexibility". So when the going gets tough, they don't chicken out because it's for health and not fat loss. It's detox symptoms, not a stress response. :)
The mental aspect of dieting is very important.
-----------
In the past, I would get hungry just thinking of a deficit.
Start the deficit in the morning, cheat in the evening. Just couldn't do it. Then I would think to myself: "You know what, I want to build more strength and size, so I don't really want to diet." Also, I wasn't like fat fat, so it wasn't bothering me too much.The reasons why I'm embracing a deficit now:
> I've near maxed out my natural potential. I can still gain maturity and more definition, but that will be a long journey over many years. Doing a deficit for 3 months or so isn't going to set me back
> It's possible to keep on gaining strength and size on a deficit; recomping. Which all depends on how much fat someone has. The leaner you get, the harder it gets. In the past, I dieted down to roughly 8% BF and didn't lose any strength. This time I'm dieting slower and might even gain strength during this phase. Also, the reduction in weight will make calisthenic exercises easier, which is one of my main strength goals (get better in certain calisthenic movements).
> 3 months of dieting is short term and will not set me back in the long run. After the diet, I can lean bulk slowly and maintain my leanness, which I didn't do last time. So that will be a win.
> I can be an example that I practice what I preach. I always practice what I preach, but I used bulking as an excuse to eat a lot.
Mental processes that held me back
> Sleep will tank
> Energy will tank
> Mood will tank
> Libido will tank
> Stress will be through the roof
> I can rather spend this time building muscle and strength (discusses above)
Research shows that when people are not aware that they are on a diet, they don't get worse mood, sleep, energy, etc, than the other people who are not in a deficit. It's the mental recognition/thought that you're going into a deficit and that believe that deficits are the cause of these problems. You manifest your own fears because of a belief. This is why I cheated on my diet on the first day multiple attempts in the past. When I found out that if someone is unaware when they are in a deficit and that they won't get stress responses then, my "stress response" symptoms immediately went away. All placebo-induced stress.
When someone does get symptoms, their deficit is usually too big or they have been dieting for too long, or their macros are suboptimal. It might be beneficial to be unaware of the deficit, but it's not a good idea to not control your diet. Another example is that if someone is doing a fast, they are not primarily doing it for fat loss, but to "improve their health" or "improve insulin sensitivity" or "gain metabolic flexibility". So when the going gets tough, they don't chicken out because it's for health and not fat loss. It's detox symptoms, not a stress response. :)
The mental aspect of dieting is very important.