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22. If These Are Your Normal, You Have Been In A Deficit Too Long
30 Plays1 month ago
Signs your body is surviving, and not thriving, include things like having low energy, increased hunger, slower digestion, weaker lifts, and increased cravings.
Those are just some negative biofeedback markers that would tell us something is off, and to learn to avoid the stress your body is dealing to even show red flags like that in the first place.
Those are signs your body is surviving and not thriving & we need to remember a diet is a PHASE of our journey… not supposed to BE the journey.
So many live in a constant state of restriction, chasing their smallest self, and deal with negative biofeedback markers like this as part of their normal everyday lives.
A calorie deficit is a tool for fat loss and weight loss. It is a phase of the journey, not the journey itself.
When we normalize chronic dieting, we normalize surviving instead of thriving & we don’t want to sacrifice our overall health for a short term goal.
In this episode we cover five biofeedback categories to pay attention to in a cut — hunger, digestion, energy, strength, and cravings — what is normal, what crosses into red flag territory, and why the goal of any fat loss phase is to get in, do the work, and get out.
Because the other side of a successful cut — more food, more energy, stronger lifts, less food noise — is where you actually thrive.
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#CalorieDeficit #FatLoss #ChronicDieting
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Transcript
Introduction and Episode Focus
00:00:00
Speaker
Hey, hey, hey, welcome back my friends. We are gonna get into another episode of the Basics of Balance. My name is Ariella and over the last few weeks I've been talking with a couple of different clients who are specifically in a cut, okay? And not only are they in a cut, which is a calorie deficit. They are chasing fat loss. They are chasing weight loss. So we are chasing an aesthetical, right? With that in mind. But they are in an aggressive deficit. So they're in a deeper level of a deficit.
Understanding Biofeedback in Calorie Deficits
00:00:31
Speaker
um And with that situation, we are going to experience some negative biofeedback signs. um as just part of being not only in a deficit, but also in an aggressive deficit, okay? And i thought it would be a good idea to kind of just shed some light on
00:00:52
Speaker
you know what biofeedback looks like in a cut and it's they are normal you know biofeedback signs if we were not in a cut if we were not chasing fat loss weight loss if we were not in a deficit these would be red flags so these would be something that we would say like okay something is off but when we're in a deficit we expect some of these things as part of normal okay And so all of that to say, i want to shed some light on not only the biofeedback part of, you know, being in a cut and things that are normal and, you know, what to watch out for, but also how we view different wins in a cut, okay? You know, when we are cutting, we're going to look at wins, progress, silver linings, light bulb moments, aha moments in your journey, however you want to categorize them, positives, okay? We look at positives a lot of times when we're in a cut, as scale progress.
00:01:46
Speaker
Obviously, that's what we're chasing, right? However, there are other wins in a cut that are very related to wins that don't show up on this scale, right, that are more indicative of positive biofeedback signs um that basically tell us, hey, your body, though it's technically stressed right now, um because we are you know putting it under a season of stress to chase fat loss, to be in a deficit, though it's under stress, it's actually doing quite well.
00:02:14
Speaker
And so did a episode specifically on how to measure progress. It was two parts because there's so many different ways. And so I would encourage you, if you have not listened to either of those episodes, to go back and listen to them. It really just gives you some great information. Part one is more on the physical side of progress, right? So like scale progress, dress um you know, pictures, measurements, things like that. And then part two is more alongside the biofeedback side of things. OK. And so that is going to be more closely related to kind of what we're talking
Managing Hunger and Nutrition Strategies
00:02:46
Speaker
about here. And so there are ah five different categories that are really indicative of normal biofeedback signs that would regularly be a red flag if we were not like i said in a deficit okay so first is going to be hunger then we're going to go into digestion uh we're going talk about energy and your mood uh your headspace things like that um overall strength so your stamina your physical you know strength and then of course cravings food noise and whatnot um and so the thing is is that hunger is your body's way of saying it is not getting enough food And that shouldn't be a news flash when we are in a deficit because that's intentional. We are intentionally not eating enough food in order to see a physical change. Right. So we are, you know, of course, that should kind of go hand in hand. But here is the thing. all right. We expect a certain level of hunger. But once that hunger crosses over into uncomfortable, or unmanageable territory, that then becomes the red flag in a deficit. If you are in maintenance, if you are chasing, you are trying to build muscle, if you're in a surplus, um or if you're just in maintenance and you're just trying to live a healthy and balanced lifestyle, we shouldn't really be experiencing hunger um as much. When you are in a deficit, that is something that we need to learn to overcome. And so with that being said, It's a big reason why we don't just like slash our calories. The goal when you're in a deficit is not to see how little you can eat and survive. The goal in a deficit is how much can I eat while remaining in a deficit? Okay. How much can I support my body while I am chasing this goal of fat loss, weight loss? Because the thing that we have to remember is our body does not care about our goals. Our body has one job. It's to stay alive. It's to be as healthy as it can, and therefore, it's always adapting based on the variables we are putting it through, a.k.a. hey, I'm not going to give you enough food because I want to see a certain outcome. That wasn't your body's decision. It's just trying to do the best it can with what it's given,
Body Adaptation and Health Considerations
00:04:59
Speaker
right? When we go too long without eating enough food, that is when we typically see a lot of um issues pop up
00:05:07
Speaker
things such as autoimmune diseases, right, or disorders, when you are deficient in, you know, certain nutrients or you have gone, like I said, too long without supporting your body, nutritionally speaking, things start to break down. Digestive issues, gut issues, right? We create kind of like imbalances with our gut biome, you know, based on what we're eating, stress, you know, all of these things affect our how healthy your body is and what your body is focusing on. um Adapting, like I said, to kind of just do the best that it can, right, to thrive in the situation it has. So all of that to say, the goal when you're in a deficit is to eat as much as you can within your targets to stay in your deficit.
00:05:47
Speaker
consistent long enough to see those changes. Right. And so we don't want to necessarily say I'm going to eat in a deficit. Let me you know eat as little as I can. No, no, no, no, no. We need to make sure that we are doing as much as we can. Number one, to overcome that hunger. OK. And the reason is um you know you can only white knuckle it as long as you can white knuckle it all right you only have as much willpower as you have and eventually biology is going to take over okay and so when you live in a period of restriction for either too long of a period of time or too deep of a level of restriction it is a biological response to increased cravings it is a biological response to cry out for more food. The greater the restriction, the greater the binge, right? I'm sure you've heard of that saying, and that's kind of where that comes from. So it's really important to, yes, be in a deficit, but not too deep so that your hunger is out of control and also so that you can stay in that deficit as long as possible and therefore see more progress. When you go too low in your calories, um you are at greater risk or
00:06:58
Speaker
or yeah, you are at greater risk, the chances of you overindulging are higher, right? You get to the weekend and you say, oh my gosh, screw it. I have been starving all you know week long. I'm just going to go get a cheeseburger or you know whatever your favorite meal is, right? And that is how we basically undo a lot of the quote unquote progress, a lot of the quote unquote effort that we had lived and survived through over the week, we basically backtrack over the weekend because it was too much. It was too extreme. And so, you know, those are kind of a couple of reasons as to why, yes, being a deficit, but we're not trying to just see like how little we can get away with. Hunger is a factor and at a certain point um it is not really in your control to stay in control. At a certain point your biology will take over. And so hunger is something that we expect but to a limit, right? We don't want to just expect like unmanageable, uncomfortable hunger, brain fog, getting dizzy, things like that, right? But we want to learn how to overcome hunger by implementing certain strategies, okay? and Some of those strategies would include um making sure that your first meal of the day, ah breakfast, whatever time you have that meal, it is as early as possible. The the earlier that you eat your first meal. um and
00:08:21
Speaker
of that meal making sure that it has a balanced breakdown, right? So we have our protein, we have our fiber, we have our carbs, we have our fat, and that meal is also going to provide us enough sustenance, enough fuel, enough nourishment to get through the first few hours of the day, meaning it is not going to be a 200 calorie breakfast, okay? Meaning we are going to make sure that our first meal of the day is large to provide our body what it needs to help things like balance blood sugar throughout the rest of the day, right? And so when we implement a strategy when we're in a deficit of making sure that first meal of the day is as early as possible and it has a certain breakdown and it is large enough, we are doing something that is directly going to impact our hunger and our appetite throughout the rest of the day because we are giving our body what it needs to fight back against that hunger, right? Because we are helping stabilize that blood sugar. We are giving our body calories and nourishment and therefore we're making it happy. right. We also might do things to overcome hunger, like making sure that we are eating high volume foods throughout the day. Okay. So these are ah low calorie foods, but they provide a lot of volume, meaning They they weigh a lot of food. or what am i saying they weigh a lot They also take up a lot of space in your belly. right Things like cucumbers. You can eat a big old English cucumber for like 20 calories. Things like spaghetti squash. Lately, i have been adding spaghetti squash to a lot of my meals, not necessarily because I'm trying to you know diet or anything like that as much as it helps keep me more satisfied to get from meal to meal and to not eat as much because I don't know about you, but like I got stuff to do. You know what i mean? And so it just kind of helps keep you more satisfied. Things like adding fruit and berries to your meal, right? Strawberries, raspberries, super low in calories. It's going to provide you with fiber. It's going to provide you with volume. And these things, when you add them to your balanced meals that also have plenty of calories right within your targets, ah you are going to feel a little bit more satisfied compared to if you did not include these things. right Something like, I was talking to a client this past week, and she regularly has sourdough as part of her breakfast, or any time she's having bread. Sourdough is great for you for a lot of reasons. If you're somebody like myself, I actually can't have sourdough. My body doesn't love um
00:10:55
Speaker
ah fermented food, so must be nice. But all that to say, she enjoys her sourdough, but she's also dealing with some um increased hunger, right? She's in a deficit and she is one of those clients I was mentioning that's in a aggressive deficit. So she is at about a 25% caloric deficit, all right? So she's dealing with a little bit more hunger, which is normal because you're not only in a deficit, but it's extreme, right? And something that I had suggested is, hey, your sourdough, it's a great option, don't get me wrong, but it's not gonna fill you up as much as if we were to swap that piece of sourdough that is a carb source, right? with something like oats and chia seeds. Okay. And the reason that I suggested that is the oats are a carb source. It's got a little bit more fiber than her sourdough. And also when we add some chia seeds that is going to increase the fiber content, it's going to add a little bit of fat. And when we combine those oats and that chia, we are number one, increasing the volume of that meal. It weighs a lot more than that sourdough and those chia seeds are going to work to kind of help expand and take up more space in her belly. It's going to help stabilize her blood sugar just like it would that sourdough, but yada yada. We're swapping one carb source to another, a different nutritional breakdown, but also at the same time providing a little bit more volume. And so that oatmeal example is going to help keep you a little bit more full. than a piece of sourdough. Both are carb sources, neither are good or bad, just different choices, you
Digestion and Nutrient Timing
00:12:30
Speaker
know? um And so those are kind of some strategies that you could, you know, implement if you are dealing with hunger, if you are in a deficit, okay? um And moving on to the very next,
00:12:43
Speaker
biofeedback side would be digestion. Okay, we want to make sure our digestion is moving at a regular pace. One of the reasons that fiber is so crucial is in order to help that system. um And so, you know, obviously, as we are making balanced choices, especially in a deficit, fiber is going to be massively important. Kind of like I mentioned, it'll help kind of keep you more satisfied, it will help stabilize your blood sugar, Kind of what we just talked about in that hunger topic. But when we are moving on to digestion, assuming that you are eating enough fiber, digestion naturally slows when you are dieting. okay You are eating less food, and so when you're eating less food, when you're taking in less food, there is less of a urgency to get rid of excess food right so things typically slow down right your motility slows down a little bit and that can also create some constipation okay so not only are you going maybe a little bit less when you go but also you're going less frequently at the same time okay and when we see slow digestion that turns into constipation We also typically are going to see more things like gas and bloating because those are your body's way of basically trying to like, hey, break things down, move things along. And if it's struggling to do that, that's typically when we're going to experience a little bit more of those digestive issues pop up throughout the day. Right.
00:14:05
Speaker
And so the thing is, is that we want to make sure that when we are dieting, we are paying attention to our digestion. Now, you might experience some, um you know, slower digestion temporarily until your body adapts, right? Until your body kind of understands, oh, okay, it's just a change in the status quo once again. It's adapting based on the um you know variables that we are providing it. And if it does not regulate in a few days or you know a week or so, that that is now a red flag. okay But we typically experience slower digestion in general in a cut, and that's normal. That is absolutely normal for those reasons that we just went over. If you are chasing you know ah building muscle, if you are trying to just maintain your weight and live healthy, oh hey, slower digestion, that's a red biofeedback sign. That's not a great thing. But in a cut, we expect it to a certain degree. You know what i mean? Like totally, you know, within the normal parameters, if you will.
00:15:03
Speaker
um The thing is, is that when you are experiencing slower digestion, we want to make sure, like I just mentioned, fiber is taken into consideration. But other things that help make sure that our digestion is moving properly is making sure that we're staying adequate.
00:15:18
Speaker
Excuse me. adequately hydrated and making sure that we are adequately hydrated also kind of goes hand in hand with making sure that we are eating enough fiber. Those two things are going to work together to help keep things moving, right? And then also at the same time, we want to make sure that we are getting in enough daily activity. Okay, so your structured exercise, your lifts, your classes, Okay, what about daily activity, right? Your NEAT activity, which we've talked about a few times on the show, your NEAT activity is, ah you know, they're like your steps, right? They're cleaning, they're organizing, you know, daily activity outside of your structured activity. um And the higher your NEAT activity, the more of a positive impact it is going to have on your digestive system. It keeps things moving, okay? Okay. So a lot of times in a cut, you know we want to make sure, yes, we're keeping up our steps because that's part of your need activity. But also, and and hold on, let me back up. I probably didn't explain that enough. Part of your need activity next to your diet is the greatest tool that you have to lose fat and weight. um And so it's really important when you're in a cut to make sure we are moving enough, right? Though it's driven by your nutrition,
00:16:31
Speaker
your neat activity specifically more than your exercise are going to have a greater impact on your overall physical progress in a cut yeah but we also want to make sure that we are staying active to keep things moving so the the need to stay active rises in a cut for more than just burning calories right um and so all of that to say as well eating enough dietary fat is pretty crucial to make sure things are moving, right? One of the benefits of eating dietary fat is it kind of keeps things, you know, moving and grooving. It lubricates the inside of your intestines, if you will, and so it can kind of assist, or I should say,
00:17:10
Speaker
aid in staying hydrated, in eating enough fiber is to help move things along, right? And so when you're in a deficit, expect a little slow down of the digestion, but at the same time, to a certain degree, okay? Digestive issues
Energy, Mood, and Mental Well-being
00:17:26
Speaker
are...
00:17:26
Speaker
Running rampant in our society right now and arguably it's because we are not doing simply the basics. um You know, we're not getting enough fiber. We're not getting enough fat. We're not moving enough. We're not staying hydrated, you know, things like that. They matter. Everything is connected, right? Moving on to energy and your mood. And so.
00:17:45
Speaker
And calories are how we measure units of energy. right When we are eating less calories, we are taking in less energy. And so that is going to mean um you're probably going to feel a little bit more tired when you're in a deficit. You're also probably going to feel um a little bit of a um you know decreased mood. Your headspace might not be as great as it you know is when you are thriving because your body is hungry. It doesn't have enough of what it needs. Things start breaking down like we talked about earlier, right? Also, arguably, I've said this a few times, but another reason to point this out, relatively speaking, of course, your body, your human brain needs 130 carbs a day for optimal brain function. And that's because carbs are your body's preferred source of energy. And so when we're talking about 130 grams of carbs, we're talking about food. We're talking about you know calories coming in and specifically about your body's preferred type of food in order to run properly. And so when we're not eating as much food, we're not eating as many calories, your body doesn't have as many calories to to work with. And so it starts slowing things down. Another reason why we don't want to diet forever. Let the diet be a phase of the journey, but not the journey. When we go too long without eating, things start breaking down because your body doesn't have enough of what it needs and it has to do the best with what it can and you know save energy, conserve energy for what's most important. right And so it slows things down quite a bit.
00:19:19
Speaker
And so that is closely related to your mood dipping as well. If your brain is not getting enough food, if it's not getting enough energy, it's going to have a really hard time um you know dealing with stress and overcoming challenges as they arise and just outlook on life and you know staying in a positive attitude and being able to see the cup you know half full and things like that.
00:19:39
Speaker
um A big contributor to energy, though you don't have calories to work with a whole lot in a cut, is making sure that you're getting enough adequate sleep. okay um you can only like Caffeine is only going to help you so much, and arguably speaking, if you're drinking caffeine too late in the day, it's going to disrupt your ability to get good quality sleep. Your sleep is crucial in a deficit. It is what is partially helping you um you know overcome your hunger. um When we don't get enough sleep, your hunger hormones never have a chance to reset, so you typically are going to be a lot hungrier, when you're not sleeping great. And so when you're in a cut, that matters, right? Going back to that first um ah topic, if you will. But, you know, when you're not getting enough sleep, of course, that's going to affect your energy. That's going affect your mood. Your body didn't have what it needed to recover from the previous day, to reset, if you will. So you're basically starting the next day in a deficit, right? An energy deficit. um
00:20:42
Speaker
And so all of that to say, you know, making sure that you are eating as much as you can to make sure that you are providing your body with as much energy as possible though we're going to experience some dips in energy and that's normal to a certain degree in a deficit we want to fight that as much as we can okay so making sure you're getting enough sleep is going to help also making sure you're eating enough is going to help and making sure hey Carbs, your body loves carbs. Your body's preferred source of energy is carbs. Okay, so making sure we are giving our body enough of what it needs to have as much energy as possible, right? We also want to make sure we get energy by moving our body. And so oftentimes we wait to feel energized to move. Like oftentimes I'll hear like, man, I'm just so tired. I couldn't, you know, go for a walk. I was so tired. Well, you would get energy if you made yourself go for a walk, you know, and so oftentimes we want to make sure that we are, you know, moving in order to, you know, for a lot of reasons, but for specifically for energy and also for your mood.
00:21:45
Speaker
Exercise is extremely important, right? Exercise has been proven to help boost your mood, right? To put you in a better headspace. Exercise has been proven to give you energy. And so if we're struggling with energy, are we doing what we need to do in order to get as much energy as possible? And again, there is a certain threshold where...
00:22:03
Speaker
It's normal. It's part of being a in a deficit. We're not thriving in a deficit. We are surviving. We are trying to do the best with we can or best with what we have. Moving on to your strength. When you have less energy coming in, ah you have less energy to expend during your exercise. okay That's going to have a massive impact on your stamina. Your endurance, you might feel you know more tired, more winded a lot faster. You might feel like the weights that you're lifting are heavier than you remembered them being last week. And that's because your body is struggling to keep up, right? Another reason why we want to make sure we are eating as much as we can within our targets is to make sure that we are giving our body what it needs to at least maintain our strength. If we are at least maintaining our strength, that's fantastic. And it's a huge reason why we need to make sure we are tracking our workouts. I don't remember what I had for dinner two weeks ago. I'm not going to remember what weight I lifted on one exercise.
00:23:01
Speaker
last week. It's just not going to happen. You know what i mean? So when we track our workouts, we can see the weight that we're lifting. We can see the reps that we are completing and we can try to at least match that. We can try to at least maintain and preserve our strength even if we're not able to get stronger, right? We expect a dip in our strength. We expect a dip in our stamina, but we don't want to lean into that. Okay. We want to make sure that we are still pushing ourselves within reason, you know, form first, right? Control is is first in any kind of lift.
00:23:31
Speaker
But we want to make sure that we are doing what we can to fight back against that, you know, dip in strength, that dip in our stamina. Arguably speaking, let's not forget that your muscle is partially what's keeping your metabolism high, which when you're in a deficit, I'm sure you can appreciate matters, right? That's kind of important. And so we definitely don't want to lean into the feeling of not feeling, you know, as strong or having as much endurance, right?
00:23:58
Speaker
By lowering our weight, right? We might, you know, maybe we do like ah one or two less reps, but we want to as much as we can try to maintain that weight lifted. And if we're struggling to do that, if it's like impossible, then hey, now that crosses the threshold into a red
Cravings and Dietary Compliance
00:24:15
Speaker
flag. So we expect it to a certain degree ah to a certain degree. And once we reach that degree, now it's no longer expected. Now it's not necessarily something that we want to just accept. Right. And our very last ah topic or variable is going to be cravings. All right. Cravings, food noise, whatever you want to call it. The more that we restrict
00:24:37
Speaker
the more your body is going to crave certain foods, which is a big reason why when we are restricting specific foods, when we find ourselves in front of those foods, we have a really hard time saying no, right? conversations that I've had with clients in the past have looked like, man, I don't know. I know that when I go to this pizza place, I always seem to go crazy, but you know I'll do the best that I can. And a way to fight back against that is, well, then have more pizza, maybe even specifically from that place. Finding a way to fit in the foods that you enjoy within a deficit is not easy, but it's possible. It's definitely possible with some planning um and you know you know just thinking ahead, just trying to be intentional with your choices, right?
00:25:22
Speaker
If you understand, let's say a pizza, it's got protein, carbs, and fat. So where do we need to you know shift things around throughout our day to make room for that kind of protein, carbs, and fat, right? We might have to eat like weird combinations to you know offset, hey, it's probably higher in fat and calories than a typical balanced meal. But if we are able to include those foods that we enjoy in any you know phase of our journey,
00:25:51
Speaker
we are going to have an easier time staying in control of those foods when we're in front of those foods. We're not going to lose control because it's not as exciting. It's something that you can do all the time. And so therefore, it's not as exciting, right? If you're you're able to kind of just stay in control a little bit more, have a little bit more willpower. The same can be said with your cravings in a deficit. All right. So when you are in a deficit, ah you know, your cravings are going to increase because you are living in a greater level of restriction. And like I've said, you know, a few times on this episode, the the more.
00:26:28
Speaker
you are living in restriction, the greater your body's biological response is going to be to overindulge. It's going to want to send you ah you know from one end of the spectrum to the complete opposite, which is a big reason why it's really important to make sure you're including the foods that you enjoy, that you look forward to when you're in a deficit. Now, you might might not be able to have as much of those foods as you want,
00:26:52
Speaker
but you're in a deficit you're in a temporary goal that we are choosing to be in right so we're only you know limiting how much we're having of that food for a temporary period of time but because we have allowed ourselves to have that food in that level of restriction We can basically expect to not go so crazy when we're back into maintenance, right? When we're no longer in that restriction.
00:27:15
Speaker
um Anyways, all that to say, I think I just went on a tangent. um But, you know, as far as our cravings are concerned, you know, it's another big reason why we don't want to just slash our cravings. our calories too much. When we are going too low in our calories, our cravings are going to go through the roof. Okay. So there is a level of normal cravings. You know, when you're in a deficit, you're in restriction. We know this, right? We've established this. We're choosing to do this. We're, you know, trying to lose some weight, trying to lose some fat. And that is how we're going to achieve that. Right. But at the same time, if we are really just going crazy, and that's all we can think about in the food noises like out of control and like, hey, that's not great. You know what i mean?
Recognizing Success Beyond the Scale
00:27:56
Speaker
Like that is a huge red flag that has crossed the threshold, ah you know, past what we want to accept. Right.
00:28:03
Speaker
um One way that we can kind of go over or I'm sorry, can kind of like navigate and like work through that is like I said, you know, making sure that we are including those ah foods that we enjoy. Another thing, like I said, making sure that we're eating as much as we can, um you know, not slashing our calories. But we also want to make sure that the the meals that we're eating are going to have enough fiber because our fiber intake is going to directly affect and impact our pressure. sugar response. okay It's going to help us balance our blood sugar throughout the day, which has a direct effect on our cravings. When we are, like I said in that hunger topic, when we're having large meals, when those meals are balanced, they have the protein, carbs, fat, they have the fiber,
00:28:51
Speaker
That is working to help stabilize your blood sugar. So it's keeping you more satisfied and also reducing your your cravings, right? It's giving you more willpower. um And so those are, you know, some regular biofeedback signs in a cut where... We we expect it and we accept it to a certain degree, but once it crosses that threshold, now it's back in red flag territory. But a lot of these signs, you know if we are experiencing them and you're not chasing fat loss, weight loss, or maybe you're you know chasing ah you're trying to build muscle, right? You're in a surplus. Hey, if you're experiencing any of those variables, these are red flags, period. You know what I mean? um But I do want to kind of shift focus really quick on talking about wins in a cut. All right. Winds, silver linings, aha moments, because like I said at the beginning, you know, obviously we are trying to see that scale drop. We are so trying to see inches drop. We are trying to see more definition. Obviously that's what we're chasing. However, we can't control those things as much. um And also that is just like, it takes the time that it takes, you know what I mean? And so like, we we just got to be patient at a certain point, but there are some other wins that if we don't understand that they are wins, we're missing a lot of, Hey, my body is doing good. Like not only am I seeing physical progress, but my body is doing good. Right? It's almost like a nod validation that like, hey, you're doing this the right way. It's sustainable.
00:30:19
Speaker
Green, green flags, if you will. No more red flags. These are green flags. All right. And so number one is going to be you are able to stay compliant despite feeling hungry. um and increase cravings. And that is likely because you are getting enough sleep. That is likely because you are giving your body enough of what it needs within the limitations that it has. okay So if you are able to stay compliant, you know I have clients sometimes that that is their win of the week and I really need them to continue to understand that's a big deal. It might seem simple like, oh, I did what you asked me to do, but we all know for those who have ever dieted before how
00:30:59
Speaker
much effort that takes sometimes, right? And so staying compliant when you're going out to eat, staying compliant when you have different stressors in life, when you're traveling for your kids' swim meet whatever the case is, that's a big deal. And that means that you are taking into consideration, getting enough sleep, eating enough of the things that keep you fueled, things like that, right?
00:31:18
Speaker
Similarly, you have not really any significant dips in energy. I mean, sure, you might experience, you know, a more tired day here or there, but maybe that has a little bit more to do with it was a really long, stressful day at work, right? Maybe that has a little bit more to do with, you know, something temporary, you push yourself in your workout, right? But, you know, you're still relatively in a good headspace. You're still relatively, you know, energized. That's a win. That's a good thing, right? Because like again, we expect dips in this at a certain point. um My favorite win that happened over this last week, and when I say favorite because if you know, you know, and I'm just going to leave it at that. But my favorite win came up with a client this week who she is in an aggressive deficit, you know, in that about 25 percent.
00:32:06
Speaker
So reduction in calories category. No digestive issues. Things are moving. They are grooving.
The Temporary Nature of Dieting and Maintenance
00:32:12
Speaker
You are not eating a whole lot and things are just like no issues there, period. No daily you know gas bloating. Things are moving along normal. That is a huge win. That means that your body is working properly. That means that what the stress that we're putting it under is not too much stress for it. It's not tipping the stress scales in the wrong direction. These are signs that like, hey, we can keep on keeping on. You know what i mean?
00:32:38
Speaker
These signs are all things that need to be monitored because when they switch from, hey, something that's normal to expect to, oh, now we're in uncharted territory, we need to adapt. We need to make sure that we are implementing some of these things that we talked about to make sure that we are um you know giving our body what it needs while we stress it out. Right.
00:32:58
Speaker
And so it's a big reason why your diet needs to be a temporary phase of the journey. OK, it's not supposed to be the journey you get in, you get to work, Does it suck sometimes? Is it not fun sometimes?
00:33:10
Speaker
Totally. But it's a phase of the journey, right? We eventually get out of that and that is when we appreciate the other side of dieting with more freedom, with more flexibility, with more food, with less food noise, with more energy. Your lifts are stronger. You're sleeping better. You know, a lot happens when you can compare living in a deficit and living in maintenance. And you appreciate maintenance a lot more when you successfully go through a cut and you look back and say like, Man, I'm glad I did that. I'm proud of myself for pushing.
00:33:40
Speaker
But man, I was not thriving. i wasing I was surviving. And now I'm thriving, right? And you appreciate it more. And so as always, I hope that that was helpful. um If you ever have anything that I say on these episodes that you want to you know talk about or me to go into a greater detail, let's talk about it. Let
Engagement and Further Discussion
00:33:58
Speaker
me hear from you. Fill out the form in the caption and let's have a conversation. But I hope this was helpful for you. I hope this kind of gave you a little bit more guidance as far as kind of like, you know, what we're looking for in terms of biofeedback, what's normal, what's not when it crosses that threshold. And I hope that you enjoy these brain gains. And until next time, my friends, have a wonderful rest of your day.