The Science of Refeeds and Diet Breaks. Do They Work?

[@dionbridger5944]

Some anecdotal evidence. I've been using "refeed" days once a week where I massively spike calorie intake, mainly through carbohydrates, followed by a full day fast the next day. I've been doing this for six weeks and have managed to lose just under a kilo a week while having no impulse to binge or "cheat" otherwise. So at least from a psychological perspective the refeed days have a great impact in terms of making it easier to follow my eating plan the rest of the week. I expect diet breaks work in the same way.

[@vikingnorsefitness5727]

I’ve just done the opposite, fast for 48 hours then a huge refeed . Thinking of making it two refeed days in a row

[@davidhoskins6799]

Personally I like diet breaks I use a 2to1 or 3to1 ratio Mainly because I find adherence much easier like this Continuous dieting never really worked for me

[@jakewhypersonaltrainer1390]

Awesome breaking that down for us. It's amazing what you do for PT's like me, to help us stay up to date with the latest studies and info.

[@c.c.1823]

Really clear and concise, yet very informative. Thank you!

[@nada347_]

Love this stuff, Ben! That's why I picked up the book. Love me some science!

[@dicrurusparadiseus]

wow that was so to the point.

[@thiago.assumpcao]

My main concern with cheat days and diet breaks is how it will affect long therm diet adherence. The biggest problem with losing weight is that most people gain back the weight. There is a study correlating cheat days with diet drop out over a year so I'm against it.

[@thomassmith4903]

Good video Ben Carpenter. I am due to start my diet break today! Typically I start it with a high carb refeed for 1 day then settle down to maintenance for a week (a bit like UD2.0) . This is between aggressive fat loss phases which are manageable as you can always 'see' the light at the end of the tunnel if you set a break every week or 2 and is easier to adhere to. Find what works best for you :)

[@cr1spbeatzplz]

In a nutshell, do what works for you. I typically stay 2 weeks in a defecit (depending on progress) and 'binge' for a day when leaning down. I eat foods I enjoy every day but keep carbs on the low side and focus on carbs on my CHEAT DAY! This keeps me sane, satisfies any cravings and gets me lean painlessly.

[@anesbaizid1891]

2:34 ( brand new metabolism, who dis ? ) i had a great laugh thanks

[@betterlifeptstudio7314]

Great video and content. I'll look around but how about mixing fasting into a simpler video and showing any differences between the diet strategies. Thank you.

[@nathanhoness127]

Nice 👍🏻 really informative mate

[@cv0669]

Hey Ben, love the content...any plans to do anymore videos on training, like rir recommendations, training to failure, amount of sets? or mainly doing the nutrition side

[@miguelfernandes996]

Great video! Just a question: If leptin is a hormone secreted by the adypocites, why does overfeeding carbohydrates increase leptin levels, but overfeeding fats does not? Do you know if saciety after carbo intake is dependent of leptin but after fat ingestion is not?

[@zachhaigh5535]

Is any of this different if you're dieting from 25->15% bodyfat vs 15->7% like a competitor? As I understand it, lean mass loss is less of a concern going from higher to mid bodyfat than when going from mid to low bodyfat.

[@psktoure8824]

i gave myself a pat in back at the end

[@Ahmad-ru4ou]

Do you personally use diet breaks when cutting? 🤔

[@bunny2chandu]

For thou may reach more audience . Hail algo Ben D. carpenter

[@zNervouss]

You didn’t really explain much. The research suggests 1 day reffeeds won’t do anything. Likely, there needs to be at least 2 days.

[@BenCarpenter]

The science on two day refeeds isn’t super convincing either though

[@vikingnorsefitness5727]

Do 3 days TRUST ME!

[@jamie5mauser]

I loathe the term cheat day or cheat meal

[@michaeldavis1291]

How do I inject leptin ?