Each season has its diet. Taking into account that intermittent fasting seems to be here to stay, that detox diets (so fashionable a few years ago) have run out of steam and that keto diets are often difficult to follow, this spring-summer the queen of diets seems to be the reverse. The promise of this diet, designed to be done after having finished a weight loss regimen and having achieved the desired weight, is that you can continue losing weight by eating abundantly.
The objective of the reverse diet is, therefore, to maintain the desired weight after a period of weight loss through a system that consists of gradually increasing caloric intake (between 50 and 100 calories per week), theoretically achieving an acceleration of basal metabolism. According to nutritionist Susana León, this statement has no scientific basis. “The metabolism is kept active by exercising and maintaining a healthy muscle mass, but it is not increased by eating more. Yes, the opposite can happen: that it slows down by eating little, ”she explains.
What do we specifically understand by speeding up or slowing down metabolism? If we abide by the definition of the RAE, metabolism is the "set of chemical reactions carried out by the cells of living beings in order to synthesize or degrade substances". Therefore, they are all those chemical reactions that take place in the cells of the body to convert food into energy. The networks are full of tips and tricks to accelerate basal metabolism, with the aim of getting our body to burn calories quickly, even when we are at rest.
León recommends avoiding supposedly miraculous solutions, since to calculate the metabolism of each person a series of data is needed that is obtained through a bioelectrical bioimpedance scale. "These devices provide a series of data that, well analyzed by a professional who knows how to interpret them, are crucial when it comes to knowing what our basal energy expenditure is and the energy expenditure for physical activity not linked to exercise, which is calculated knowing the percentage of muscle mass and body fat, in addition to daily physical activity”. It does not seem like a good idea, then, to embark on a diet that promises to speed up basal metabolism by eating without knowing exactly what our caloric needs are based on all these factors, in addition to gender and age, among others.
Science, however, does support some ways to speed up metabolism. One of them is pedaling. According to a study carried out by scientists from the University of Copenhagen, this activity leads to an increase in the levels of the hormone FGF21, responsible for stimulating metabolism, much more than lifting weights. Another investigation, this time carried out by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and Sleep Research Society, ensures that proper sleep hygiene is essential for the recovery of all body processes and also has a decisive impact on metabolism.
For León, the reverse diet can be a recommended and balanced diet, beyond its debatable promises about its ability to speed up metabolism by eating. “In reality it is nothing more than a balanced diet, with a correct caloric intake that allows us to maintain the desired weight, but with that marketing bonus that, for some reason, ends up being attractive. In addition, it seems more modern to us, since it has that restrictive point that forces you to count calories, something that many people like because it makes them feel that they are on a diet and that they are taking care of themselves," explains León, for whom "a healthy diet and balanced diet should never go through strict control of the number of calories ingested”.
The specialist recalls that broadly speaking the bases of the reverse diet are those of any balanced eating plan. “The idea is to recover a normalized diet after a period of caloric restriction, always from a healthy approach and with a gradual increase in calories. This translates into betting on complex carbohydrates with a low glycemic index, proteins of high biological value, healthy fats and fiber. In addition, it is also recommended that we stay physically active. All of this is one hundred percent correct”, explains León.
However, the nutritionist insists that the promises of accelerating metabolism by eating are misleading, in addition to the fact that "the strict control of calories advocated by this guideline has also been shown to not be the best way to maintain a healthy weight" . The ideal – he continues – is to “choose healthy foods instead of strictly counting calories. For example, 30 g of potato chips have 170 calories, the same as 20 g of walnuts, but walnuts are much healthier than chips, even equaling the calories”, explains León.
One of the promises of the reverse diet is also to avoid the dreaded rebound effect when you go off a weight loss diet, which is nothing more than quickly regaining the lost weight when you return to a regular diet. The doctor and nutritionist Núria Monfulleda, from the Loveyourself center in Barcelona, recalls, for her part, that the rebound effect (also known as the yo-yo effect) does not exist as such, but is the consequence of a series of bad habits that many people they adopt both when they diet and when they abandon it. “When very restrictive diets are followed from a caloric point of view, or those that deprive us of a specific nutrient, such as those that restrict carbohydrates, or diets that force us to eat foods that we do not like, it happens that when we finish them we begin to inadvertently ingesting more calories than necessary to compensate for the wear and tear caused by the diet. For this reason, it is always best to follow friendly diets, which allow us to gradually lose weight, maintaining quality of life and introducing, as far as possible, those foods that we like”.
Monfulleda agrees with the professor of Nutrition and Metabolism at the Rovira i Virgili University (Tarragona), Mònica Bulló, who at the National Congress of the Spanish Obesity Society (SEEDO) pointed out that "the best way to reduce the so-called rebound effect in treatments against obesity is to ensure a moderate and sustained loss of that". This system is much more recommended even in those cases in which rapid weight loss is urgent, since it is the best way to avoid new weight gains.
We must not confuse the so-called inverted diet with other formulas that have also become fashionable in recent times, such as the so-called "inverted diet" popularized by Barça player Robert Lewandowski and his wife, nutritionist Anna Starchuska. This consists, broadly speaking, of eating the dessert first, then the second course and, finally, the starter. Although there is no scientific evidence on the advantages of this strategy when it comes to losing weight, it is true that it can have psychological benefits. According to a study carried out by the American Psychological Association, when diners chose dessert beforehand to end the meal, they tended to opt for healthier options, which can influence weight loss in the medium term.
