Introduction:
Have you ever dreamed of a “diet” where you can still enjoy your favorite foods? Well, flexible dieting might just be the answer you’ve been looking for. It’s an approach that seems almost too convenient – and it satisfies taste buds too. Flexible dieting, also known as IIFYM Diet or if it fits your macros, allows you to indulge in your cravings while still achieving your fitness goals.
Let’s be real, the word “diet” can be intimidating to most people. For all the food lovers out there, the idea of cutting out your favorite foods can feel like torture. Flexible eating is the solution to this dilemma, allowing you to enjoy your favorite treats without guilt.
You may find yourself thinking “If only I didn’t have to restrict myself, I could get in great shape.” As you enjoy that delicious donut in guilt, you can’t help but wish there was a better way. With flexible dieting, you can have your cake and eat it too!
In the fitness world, the old saying goes “You are what you eat.” But who wants to be a chicken? With flexible dieting, you can be a well-balanced individual who enjoys a variety of foods.
Dieting is arguably the most challenging aspect of any physical transformation. It can become so grueling that you might witness bodybuilders shedding tears of joy when they finally get to relish a treat meal after weeks of restriction. Flexible diet eliminates the need for such extreme measures, allowing you to indulge in moderation.
But does it have to be that way?
Categorizing foods as “good” or “bad,” “clean” or “cheat” can lead to some problems down the line. It fosters an unhealthy relationship with certain foods, which can lead to intense cravings when you deny yourself for too long, and often results in overeating during those long-awaited cheat meals. Flexible dieting helps you maintain a balanced relationship with all foods.
More importantly, having “forbidden” foods just makes you want them even more – just ask Adam and Eve! With flexible dieting, no food is off-limits as long as it fits within your macro ratios for weight loss.
What is Flexible Dieting?
Flexible dieting is also known as “If It Fits Your Macros” (IIFYM) or counting macros. Rather than demonizing certain foods, this approach simply involves calculating macros and tracking your intake of protein, carbs, and fats to reach your body composition goals.
So, whether it’s a burger or a lean protein, as long as it fits your prescribed macros for the day, you’re good to go!
No food discrimination in the Macro Gods’ eyes.
The Role of Calories in Flexible Dieting
You might be wondering – but what about calories? Isn’t counting them the most crucial part of any diet?
While calories are important for overall weight management, if your primary goal is changing your body composition and building muscle, a macro-focused approach may serve you better.
That said, you still need to know roughly how many total calories you’re consuming each day. The calorie values break down like this:
-Protein = 4 calories per gram – Carbs = 4 calories per gram – Fats = 9 calories per gram
So, rather than just aiming for, say, 2,000 calories with no regard for nutrients, your target should be something like 150g protein, 80g fat, and 170g carbs – which adds up to those 2,000 calories, but with the macros properly portioned out. This way, you can achieve counting macros for weight loss effectively.
Debunking Common Flexible Dieting Myths
This idea of just hitting your macros might sound “too lenient.” You’re probably shaking your head thinking “There’s no way I can eat whatever and still get results!”
But hear me out with an example:
A Grilled Chicken sandwich provides: 25-30g protein, 30-33g carbs, 15-20g fat
Compare that to a wholesome meal of brown rice and tuna: 25-30g protein, 30-33g carbs, 15-20g fat
See? Same macronutrient breakdown. In the framework of flexible dieting, there are no “good” or “bad” foods – just macro ratios that your body processes. Whether it’s a burger patty or a fish filet, your body digests the protein, carbs, and fats the same way.
Plus, allowing yourself to still enjoy your favorite treats can help avoid that guilt and stress after a “cheat” meal. Those spikes in cortisol levels from feeling bad about what you ate? That can interfere with your body’s ability to properly process the food and utilize nutrients. No need for that anxiety! As long as “it fits your macros,” you can indulge without the stress.
How To Start Flexible Dieting? A Step-By-Step Guide
Here are the steps for starting a flexible diet approach.
1. Find Your TDEE
First of all, find your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE) – the total calories your body burns each day. If you’ve been dieting without knowing this number, you’ve been missing a crucial piece of the puzzle.
According to research from the University of California, TDEE consists of:
Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR): Calories burned at rest, making up 60-70% of your total burn
Non-Resting or Activity Energy Expenditure (AEE): Calories burned through exercise, daily activities, and digestion
You can use an online TDEE calculator IIFYM to find your TDEE based on your age, gender, height, weight, and activity level.
2. Calculate Your Macros
Next, you’ll determine your target macronutrient ratios – the grams of protein, carbs, and fats that make up those calorie goals. Many websites including IIFYM offer Macro Calculators for this based on your stats and preferences.
The breakdown looks like this:
Protein: 4 calories per gram, 10-35% of total calories
Carbs: 4 calories per gram, 45-65% of total calories
Fats: 9 calories per gram, 20-35% of total calories
You can adjust these macro ranges based on your lifestyle and goals. Someone focused on fat loss and muscle gain may go higher in protein, while an endurance athlete may need more carbs for performance.
Fiber intake is also tracked in flexible dieting, even though it’s not technically a macro. Recommendations are 38g per day for men and 25g for women.
The great flexibility comes from being able to hit your calorie and macro targets however you want – no foods are off limits as long as the numbers fit. This allows you to build a sustainable healthy eating diet plan without feelings of deprivation.
Our handy IIFYM calorie calculator can do the math for you to find your ideal macros IIFYM ratios.
3. Food Tracking
Logging everything you eat can feel like the toughest part, but it doesn’t have to be a hassle. Instead of obsessively logging details in a notebook, use an app like MyFitnessPal which has a huge database of foods and makes tracking a breeze.
The key is sticking to foods that fit your lifestyle – no need for anything too exotic or pricey that could derail your plan.
4. The Role of Fiber
And don’t forget fiber! While not considered a macro, getting enough daily fiber is important. Studies recommend men aim for 38g per day and women 25g.
A high-fiber diet has benefits like improving nutrient absorption, cholesterol levels, blood sugar control, healthy bowel movements, and reaching a healthy weight.
So there you have it – calculate your calories, set your macros, track your intake (including those all-important fibers), and you’re on your way to making any food fit your flexible dieting plan.
The Benefits Of A Flexible Dieting Plan
Here are the benefits of following a flexible dieting plan:
1. Develop a Healthy Relationship With Your Food
With no foods off-limits in IIFYM, you avoid developing an unhealthy obsession or deprivation mindset. When you constantly deny yourself favorite dishes, it often leads to uncontrollable binging.
Flexible eating allows you to satisfy cravings in moderation, promoting a healthy relationship with all foods. This psychological benefit is huge – no more white-knuckling it through the week just to have one “cheat” meal.
2. Enjoy Unmatched Convenience
If you’ve ever tried eating out while following a very restrictive diet, you know the ordeal. Calculating, and meal-prepping for the entire week – it’s a massive time drain. With flexible dieting, you don’t have to scout restaurants for “diet-approved” meals or pack Tupperware for every social event. Every dining option is fair game when you can make any food fit your macros.
3. Relish Your Favorite Foods
Speaking of social events, you can finally stop being that awkward bro bringing sad meal-prep containers to all the parties. Unless you’re prepping for a bodybuilding show, there’s no need to deprive yourself of enjoying a normal dining experience with friends and family. Flexible dieting normalizes occasionally indulging and having fun with your food – no “cheat meal” guilt required.
4. No More Uncontrolled Binging
When you relentlessly restrict yourself, you’re setting up a cycle of deprivation and overeating. With IIFYM Diet, you can work your favorite treats into your plan. This will diminish the power those foods can have over you. No more uncontrolled binging – just balanced moderation.
In the nutshell:
In the end, flexible dieting is an intuitive, sustainable approach that allows you to achieve your goals without extreme restrictions or paradoxical food obsession. A diet focused primarily on hitting your macros puts you in a positive, empowered mindset around food.
Flexible Dieting: The Pros and Cons
Let’s get one thing straight – calories and macronutrient ratios matter for achieving any body composition goal, whether it’s fat loss or muscle building.
Any effective approach needs to strike that ideal balance of fats, carbs, and protein to suit your metabolism most days and average out properly over a week.
However, whether you reach that macro balance through flexible dieting or not is a personal preference.
So, make sure to consider these pros and cons before committing:
Pros of Flexible Dieting:
1. Provides Knowledge About Nutrients:
IIFYM Diet is great for those new to closely tracking their food intake. The dedication required to weigh, measure, and log everything builds an awareness of nutrient contents that can quickly lead to weight loss results.
You learn about various foods and their nutritional content i.e. which ones are high or low in carbs, protein, fats, fiber, and sugar.
2. Perfect for Analytical Minds:
If you’re into specifics and formulaic approaches, flexible dieting allows you to monitor your macro and calorie trends, comparing the data to scale weight changes week-over-week.
3. Includes Foods Often Restricted With Planning and Structure:
IIFYM Diet or flexible dieting lets you work with foods that may be limited to other diets. You can adjust other days to fit in things like cocktails for date night or a birthday cupcake – as long as it fits the weekly macro/calorie budget.
This makes it easier to navigate social situations for those without disordered eating issues.
Cons of Flexible Dieting:
1. Needs Serious Daily Commitment:
Meticulously tracking, measuring, and weighing every single bite is time-consuming – the opposite of being flexible. You need to have a food scale, measuring cups, and spoons to accurately log what you eat.
It even includes tiny tastes while cooking or biting off others’ plates. This hyper-awareness around food can distract from social connections.
2. Tracked Amounts Can be Inaccurate:
The calorie and macro counts you’re meticulously logging may not be accurate. Food tracking apps use crowdsourced data that can vary wildly.
Food quality factors like farming practices also impact true nutrient content in a way you can’t precisely measure. Even stated nutrition labels can be inaccurate by up to 20%.
3. Shifts Focus From Nutrient Density:
While hitting your protein, carb, and fat targets, you may overlook getting enough crucial micronutrients like vitamins and minerals to properly support weight loss and overall health.
Perfecting your macro ratios doesn’t matter if your nutrition choices are suboptimal – you need those micros for your macros to work efficiently.
Clean Eating vs. Flexible Dieting: Which is Superior?
Let’s face it – flexible dieting’s focus on meticulous tracking and “making it fit” stands in contrast to the more intuitive “clean eating” approach that only focuses on minimally processed, nutrient-dense food sources.
As with anything, extreme perspectives tend to polarize the discussion when a moderate approach is likely the healthiest mindset.
IIFYM: If It Fits Your . . . Metabolism? The concept of flexible dieting seems to make logical sense. No one desires a life of total deprivation, unable to ever enjoy ice cream or pizza nights with friends.
From a psychological perspective, focusing on what you can include rather than exclude tends to work better – human nature innately craves what it “can’t” have.
That said, after guiding thousands of clients on their transformation journeys, the IIFYM team advises considering a few factors before fully committing to the “if it fits your macros” approach.
First and foremost:
What’s going on inside your body?
Our IIFYM coaches spend time coaching clients while closely monitoring changes in their lab markers – blood sugar regulation, cardiovascular health, vitamin/mineral levels, hormone balance, and more. The goal is to ensure that your nutrition supports your overall health.
Along with consulting medical teams, they track whether lab numbers are moving into optimal ranges as clients lose fat and build muscle. They also check in every 8-12 weeks on subjective feelings like energy, sleep quality, mood, and overall outlook.
This is crucial because, more frequently than you’d think, people with lean physiques come in struggling with issues like poor exercise recovery, intense cravings, digestive problems, exhaustion, and insomnia. Aesthetically they look healthy, but their labs tell another story.
Consider these real examples:
A 35-year-old new dad’s “dad bod” and psoriasis cleared up dramatically on an elimination diet free of common inflammatory foods.
A 45-year-old woman tracked her “perfect” macros for years with no results. Tests showed gluten sensitivity and low iron were likely culprits. Avoiding gluten and boosting iron-rich foods resolved her fatigue, bloating, and sleep issues.
A 40-year-old woman finally found relief from severe gas, bloating, and diarrhea by going low-FODMAP to address an SIBO diagnosis.
A 20-year-old girl ditched dairy, upped her fiber, and improved her hormone balance, leading to acne clearing and normal menstrual cycles.
In all these cases, rigidly sticking to just “flexible” macros and including any foods would not have yielded the same transformative results. The more metabolically disrupted someone is, the more food quality matters.
Is Flexible Dieting Right For You
You know your body best. If you’ve diligently tracked macros for an extended period, are seeing progress, and are feeling energized, then flexible dieting is a good fit for you. But if you’re not progressing or feeling your best, it’s time to explore further.
Factors like chronic stress levels, hormonal imbalances, gut health issues, and inflammation could be holding you back despite nailing your macros. In those cases, a more comprehensive approach beyond just making it fit your numbers is likely needed to achieve full vitality.
Flexible Dieting: How Does It Work?
Flexible dieting isn’t a diet in the traditional sense – it’s more of a lifestyle philosophy approach. It puts you in control by avoiding strict meal plans or off-limits foods.
You might wonder how weight loss happens if you can incorporate any foods. With flexible dieting, your calorie and macronutrient targets are calculated based on your specific weight goals.
Flexible Dieting: How to Track Your Macronutrient Intake?
Once you’ve calculated your calorie and macronutrient targets, the next step is diligently tracking your intake to ensure you stay within those prescribed goals. There are several convenient methods for this tracking.
The most popular method is using one of the numerous calorie and macro-tracking apps available. Most have extensive food databases that allow you to quickly search for any food item or portion size and log the nutrient details in seconds.
Apps make it super easy to log your meals and snacks wherever you are, without needing to manually write everything down. Some of the most widely used tracking apps include MyFitnessPal, MyMacros+, and Cronometer.
These apps let you easily monitor your running totals for calories, protein, carbs, fats, and other nutrients throughout the day. You can scan barcodes, save frequent meals, and get breakdown percentages to ensure you’re hitting your prescribed macro ranges.
The mobility and simplicity of tracking through an app is one of the biggest conveniences of flexible dieting. As long as you’re correctly and consistently logging your intake, you can make any food work by balancing out your day or weekly eating plan for weight loss.
In Summary:
To successfully follow a flexible dieting lifestyle, first use an online calculator to determine your optimal calorie and macro targets based on your stats and goals. Then utilize a calorie/macro tracking app to log everything you consume and ensure you stay aligned with those targets day-to-day and week-to-week. The apps make tracking your nutrition a seamless, portable process for a meal plan for healthy eating and weight loss.
Why Do I Stick With Flexible Dieting?
I’ve experimented with all kinds of diets, but flexible dieting remains my favorite approach that I continue following today. Here’s why:
1. Flexible Dieting Delivers Exceptional Results
At the end of the day, being in a calorie deficit is required for fat loss. While food quality matters, quantity is the driving factor. You can eat all the nutritious foods possible, but if you’re not in a deficit, you won’t see changes.
Flexible dieting takes the guesswork out by tracking every calorie that goes in. It puts you in control of reaching your goals effectively. A 2021 study even found flexible dieters lost the same amount of weight as those on stricter plans while preserving more lean muscle mass. Why deprive yourself unnecessarily?
2. Say Goodbye to Restrictions
One major challenge of dieting is the social element and constantly turning down foods. With flexible dieting, you can still join family/friends for meals out as long as you log what you’re eating. Research shows this flexibility leads to less stress and more sustainable weight management long term.
3. Flexible Dieting is Sustainable For Life
For years, I was stuck in that vicious “diet-binge” cycle. I’d do something extremely restrictive for a while, then inevitably burn out and binge. I had developed an unhealthy relationship with food.
Flexible dieting is the first approach I’ve stuck with over an extended period because it kills that deprivation mindset. Since no foods are off-limits in moderation, it’s mentally and physically sustainable as a lifestyle – not just a temporary diet.
I’ve realized food isn’t just physical – there’s a huge psychological aspect. Flexible dieting lets me enjoy what I love while still progressing, without the constant restriction and rebound. It’s been a lifelong solution for me.
Why Does Flexible Dieting Work?
- Flexible dieting removes the concept of “good” or “bad” foods. Every food can serve a purpose – whether for nourishment, performance, or simply enjoyment and sanity!
- Flexible dieting allows you to shape your eating around your lifestyle, not the other way around. No more stressing over rigid meal preps and having to eat the same regimented meals day after day.
- The more you deprive yourself of foods you crave, the more you’ll obsess over them until you inevitably binge. Flexible dieting lets you work on those cravings without guilt.
- It’s a sustainable lifestyle, not a quick-fix diet. Once you get accustomed to balancing your needs, you won’t even have to meticulously track macros anymore – it’ll become intuitive portion control.
IIFYM’s Best Tips For Flexible Dieting Success
- Start simple by building habits like reading labels, drinking enough water, and getting veggies in before diving into full macro counting.
- Aim for 80-90% of your intake from whole, minimally-processed foods for optimal health.
- Learn smart portioning. If you know you’re going out for a large meal, eat lighter earlier to save room in your calorie/macro budget.
- Use a tracking app to log your intake whenever eating away from home. It’s a lifesaver for staying on track with no prep meals.
- When dining out, review the menu ahead of time and pre-log what you’ll likely order, then plan the rest of your day’s eating around it.
The Bottom Line
If you constantly struggle with rigid diets that force you to obsess over food, I highly recommend giving this balanced, flexible approach a try. It’s a true lifestyle – not a fad diet. It helps you develop an intuitive, healthy relationship with all foods.
If you’re looking for a structured approach to weight loss, our weight loss programs are designed to provide just that.
Curious about what to eat? You can get a custom macro blueprint that takes the guesswork out of your diet and guides you to success. It’s all about staying on track with your goals and discovering healthy meal recipes for weight loss!
With a commitment of just 16 weeks , the Deadline Diet weight loss program ensures you’re on the right track to achieve your goals.
Our revolutionary Macro calculator is a FREE, easy, and accurate way to calculate your macros. It doesn’t have as many inaccurate entries and makes macro tracking easy. Once you’ve used our free macro calculator, you’ll be able to start tracking macros straight away!
FAQ:
What is the difference between a traditional and flexible diet type?
Most often, traditional diets ban entire food groups. And the fact is the harder the diet, the more likely you are to fall off it.
So, traditional diets just aren’t sustainable long-term. They set you up for restriction, deprivation, and ultimate failure.
On the other hand, Flexible dieting focuses on the overall dietary pattern and composition rather than rigidly limiting certain foods.
This can improve long-term adherence and make it easier to develop sustainable habits.
Flexible dieting is all about balance. Instead of demonizing foods, you simply track what you eat to hit your nutrition goals, whether that’s losing weight, gaining muscle, or just feeling your best.
So, with flexible dieting, you could be enjoying real, flavorful foods – in the right portions for you.
Can you build muscle with a flexible diet?
Yes, flexible dieting is a proven way to build muscles and burn fat simultaneously. Instead of eliminating entire food groups, you simply focus on hitting your protein, carb, and fat targets each day from a variety of nutrient-dense whole foods and treats to hit your macro goals for muscle gain. So, if you want to eat tacos for dinner, you can do it as long as you can fit them into your macro diet plan.
Multiple studies show that people who have more flexibility and choice with their foods tend to stick to their nutrition plan way better long-term compared to those super rigid diets. Consistency is key for packing on that hard-earned muscle.
It’s a diet you can sustain for life while building that body you’ve always wanted.
How can I make my diet flexible?
Flexible dieting is all about sustainably taking control. No more all-or-nothing mentality. Instead, you start by getting real with yourself – calculating your total daily energy needs according to your present weight and activity levels.
From there, you set macro targets for protein, carbs, and fats that’ll help you achieve your goals, whether that’s slimming down or building muscles.
The beauty is in the flexibility that you get to make it work for your lifestyle and food preferences by tracking your intake from all kinds of delicious, nutritious foods.
This means you can hit your protein goal with some Greek yogurt for breakfast. Or you can fuel up on some complex carbs with that sweet potato at lunch. And you can have your healthy fats with some yummy avocado at dinner.
This strategic way of eating was originally popularized in the bodybuilding world to meticulously control body composition. But it’s so much more than that. It’s a blueprint for making healthy eating work long-term without feeling overly restricted.
With a balanced, flexible approach personalized to your needs, you can finally enjoy food freedom while reaching your goals.
What is the 80 20 rule for flexible dieting?
The concept of 80/20 rule in a flexible diet is simple:
For 80% of the time, you need to consume nutrient-dense whole foods that nourish your body. We’re talking lean proteins, fibrous veggies, healthy fats – the kind of stuff that makes you feel amazing.
But then for that other 20%, you get to treat yourself guilt-free.
No food is completely off-limits when you’re following this flexible mindset.
Now the 80/20 ratio doesn’t just apply to foods – it’s a good rule of thumb for overall weight loss too.
Research shows that what you eat accounts for around 80% of the results, while exercise makes up the other 20%.
But don’t get it twisted – that remaining 20% from movement is still crucial for feeling energized and building that toned physique.
The bottom line is, losing weight and living healthy doesn’t have to be this restrictive, miserable experience if you adopt the 80/20 principle. That’s a diet you can actually stick to long-term.
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