Nutritional Periodization

Nutritional periodization or seasons of nutrition…what is it, and why is it important?

Keep in mind this topic is quite nuanced, and it’s impossible to cover everything in one email. But we’ll touch on the basics. Let’s dive into it!

What is it?

Seasons of nutrition have long been used with athletes, but in recent years, it’s been applied to the general population and with good reason. It gets results!

The main “seasons” are fat loss, maintenance, surplus, and reverse dieting.

Fat loss phases are fairly common among the general population. You will create a calorie deficit by reducing the amount of carbs and fats or overall calories for the day. I recommend keeping protein high so you minimize the amount of lean mass lost and your body pulls from mostly fat stores. You can also increase activity to create a bigger deficit without having to reduce as much intake. This is more person-to-person and preference dependent. The purpose of this phase is to reduce body fat.

Post dieting/fat loss phase is where the reverse diet comes in. Essentially you will increase calories back up to your new “maintenance.” The speed in which this happens is again person-to-person and preference dependent. This is an extremely important phase as you will need to reverse some of the negative adaptions that occur in dieting phases (low energy, increased stress, poor sleep, poor digestion, slower metabolism, etc.). The increase in food should come from carbs and fat, depending on goals and personal preference.

Next up is the maintenance phase. If you’ve been following me, you know this is my favorite! You should be spending most of your time here. Now is the time to hit the weights and push those calories as high as you can. This phase will set the stage for all future fat loss phases; so it’s important to take it seriously. The longer you stay here, the more muscle you can pack on, the more metabolically healthy you will be, and hopefully the easier your next dieting phase will be. I encourage clients to spend a minimum of 6 months here before going into a fat loss phase.

Finally is the surplus phase! Depending on your goals, this may not be necessary for you, but if you want a more muscular/toned look and/or if you are already relatively lean, it’s probably worth it to spend some time here. This is not a free for all. I mean it can be, but I don’t recommend it. You would be better off eating 100-200 calories over maintenance and really trying to push yourself in the gym. This is the phase to pack on as much muscle as possible.

Why is this important?

If you’ve ever tried any of these phases, you know the burnout can be real in all of them. And if you’re really looking to maximize results, it will be crucial to your success to cycle through the phases.

The longer you push a dieting phase, the more muscle that will be lost, the worse off you’ll be hormonally and metabolically, and the worse your relationship with food will get. The faster you speed through a maintenance/surplus phase, the less likely you will be to truly change your body composition. Spend adequate time in each phase to get to your goals.

Now what?

This is where coaching comes in; so you and your coach can assess your goals and create a plan that works best for you!

However, if you’re set on doing it solo, let’s touch on next steps.

Depending on goals and starting point, this timeline will vary, but my preference is to match these “seasons” to actual seasons. There are times where certain periods are just easier than others.

My “ideal” timeline for clients:

Fat loss phase: January-April/May
Reverse: May-June
Maintenance: June-September/December
Surplus (if needed): October-December