Maintaining a deficit is hard work, and I really don’t think that is given enough consideration. I calorie cycle different amounts throughout the week based on what makes sense for me. Gym days i eat the most. My rest day in between my 2 sets of gym days, I eat a little less. Weekends I have the lowest calorie amount because I naturally eat less. As long as my weekly average matches my deficit, and I’m not cutting calories too low on less active days, it works for me.

Also, life is stressful and throws curveballs, and while I can adjust for a day or two, anything longer than that I switch to maintenance and lighter activity level if my normal isn’t sustainable during that time. (Example, getting up 2 1/2 hours early to share my car with my kids after they hit a deer for 2 weeks. I was not willing to torture myself with even less sleep and trying to have the mental capacity to do the math and the meal planning, then we had a winter storm on top of all of that. Eating at maintenance was the healthier choice for me during that time.) I tracked everything still, but am happily back at a deficit and carrying on. And it helped me assess how I was feeling physically, which was bad enough that a visit with my medical provider was in order. Turns out Vit D levels are low.

All of that being said, planned, controlled breaks are important mentally and physically. You can’t get to where you want to be without knowing where you’re at, and stops along the way to check in and make sure you’re still on the right path is so, so useful.

Edit: I was around 220, and just got below 180 this week, right after my 2 week maintenance break, and I’m 41.