Tell me why? Only serious replies please.

IronSmasher

My whole body is covered in scars from rapid weight loss. So there's that.

joleenl

You will lose weight, but your metabolism will slow down, you will lack the energy to properly fuel any reasonable level of intensity for you workouts, and you will burn a higher portion of muscle, so it's a case of diminishing returns. Then of course there is the more obvious issue of a lack of proper nutrients that is likely to come since you don't have enough calories to fit them into your diet. And what about fat? Where does that fit into the remaining calories? There are all sorts of medical problems associated with taking in insufficient fat, perhaps the most superficially noticeable being significant hair loss. No, you're not going to die if you only eat 1,000 calories per day but yes, it's going to negatively impact your health. Is remaining at 40% BF a little longer a bigger detriment to your health? No idea.

Thanks. I am a little worried about my metabolism which is why I asked the question. I am eating more then 1000 a day. Just netting below 1000. Most days I eat between 1400 - 1800 somedays higher. My works outs have been burning about 1000 calories at least 4 times a week.

geekette411

So you only want responses that will tell you what you want to hear? Netting less than 1000 calories is not healthy no matter what your educated, certified, body building trainer says.

^This.

TavistockToad

the most annoying part of this thread is the use of 'legitly' as a word!

joleenl

You're setting forth a scenario, asking for people's educated opinions and then telling them specifically what you want them to tell you, which is that what you're doing is fine.

So, sure, what you're doing is fine. :flowerforyou:

Not true. I want to know what the harm is to NET under 1000 calories on my workout days with evidence. Is that so hard?

joleenl

It seems like people respond differently to these super-cuts. Molly Galbraith is writing a blog series about women's stories on these bodybuilder-type cuts. Yesterday was The Good, and The Bad, today is going to be The Ugly. You can read these women's stories and make a decision for yourself.
http://mollygalbraith.com/category/blog/

Personally, I would really recommend against it. But then again, I like food, having energy, and losing fat mass over muscle. It sounds like you are focused on losing fat % instead of scale numbers, which is great. I've read studies that low carb, high fat diets are helpful for achieving that goal.

Thank I'll look into this.

3foldchord

I am actually serious people. I like food too. I eat more then 1000 calories everyday. I NET LESS then 1000. I aint doing it for life. I am doing it as temporary cut. Like cycling between cuts and bulks.

It is my understanding (but not from experience) that people who are properly cutting and bulking have specific macros for both (not just eating less food sometimes and more other times) and bulking is eating at or over your TDEE. Is that what you are doing?

If you eat less than your BMR your body will not have the energy to run everything it needs to run and will eventually have to slow down or shut off areas it can't maintain do to lack of fuel. I have read that for obese people it's OK to drop below BMR sometimes, though.

Do research on BMR and what your body requires for the bare minimum functions and what happens when you don't give it proper fuel. Do research on when and why your body uses fat for fuel vs muscle mass for fuel. I always highly suggest doing your own research.

jonnythan

I am actually serious people. I like food too. I eat more then 1000 calories everyday. I NET LESS then 1000. I aint doing it for life. I am doing it as temporary cut. Like cycling between cuts and bulks.

So net 300 a day.

Seriously.

Of course, if you won't do that, tell us why not.

Docpremie

I switched to the TDEE methods several months ago. If you use the spreadsheet, you can track lean body mass. When you lose weight you will lose both lean body mass & fat mass no matter what. What you WANT to do is lose more Fat mass than LEAN mass. I can attest to the fact that the TDEE method works. I have lost some lean body mass, but much more fat mass. Your lean body mass is what drives your BMR, if you lose lean body mass (i.e. the muscle) then you BMR slows down. That is physiology NOT bro-science!!! Everyone's body works according to that physiologic rule! Lose muscle mass & your BMR will slow, no way around it. If you have been following all your measurements over the course of months/years, download the Excel spreadsheet from the "In place of a roadmap" thread & plug in your numbers going back in time; that way you can see the changes in your lean body mass, which have already occurred. I wouldn't endorse eating a net 1000 calories ever (I'm a physician), but if you're going to try, at least follow your numbers, so you can see your changes in lean body mass. If you start dropping precipitously, then "get out"! I don't think it will take long to see that 1000 calories isn't healthy!

BaconMD

You're setting forth a scenario, asking for people's educated opinions and then telling them specifically what you want them to tell you, which is that what you're doing is fine.

So, sure, what you're doing is fine. :flowerforyou:

Not true. I want to know what the harm is to NET under 1000 calories on my workout days with evidence. Is that so hard?

Is www.google.com so hard?

phatguerilla

OP you say your trainer is a pro-bodybuilder, now assuming you meant that term literally then do you know for a 10000% fact that he/she is not using steroids? Because if they are, and its very very likely they are, then its a whole different set of rules for them and you when dieting.

ami5000psu

You're setting forth a scenario, asking for people's educated opinions and then telling them specifically what you want them to tell you, which is that what you're doing is fine.

So, sure, what you're doing is fine. :flowerforyou:

Not true. I want to know what the harm is to NET under 1000 calories on my workout days with evidence. Is that so hard?

A physician or a registered dietician would be a better person to ask about this than a forum on a fitness website. I'm not trying to be snarky here but we don't have all the answers and while internet research can be helpful, a lot of it is also wrong. If you're seriously thinking about doing this, and it seems that you are, please discuss this restriction of calories with your doctor. Good luck.

pluckabee

I'm sorry but EATING only 1000 calories is harmful whereas NETTING 1000 calories is completely different.

The reason you are told not to EAT below 1200 is because there are basic nutrients you need every day, that you can only get from food, and it is incredibly difficult to get all that while eating below that. It has nothing to do with the energy requirement. If your body is functioning correctly (which admittedly a lot of peoples bodies are not doing at the moment) you will make up your energy needs from your fat cells, that is what they are there for.

If she is training hard and netting 1000 calories she could still be eating quite a lot more than that

myofibril

Short term - say 6-12 weeks max - should be ok.

Long term - not a good idea.

BerryH

I want to legitly know, with back up, what the problem is with me netting less then 1000 calories while trying to lose weight.

You'll be hungry, grumpy, likely to binge and won't be able to think straight. Sorry, I don't have peer-reviewed research to hand to back that up, but I wouldn't get through more than one day eating that little.

But like all things, you need to find what works for you, and I'm sure you can work with your trainer on a long-term plan.

lilbearzmom

Something tell me that no matter what advice you get from us, you're going to do whatever your educated, certified & professional body-building trainer says.

Good luck.

THIS. What a strange post.

BeachGingerOnTheRocks

I actually checked your diary.

You're eating over 1700 calories every day and getting your depletion from cardio.

1) you're probably way overestimating you calorie burn, unless you're spending 2-3 hours a day doing it. Even then, meh.

2) you've said it is temporary to get your body fat percent down. Your body fat percent is in obese territory, and you can sustain on a TDEE-30-40% for a short time just fine. It would be VERY different if you were cutting the last percent before a competition.

3) I wouldn't do this for long. Putting aside all that starvation mode crap and all the other crap people believe, if you keep eating at a severe deficit, you're going to start losing a lot of muscle with that fat. And you're going to get really, really tired. You won't feel very good.

4) The whole point of this is to find the sweet spot where you're still losing and not depriving yourself. Whether you get the deficit through exercise or food, doesn't matter. If you can burn body fat and eat more than you are, or burn body fat and do less cardio than you are, then why wouldn't you?

cwolfman13

"Starvation mode" is a myth...but that doesn't mean that netting super low calories is healthy. It's not healthy in the least. Enjoy your hair falling out though...should be fun.

Showcase_Brodown

So how "temporary" is this cutting phase?

My knee-jerk reaction is to say this isn't sustainable, eat a 20% deficit, blah blah blah. I certainly wouldn't recommend your idea long-term, but if it is truly temporary, you may be ok. The shorter amount of time you do this, the better, in my opinion.

If you are netting that low, you may indeed get some kind of adaptive thermogenesis, but it should be temporary until you are netting higher. I don't buy into the "metabolic damage" idea.

Please be careful. I regard the 20% deficit as the best advice there is for weight loss. I'm sure you've heard the reasons why, so I won't bore you.

myofibril

Wait.

Your bf% is 40 and you are netting 1000 calories per day? If that is the case: crack on. I don't see an issue.