Do you believe a restrictive diet "ruins your metabolism"?

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  • rkennedy1014
    rkennedy1014 Posts: 18 Member
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    I have personally caused a lot of damage to my metabolism from over a decade of extremely low calorie intake. I've been seeing a metabolic specialist for over a year. My BMR is down to 763. It feels and is virtually impossible and so incredibly frustrating for me to even lose a pound. I would highly caution any restrictive dieting. I thought it was all BS until I woke up one day and kept gaining. It's been a long painful journey ever since. 3 lbs is only 3 lbs. Celebrate each ounce as a victory and don't be so hard on yourself.
  • inertiastrength
    inertiastrength Posts: 2,343 Member
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    My aunt (now in her 50's) is convinced she ruined hers by yoyo dieting in her 20's. I've personally witnessed her eat about 500 calories as a snack of corn chips and helluva good dip although she's convinced she eats very little. Small adaptations are normal but you can't "ruin" it long term.
  • inertiastrength
    inertiastrength Posts: 2,343 Member
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    By the same logic eating a ton more should make you have a super matablism and we all know thermodynamics doesn't work that way
  • crazyycatlady1
    crazyycatlady1 Posts: 292 Member
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    OP, you'll have a maintenance range, not a set number that you'll stay at all the time. Most chose a 3lb-5lb range, so if you're only 3lbs from your goal weight, you're pretty much into maintenance already :)
  • RayBoy76
    RayBoy76 Posts: 23 Member
    edited April 2017
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    janejellyroll wrote: »
    Metabolism adaptation is real, but it doesn't happen in a week or two.

    This. I zig-zag all the time with success. If I have a day where I blowout my calories, I just make it up the next day by going well under. I've done it by a week as well. The main thing I try to do is not eat junk. To eat their own.
  • jenbeck18
    jenbeck18 Posts: 32 Member
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    I have been 2-3 pounds from goal now for 3 weeks. I was about to do the same thing as you, and still may, just not sure how and if. but I understand your frustration.
  • WinoGelato
    WinoGelato Posts: 13,454 Member
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    How much have you lost OP, and over what period of time?
    Have you calculated your maintenance calories (TDEE) for your goal weight?
    How big of a deficit are you eating at now, and does your rate of loss support that (ie if at a 500 cal deficit, are you losing 1lb/week)?

  • fitmom4lifemfp
    fitmom4lifemfp Posts: 1,575 Member
    edited April 2017
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    AliceDark wrote: »
    fitmom4lifemfp wrote: »
    storyjorie wrote: »
    janejellyroll wrote: »
    Metabolism adaptation is real, but it doesn't happen in a week or two.

    If I went on a crash diet to lose three pounds, my main concern would be just gaining it back as soon as I stopped the excessive restriction. It seems like a bout of misery for not much reward.

    That's a real concern. Is that what would happen? Say I lose slowly/maintain on 1350-1500 calories a day, eating a variety of foods (not doing keto or low carb or anything.) Then I drop to 1100-1200 and avoid carbs for a week, probably losing 3 lbs. Would I gain them back if I went back to 1350-1500/regular foods? Isn't 1350-1500 losing or maintenance mode?

    Let's say you maintain at a certain weight, at 1400 calories a day, and then cut to say, 1200 to lose a couple of pounds. After you lose, you WILL have a new, lower, maintenance number. You certainly cannot eat the same as you did before and keep that weight off, unless you permanently increase your calories expended by increasing exercise.

    If she's only talking about losing 3 more pounds, that will hardly make a difference for her maintenance intake.

    It will make a difference. I did not say it would make a substantial difference.
  • Running_and_Coffee
    Running_and_Coffee Posts: 811 Member
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    WinoGelato wrote: »
    How much have you lost OP, and over what period of time?
    Have you calculated your maintenance calories (TDEE) for your goal weight?
    How big of a deficit are you eating at now, and does your rate of loss support that (ie if at a 500 cal deficit, are you losing 1lb/week)?

    I am and have always been at a "healthy" and even a "happy weight." This for me is about getting better control over yo-yoing.

    I have not lost much--I slowly put on a few (5) pounds over about six months from June to January, and have slowly lost three of them since February. I'm sort of more of a "maintainer" than a "loser," which might make me an oddity--my overall goal has been to find a way to figure out how to manage special occasions/business trips by eating less on non-special days, because every time I have a cluster of holidays or business travel, I end up in this healthy binge/restrict cycle. Yes, I want these last 3 lbs gone, but beyond that, I want to not regain them.

    Calculators tell me otherwise, but for me personally, I seem to maintain at 1600-1900 calories while exercising 5-6 days a week. I know that seems really low, but I have been tracking on MFP for years. And I'm over 40. It just seems to be my reality.

    I am losing less than .5 a week but am eating pretty close to maintenance, 1350-1500 a day with 1-2 days at maintenance. I don't eat anything "extra" for working out.

    Previously, to lose 1 lb a week required eating 1200-1300 calories a day without a "cheat" meal. I know this works but would rather not go that route as I think it's what started my "cycle" in the first place!
  • WinoGelato
    WinoGelato Posts: 13,454 Member
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    storyjorie wrote: »
    WinoGelato wrote: »
    How much have you lost OP, and over what period of time?
    Have you calculated your maintenance calories (TDEE) for your goal weight?
    How big of a deficit are you eating at now, and does your rate of loss support that (ie if at a 500 cal deficit, are you losing 1lb/week)?

    I am and have always been at a "healthy" and even a "happy weight." This for me is about getting better control over yo-yoing.

    I have not lost much--I slowly put on a few (5) pounds over about six months from June to January, and have slowly lost three of them since February. I'm sort of more of a "maintainer" than a "loser," which might make me an oddity--my overall goal has been to find a way to figure out how to manage special occasions/business trips by eating less on non-special days, because every time I have a cluster of holidays or business travel, I end up in this healthy binge/restrict cycle. Yes, I want these last 3 lbs gone, but beyond that, I want to not regain them.

    Calculators tell me otherwise, but for me personally, I seem to maintain at 1600-1900 calories while exercising 5-6 days a week. I know that seems really low, but I have been tracking on MFP for years. And I'm over 40. It just seems to be my reality.

    I am losing less than .5 a week but am eating pretty close to maintenance, 1350-1500 a day with 1-2 days at maintenance. I don't eat anything "extra" for working out.

    Previously, to lose 1 lb a week required eating 1200-1300 calories a day without a "cheat" meal. I know this works but would rather not go that route as I think it's what started my "cycle" in the first place!

    But if you are more of a "maintainer" then surely you have a normal weight range that you fluctuate within, right? 3 lbs is usually well within a reasonable range for women. Now, you may be 3 lbs above the top end of your range, and if that's the case, and you want to lose a little to get back on the other side of that range, that's understandable. But based on what you've described with a repeated pattern of yo yoing, I don't think going with an aggressive deficit to lose the weight, only then to go back to your maintenance calories, is going to work for you. I think you'll rebound, maybe not the full 3 lbs, but some of it.

  • Running_and_Coffee
    Running_and_Coffee Posts: 811 Member
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    Yeah, this 3 lbs is at the top of my range. I'd be OK with being 3 lbs up if I also swung below it, but that hasn't happened yet. :-) This is all great advice and I'm not going to do the overly restrictive approach. It is tempting when you see people losing half a dozen pounds in a a week, though!!!
  • WinoGelato
    WinoGelato Posts: 13,454 Member
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    storyjorie wrote: »
    Yeah, this 3 lbs is at the top of my range. I'd be OK with being 3 lbs up if I also swung below it, but that hasn't happened yet. :-) This is all great advice and I'm not going to do the overly restrictive approach. It is tempting when you see people losing half a dozen pounds in a a week, though!!!

    But those are people with a lot of weight to lose, most likely.

    Does the scale weight matter as much as a body aesthetic? Do you do any strength training? You may find that you are happier with the results focusing on recomposition (eating at current maintenance while strength training).

  • 3rdof7sisters
    3rdof7sisters Posts: 486 Member
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    This is interesting to me. OP, just curious, does your weight fluctuate at all from day to day? Do you weigh yourself daily?
    I just started in January, but my weight can fluctuate day to day by 3 pounds (both ways, up and down).
    It sounds pretty normal to me that you fluctuate when you have special occasions/business trips where you may be eating/drinking more. I think many of us have that in common. Perhaps you could eat a few less calories before and after these occasions to compensate. Is there a difference in how your clothes fit? Wishing you well!

  • CSARdiver
    CSARdiver Posts: 6,252 Member
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    The closer you get to your goal the harder this becomes. I'm a lazy logger and rely on my workouts to carry the difference. I realize the closer I get to my goal the more accurate I'm going to need to be and planning small changes now to build and reinforce these habits.

    Fat is nothing more than an energy reserve. Just as you don't run your car for too long when the fuel light goes on, your body doesn't like operating with a minimal reserve of fat, so you need to work harder to lose to get that cut defined look.

    @WinoGelato mentioned this as well, but have you considered a progressive weight program? The aesthetic impact is frankly amazing and has turned many women to lifting. I use Justine Moore as an example, but there are several others out there who have before/after photos when they turned to weight lifting and put on 10 lbs and look fantastic.
  • Running_and_Coffee
    Running_and_Coffee Posts: 811 Member
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    3rdof7sisters wrote: »
    This is interesting to me. OP, just curious, does your weight fluctuate at all from day to day? Do you weigh yourself daily?
    I just started in January, but my weight can fluctuate day to day by 3 pounds (both ways, up and down).
    It sounds pretty normal to me that you fluctuate when you have special occasions/business trips where you may be eating/drinking more. I think many of us have that in common. Perhaps you could eat a few less calories before and after these occasions to compensate. Is there a difference in how your clothes fit? Wishing you well!

    Thanks for the well wishes! :-) I don't weigh daily but several times a week. I honestly don't fluctuate by 3 lbs very often. Maybe right after being ill or if I happened to eat an exceptionally sodium-rich meal, but day to day, not really. Fortunately, my clothes are fitting better even with just a few pounds. I seem to carry everything in my torso so a few pounds lost/gained is something I can really see and feel.

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