Should a teenager water fast/starve for a few days?

sashabee25
sashabee25 Posts: 24 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Currently I’m 18 and trying to lose some fat. I only drink water, have done OMAD for a month and a half and 20:4 fasting for another month. I eat extremely healthy and cut out meals to create a calorie deficit. I exercise every day (HIIT, strength training) but for some reason my body refuses to lose weight. Should I water fast (not eat anything) for around 3 days to see it that will work?

Replies

  • sashabee25
    sashabee25 Posts: 24 Member
    I’m trying to lose 10 pounds of fat, and I am 125lbs and 5’5.
  • sashabee25
    sashabee25 Posts: 24 Member
    I am also eating an average of 1500 calories per day
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    Of course not.
  • Shortgirlrunning
    Shortgirlrunning Posts: 1,020 Member
    Rather than aiming for the very bottom of your healthy BMI range by trying ridiculous (and unhealthy/dangerous) fasts - you should look into recomp. Building muscle can drastically change the way your body looks.
  • nmgu
    nmgu Posts: 31 Member
    I loves me some fasting, but for you the answer is no. I’m actually somewhat concerned about your eating/fasting patterns. What I would recommend is upping your protein intake, and try to change your body composition.
  • vholley60197
    vholley60197 Posts: 44 Member
    I don't think you'll have much energy to exercise if you starve yourself. Plus even if your weight goes down for a couple days it's not going to stay down. I use to starve myself in middle school and the beginning of high school and it just made me sick and irritable also very weak. I almost ended up in the hospital. We weren't created to just drink water.... please be careful and maybe see a doctor to come up with a plan to lose weight and don't focus on how long it takes to lose it.
  • kgirlhart
    kgirlhart Posts: 5,155 Member
    No one should water fast/starve.
  • Redordeadhead
    Redordeadhead Posts: 1,188 Member
    No , never.
  • tuckerrj
    tuckerrj Posts: 1,453 Member
    OMAD and/or 20:4 fasting will only produce weight loss if you eat less calories than you burn each day. So having a caloric goal (at a resonable deficit, say 500 calories less than you burn a day), ACCURATELY weighing and measuring your food and only eating back half (or less) of the ridiculous amount of calories MFP gives you for exercise activity will start the scale moving down. Recomp (as I've executed it) entails eating at maintenance calories with a sufficient supply of protein (minimum of 1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight) and performing resistance training 3 - 4 times a week for 30 minutes to an hour. These are the rudimentary basics. I'm no expert. I'm just telling you what has worked for me and a great many of my friends and acquaintances here on MFP.
  • sgt1372
    sgt1372 Posts: 3,997 Member
    Last I heard, except for drinking and some other things depending on the jurisdiction, an 18 yr old is considered an ADULT.

    While I wouldn't do it myself but generally people can survive (as in, not die or induce critical medical issues) without food for 7-21 days and for 3-7 without water.

    So, a day or 2 w/o food and water shouldn't be a nsjor medical or physical problem. Beyond that, I'd recommend caution and, before it's attempted, I suggest talking w/a doctor to determine if there are indivdual reasons why the OP, or anyone else thinking about doing such a fast, shouldn't do it or slter the time frame contrmplated.

    Otherwise, the OP should be free to make his/her own choice as an adult
  • klovesd84
    klovesd84 Posts: 46 Member
    One day you will look back at pictures of yourself now and see how young, slim and healthy you looked. I know at 18 it can be hard to see that and there is so much pressure to look a certain way. If you are looking at other young women online and thinking they are the ideal, please just stop doing that. I might be making an assumption here, but love yourself that way you are and don’t compare yourself to others. You are perfect being you.
  • lgfrie
    lgfrie Posts: 1,449 Member
    Water has... zero calories. So how do you see denying yourself water contributing to weight loss???
  • Lillymoo01
    Lillymoo01 Posts: 2,865 Member
    lgfrie wrote: »
    Water has... zero calories. So how do you see denying yourself water contributing to weight loss???

    Except that she was planning to only have water for the 3 days. This is what a water fast is.
  • paperpudding
    paperpudding Posts: 9,278 Member
    Otherwise, the OP should be free to make his/her own choice as an adult

    of course.

    and if the OP puts a question to the forum, other posters should be free to make their own choices about their answers, as adults.
  • NovusDies
    NovusDies Posts: 8,940 Member
    sashabee25 wrote: »
    Currently I’m 18 and trying to lose some fat. I only drink water, have done OMAD for a month and a half and 20:4 fasting for another month. I eat extremely healthy and cut out meals to create a calorie deficit. I exercise every day (HIIT, strength training) but for some reason my body refuses to lose weight. Should I water fast (not eat anything) for around 3 days to see it that will work?

    I am going to assume you have lost your weight very quickly and you are currently unhappy with what you see in the mirror. The very likely cause you are unhappy is because you have lost weight so fast your body was forced to use muscle for energy as well as fat. This has left an unflattering ratio of fat and muscle which is often called "skinny fat".

    Your body can only use a certain amount of fat per day for energy before it turns to muscle. As you get leaner and create large deficits you will continue to use a higher ratio of muscle to fat. This means a 3 day fast will MAKE YOUR PROBLEM WORSE. It won't be a dramatic change but it will add to what I believe you have already done.

    This is why people in this thread have been pointing you at recomposition. If you really are at the bottom of your healthy BMI range though I would suggest a bulk cycle.

    If after reading this thread you still feel compelled to go through the fast you should seek medical help because you are likely experiencing disordered thoughts.

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