Starvation Mode: How It Works

LisaKyle11 · May 2011

keep bumping!!

ladyhawk00 · May 2011

keep bumping!!

If you insist!

Crystalchaos72 · May 2011

AWESOME INFORMATION!! THANK YOU!!

bethikabob · May 2011

Bumpity bump bump...Awesomeness! Thank you!

brittbrat892 · May 2011

Good Post!

mommiedawn · May 2011

I have a question, was going to make a thread about it, but it fits here....

I am having trouble eating! I have anxiety AND I'm trying to lose weight, etc....so several reasons but I am having some crazy low calorie days though I'm not really trying to.

I want to make an effort to keep my calories up there, but I don't think to because I'm busy and then the day is gone and I'm afraid to eat a bunch at once to make up for it. I keep telling myself it's okay as long as I cycle those crazy low days with some maintenance weight days, etc....basically I guess I'm saying to myself - look at the overal deficit for the week.

I have read a 3500 calorie deficit is a pound lost. And healthy is 1-2 lbs per week. So it seems safe to think a 3500 cal/week deficit is okay.

If I have that approach, low days, mod days, etc.....eat healthy foods, and have a deficit as discussed, based on the week.......am I still at risk for starvation mode?

Hopefully someone has an opinion, information to offer, etc......

Thanks!

There's really no way to know - your body may or may not deal well with that situation. What I can say is that it's not optimal and your metabolism probably won't be running as well as it might otherwise.

Calorie cycling is a valid strategy, but it needs to be done in a fairly precise way to achieve the desired results. Unless you are planning it and make sure that the cal levels are right and that the nutrient levels for each day are right, it doesn't really "average out".

An occasional day far under or over does not undo all of your progress. But when it becomes a habit, your body just can't function at its highest level. While you can get away with an "average" intake over the week if the differences aren't too big from day to day, you can't get away with "averaging" your macros and micros. There are nutrients that need to be replaced on a daily basis to provide power for all of the different systems - such as calcium, magnesium, potassium, sodium, fats, etc. So the day of far under goal likely isn't meeting the needs for all of the nutrients. Again, not a huge issue on a rare basis, but not a good way to get the most out of your nutrition.

The best advice I can give is scheduling and planning. Plan your meals ahead of time - at least at the start of the day, even better a day or two (or even the week) ahead. Make some snacks or meals ahead of time and keep them in the fridge or freezer for when you don't have time to cook. Make your nutrition (and by extension, YOU) a priority.

Trust me, I know it's hard - I'm one of the least scheduled people you'll find - I HATE schedules. But it will make all the difference in being able to make good food choices and actually removing that anxiety about eating. When it's planned ahead of time, you don't have to stress over it.

Thanks for the advice! I know one thing is for sure, with MFP I actually know what I and am not getting. I'm thinking of taking a report to my doctor next time I go so she can analyze my habits. I have a bone disease and anemia so this information could really help her help me.

ladyhawk00 · May 2011

I have a question, was going to make a thread about it, but it fits here....

I am having trouble eating! I have anxiety AND I'm trying to lose weight, etc....so several reasons but I am having some crazy low calorie days though I'm not really trying to.

I want to make an effort to keep my calories up there, but I don't think to because I'm busy and then the day is gone and I'm afraid to eat a bunch at once to make up for it. I keep telling myself it's okay as long as I cycle those crazy low days with some maintenance weight days, etc....basically I guess I'm saying to myself - look at the overal deficit for the week.

I have read a 3500 calorie deficit is a pound lost. And healthy is 1-2 lbs per week. So it seems safe to think a 3500 cal/week deficit is okay.

If I have that approach, low days, mod days, etc.....eat healthy foods, and have a deficit as discussed, based on the week.......am I still at risk for starvation mode?

Hopefully someone has an opinion, information to offer, etc......

Thanks!

There's really no way to know - your body may or may not deal well with that situation. What I can say is that it's not optimal and your metabolism probably won't be running as well as it might otherwise.

Calorie cycling is a valid strategy, but it needs to be done in a fairly precise way to achieve the desired results. Unless you are planning it and make sure that the cal levels are right and that the nutrient levels for each day are right, it doesn't really "average out".

An occasional day far under or over does not undo all of your progress. But when it becomes a habit, your body just can't function at its highest level. While you can get away with an "average" intake over the week if the differences aren't too big from day to day, you can't get away with "averaging" your macros and micros. There are nutrients that need to be replaced on a daily basis to provide power for all of the different systems - such as calcium, magnesium, potassium, sodium, fats, etc. So the day of far under goal likely isn't meeting the needs for all of the nutrients. Again, not a huge issue on a rare basis, but not a good way to get the most out of your nutrition.

The best advice I can give is scheduling and planning. Plan your meals ahead of time - at least at the start of the day, even better a day or two (or even the week) ahead. Make some snacks or meals ahead of time and keep them in the fridge or freezer for when you don't have time to cook. Make your nutrition (and by extension, YOU) a priority.

Trust me, I know it's hard - I'm one of the least scheduled people you'll find - I HATE schedules. But it will make all the difference in being able to make good food choices and actually removing that anxiety about eating. When it's planned ahead of time, you don't have to stress over it.

Thanks for the advice! I know one thing is for sure, with MFP I actually know what I and am not getting. I'm thinking of taking a report to my doctor next time I go so she can analyze my habits. I have a bone disease and anemia so this information could really help her help me.

Quite welcome. I forgot to mention one thing. 3500 is a 1 lb per week deficit (in theory, if all of it is fat lost), but remember if you set your loss per week goal at 1 lb per week, that deficit is already built in to your cal goal. So anything UNDER goal means a higher deficit. If you eat 250 under goal every day, you've increased the deficit to 5250 per week (or 1.5 lbs per week).

So for what you have to lose (according to your ticker), I wouldn't recommend trying to go for more than 1 lb per week, and 1/2 lb is probably better. And if you set it for 1 lb per week, you need to make SURE you're meeting goal each day. The less you have to lose, the slower it will come off and the more conservative your deficit needs to be.

ETA: And I would definitely keep your doctor in the loop and go over your needs with him/her.

kgool · May 2011

Thanks and bump. Too bad you cannot mark threads here without posting. Am I just missing a favorites?

ladyhawk00 · May 2011

Thanks and bump. Too bad you cannot mark threads here without posting. Am I just missing a favorites?

There are a couple of sticky threads in the General section that have some very good posts (12 links you want to read, newbies please read), but some of the newer threads are not included in those. But that's why I included some of my favorite posts in this one.

They're working on developing a better system for stickies/tutorials.