"Starvation." (All opinions wanted!)

taso42_DELETED

my guess is that it would be about the same.

Silverkittycat

Sorry! :laugh:
I'm trying to type on my iphone, replied with "2500 calories of crap carbs and sugar", went back to edit and add to that and ended up losing a few words. I'll fix it up in a minute when I'm on my laptop.

Silverkittycat

I still need to get to my laptop but wanted to add that there are many obese yet malnourished people that are in "starvation mode".
Ick...I don't like the term starvation mode. Anyway,

portexploit

As I thought, no one has even said "what starvation mode is."

When you regularly eat too little food to provide your body with the necessary nutrients, it perceives itself to be in danger from starvation. Since your body is wonderfully designed to protect you, it will slow down your metabolism to conserve energy so it can keep vital organs such as the brain and the heart going for as long as possible in the face of the perceived threat. While it will burn fat for fuel, it will also start burning lean muscle mass for fuel, which will slow down your metabolism even further.

Slow metabolism = slow/zero weightloss. You can seriously damage your kidney's with being in 'stravtion mode' for long periods of time, normally when you have an eating disorder.

This happens on any diet with a caloric deficit. Anyone want to take a stab at it?

A starvation diet may help you lose weight quite fast in the short term, you will pay a heavy price because you are setting yourself up for a lifetime of weight problems. Your metabolism gets progressively slower with each day you remain on a starvation diet (Less than 1200 cals net each day). This results in slower metabolism that needs less fuel, so you consistently have to eat less and less to lose weight! As your metabolism slows down even further and your lean muscle mass dwindles you will also find that you become more and more tired. This in turn means you will get less exercise, which leaves you with less lean muscle, and an even slower metabolism. You are literally wasting away. It really is a vicious cycle.

I think you're misunderstanding what I am saying. ANY diet with reduce calories, would cause you to lose weight, even muscle mass and will slow down your metabolism to some degree. If i went from a 3,500 caloire diet, to a 2,500 calorie diet. I will lose weight bodyfat/muscle. If I went from 1500 to 500, same results, loss of muscle mass and bodyfat. How Can I be in starvation mode at 2,500 calories? In both cases metabolism will slow down.

Starvation mode exists. Any calories deficite will slow down your metobolism, you are right there. But starvation mode occurs when you are eating so little your body can't fuel itself. This is different for everybody. Eating too little is unhealthy. It may give quick results but it creates bad eating habits and breeds eating disorders. Plateaus are natural parts of any weightloss plan, and we expect results quickly as it has been quick at the beginning. People mistake this period for starvation mode, when actually you just need to vary your diet and keep at it. Maybe re-think your goals and start focusing on inches, not pounds.

Starvation mode doesn't just affect your BMR. It affects your brain, your moods, reproductive system. Your organs are under immense pressure and the damage you are doing is just unthinkable. Also rather insulting to those poor people in under developed countries who are starving due famine, and some people do it through choice?! (Sorry I find it hard to comprehend eating disorders. That's just me though so please excuse my ignorance and opinion. Until something affects you, its hard to understand it).

You wouldn't be starving eating 2500. If you were eating only 500-800 you would get there eventually.

Your body will use ketones for brain function, and break down protein for glucose in the process called gluconeogensis. You can accomplish this on a 3000 calorie a day diet.

mjh5141

Your body will use ketones for brain function, and break down protein for glucose in the process called gluconeogensis. You can accomplish this on a 3000 calorie a day diet.

Yes, and to accomplish this, you are literally breaking down your body. Your system pulls the compounds needed to synthesize glucose from your fat stores, yes, but also from your muscles and your organs.

portexploit

Your body will use ketones for brain function, and break down protein for glucose in the process called gluconeogensis. You can accomplish this on a 3000 calorie a day diet.

Yes, and to accomplish this, you are literally breaking down your body. Your system pulls the compounds needed to synthesize glucose from your fat stores, yes, but also from your muscles and your organs.

Fat is used to produce ketones, if you're talking about gluconeogensis, yeah protein is used. This can still be done on a 3,000 calorie diet. So were is starvation mode? that's my ultimate question.

No one has fully answered what it is, i dismissed a few theories already, still waiting for more..

HappyLuna

Your body will use ketones for brain function, and break down protein for glucose in the process called gluconeogensis. You can accomplish this on a 3000 calorie a day diet.

Yes, and to accomplish this, you are literally breaking down your body. Your system pulls the compounds needed to synthesize glucose from your fat stores, yes, but also from your muscles and your organs.

Fat is used to produce ketones, if you're talking about gluconeogensis, yeah protein is used. This can still be done on a 3,000 calorie diet. So were is starvation mode? that's my ultimate question.

No one has fully answered what it is, i dismissed a few theories already, still waiting for more..

You have dismissed no theories at all. You have replaced them with your own theories as you believe your diet is the right one. Others disagree. And rightly so. This is all all your opinion based on the research you have read which speaks best to you.

You are just so wrapped up in yourself and that your opinion is right and everyone elses in wrong that you refuse to see anyone elses point of view. You will counter any theory anyone gives because you believe starvation mode doesn't exist. Good for you. Your views however I believe are wrong. But thats be beauty of this world. You can agree and disagree with whoever you like. You can waste as much time as you want explaining your theories but sometimes it best to concentrate on yourself rather than proving others wrong. (Well you think you are proving them wrong)

portexploit

Your body will use ketones for brain function, and break down protein for glucose in the process called gluconeogensis. You can accomplish this on a 3000 calorie a day diet.

Yes, and to accomplish this, you are literally breaking down your body. Your system pulls the compounds needed to synthesize glucose from your fat stores, yes, but also from your muscles and your organs.

Fat is used to produce ketones, if you're talking about gluconeogensis, yeah protein is used. This can still be done on a 3,000 calorie diet. So were is starvation mode? that's my ultimate question.

No one has fully answered what it is, i dismissed a few theories already, still waiting for more..

You have dismissed no theories at all. You have replaced them with your own theories as you believe your diet is the right one. Others disagree. And rightly so. This is all all your opinion based on the research you have read which speaks best to you.

You are just so wrapped up in yourself and that your opinion is right and everyone elses in wrong that you refuse to see anyone elses point of view. You will counter any theory anyone gives because you believe starvation mode doesn't exist. Good for you. Your views however I believe are wrong. But thats be beauty of this world. You can agree and disagree with whoever you like. You can waste as much time as you want explaining your theories but sometimes it best to concentrate on yourself rather than proving others wrong. (Well you think you are proving them wrong)

You claim hat starvation mode is when your body uses it's own resources. I already mentioned how your body will use it's own resources on any caloric deficit. That's why bodybuilders lose muscle mass when they reduce their calories. You also mentioned internal stress on organ, eating 10,000 calories a day won't produce stress on organs? Of course it does, has nothing to do with a low caloric diet.

According to your theory people get in to starvation mode around 500 calories a day, so everyone who had gastric bypass is in starvatoin mode according to you.

Coltsman4ever

From what I've learned on the subject... The fewer calories you eat, the more likely your body is to store fat. Your body can burn muscle much more efficiently than it can burn fat so when you're not eating enough calories it burns the musle and stores the fat.
This is one reason it's so important to exercise. Another reason would be, the more muscle you have, the more calories your body burns every day.
If a person only ate 500 calories a day, their body wouold be more likely to store fat in "emergency mode" and burn muscle for fuel. When this happens, people start feeling run down and tired. In my opinion, it's impossible to lose weight and keep it off without regular exercise.

Lozzy_82

There is a group of people who do this thing CRON - Calorie Restriction/Optimal Nutrition. I read about it a long time ago and I don't know if they are still around, but they restrict calories (I can't remember how much) to be like these CRON mice that lived a super long time in an experiment (hoping that humans will be like the mice). They restrict calories quite a lot but they don't eat junk food, they control the nutrition in their diet quite strictly, and I think they don't really believe in eating a whole bunch just to burn it off.

I thought I'd put it out there, it's just another way of doing things... (it seems pretty extreme to me - not an easy or fun path).

I was talking about this with a friend the other day. She's staying with someone this week who does this way of eating and has done it for a long time I think. Like you said, it's apparently based on research in mice that suggests a very low calorie diet can dramatically increase life-span. I believe she eats somewhere between 500 and 800 calories a day (before exercise). I have no idea how she does it or what her health is like! Definitely not something I would try.

portexploit

From what I've learned on the subject... The fewer calories you eat, the more likely your body is to store fat. Your body can burn muscle much more efficiently than it can burn fat so when you're not eating enough calories it burns the musle and stores the fat.
This is one reason it's so important to exercise. Another reason would be, the more muscle you have, the more calories your body burns every day.
If a person only ate 500 calories a day, their body wouold be more likely to store fat in "emergency mode" and burn muscle for fuel. When this happens, people start feeling run down and tired. In my opinion, it's impossible to lose weight and keep it off without regular exercise.

I know you're talking about what you learned, and that's fine. Let me ask you this, what is more important for our survival, fat or muscle? Common sense is muscle. So it makes no sense why the body would get rid of protein first. The body does need amino acids and will break down protein that's true, but you burn fat by laying in bed all day. That's that's tne number 1 source for energy. Eventually you'd enter a state called ketosis which produces ketones, ketones are made from your fat. They start to run the brain instead of carbs(glucose). You can cause the body to break down muscle for amino acids just by eating a high carb diet. You can bring your body in to ketosis with eating a low carb diet. Calories have little to do with these processes.

Also, when you eat it increases insulin which stores glycogen(sugar in the muscle) once the muscles are full it will store the sugar as fat. Eating prevnets people from burning fat. So if you're on a low calorie diet, you won't produce as much insulin, which will help liberate fat.So this makes the statment "The fewer calories you eat, the more likely you will store fat" inaccurate.

Coltsman4ever

From what I've learned on the subject... The fewer calories you eat, the more likely your body is to store fat. Your body can burn muscle much more efficiently than it can burn fat so when you're not eating enough calories it burns the musle and stores the fat.
This is one reason it's so important to exercise. Another reason would be, the more muscle you have, the more calories your body burns every day.
If a person only ate 500 calories a day, their body wouold be more likely to store fat in "emergency mode" and burn muscle for fuel. When this happens, people start feeling run down and tired. In my opinion, it's impossible to lose weight and keep it off without regular exercise.

I know you're talking about what you learned, and that's fine. Let me ask you this, what is more important for our survival, fat or muscle? Common sense is muscle. So it makes no sense why the body would get rid of protein first. The body does need amino acids and will break down protein that's true, but you burn fat by laying in bed all day. That's that's tne number 1 source for energy. Eventually you'd enter a state called ketosis which produces ketones, ketones are made from your fat. They start to run the brain instead of carbs(glucose). You can cause the body to break down muscle for amino acids just by eating a high carb diet. You can bring your body in to ketosis with eating a low carb diet. Calories have little to do with these processes.

Also, when you eat it increases insulin which stores glycogen(sugar in the muscle) once the muscles are full it will store the sugar as fat. Eating prevnets people from burning fat. So if you're on a low calorie diet, you won't produce as much insulin, which will help liberate fat.So this makes the statment "The fewer calories you eat, the more likely you will store fat" inaccurate.

I guess since Mr. Six Pack profile pic is on site, the rest of us can just go home, or at least take a break until he's off duty. Sorry to interfere in your lesson.

HappyLuna

From what I've learned on the subject... The fewer calories you eat, the more likely your body is to store fat. Your body can burn muscle much more efficiently than it can burn fat so when you're not eating enough calories it burns the musle and stores the fat.
This is one reason it's so important to exercise. Another reason would be, the more muscle you have, the more calories your body burns every day.
If a person only ate 500 calories a day, their body wouold be more likely to store fat in "emergency mode" and burn muscle for fuel. When this happens, people start feeling run down and tired. In my opinion, it's impossible to lose weight and keep it off without regular exercise.

I know you're talking about what you learned, and that's fine. Let me ask you this, what is more important for our survival, fat or muscle? Common sense is muscle. So it makes no sense why the body would get rid of protein first. The body does need amino acids and will break down protein that's true, but you burn fat by laying in bed all day. That's that's tne number 1 source for energy. Eventually you'd enter a state called ketosis which produces ketones, ketones are made from your fat. They start to run the brain instead of carbs(glucose). You can cause the body to break down muscle for amino acids just by eating a high carb diet. You can bring your body in to ketosis with eating a low carb diet. Calories have little to do with these processes.

Also, when you eat it increases insulin which stores glycogen(sugar in the muscle) once the muscles are full it will store the sugar as fat. Eating prevnets people from burning fat. So if you're on a low calorie diet, you won't produce as much insulin, which will help liberate fat.So this makes the statment "The fewer calories you eat, the more likely you will store fat" inaccurate.

I guess since Mr. Six Pack profile pic is on site, the rest of us can just go home, or at least take a break until he's off duty. Sorry to interfere in your lesson.

Lol have to agree with that! Also have to say 6 packs aren't my thing

Jessvaliquette

hi guys, I know someone that started the 17 day diet with me and had been only eating 500 to 600 calories a day for a few months, now this might not be related but seams kinda of weird timing, but anyhow she is now off work for several months due to a extreme digestive problem. I think that if your body only gets half of it mandatory calories it starts to create major problems and fast, starvation is not the key to weight loss.

missvissy

Not sure if this has already been posted or not but

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/3047-700-calories-a-day-and-not-losing

dkimbriel

There is a weight loss program here in town that does exactly that. 500 calories a day and no exercise allowed. They give you injections of something and take blood work each week and only allow this part of the program to last 3 weeks. That is my answer. If it requires doctors looking over your shoulder and they only want you to do it for 3 weeks, probably not a good plan. My suggestion for weight loss is use MyFitnessPal to make sure the amount of calories you actually eat, then look at the nutrition you are eating. Try eating for reaching all the minimum nutrition values without going over on any of them. This has me eating a lot more food for the same amount of calories. It is HARD to eat enough potassium without eating healthy vegetables and fruit.

SirBen81

I'm not sure how practical is to burn 700 calories while only consuming 1200 per day. 700 calories is a pretty big workout; tough to do on such a low calorie diet. If I had to chose between two evils, then I'd choose the one where I could just sit on the couch all day and basically hibernate until this fasting period was over. Either way you'r going to lose muscle mass.

portexploit

From what I've learned on the subject... The fewer calories you eat, the more likely your body is to store fat. Your body can burn muscle much more efficiently than it can burn fat so when you're not eating enough calories it burns the musle and stores the fat.
This is one reason it's so important to exercise. Another reason would be, the more muscle you have, the more calories your body burns every day.
If a person only ate 500 calories a day, their body wouold be more likely to store fat in "emergency mode" and burn muscle for fuel. When this happens, people start feeling run down and tired. In my opinion, it's impossible to lose weight and keep it off without regular exercise.

I know you're talking about what you learned, and that's fine. Let me ask you this, what is more important for our survival, fat or muscle? Common sense is muscle. So it makes no sense why the body would get rid of protein first. The body does need amino acids and will break down protein that's true, but you burn fat by laying in bed all day. That's that's tne number 1 source for energy. Eventually you'd enter a state called ketosis which produces ketones, ketones are made from your fat. They start to run the brain instead of carbs(glucose). You can cause the body to break down muscle for amino acids just by eating a high carb diet. You can bring your body in to ketosis with eating a low carb diet. Calories have little to do with these processes.

Also, when you eat it increases insulin which stores glycogen(sugar in the muscle) once the muscles are full it will store the sugar as fat. Eating prevnets people from burning fat. So if you're on a low calorie diet, you won't produce as much insulin, which will help liberate fat.So this makes the statment "The fewer calories you eat, the more likely you will store fat" inaccurate.

I guess since Mr. Six Pack profile pic is on site, the rest of us can just go home, or at least take a break until he's off duty. Sorry to interfere in your lesson.

I was "nice" about what i said. If you want to believe things that aren't true, that's fine.

portexploit

There is a weight loss program here in town that does exactly that. 500 calories a day and no exercise allowed. They give you injections of something and take blood work each week and only allow this part of the program to last 3 weeks. That is my answer. If it requires doctors looking over your shoulder and they only want you to do it for 3 weeks, probably not a good plan. My suggestion for weight loss is use MyFitnessPal to make sure the amount of calories you actually eat, then look at the nutrition you are eating. Try eating for reaching all the minimum nutrition values without going over on any of them. This has me eating a lot more food for the same amount of calories. It is HARD to eat enough potassium without eating healthy vegetables and fruit.

You might be talking about the HCG diet, they do inject you with HCG and you eat around 500 calories a day.

Angelamu77

First, I totally get this is just a question and not what you are doing...funny how people miss that some how. :-P

When asked this question in the past and reading it here just now my thought is 'how long' are you talking about?

Depending on what the doctor says is right for the person doing it is what I would do.

1200 calories-700 vs. the 500 calories well I would say that they are both acceptable (depending on the time span and the person's doctor). They both net the same calories.

If I was told I had to pick one I owuld take the 1200 calories - 700 simply because it would mean I was moving and that is a lifestyle change needed to maintain health....now would I do it for longer than a month; nope! ;-)

I am not personally sold on 'starvation' by eating too few calories for a short period of time...