NPR Article on why it's so hard to keep the weight off

menjivas

I was listening to NPR's Morning Edition and they had a story on weight loss and why people aren't able to keep the weight off. It discusses how the brain and its chemicals, when weight loss is achieved, panic because of the less calories. This causes your metabolism to slow down. It discuss how people who lose weight will always have to eat less than someone else. It's a great read and gives me new motivation to continue the weight loss and the work out: http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2011/10/31/141794801/losing-weight-a-battle-against-fat-and-biology

Hearts_2015

bump for later... :flowerforyou:

tmarie2715

You had me at NPR. Thanks for sharing this!

kRpRpLgRl

Bump

Thanks for the link!

emaline614

i heard this this on the way to work... really good piece. thanks for sharing!

BeautifulScarsWECHANGED

Great article, but a bit depressing. I don't want to deal with a "caloric handicap" my whole life. :frown:

Dawners98

First, three pounds to go!!! Congratulations! Amazing work!!! Second, thank you so much for sharing. Although I am only half way to my final goal, I am already terrified about maintaining my weight when I get there. I feel like my new healthier eating habits are ingrained in me now, but that doesn't always mean success. I will be sure to keep my calories a bit low until my body readjusts! Thanks again!!

foremant86

While i understand our bodies do fight against weight loss, that article makes it seem like you have to eat less than a lab rat to keep weight off.

Yes we have to eat less, but it's not like it's a drastic amount. Most peoples maintenance is around 2000 calories and that's actually quite a lot food. Heck i'm eating between 1500-1800 calories a day right now for weight loss.

It's more about not eating crap all the time and that my friend IS all about will power, it's about having the will power to say no to the chinese buffet or grabbing fast food everyday because it's "quick and easy"

"caloric handicp" is only going to exist if the person doesn't exercise. Yes if a person only eats 1200 calories a day and never exercises there whole life then yes the are going to have that problem but the majority of us don't do that.

menjivas

Thanks! The last three pounds have become a monumental struggle, so I have found the article quite revealing.

I don't think it's saying that we need to eat less than a rat, but I think the article makes a good case on why it's so hard to keep weight loss off. It's not just about making smart choices but also being conscience that you can't eat the same amount of calories as before. You have to remember that weight loss affects your whole body and your body doesn't want to lose weight incase you ever need the fat/extra weight to survive.

msiamjan

It's interesting that this set of stories was prompted by an Australian study in which obese individuals were put on 550 calorie a day diets. That's pretty drastic and not surprising that the body reacted badly. Now we need the study for a moderate deficit and slower weight loss.

AnninStPaul

Great article, but a bit depressing. I don't want to deal with a "caloric handicap" my whole life. :frown:

agreed!

diaryoffatdad

just to give you an idea of this, if you think of The Biggest Loser contestants who lose a drastic amount of weight in such a rediculously fast time, they experience this 'caloric handicap' badly. that is why they don't show very many of their previous contestants, only a select few have kept the weight off.

the extreme changes they experience drastically alter their metabolism to the tune of about 500 calories, that means for them to maintain their weight loss, they have to eliminate an entire meal's worth of calories compaired to a normal individual.

now i read about this over a year ago, when i have time i will try and find the reference, but its some food for thought, and perhaps another point proving that fast fixes aren't the answer. your body has to adapt gradually.

funkycamper

It's interesting that this set of stories was prompted by an Australian study in which obese individuals were put on 550 calorie a day diets. That's pretty drastic and not surprising that the body reacted badly. Now we need the study for a moderate deficit and slower weight loss.

Thanks for this into. That puts a whole different perspective on the claims, doesn't it? I've observed many people here at MFP who have lost large amounts of weight, have become very fit through exercise, and who are now eating 2000+ calories a day and maintaining their weight loss.

I don't doubt the results because when you're doing it wrong, you're going to have bad long-term results. Far better to lose it right in the first place even if it takes you two, three or even four times as long as then you should have no problem keeping it off. It's a lifestyle change, not a race.

menjivas

The article advocates a healthy lifestyle. To quote the end of the article: "This means no more grapefruit or cabbage soup diets: You need a diet you can stay on forever. For most people, that means high fiber, low fat and low sugar...

But you can fight back against a lowered metabolism. You can "kick" your metabolism back up by exercising every day. One recent study found people were able to burn up an extra 450 calories a day with one hour of moderate exercise."

I think the article makes a point to say that if you are excercising, then the "caloric handicap" and the lower metabolism effects can be reduced or eliminated. It also shows that it isn't just about willpower to lose weight, you have to make it a conscience choice every day. You just don't get to your ideal weight and think that it's over. You still have to work at it.

hockey7fan

I don't exercise other than general walking around and playing with my son. I don't do cardio. I don't go to the gym. I eat between 1500 and 1800 calories a day with some days being higher. The weight still comes off.

Check out Dr. Jack Kruse's Leptin Reset program if you want some interesting reading. http://jackkruse.com/why-is-oprah-still-obese-leptin-part-3/

jaimemcdowell

bump!

mcarter99

"And depending on how much weight people lose, they may face a 300-, 400- or even 500-calorie a day handicap, meaning you have to consume that many fewer calories a day in order to maintain your weight loss."

This sounds like exaggeration to me. I've read that any permanent change in BMR is mostly small, like 3-5%. Like someone else said, maybe those high amounts are from extreme deficits for long term?

My academic library web site is down but googling turned up a paper on this, based on the Minn. starvation experiments and it seemed to say most of the BMR reduction (and they only looked out 12 weeks and the men were emaciated) was explained by reduction in lean mass. So in some respects, avoidable?
http://www.ajcn.org/content/68/3/599.full.pdf

I wonder, too, if that 300-500/day 'handicap' is taking into account the normal reduction in BMR just due to being a lot smaller overall? Jeez, I bet that's it. That's pretty manipulative journalism. Of course you can't lose 200 lbs. and expect to eat as much to maintain as you did before. Oh no, I guess she does phrase the 'handicap' in terms of what a non-weight-losing person of your size can eat. I still wonder.

ocukor1

Fortunately, it is not how it works. You will not end up with a handicap; you just have to eat so your metabolism speeds up. They must have been talking about "crash diets" which is what everyone thinks the weight loss is all about, but there is a way to lose weight and eat good, feel good, and that is to eat healthy. Weight loss is a lifestyle and not a commercial crash diet. Anyone eating healthy foods will look healthy and stay at a healthy weight (or get there) because it is almost impossible to gain a lot of weight on healthy food. Now, fast food does not fall into that category I'm afraid.

myofibril

I wonder, too, if that 300-500/day 'handicap' is taking into account the normal reduction in BMR just due to being a lot smaller overall? Jeez, I bet that's it. That's pretty manipulative journalism. Of course you can't lose 200 lbs. and expect to eat as much to maintain as you did before.

That's the main part of it I think. As your weight decreases the amount of calories you need to maintain that new weight is less than that of your previous weight. That's the way it works with everyone.

Then there's an additional reduction which cannot be explained by loss of body weight: adaptive thermogenesis. This is a result of mostly starvation type dieting although the % increased reduction is still very much a subject of debate.

To avoid that outcome you simply choose a sensible calorie deficit which is suitable for your body composition, incorporate diet breaks, refeeds, high calorie days etc.

kaneda333

Good article. I've also read that when you gain weight you gain more fat cells, and when you lose weight you merely shrink the fat cells - you never get rid of them and this is another reason why previously overweight people need to watch what they eat, because it's easy to re-inflate those fat cells again.

RGonVSH

Calories in/Calories out has to be the same to maintain your weight. I eat a lot more calories now than I have been, but I eat differently. The "Standard American Diet" (SAD) is not healthy. Too much processed food... Too much salt, sugar, and fat. Far too few vegetables...

I continue to be amazed by how much the media, even NPR who I normally trust, puts out all of this confusing information on nutrition. If you want to know what you need to eat, you need to read the books, articles that are based on science, rather than base your life and health on what one person or another says... even if they are doctors. Medical doctors get a very miniscule amount of training in nutrition; they are nowhere near experts in that field. So before you listen to anyone, even to a doctor, find out what he really knows about nutrition, what training he has in that area, what experience he has in that field.

There are some good people out there, talking about real nutrition and how to be healthy. In the end, that is what is important. It is not about the pounds. The pounds will disappear naturally, if we eat proper nutrition. Well, at least that is what is working for me.

jfan175

Why is this article so depressing? I think most of us got into this because we want to lose the fat and keep it off. It's an undisputabe fact that in order to maintain the weight loss, we'll NEVER, EVER be able to go back to our old style of eating. Enjoy your new lifestyle and reap the benefits.

manhn1

I don't find the article all that depressing. Maintenance *is* hard. I can't count how many times I've been told that now that I've lost all the weight, I don't have to diet anymore, or one little candy bar, cheesecake, hamburger, etc won't hurt me, etc.