"earning" calories through exercise

NightOwl1

it is extremely unlikely that anyone reading this will ever get near a true "starvation mode". But, here, people have different ideas of what starvation mode really is. To reach starvation mode requires starting with a low body fat (men 4-5%, women 10%) then severly restricting calories and severe caloric expenditure (exercise), I didnt say it was impossible to enter starvation mode. But the term is thrown around here like a frisbee and can cause false anxiety.

You are confusing starvation mode with anorexia and starvation. Despite sounding similar, they are very different things. Starvation mode is not something a couple of MFP members made up on the forums. It's widely accepted in the weight loss community. Starvation mode is when your body stops losing weight due to not enough calorie intake. It is not anorexia, where your caloric intake is so low that you shed weight that's largely muscle and vital organ weight to compensate. And it's not starvation, which causes delirium and death. People hear starvation mode, and think you're talking about the latter. When in reality, starvation mode is the least severe of the three.

tigersword

I'm not here to anger people, but I hear the words "starvation mode" gets tossed around this site a lot and for the most part, unless your body fat percentage is in the 4% or lower, I doubt anyone here has really ever reached it. You're body stores fat for energy that's used up when your eating at a deficit. Right now I'm eating below my bmr to lose the last bit of fat, and I have not "reached" starvation mode. I never eat back my calories I burned from working out. Also I'm pushing the same amount of weights that I did when I was eating in excess, I'm not getting stronger from the deficit, but I'm definitely not getting weaker at all. Another thing is when people eat back their workout calories, they tend to overestimate on exactly how many calories they burned. At the end of the day, you probably end up being in surplus instead of a deficit. Eat your allotted daily calories and if you notice you're losing more than a lb a week, then up it a bit by like 50-100 cal a day til you get your numbers right

As far as starvation response goes, it's real. It slows your metabolism down. It has nothing to do with physical strength or body far percentage. It's a hormonal and chemical reaction. Restrict calories too much for an extended amount of time, and your body will adjust your metabolism to compensate and conserve energy. The result is whn you go back to eating at a "normal" caloric level, you end up gaining weight, due to your metabolism being slower.

The starvation response (or starvation mode) doesn't actually wait until you are physically starving to kick in, it's a survival instinct. Also starvation mode is not the same thing as "starvation."

BeautyFromPain

it speeds up metabolism ...

ster81

I'm not here to anger people, but I hear the words "starvation mode" gets tossed around this site a lot and for the most part, unless your body fat percentage is in the 4% or lower, I doubt anyone here has really ever reached it. You're body stores fat for energy that's used up when your eating at a deficit. Right now I'm eating below my bmr to lose the last bit of fat, and I have not "reached" starvation mode. I never eat back my calories I burned from working out. Also I'm pushing the same amount of weights that I did when I was eating in excess, I'm not getting stronger from the deficit, but I'm definitely not getting weaker at all. Another thing is when people eat back their workout calories, they tend to overestimate on exactly how many calories they burned. At the end of the day, you probably end up being in surplus instead of a deficit. Eat your allotted daily calories and if you notice you're losing more than a lb a week, then up it a bit by like 50-100 cal a day til you get your numbers right

As far as starvation response goes, it's real. It slows your metabolism down. It has nothing to do with physical strength or body far percentage. It's a hormonal and chemical reaction. Restrict calories too much for an extended amount of time, and your body will adjust your metabolism to compensate and conserve energy. The result is whn you go back to eating at a "normal" caloric level, you end up gaining weight, due to your metabolism being slower.

The starvation response (or starvation mode) doesn't actually wait until you are physically starving to kick in, it's a survival instinct. Also starvation mode is not the same thing as "starvation."

Here is a good read if you have time... http://fattyfightsback.blogspot.com/2009/03/mtyhbusters-starvation-mode.html

Dave198lbs

. Good Luck

breez83

so if starvation mode doesn't exist why did I drop 15lbs by eating 1500 calories a day but then as soon as I dropped my calories back down to 800-1200 the weight started creeping back on and now I'm back to 213 from 205... I exercise, walk everywhere and eat loads of veggies and rarely touch junk food, but anytime my calories go below 1500 I stop losing weight and after a week or 2 start gaining

I really hate it because I actually have always had a good metabolism and burn fat quickly by eating high calorie foods once or twice a day, its only since I've switched to lower calorie meals throughout the day when I found out I was pregnant 3 years ago trying to be healthier, that my metabolism dropped

DopeItUp

I eat every single calorie back. It's my motivation to work out every day. I'm getting in better shape AND I get to eat more WHILE still losing the same amount of weight. Win/win/win.

Spamee

bump

tigersword

I'm not here to anger people, but I hear the words "starvation mode" gets tossed around this site a lot and for the most part, unless your body fat percentage is in the 4% or lower, I doubt anyone here has really ever reached it. You're body stores fat for energy that's used up when your eating at a deficit. Right now I'm eating below my bmr to lose the last bit of fat, and I have not "reached" starvation mode. I never eat back my calories I burned from working out. Also I'm pushing the same amount of weights that I did when I was eating in excess, I'm not getting stronger from the deficit, but I'm definitely not getting weaker at all. Another thing is when people eat back their workout calories, they tend to overestimate on exactly how many calories they burned. At the end of the day, you probably end up being in surplus instead of a deficit. Eat your allotted daily calories and if you notice you're losing more than a lb a week, then up it a bit by like 50-100 cal a day til you get your numbers right

As far as starvation response goes, it's real. It slows your metabolism down. It has nothing to do with physical strength or body far percentage. It's a hormonal and chemical reaction. Restrict calories too much for an extended amount of time, and your body will adjust your metabolism to compensate and conserve energy. The result is whn you go back to eating at a "normal" caloric level, you end up gaining weight, due to your metabolism being slower.

The starvation response (or starvation mode) doesn't actually wait until you are physically starving to kick in, it's a survival instinct. Also starvation mode is not the same thing as "starvation."

Here is a good read if you have time... http://fattyfightsback.blogspot.com/2009/03/mtyhbusters-starvation-mode.html

I don't think you understood my post. I never said you'd stop losing weight on a severe caloric restriction. Basically I said what you said. Your metabolism slows beyond what the amount of weight lost would predict (like the Minnesota study showed) so that when you hit your goal, and go to what you think should be maintenance, you end up gaining weight because your maintenance level is actually much lower than it should be, and it takes time to re-regulate and repair. So while yes, eventually your metabolism will return to normal, it takes time, which is why you're supposed to ease yourself back up to maintenance over time, so that by the time you hit your maintenance, your metabolism has up-regulated back to normal.

LorinaLynn

Try eating them and see how it works for you.

I know myself, and many others, have always thought that losing weight meant dieting, and dieting meant restricting your calories and feeling hungry all the time.

What I found to be true was that severely restricting my calories just made me feel like crap, and a smaller calorie deficit was all that was needed. I lost every pound I wanted to and then some, getting smaller and more fit than I ever thought possible, while eating a good amount of food and feeling phenomenal.

I never would have thought that as a short, middle aged woman, I'd lose weight eating 1800 or more calories a day. But I did. And I lost it a lot faster than I did eating under 1000 calories a day. Plus the majority of the weight I lost was from fat, so instead of being a size 8 with a muffin top and back fat rolls like I was last time I "dieted" and got to 130#, I'm a size 4 at 130# and not the least bit ashamed to show my abs and back.