starvation mode

Bigmomma0u812

I have no idea. Truly because I'm obese I didn't think it was possible for people my size to go into starvation mode. I know I read about it on here but I kept thinking I have enough fat in my body to last me months. I am pretty active for a fat girl. I tried to exercise 30 min a day. I always ate way under my calories for the day and never ate back my exercise calories. I lost 43 lbs. but it took me 7 months to lose that. (I try to eat clean but I do eat a few things that I shouldn't.) Then I just stopped losing. I started working two active jobs and still eating the same calories and exercising and I gained weight. I keep thinking NO WAY can you gain weight eating under your calories and exercising but I sure did. I don't know if its food choices, my ignorance or starvation. Starvation seems like a drastic word for me for being excessively hungry and I eat all the time, so how can you be starving when you eat 3 meals a day plus snacks? I think I agree with others. The same thing just doesn't work for all of us. Figure out what works and measure your own results.

Fit_Canuck

Are you really talking about the Minnesota Starvation Experiment in the 50's?? The one that showed weight loss but at a severe cost and I quote " Among the conclusions from the study was the confirmation that prolonged semi-starvation produces significant increases in depression, hysteria and hypochondriasis as measured using the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory. Indeed, most of the subjects experienced periods of severe emotional distress and depression " There were extreme reactions to the psychological effects during the experiment including self-mutilation (one subject amputated three fingers of his hand with an axe, though the subject was unsure if he had done so intentionally or accidentally).

kel7298

Starvation mode is a state in which the body is responding to prolonged periods of low caloric intake levels.
During short periods of caloric abstinence, the human body will burn primarily body fat stores. After prolonged periods of starvation the body has depleted its body fat and begins to burn lean tissue and muscle as a fuel source.
It's a scientific fact , that this is how your body reacts to loss of calorific intake.

IMO - Based on this, you would not go into starvation mode until all the body fat stores have been depleted. How long would that take before it happened, that would depend on how much fat you have stored.

biologic

i ask because the main study, the minnesota starvation experiment, cut the subjects' calories to near starvation levels for 4 months and found that metabolism slowed some, but not much, in order to try to prevent tissue loss. but metabolism didn't slow that much. instead of losing 3 lbs a week, a subject would instead lose around 2.5 lbs a week.

Did that study also reveal any muscle loss, tissue loss, brain function change, organ damage? Did they even test to see if that was happening or was it strictly weight loss.

go here and read about it

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minnesota_Starvation_Experiment

the point wasn't that people should starve themselves for weightloss. the point is that hardly anyone is in "starvation mode" while dieting. the subjects in the study were ideal weight when the experiment was started, and it took months of severely restricted calories before it messed up their metabolism (and it didn't even mess it up that much).

other side effects are pretty awful, such as depression, anxiety, hallucinations, etc. but that doesn't matter because most people who are overweight and on a calorie restricted diet aren't going to go into starvation mode.

LilMissFoodie

I think starvation mode is a RARE disorder found in people who have maintained a prolonged low calorie diet (by low calorie, it could be 500 calories, it could be 1500 calories - just less than your maintenance calories). It is basically where the body experiences an adaptation if you will to the amount of calories you are feeding it. This takes a very long time to occur and the changes will not be severe ie they will likely be less than 1000 calories ie I believe people who say they are eating 300 calories and not losing weight are lying, perhaps to themselves as well (unless they are severely underweight). It will make it difficult for you to lose weight or keep weight off in the long term as your maintenance calories may become closer to 1500 calories which is more difficult to sustain in the long term than the usual 2000-2500 calories.

It is a disorder that takes a very long time to fix. It will not be 'fixed' overnight simply by eating back your exercise calories. If you started eating more calories and started to lose weight again then you were most definitely NOT in starvation mode - if you were, then your reduced metabolism would mean that when you first increased your calories you would gain weight. My guess is that when you started allowing yourself more calories you stopped feeling the need to 'cheat' and therefore maintained a greater deficit overall.

Starvation mode has nothing to do with what size you are or actual 'starvation'.

So there you go, my explanation of my view, as you asked.

Fit_Canuck

i ask because the main study, the minnesota starvation experiment, cut the subjects' calories to near starvation levels for 4 months and found that metabolism slowed some, but not much, in order to try to prevent tissue loss. but metabolism didn't slow that much. instead of losing 3 lbs a week, a subject would instead lose around 2.5 lbs a week.

Did that study also reveal any muscle loss, tissue loss, brain function change, organ damage? Did they even test to see if that was happening or was it strictly weight loss.

go here and read about it

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minnesota_Starvation_Experiment

the point wasn't that people should starve themselves for weightloss. the point is that hardly anyone is in "starvation mode" while dieting. the subjects in the study were ideal weight when the experiment was started, and it took months of severely restricted calories before it messed up their metabolism (and it didn't even mess it up that much).

other side effects are pretty awful, such as depression, anxiety, hallucinations, etc. but that doesn't matter because most people who are overweight and on a calorie restricted diet aren't going to go into starvation mode.

Yes you can be on a calorie restrictive diet but those diets typically are not lower than your basal metabolism rate, they are a reduction of your current grossly high calorie intake. You are making it sound like this study is some sort of vindication for those who advocate a dangerously low calorie diet. Shame on you sir. You have taken a 1400 page study which ended with horrible side effect and in some case mutilation and have boiled it down to " you don't go into starvation mode right away "

That's all I'm going to say about the subject, I've heard this crap from too many people who think they are medical experts. In my case my physician has told me that starvation mode is a really fact of metabolism and your goal should be too boost it not starve it if you want to live a long healthy life.

The end.

biologic

biologic, this question was only posed so you could call people out? Really, this is covered thousands of times already on this site and many others.

After five years on this site, I have learned that you cannot reach everyone. It would be better if you just post helpfully and frequently, without trying to "fix" everyone to agree with you.

There are tens of thousands of people on this site. Many people come and go every day. Please try to be a positive force.

frankly every time someone is using starvation mode as a reason why someone didn't lose any weight for a week it should be addressed. but there are too many threads where this is happening so i thought i would make a thread about it.

besides, when people are giving advice on an internet forum what is wrong with asking where they got the idea that that advice was good? is it too much to ask people to give a concise definition of the terms they are using and why it pertains to whatever individual they are ascribing it to?

applekoko19

That Minnesota study was done using men who started out at a healthy weight so I don't really thing you can say that the same sorts of responses would occur in the bodies of obese people (like me). Also it was done only using men as test subjects and even my cat could tell you that weight-loss in men and women follows differing trends. Obviously the research is insufficient so for now we just need to listen to our own bodies and see what they are saying!

LethaSue

I googled it a couple of weeks ago, because it seems many people fall back on it as an excuse to load on some more calories here. People fearing the dreaded "starvation mode". It does exist but not on the level that most people think it does. It pertains to actual "starvation". after being deprived of any or very little food for some period of time. And maybe at some reduced level at some point in your dieting, but certainly not something we life style changers are going to encounter on a weekly basis.
I get tickled when I see someone post, "OMG I didn't consume enough calories today and I am not hungry but I will force myself to eat something so as not to go into starvation mode." Look at people that were stranded in a situation where there is no food, those people continued to lose weight.

biologic

That Minnesota study was done using men who started out at a healthy weight so I don't really thing you can say that the same sorts of responses would occur in the bodies of obese people (like me). Also it was done only using men as test subjects and even my cat could tell you that weight-loss in men and women follows differing trends. Obviously the research is insufficient so for now we just need to listen to our own bodies and see what they are saying!

my point is that people need to stop using "starvation mode" as the response to people who are overweight not losing weight for some small amount of time. it is also absurd to expect overweight people to go into starvation mode faster, given their body's stores of energy, than people who are of ideal weight.

cmriverside

i ask because the main study, the minnesota starvation experiment, cut the subjects' calories to near starvation levels for 4 months and found that metabolism slowed some, but not much, in order to try to prevent tissue loss. but metabolism didn't slow that much. instead of losing 3 lbs a week, a subject would instead lose around 2.5 lbs a week.

Did that study also reveal any muscle loss, tissue loss, brain function change, organ damage? Did they even test to see if that was happening or was it strictly weight loss.

go here and read about it

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minnesota_Starvation_Experiment

the point wasn't that people should starve themselves for weightloss. the point is that hardly anyone is in "starvation mode" while dieting. the subjects in the study were ideal weight when the experiment was started, and it took months of severely restricted calories before it messed up their metabolism (and it didn't even mess it up that much).

other side effects are pretty awful, such as depression, anxiety, hallucinations, etc. but that doesn't matter because most people who are overweight and on a calorie restricted diet aren't going to go into starvation mode.

Yes you can be on a calorie restrictive diet but those diets typically are not lower than your basal metabolism rate, they are a reduction of your current grossly high calorie intake. You are making it sound like this study is some sort of vindication for those who advocate a dangerously low calorie diet. Shame on you sir. You have taken a 1400 page study which ended with horrible side effect and in some case mutilation and have boiled it down to " you don't go into starvation mode right away "

**edited by MFP moderator**. i didn't claim anywhere that people need to starve themselves, or that they should, i'm only stating that what people claim that others are in "starvation mode" that it isn't the case, and scientific studies support my claim.

Well, there it is. You are right and everyone else is wrong. Well done.

Fit_Canuck

The fact that you would use that word to describe someone just goes to show why this discussion is over for me. And you should be ashamed of yourself for writing it here.

WifeMomDVM

I believe starvation mode is something that happens when someone drastically restricts their calories for a long period of time and then they stop losing weight and continue trying to slash calories until they are eating a ridiculously low amount each day - maybe 800-1000 calories - though I've seen some short people on here swear this is all they need. Then when they realize this isn't sustainable and try to eat a "normal" amount of calories - they get upset about gaining weight.

I think (IMHO) that it would be exceedingly difficult to get one's needed fiber, vitamins, minerals, and daily protein on such a low number of calories.

Therefore - I'm one of those advocates on the boards that thinks just about everyone should be eating more than 1200 calories a day. Why? My observations that the HEALTHIEST people I've found on this site - eat quite a bit. I tried to do what they did and it worked for me.

Now I know there is more than one way to skin a cat - but I'm a firm believer in the camp of feeding your body nutritionally well, keeping your hormones in balance and listening to your "hunger" signals and exercising regularly for health benefits.

Not sure if I really answered your question but at least I got to share my opinion. Yours can be different from mine - and that's ok. Whatever makes you happy.

applekoko19

That Minnesota study was done using men who started out at a healthy weight so I don't really thing you can say that the same sorts of responses would occur in the bodies of obese people (like me). Also it was done only using men as test subjects and even my cat could tell you that weight-loss in men and women follows differing trends. Obviously the research is insufficient so for now we just need to listen to our own bodies and see what they are saying!

my point is that people need to stop using "starvation mode" as the response to people who are overweight not losing weight for some small amount of time. it is also absurd to expect overweight people to go into starvation mode faster, given their body's stores of energy, than people who are of ideal weight.

Sorry maybe I wasn't being clear... In my own way I was agreeing with you about how 'starvation mode' is used all over MFP. I eat around 900cals a day but they are coming from much better food than I was eating when I ate 2000PLUS. When I said we need to listen to our bodies I ment just that if a person is starving themselves I would imagine they would feel intense hunger.

AlabasterVerve

I think that starvation mode is a dieting myth. But I do believe that upping your calories CAN result in greater weight loss simply because if you have more energy you move more and may be less likely to overeat or under estimate your calories. But when people who aren't losing weight or who are gaining weight get told to eat more I feel really bad for them, especially on this site, when there's a very real possibility they're over estimating their calories burned and are probably already overeating. That's just what I think and I could very well be wrong. Everyone needs to find and do what works for them and if starvation mode makes them feel better about losing weight in a slow, healthy rate more power to them.

Are You In The Starvation Mode or Starving For Truth?

http://www.healthscience.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=512:are-you-in-the-starvation-mode-or-starving-for-truth&catid=102:jeff-novicks-blog&Itemid=267

MissFit0101

The fact that you would use that word to describe someone just goes to show why this discussion is over for me. And you should be ashamed of yourself for writing it here.

Ditto that.

CharlieBarleyMom

serious question. i want all the people who are on these forums that throw around the term "starvation mode" to come in here and state what they believe it is and why they believe it

biologic, this question was only posed so you could call people out? Really, this is covered thousands of times already on this site and many others.

After five years on this site, I have learned that you cannot reach everyone. It would be better if you just post helpfully and frequently, without trying to "fix" everyone to agree with you.

There are tens of thousands of people on this site. Many people come and go every day. Please try to be a positive force.

I have to agree with CM here. You are inciting a riot on the basis that you want to ONCE and FOR ALL end the debate... in a couple of responses you have made you seem to be flitting your eyelashes and acting all innocent as if you didn't know that this is a subject of much debate on these forums.

There are new people joining this site every minute of every day (maybe not specific times - I don't want to be called out on not knowing my stats!). This ensures that there will be someone asking or stating "starvation mode" just as often.

Each individual is different. A certain diet may work for one that does not work for the next. A type of diet may work for a length of time for multiple people... but there are specific studies on this effect and if you truly want the information, rather than trying to incite a riot, you would search the annals of google or the American Journal of Medicine, not the individual people of this site -- most of whom are not doctors or nutritionists either.

Contrarian

serious question. i want all the people who are on these forums that throw around the term "starvation mode" to come in here and state what they believe it is and why they believe it

biologic, this question was only posed so you could call people out? Really, this is covered thousands of times already on this site and many others.

After five years on this site, I have learned that you cannot reach everyone. It would be better if you just post helpfully and frequently, without trying to "fix" everyone to agree with you.

There are tens of thousands of people on this site. Many people come and go every day. Please try to be a positive force.

I agree.

Also, http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/390234-does-starvation-mode-exist-and-what-is-it

biologic

serious question. i want all the people who are on these forums that throw around the term "starvation mode" to come in here and state what they believe it is and why they believe it

biologic, this question was only posed so you could call people out? Really, this is covered thousands of times already on this site and many others.

After five years on this site, I have learned that you cannot reach everyone. It would be better if you just post helpfully and frequently, without trying to "fix" everyone to agree with you.

There are tens of thousands of people on this site. Many people come and go every day. Please try to be a positive force.

I have to agree with CM here. You are inciting a riot on the basis that you want to ONCE and FOR ALL end the debate... in a couple of responses you have made you seem to be flitting your eyelashes and acting all innocent as if you didn't know that this is a subject of much debate on these forums.

There are new people joining this site every minute of every day (maybe not specific times - I don't want to be called out on not knowing my stats!). This ensures that there will be someone asking or stating "starvation mode" just as often.

Each individual is different. A certain diet may work for one that does not work for the next. A type of diet may work for a length of time for multiple people... but there are specific studies on this effect and if you truly want the information, rather than trying to incite a riot, you would search the annals of google or the American Journal of Medicine, not the individual people of this site -- most of whom are not doctors or nutritionists either.

i just started coming here like 4 days ago. the reason i brought this up is because "starvation mode" is overused and misunderstood. so i want people to come in here and state what they believe it to be and why (as in, they read scientific journals and can cite the reasons why they believe it, or they just heard it and are parroting what someone told them). i don't see why that is such a big deal.

if you believe something then you should state why you believe it.

biologic

serious question. i want all the people who are on these forums that throw around the term "starvation mode" to come in here and state what they believe it is and why they believe it

biologic, this question was only posed so you could call people out? Really, this is covered thousands of times already on this site and many others.

After five years on this site, I have learned that you cannot reach everyone. It would be better if you just post helpfully and frequently, without trying to "fix" everyone to agree with you.

There are tens of thousands of people on this site. Many people come and go every day. Please try to be a positive force.

I agree.

Also, http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/390234-does-starvation-mode-exist-and-what-is-it

yes, more people need to read this before using "starvation mode" in any of their replies.