starvation mode?

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andier1686
andier1686 Posts: 32
in Food and Nutrition
what is it anyway? should i be avoiding it?
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  • MissStoner
    MissStoner Posts: 3 Member
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    You need to make sure you consume at least enough to support your daily life functions + additional activity. If you do not consume enough you will go into "starvation mode" and your body will store more of what you do eat as fat instead of using it as fuel because it does not know when it will get it's next meal. The best way to avoid this is to eat every 3 hours (6 small meals per day: breakfast, snack, lunch, snack, dinner, snack) in order to boost your metabolism.
  • byukid
    byukid Posts: 55
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    http://examine.com/faq/how-do-i-stay-out-of-starvation-mode.html
  • Matt_Wild
    Matt_Wild Posts: 2,673 Member
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    Would any one actually care to explain to me how starvation mode actually works and the hormonal interactions that cause it?

    It doesn't exist. You're body will try to fight weight loss by reducing leptin output which will slow triiodothyronine release and thus slow the weight loss for a while but your body cannot last indefinitely. You will eventually start burning fat and muscle away.

    However, you should NEVER starve yourself (which I guess you need define anyway, what one may call starve, one may call fasting). You should avoid going too low in calories however as you will lose muscle (lean body mass) and mean when you stop dieting you will fat easier as your basic metabolic rate (eg calories needed to maintain your body weight) will be much lower.
  • Dahavol
    Dahavol Posts: 46
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    It is a myth, much like the Unicorn or the Pegasus. So if you can avoid the door to Narnia in the back of your closet you should be able to avoid it entirely.

    As far as what Matt said about starving yourself and avoiding LBM loss, that is good advice to follow, but don't be afraid of the 'starvation mode' boogyman. Yes there are hormonal responses to a lack of food. Yes they reduce your metabolic rate. Yes they make it more difficult to oxidize fat. No, eating under 1200 calories will not automatically cause your body to cling to every last fat cell like a crack addict to their pipe. Nor will it cause you to turn every muscle cell in your body into useless fatty goo. If you want some more info and some articles on the subject PM me and I'd be happy to send them along.

    Good luck in your self education.
  • Dahavol
    Dahavol Posts: 46
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    The best way to avoid this is to eat every 3 hours (6 small meals per day: breakfast, snack, lunch, snack, dinner, snack) in order to boost your metabolism.

    This is also a myth. If it works for you great, but there is no evidence(i.e. scientific, peer-reviewed studies with repeatable consistent results) to support that it has any statistically significant metabolic benefits.
  • Macklinh
    Macklinh Posts: 11
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    Wouldn't it be nice if during starvation mode the body would go and use some of the reserves it has been storing up all these years!
  • joehempel
    joehempel Posts: 1,761 Member
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    The best way to avoid this is to eat every 3 hours (6 small meals per day: breakfast, snack, lunch, snack, dinner, snack) in order to boost your metabolism.

    This is also a myth. If it works for you great, but there is no evidence(i.e. scientific, peer-reviewed studies with repeatable consistent results) to support that it has any statistically significant metabolic benefits.

    The way I understand the 6 times a day is if you think of your body like a gas tank.

    You get up, you eat. Throughout the day you expend energy and need to re-fuel, so you eat again. It keeps the cravings down and it allows you to eat more consistently.
  • Matt_Wild
    Matt_Wild Posts: 2,673 Member
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    The way I understand the 6 times a day is if you think of your body like a gas tank.

    You get up, you eat. Throughout the day you expend energy and need to re-fuel, so you eat again. It keeps the cravings down and it allows you to eat more consistently.

    Recent studies show no difference. Can find the study if you like.
  • Captain_Tightpants
    Captain_Tightpants Posts: 2,215 Member
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    If you Google the studies on "adaptive thermogenesis" you'll see there is some emerging evidence that weight-reduced people tend to have significantly lower BMRs than people who were always around a normal weight. This is probably a big component of why so many diets fail - lose weight, bmr reduces below that of a normal person, eat a bit more - weight goes back on faster than a normal person... and the cycle continues.

    Is this genetic? Metabolic damage from being overweight? or metabolic damage from caloric deficit? No one has figured that out yet as far as I know. When people talk about starvation mode, they are usually talking about the last one - heavily reduced BMR caused by very low calorie intake. You'll find arguments for and against on both sides. Personally I don't believe in it... but also I don't feel the need to eat less than 1200 cals a day to test it out either. Why would any sane person want to eat so little?
  • dg09
    dg09 Posts: 754
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    Wouldn't it be nice if during starvation mode the body would go and use some of the reserves it has been storing up all these years!

    That would make life a little bit easier though, we can't have that.
  • joehempel
    joehempel Posts: 1,761 Member
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    The way I understand the 6 times a day is if you think of your body like a gas tank.

    You get up, you eat. Throughout the day you expend energy and need to re-fuel, so you eat again. It keeps the cravings down and it allows you to eat more consistently.

    Recent studies show no difference. Can find the study if you like.


    Nothing I stated say there was a physical difference. Its more mental to keep from being all hungry.
  • spinqueen72
    spinqueen72 Posts: 406 Member
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    Starvation Mode:

    A state your body goes into when you do no consume enough calories to support everyday activities + exercise!
    Each time you DO consume calories....your body immediately stores it as fat.....since it does not know when it will have more fuel provided. The fat, however, DOES NOT get burned as calories do. Hence the reason for weight loss difficulties!

    I eat 6-8 times per day.
    When I get up..I immediately have either a banana or my Dymatize Elite Protein shake.
    2 hours later...I have oatmeal, and some type of protein...maybe eggs or turkey bacon.
    2 hours later...I have a SMALL snack (fruit, Greek yogurt, Cocoa Almonds, hardboiled egg, cheese stick..etc)
    2 hours later...I have a protein (chicken, turkey, or fish)..a veggie....and sometimes a fruit.
    2 hours later...another SMALL snack....usually my protein shake or apple with peanut butter
    2 hours later...again, a protein....a COMPLEX carb (like whole grain pasta/rice/bread/), a veggie (my dinner most always consists of a chicken breast patty, a baked sweet potato with butter spray & pumpkin pie spice added..makes it taste like dessert.....and long grain & wild rice)
    2 hours later...right before bed.....I have my last SMALL snack. it usually is my protein shake. sometimes it's Greek yogurt.

    Try eating this way for a week or so....not only will you FEEL better....your body will thank you for it!
  • Phrak
    Phrak Posts: 353 Member
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    The way I understand the 6 times a day is if you think of your body like a gas tank.

    You get up, you eat. Throughout the day you expend energy and need to re-fuel, so you eat again. It keeps the cravings down and it allows you to eat more consistently.

    Recent studies show no difference. Can find the study if you like.

    Nothing I stated say there was a physica

    Last time i checked i fill my gas tank every couple days. But semantics aside, it actually takes the body 12hrs or so to digest a meal. Small meals or snacks have no impact on metabolism. I actually eat once a day, and i can satisfy any craving i have. I dont have to deprive myself of food.
  • Matt_Wild
    Matt_Wild Posts: 2,673 Member
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    The way I understand the 6 times a day is if you think of your body like a gas tank.

    You get up, you eat. Throughout the day you expend energy and need to re-fuel, so you eat again. It keeps the cravings down and it allows you to eat more consistently.

    Recent studies show no difference. Can find the study if you like.


    Nothing I stated say there was a physical difference. Its more mental to keep from being all hungry.

    Fair comment :smile:
  • Matt_Wild
    Matt_Wild Posts: 2,673 Member
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    Starvation Mode:

    A state your body goes into when you do no consume enough calories to support everyday activities + exercise!
    Each time you DO consume calories....your body immediately stores it as fat.....since it does not know when it will have more fuel provided. The fat, however, DOES NOT get burned as calories do. Hence the reason for weight loss difficulties!

    No, it doesn't.
  • AbiNichole
    AbiNichole Posts: 300 Member
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    *giggles* this post is FULL of people who are misinformed. OP- make sure you do your own research and avoid those dreaded myths- including the "starvation mode" boogey man and the "eat every few hours because it boosts your metabolism" unicorn. Read up on it. Access the situation. And listen to what works for your body.

    I personally eat 4 meals of about 300 calories a day. Not because I think it boosts my metabolism but because it helps me w/ portion control and satiety. I also rarely eat back my exercise calories.
    BMR= 1616
    Daily Caloric Intake= 1200
    Daily Exercise= average 500

    Technically my body is in the dreaded starvation mode and I'm going to plateau eventually BUT since I'm doing weight training and getting a very balanced diet and much more protein than I need, I hope I'm losing very minimal muscle.

    I say all that to illustrate- a healthy lifestyle is more than just calories in and calories out. It's more than some studies you read up on (not that you should ignore them.) It's about how you FEEL. Good luck! :flowerforyou:
  • Dahavol
    Dahavol Posts: 46
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    A lot of the people supporting the theory of 'starvation mode' and to a lesser extent 'frequency of meals' use anecdotal analogies to prove their point.

    Ex. Most people I know that are skinny eat several meals a day. Therefore, eating several meals a day is the best way to lose wieght.
    (why this logic is flawed) Most people that are skinny wear pants that are size 32 and below(men). Therefore, the best way to lose weight is to wear size 32 pants.

    There is no actual science to back up either claim, it is just correlation posing as causation. Now that doesn't mean that eating 6 meals a day is bad for you. Or that eating a very low calorie diet is good either. However, the metabolic process is not so simple as to break down into easy to follow nuggets of wisdom, and it is all to easy to assume that what makes life easy for you must apply to the population at large.
  • andier1686
    andier1686 Posts: 32
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    :laugh:
    Wouldn't it be nice if during starvation mode the body would go and use some of the reserves it has been storing up all these years!

    that's so true! ... then maybe its just like our sins.. it will repent on its own..:tongue:
  • andier1686
    andier1686 Posts: 32
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    so its mean that i can starve myself so i can lose weight?
  • maryjay51
    maryjay51 Posts: 742
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    alot of folks are fixated on the number of the scale. they think if they starve themselves or eat very minimal amount of food they will lose weight and that their life will be wonderful and perfect. fact is, when you starve your body you might lose weight but you are also losing muscle and depriving your organs of the nutrients needed to function well. I know people who did not eat right and lost weight. they look awful with dried hair, wrinkles, flabby skin , no good color in them and bare bones minimum muscle. sorry but i rather take the right road to a healthy recovery even if it means i have to eat right and it takes longer to get rid of excess weight. im 80lbs down so far and my doctor is floored at the improvement of my health

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