Starvation mode article that I found very VERY helpful....

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  • mom2lakenjj
    mom2lakenjj Posts: 29
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    I just find it sooooooo hard to believe that I weight 60 lb more than I need to and reducing my calories to 1200 calories a day or less will PREVENT me from losing weight? It just does not make sense to me! Also about 4 years ago after I had my 3rd baby I weighed about 220 lb and went on a diet that was lower than 1200 calories per day and had absolutely no problem whatsoever losing the weight within 6 months time...I went from 205 (to be fair..baby weight) to about 150 in 6 months eating less than 1200 cal per day, lifting weights daily and eating whatever I wanted on a Saturday...And I was 37 years old 4 years ago so the age factor was against me as well! Why was I able to lose this weight so successfully when everywhere I read on here everyone says I must eat well over 1200 to lose...remember I lifted weights every single day and ate less than 1200 (some days probably 900) and still lost around 50 lb in 6 months...I am interested your opinions on this...
  • firef1y72
    firef1y72 Posts: 1,579 Member
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    I don't know about figures and the such, but I do know that when I was pregnant I had such severe sickness that my body did start eating itself, I went into ketosis and 20 years later am still suffering the consequences and I was still overweight (although losing very fast, like a stone in 2 weeks). There's no way you want to eat so few calories that your body does that, so I make sure I eat a reasonable amount at around the 1200-1500 mark so that I don't do into ketosis again.
  • Annmarie49
    Annmarie49 Posts: 84
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    excellent article..... there has been a lot of research on this, especially in the USA military, albeit quite a few years ago,
    you may be 'starving' from a reduction in calories but def not in 'starvation mode' unless you are 'super skinny/underweight'!!!!!!

    well done for posting the link :-)
  • rockerbabyy
    rockerbabyy Posts: 2,258 Member
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    im on the fence about starvation mode - however....
    why would one CHOOSE to eat that little, when you can lose just fine at normal levels? granted i have a ways to go still, but i eat 1845 (also my bmr) on rest days, and up to 2500 on exercise days - last month i skimped on the exercise and went over my calories nearly every week, yet i still lost a pound a week.
    even at my goal weight, my BMR is 1550, and i have no plans of eating less than that.
    i dont need to lose faster than that - id rather it come off slowly and stay off. i know i cant stick with 1200 or less calories a day - i turn into a major ***** and cant function. ive lost almost 40 lbs in 6 months, so not too much different from you (and i probably could have lost more if i stuck to my calories more) - yet i get to eat more and enjoy my foods without feeling guilty or deprived. i eat out, i eat pizza, ice cream, cake, chips...whatever i want.
    i dont want to lose muscle, i dont want my skin to get more saggy than it has to, i dont want to screw up my hormones even more than they already are. so i eat more than 1200 and enjoy it.
  • mom2lakenjj
    mom2lakenjj Posts: 29
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    excellent article..... there has been a lot of research on this, especially in the USA military, albeit quite a few years ago,
    you may be 'starving' from a reduction in calories but def not in 'starvation mode' unless you are 'super skinny/underweight'!!!!!!

    well done for posting the link :-)

    Thank you and that is what I took from this
  • Rae6503
    Rae6503 Posts: 6,294 Member
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    So you WANT to eat less than 1200 calories? Why?

    If I can:
    keep more muscle,
    have more energy,
    enjoy more food,
    be more likely to stick with my diet
    AND lose weight,
    I pick that option.

    I eat 2000 calories or MORE.
  • taso42
    taso42 Posts: 8,980 Member
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    why not change your screen name from committobefit to committobeskinny?
  • LorinaLynn
    LorinaLynn Posts: 13,247 Member
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    I don't believe that eating under 1200 will cause anyone to not lose or gain weight.

    I have first hand experience that eating under 1200 resulted in slower, more frustrating weight loss, with excessive loss of muscle, causing me to look a lot worse at my "goal weight" than I did years later eating around 1800-2000.

    Photos here: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/494091-i-just-don-t-care-anymore

    So, if I could eat more and have better progress all around... why wouldn't I?!
  • jackpotclown
    jackpotclown Posts: 3,291 Member
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    why not change your screen name from committobefit to committobeskinny?
    taser you never fail to impress \m/ win
  • ejanderson
    ejanderson Posts: 29
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    Lovin' it. Thanks!
  • MissAlexxMarie
    MissAlexxMarie Posts: 171
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    why not change your screen name from committobefit to committobeskinny?

    Nvm...too mean!

    To the OP. You do what works for your body, nobody can be the judge of that.
  • LorinaLynn
    LorinaLynn Posts: 13,247 Member
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    Kind of ironic for the author to use a photo where someone starved himself to look sickly as an example. Sure, he dropped a dramatic amount of pounds. How much of that was muscle loss?
  • MaryPhillips90
    MaryPhillips90 Posts: 236 Member
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    No need to be rude here.

    In the past, I have lost weight fast (and yes, KEPT IT OFF) by not eating so much. I just cut everything in half, if that. I could drop 10lbs in 2 weeks. In the last year or so, I just didn't care. I ate whatever. I gained 20lbs, so what. Now that I'm counting calories and trying, I'm used to a lower food intake and I find that I'm below my calorie goal a LOT. And guess what? I'm still losing weight :)
    I guess it all just depends on the body. Not everyone is the same.
  • BalenciaLynn
    BalenciaLynn Posts: 411 Member
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    I usually eat under 750 calories BUT its not because im trying to have it help me lose weight.

    I eat all throughout the day and im full to the max when i finish eating.

    WHATS THE ISSUE?

    People would rather me eat until im sick just so i can say im eating over 1000 calories?

    No thank you.
  • bobie1978
    bobie1978 Posts: 204 Member
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    I just find it sooooooo hard to believe that I weight 60 lb more than I need to and reducing my calories to 1200 calories a day or less will PREVENT me from losing weight? It just does not make sense to me! Also about 4 years ago after I had my 3rd baby I weighed about 220 lb and went on a diet that was lower than 1200 calories per day and had absolutely no problem whatsoever losing the weight within 6 months time...I went from 205 (to be fair..baby weight) to about 150 in 6 months eating less than 1200 cal per day, lifting weights daily and eating whatever I wanted on a Saturday...And I was 37 years old 4 years ago so the age factor was against me as well! Why was I able to lose this weight so successfully when everywhere I read on here everyone says I must eat well over 1200 to lose...remember I lifted weights every single day and ate less than 1200 (some days probably 900) and still lost around 50 lb in 6 months...I am interested your opinions on this...

    It won't but you will BE hungry and its not the right way! I set my calories @ 1200 but I add all my workouts into them.. so I normally EAT 1500-1800 per day. Even on Days I skip a workout I never eat 1200 unless, I am sick.

    I lost 35lbs in 2.5 months.. but when I did lose it I WAS hungry.. that is why I gained some back. That is why I always lose and gain weight. Eventually I got use to be being hungry and just ignored it.

    All in all do what works best for you... eventually you will learn!
  • PlanetVelma
    PlanetVelma Posts: 1,231 Member
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    I usually eat under 750 calories BUT its not because im trying to have it help me lose weight.

    I eat all throughout the day and im full to the max when i finish eating.

    WHATS THE ISSUE?

    People would rather me eat until im sick just so i can say im eating over 1000 calories?

    No thank you.

    Wow....I don't even know what/how to respond to this.

    under 1000 calories is not healthy at all, much less 750.

    Not being rude, being honest.

    Good luck to you.
  • PJilly
    PJilly Posts: 21,682 Member
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    I don't believe that eating under 1200 will cause anyone to not lose or gain weight.

    I have first hand experience that eating under 1200 resulted in slower, more frustrating weight loss, with excessive loss of muscle, causing me to look a lot worse at my "goal weight" than I did years later eating around 1800-2000.

    Photos here: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/494091-i-just-don-t-care-anymore

    So, if I could eat more and have better progress all around... why wouldn't I?!
    Beautifully said.

    I think people get hung up and on what the definition of starvation mode is and end up arguing about that. I don't think there's any question, though, that our metabolisms slow down if we cut our calories more than necessary. Who wants that? I know I don't. I wouldn't have gotten too fat in the first place if I didn't love my calories, so the more I can eat and still lose fat, the better.
  • MoLove2025
    MoLove2025 Posts: 135 Member
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    bump
  • luhluhlaura
    luhluhlaura Posts: 278 Member
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    I think it's important to remember that there's more to your calories than just...calories.
    I support eating 1200+ not because I don't think that weight loss isn't possible with a <1200 cal diet,
    but because I feel it is difficult to maintain all the nutrients your body needs on a long-term diet of <1200 cals.
    I also feel it is difficult to retain/gain muscle on such a huge cal deficit.
  • TinaS88
    TinaS88 Posts: 817 Member
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    It's just not healthy to eat that few calories. Your body requires a certain amount to just maintain, even if you sat on the couch all day long. Extended period of time doing this WILL have a negative affect on your weight loss because your body NEEDS those calories your not getting, so it's going to hold on to what it can! #CommonSense

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