Starvation mode is a myth, so why do we keep saying it exist

Lolli1986

bump... i think i am going to grab some of the cited papers that i've come across around the place and interpret the results for general consumption.

missprincessgina

If I'm not hungry, I'm not going to eat. Plain and simple. Eating when you are not hungry is a big no no, so if I'm below whatever calorie goal I may be pursuing... I don't really give a flying f**k.

I agree, it is silly to eat when you are not hungry. When I'm sick or if I've had my braces tightened I won't eat. I think its all about balance.

painterlyme49

Eliza, your post is profound! You are generous and kind to share your painful story. Kudos to you for having the strength to survive.

PS. I am barely 5'2". I lose weight on just under 1200 calories and maintain on 1500. An across the board number does not make sense. How can I consume the same calories as a 6 foot man?

monty619

Eliza, your post is profound! You are generous and kind to share your painful story. Kudos to you for having the strength to survive.

PS. I am barely 5'2". I lose weight on just under 1200 calories and maintain on 1500. An across the board number does not make sense. How can I consume the same calories as a 6 foot man?

add more muscle... or exercise more

Sarauk2sf

Eliza, your post is profound! You are generous and kind to share your painful story. Kudos to you for having the strength to survive.

PS. I am barely 5'2". I lose weight on just under 1200 calories and maintain on 1500. An across the board number does not make sense. How can I consume the same calories as a 6 foot man?

add more muscle... or exercise more

it was a rhetorical question

coconutbuNZ

Hard to know what is truth anymore. What works for some doesn't work for another. Jeez.

Fit_Canuck

yeahimateacher

My greatest concern is for the person (people) who read posts like this and, because they are yearning for some solution, grab hold of anything that validates and aligns with their desire to change, regardless of the accuracy. If wikipedia is the best source you have, you need more research. ANYONE can post on wikipedia. The validity there is about a good as myfitnesspal.com. No offense.

Just check your facts.

yeahimateacher

Bahahahaha! No kidding, fit_chanuck!

Josie_lifting_cats

Seriously, stop it.

Starvation mode ("Starvation response" if you want to research it) only exists for males with 5% body fat or less and females with 10% body fat or less.

A link with cited sources:

http://fitnessblackbook.com/main/starvation-mode-why-you-probably-never-need-to-worry-about-it/

Via Wiki:

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 free fatty acids from 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.

(emphasis mine).

You should eat a caloric deficit that's comfortable for you regardless of the numbers.

I saw "Wiki" and I immediately disregarded your entire post... as will anyone else who ever went to college. Congratulations!

powerbomb

Im too hungry to read all of this.

JoyousJustine67

Fit_Canuck your going to have a headache LOL

yeahimateacher

Here is my experience of starvation mode.
I was anorexic for 3 years. Some days I ate an orange and a piece of toast and thought I was wonderful for it (more fool me)

In the short term (1-6) months eating under 800 or 900 cals a day:
Makes you irritable, grumpy and a pain to live with
Your breath will smell
Your face skin will dry out and/or you'll get spots
You will feel nauseous with hunger
You stomach will make noise all the time
You will lose hell of a lot of weight (up to 7lbs a week)

6 -12 months
Your period will stop
Your appetite will be gone.
You will have trained yourself to go without food.
Your energy will be non-existant
Your circle of friends will have whittered away as you fall out or cut out all of them in turn because of your eating
Your family will be in a panic about your appearance
Your weight loss will slow down to about 1lb a week (or less)
Your hair will thin

12-18 months
You are really ill now
You panic about your weight loss and drop down to 300-500 cals because some other anorexic on an internet forum said this worked for her
The other Anas on the forums are your only "friends" now
All your muscle has gone
The skin all over your body and your face will be in a shocking condition
You are cold all the time, a horrible soul sucking coldness that seems to come from within
Organ damage has started
Your hair will stop growing and may start to fall out

18 months +
As well as everything else above
The symptoms of mental illness appear (paranoia being the most common)
Irreversible organ damage may have started
Lumps of your hair will fall out leaving you with bald patches

After recovery:
Your body clings on to every calories like a dying man to a shipwreak and you put on weight. You think dropping back to your previous habits will lose it - it doesn't. What do you do then?

Those are the consequences of surviving on anorexic portions of food. Those are the ones I saw myself and others in real-life support groups go through. Some lived, some died. Those that lived took years to get over the consequences of our eating habits. That is the reality of eating half what a woman needs to survive on.

Do you know that anyone can edit wikipedia? Do you really want to ruin your life because someone thought it would be clever to justify their lifestyle choices by lying about the consequences of eating like this?

Is this really the path you want to go down? I am begging you now to stop before it is too late and you embark on a lifestyle that negatively shapes the rest of your life.

Right now, I am now losing 2lbs a week eating around about 2000 cals a day. I am happy, healthy and energetic.

Be smart before it is too late for you.

Wonderful post, and I'm so glad you are recovering. Your post actually made me a bit teary. :flowerforyou:

I agree. Beautiful post.

This isn't just about "losing weight." It's also about becoming FIT. This is My FITNESS Pal.

Fit4_Life

Every "body" is different. You may eat 1200+ calories and feel good about it, well yay for you. Some of us dont eat as much, and we don't get "grumpy". So I will stick with my 1,000 calorie starvation mode diet. Thank you very much. :smokin:

Huffdogg

Wikipedia can not ever not not tell something that isn't untrue.

DannyMussels

One thing I've learned about most myths is that they are actually true.
We just say they aren't because we are scared. Like bigfoot

AvonLucyR

Seriously, stop it.

Starvation mode ("Starvation response" if you want to research it) only exists for males with 5% body fat or less and females with 10% body fat or less.

A link with cited sources:

http://fitnessblackbook.com/main/starvation-mode-why-you-probably-never-need-to-worry-about-it/

Via Wiki:

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 free fatty acids from 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.

(emphasis mine).

You should eat a caloric deficit that's comfortable for you regardless of the numbers.

*sigh*

Famine response is real, and has absolutely nothing to do with catabolizing muscle vs burning fat. It's a hormonal response (by the thyroid) that slows your metabolic rate to match your caloric intake, in order to survive the perceived famine due to severe caloric restriction. Also, fat burning is slow, and when you exhaust glycogen supplies during intense activity, your body will switch over to breaking down amino acids, because those can be converted to glucose faster to replenish glycogen supplies. Oh, and there wasn't a single citation in the article you posted.

I agree with this answer. Also, be advised, Wikipedia is not a reliable source for any information which is why schools don't allow it to be used as a resource in written papers.

Having had an eating disorder as a child, your body does begin to feed on organs when you no longer feed it the food it needs. Otherwise, we could just stop eating until we reached our desired weight.

sleepytexan

Well, there are certain people who feel a need to restrict their calories very low. It gives them a sense of control, and often they are very proud of that. I think we can see that here.

The whole shouting back and forth won't convince them -- if they swallow your logic, food must necessarily follow. Can be terrifying, so I've read.

littlepinkhearts

BuMp

Fit4_Life

[/quote
I agree with you, I dont care how short these people are, That low of calories is too low ! And It will obviously do way more than get rid of fat, Like lose all your muscle and look like a zombie....

I eat 1200 - 1500 a day, and more on weekends. (AND WORKOUT TO LOSE THE FAT!!!! )

It works for me, If These girls are so friggen lazy thatthey have to eat no calories instead of workout to lose the fat, then they deserve whatever they get....
[/quote]

Who are you to judge? I've been on a 1000 calorie intake for 9 months now. Still going strong. AND I WORK OUT! So, don't "assume" we don't work out and are lazy! You control your body and portions of food, and I will control mine! !