how does yo yo dieting affect metabolism and my now healthie

pinksultana

Hey
I was talking to a friend of mine, weve been friends since early teens and have both struggled with our weight over the years and tried all the fads out there with various success, we have both yoyoed over the years, with the most recent diet plan we used being the cohens lifestyle plan which is a VLCD and in hindsight sooo bad, we were eating prob 800cal a day....lost 30kg and so did my friend, and we both ferociously regained plus more afterwards....

I suppose we are just wondering what damage may we have caused our bodies as we undertook these silly diets? and whether our metabolisms will always be affected, whether they were in fact affected which caused us to regain quickly and extra, and whether the metabolism rights itself once someone starts leading a healthy lifestyle and making good choices for weightloss??

my aunty always talks about how she can never lose weight again because she stuffed her metabolism up with pills when she was younger and so cant, I tend to think she uses this as an excuse not to try because she has failed so many times before....but I just wonder how yoyoing in my past may affect my future??

kwardklinck

My last diet (18 plus years ago), I ate 900 calories a day. I lost my 35 plus pound baby weight in 3 months and maintained that weight loss until my baby was 11. My mom got cancer and I started eating all kinds of really bad comfort foods. I gained 30 pounds and carried it for almost 7 years. For the last 3 or 4 years I've tried to get it off by eating healthy but I'd get to within 10 pounds and just stop.
This time was different, I signed up here and it made all the difference in the world. My sister is doing the "no carb" diet. It's her own little version of Adkins and she lives on meat and cheese with a few veggies thrown in. I used MFP. I lost 23 pounds in 4 months. She lost 20 pounds her first month. I exercise 6 days a week and have myself on maintenance here.
Low cal and low or no carb diets are appealing because you get fast results. I prefer MFP. I can live like this forever because I can still eat whatever foods my family is eating. I just have to limit my portions.
Of the two of us, I believe my sister will lose more weight faster. But I do believe I will be healthier and maintain my weight more easily than she will.

NotLuigiTM

This method has worked for me and last week I lost 3 lbs. Total of 26 lost since November 16th, 2009. So I am living proof and this past week from Monday to Monday (I weigh in on Monday only) I ate 2 fresco beef tacos from taco bell and I had 1 suggested portion of Peppridge Farm Triple layer fudge cake and 1 serving of ice cream with it and still lost the 3 lbs. It is about eating your suggested number of calories so that you are eating enough. According to the Biggest Loser if you cut your calories too low your body will start to store food as fat. I eat about 1570 for my weight 216 and height 5 ft 6 in. Most times I am at the mark or just a few over or under. It is what my body needs to lose weight. Want to know more just ask me. If you look at the suggested number of calories from this site and eat that many or just a little more along with exercise you will do well. Do not do a FAD diet like weight watchers, Jenny Craig, South Beach or Atkins etc. Do a lifestyle change that is really what you need to do. Learn how to eat all kinds of food. You will feel much more full and less likely to binge on the foods you do love. One thing that I can tell you is PROTEIN PROTEIN PROTEIN and less Carbs yes but do not throw out all carbs. I also ate rice and Mac & Cheese. I used to think that those suggested serving sizes on the package or box were for kids but now I realize that eating that much will fill me out. Also use a lot of salad (Spinach more then lettuce) and green veggies and fruits in your meals too. Good Luck. I hope this helps. Too Few calories and you wont lose...Too Many and you wont lose...It is about eating just enough to lose!

Only a banana for breakfast is a bad idea. You need to eat more calories in the day and less as the day goes on. you should have protein protein protein. a much more filling meal is 9 grams of protein or more which will help you stay fuller longer. If you have a carb loaded meal, you will feel full but the fullness will wear off quite quickly and you will be hungry sooner. (Hence why Chinese makes you hungry after 2 hours). That whole thing about Low Fat and eating less does not work. You screw up your Metabolism if you do not eat enough cause then your body goes into survival mode. Good Luck.