Question about Starvation Mode...

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Aviflora
Aviflora Posts: 85 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hello everyone, I have a general question about the dreaded "Starvation Mode"...

Throughout my lifestyle change, I have adapted to eating increasingly healthy meals, with abundant fruits, vegetables, and lean proteins. Quinoa is also a common sight around me, since it's so yummy to add to Greek salad! ...But, I digress...

A normal for day for me is eating only about 1000 calories, instead of the recommended 1200 calories... But, even after eating 1000 calories, I am so full I can't even think of touching any more food!

Is my body really going into Starvation Mode, or am I just fine eating my fill with nothing but healthy stuff and being slightly below the "recommendation"?

Replies

  • geekyjock76
    geekyjock76 Posts: 2,720 Member
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    First off, the infamous 1200 calories [which MFP recommends far too often] is your energy availability, or net caloric intake, not gross dietary intake. In other words, 1200 calories is what you should be left with after subtracting exercise calories.

    "Starvation mode" becomes an issue when one chronically lives on a drastically restricted caloric deficit for long periods of time - usually years. The TDEE for most active women who are 130 lbs at 5'3" is usually just under 2000 calories a day. If you are full on 1000 calories, chances are you have under-eaten for quite some time. You began feeling full on less and less because both Resting Metabolic Rate and leptin levels drop when maintaining a steep deficit for such a duration.

    Edit: Anything greater than 25% below present TDEE is considered large in scale and increases depression rate of RMR as well as hormones that regulate metabolic function. The larger the deficit, the shorter the duration at such deficit should be.
  • Pebble321
    Pebble321 Posts: 6,554 Member
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    Good info above.

    I'd add - There isn't going to be one "right' calorie amount for everyone - but I tend to think that even if you are eating good quality calories, your body still requires energy, and 1000 cals/day seems very low for an adult female, unless you are very tiny already.
  • californiagirl2012
    californiagirl2012 Posts: 2,625 Member
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    There is no scientific evidence of starvation mode for women over 12% BF and men over 6% BF. If you have body fat reserves your body will use it. That is why you lose weight when you eat less.

    Unless you are at 12% BF this is nothing to be concerned about, and at that point you are not over weight anymore so why would you eat low calories?
  • KeriW626
    KeriW626 Posts: 430
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    Hello everyone, I have a general question about the dreaded "Starvation Mode"...

    Throughout my lifestyle change, I have adapted to eating increasingly healthy meals, with abundant fruits, vegetables, and lean proteins. Quinoa is also a common sight around me, since it's so yummy to add to Greek salad! ...But, I digress...

    A normal for day for me is eating only about 1000 calories, instead of the recommended 1200 calories... But, even after eating 1000 calories, I am so full I can't even think of touching any more food!

    Is my body really going into Starvation Mode, or am I just fine eating my fill with nothing but healthy stuff and being slightly below the "recommendation"?

    You may be like me and need to add an ENSURE to get over the hump.
  • KeriW626
    KeriW626 Posts: 430
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    First off, the infamous 1200 calories [which MFP recommends far too often] is your energy availability, or net caloric intake, not gross dietary intake. In other words, 1200 calories is what you should be left with after subtracting exercise calories.

    "Starvation mode" becomes an issue when one chronically lives on a drastically restricted caloric deficit for long periods of time - usually years. The TDEE for most active women who are 130 lbs at 5'3" is usually just under 2000 calories a day. If you are full on 1000 calories, chances are you have under-eaten for quite some time. You began feeling full on less and less because both Resting Metabolic Rate and leptin levels drop when maintaining a steep deficit for such a duration.

    Edit: Anything greater than 25% below present TDEE is considered large in scale and increases depression rate of RMR as well as hormones that regulate metabolic function. The larger the deficit, the shorter the duration at such deficit should be.


    Thank you, I was just wondering if the 1200 calories were net? at this point I am just trying to get to 1200-1400 calories. I have no clue how I would be able to reach 1200 net? but hey that is what goals are for right.
  • zephylis
    zephylis Posts: 14
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    The dreaded starvation mode is overrated. I eat around 1000 or less because my bmr is low already, and I'm typically able to eat enough not to go hungry. Breakfast aside, it's easy to get a decent meal around 300-400 calories for lunch and dinner. And if you just cut down on the snacks, that's easily under 1000 for the day without being hungry.
  • geekyjock76
    geekyjock76 Posts: 2,720 Member
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    Go to an endocrinologist then and get your hormones tested if you are fine on less than 1000 calories a day.
  • Antieuclid
    Antieuclid Posts: 2 Member
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    Just wanted to add an "I get this too". When I first started using the site, before I'd made any changes in my diet at all, I was surprised to find out that even carefully accounting for serving size, I was eating an average of 700-900 calories a day gross, before even taking exercise into account. And I'd been eating that way pretty much all my adult life. And I had about 34% body fat, so having the app tell me I was in danger of starvation mode was kind of funny. I've switched from 700-900 calories a day in junk food to 700-900 calories a day in decent food, and together with exercise I've been getting some pretty good results. But I think some of us just have way-outside-the-bell-curve metabolisms and have to pay more attentions to our bodies' signals than the standard issue guidelines. Hey, at least it makes us cheap to feed ^_^
  • AlabasterVerve
    AlabasterVerve Posts: 3,171 Member
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    If you're eating nutritious meals, feel good and have plenty of energy I wouldn't worry about it. You might also make a conscious effort to eat a few hundred more calories each day to be sure your energy levels are as high as they should be -- sometimes you can just get used to eating less and not realize you have less energy because you get used to it.

    I wouldn't be concerned with the number of calories you're tracking by themselves though because no matter how accurate you try and be -- even if you weigh every single bit of food that goes in your mouth -- the calories you eat are just an estimate. Food labels can be widely inaccurate and there's even been a lot of reports recently where the calories in the food we eat haven't been accurate for a variety of reasons -- almonds, low calorie ice cream and eggs are the ones that come immediately to mind.

    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
  • geekyjock76
    geekyjock76 Posts: 2,720 Member
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    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
    The article is correct in that your body will continue to use stored fat as fuel until it reaches the mentioned % for males and females. With that said, the problem is that many people equate "Starvation Mode" simply with consuming too few calories which they shouldn't. However, readers need to be aware that although everything mentioned in the above article is factual, they shouldn't interpret the evidence to suggest nothing negative occurs while maintaining a large chronic caloric deficit. Clinical journals of medicine - especially JCEM - boast plenty of studies over the course of several decades that show several outcomes including: depressed Resting Metabolic Rate, compromised hormone levels and efficiency, disruption in ovarian function, lowered bone mass density and so forth.
  • naples89
    naples89 Posts: 33 Member
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    Theres really no such thing as starvation mode for people with fat to lose. Do whatever you feel comfortable doing and what you'll stick to.
  • Aviflora
    Aviflora Posts: 85 Member
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    Wowza! Fantastic feedback, everyone! I think I will give the extra 200-400 calories a shot, just to see if it makes any difference in my daily living. Also, I'm a grand total of 5 feet, and I'm technically just about alright when it comes to BMI. But anyway, I will be sure to eat a bit more to see if there are any differences, I just wanted to know if Starvation Mode was something a body would do daily or if it was more a yearly thing (which indeed it is).

    Thank you all so much for your feedback, especially with the articles and facts! It's extremely appreciated! :)
  • RosscoBoscko
    RosscoBoscko Posts: 632 Member
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    Am currently limiting myself to around 1000 calories a day net and sometimes lower. On cheat days i go above this but even started to find that cheat days are still around or below recommended GDA for most people. Not a long term plan for me as I train regularly, but will increase calories back up as I add the additional training i intend to over the next few weeks. So far dropped 12lbs in 3 1/2 weeks, so working for me and dont find myself feeling weak etc, but guess its different for different people. Mine is only a short term fast impact method but for some people this may be entirely sustainable long term.

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