Why not have a big deficit?

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hp831
hp831 Posts: 7
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi Everyone! Okay, so I need a little help: I want to know why I shouldn't have a big calorie deficit. I really want to lose about 15-20 lbs, and I would love for it to happen fast. I don't mind eating like 800 calories, but I know it's not healthy.
I really want to be more healthy, and lose weight the right way, but the weight never seems to come off when I don't have a big deficit. Anyway, I guess my question is: how do you stay patient & maintain healthy habits? Also, what are the reasons not to eat very little? Thanks!!
Also, I'm 5'10, 145 lbs, 19 y/o, eating around 1500 + exercise.
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Replies

  • samammay
    samammay Posts: 468
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    You dont want a huge defect because your body can only burn a certain amount of fat in a given period. After that it starts burning muscle, bone and other soft tissues and eventually your body starts to fall apart. It also needs a certain amount of calories a day to function... like to continue to live.

    How do you stay patient? Keep telling yourself that this isnt a race. Health is your life. The rest of it... and you arent in a hurry to get to the end of it, right?
  • beachlover317
    beachlover317 Posts: 2,848 Member
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    IF you know what you should do and how you should do it - why ask the question? When I was 19, I began my affair with yo yo dieting. Lose, gain it back. lose, gain it back. If that's the path you want - walk it.

    If you want to lose the weight and get healthy - then eat at a healthy deficit, find some exercise you enjoy and do it consistently, and then you will have to learn patience. Because sometimes, good things take a while.

    Good luck.
  • Fozzi43
    Fozzi43 Posts: 2,984 Member
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    A deficit that big will cause you to lose muscle and you don't want that.
  • Ophidion
    Ophidion Posts: 2,065 Member
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    First off it is neither healthy nor sustainable.

    here are some relevant links...

    http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/why-big-caloric-deficits-and-lots-of-activity-can-hurt-fat-loss.html

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1077746-starvation-mode-adaptive-thermogenesis-and-weight-loss
  • 1PatientBear
    1PatientBear Posts: 2,089 Member
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    Read this link OP: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1102242-if-you-are-on-a-low-calorie-diet-read-this

    That girl was eating less than 1000 calories a day. THAT is why you don't do it.
  • igotabulletproofheart
    igotabulletproofheart Posts: 104 Member
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    Adaptive thermogenesis.

    You can still have a huge deficit, but the most important thing is knowing if it's working for you and knowing when to come off it. You can come off it by using methods that those who fast use, like slowly increasing calories each week/month.
  • DaniettaF
    DaniettaF Posts: 212 Member
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    Your weight for your height suggests you're healthy, and eating your 1500 calories with exercise is also healthy. I guess it just depends on what you eat. If you are eating fairly healthily you just need to keep up what you're doing.

    Do you know your Lean Body Mass? As you may find out that you can't physically lose that much weight as their isn't that weight in fat on you. I know I can't get below about 120lbs physically and I'm 5' 6''.

    If you want to look a certain way maybe it's more to do with creating muscle? I don't know :indifferent: In that case lifting seems to be giving people the look they want.
  • igotabulletproofheart
    igotabulletproofheart Posts: 104 Member
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    Read this link OP: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1102242-if-you-are-on-a-low-calorie-diet-read-this

    That girl was eating less than 1000 calories a day. THAT is why you don't do it.

    Her diet isn't the problem, her weight is.

    Just to clarify things, I'm not condoning anorexic behaviour. I'm saying what I'm saying because I've suffered "anorexia" in the past and know that eating less 1000 calories a day will not cause all those drastic symptoms. I use speech marks because the DSM criteria would deem me as EDNOS just because I didn't know physical symptoms like low body weight/BMI/lack of periods. I have a vendetta against the DSM for this reason because I was showing 90% of the psychological, behavioural, and emotional symptoms, and just a few physiological symptoms. At my peak I was only about 130lbs and consuming 500 calories a day.

    Anyway, getting back to my point, being on a severe calorie deficit will cause a thousand symptoms but in most cases it won't be as serious as this girl's because her weight was at an almost unrealistic point for most mfp users. People here are looking to get to a goal weight of ~110 to ~180ish lbs, not 73lbs so a VCLD won't hurt most of us too much as long as we know when to get off it. Remember that she is 5'8 and was a mere 73lb or 5st 2lb or 33kg. Most of us don't have to worry about getting to the point she was at.
  • 1PatientBear
    1PatientBear Posts: 2,089 Member
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    Read this link OP: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1102242-if-you-are-on-a-low-calorie-diet-read-this

    That girl was eating less than 1000 calories a day. THAT is why you don't do it.

    Her diet isn't the problem, her weight is.

    Just to clarify things, I'm not condoning anorexic behaviour. I'm saying what I'm saying because I've suffered "anorexia" in the past and know that eating less 1000 calories a day will not cause all those drastic symptoms. I use speech marks because the DSM criteria would deem me as EDNOS just because I didn't know physical symptoms like low body weight/BMI/lack of periods. I have a vendetta against the DSM for this reason because I was showing 90% of the psychological, behavioural, and emotional symptoms, and just a few physiological symptoms. At my peak I was only about 130lbs and consuming 500 calories a day.

    Anyway, getting back to my point, being on a severe calorie deficit will cause a thousand symptoms but in most cases it won't be as serious as this girl's because her weight was at an almost unrealistic point for most mfp users. People here are looking to get to a goal weight of ~110 to ~180ish lbs, not 73lbs so a VCLD won't hurt most of us too much as long as we know when to get off it. Remember that she is 5'8 and was a mere 73lb or 5st 2lb or 33kg. Most of us don't have to worry about getting to the point she was at.

    I'm not going to get into a debate with you about this because you are right that this is an extreme case. However, her eating disorder is what caused her to eat so few calories and eating so few calories is what led to her being an extremely unhealthy weight. So, when I see a topic like "why not have a big deficit?" posted, this is an example of why you shouldn't.

    As for the fact that you "know" eating less than 1000 calories a day will not cause all those drastic symptoms, forgive me if I don't take your word for it. Yes, a few days underneath that or the occasional day underneath that is no big deal, but a person who does that long term is asking for trouble. It may not be as extreme as the case I linked, but it can be bad without being THAT bad.

    Best of luck to you though. I hope you'll listen to other points of view before deciding what you "know." With all due respect, I knew a lot more at 18 years old than I know now as well.
  • evileen99
    evileen99 Posts: 1,564 Member
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    Also, if you have too large of a deficit several days in a row, it makes you far more likely to binge, as your body thinks it's starving and it doesn't want that to happen. You'll lose most of your progress and feel like a loser if you binge. Slow and steady wins the race.
  • ironanimal
    ironanimal Posts: 5,922 Member
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    If your deficit exceeds your body's ability to use fat, the energy is taken from muscle, bones, organs etc...
  • jenniferwgarrett3
    jenniferwgarrett3 Posts: 10 Member
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    I have lost weight that way many times and it never works for very long and I always end up quitting. This time I am giving myself a year to lose the weight.
  • S3r3knitty
    S3r3knitty Posts: 159 Member
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    Also, I'm 5'10, 145 lbs, 19 y/o, eating around 1500 + exercise.
    Why do you want to loose more weight you are already at the lower end of the bmi and I think it might only be possible by sacrificing muscle tissue.
  • 5ftnFun
    5ftnFun Posts: 948 Member
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    Others have already answered your question, and very well I might add. My question to you is this. Based on your height & weight, are you sure you really need to lose weight at all? Seems like a very healthy weight for you. If you really feel like you need to trim a few, be smart about it.
  • addicted2cola
    addicted2cola Posts: 43 Member
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    Hi Everyone! Okay, so I need a little help: I want to know why I shouldn't have a big calorie deficit. I really want to lose about 15-20 lbs, and I would love for it to happen fast. I don't mind eating like 800 calories, but I know it's not healthy.
    I really want to be more healthy, and lose weight the right way, but the weight never seems to come off when I don't have a big deficit. Anyway, I guess my question is: how do you stay patient & maintain healthy habits? Also, what are the reasons not to eat very little? Thanks!!
    Also, I'm 5'10, 145 lbs, 19 y/o, eating around 1500 + exercise.

    I'm not sure why you want to lose weight when you're already at a healthy weight/BMI? Personally, I'd rather eat at 1400-1500 and enjoy all the great food and take a slightly slower weight loss!
  • Hezzietiger1
    Hezzietiger1 Posts: 1,256 Member
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    5'10? 145 lbs..sounds healthy.. u want to weight 125 lbs? why? Just clean up what you have.
  • DMJS
    DMJS Posts: 46
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    Your Heart is the most important muscle in your body. If your body starts using muscle for fuel it can damage your heart.
    Do you really want a quick fix that will last a month or do you want to change your life and it last a lifetime?
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,874 Member
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    Because you don't have the fat stores to have a big deficit...therefore your body will burn proportionately more muscle tissue and other LBM. But you've most likely decided to go ahead with your crash diet, so rock on....
  • Stage14
    Stage14 Posts: 1,046 Member
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    Okay, you want to know why not to have one, from the perspective of a 19year old who isn't worried about long term health? Here it is: you will almost surely gain it back as soon as you switch back from "dieting" to normal eating habits. What is the point of losing it if you're just going to gain it right back? Slow steady loss lets your body adjust while keeping your metabolism up. And that, coupled with the fact that you have less of a deficit to come back from makes it easier to maintain your new lower weight.
  • hilaryhill
    hilaryhill Posts: 156 Member
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    You're 5'10" tall! And 145 lbs and you want to lose more weight? I'm 5'9" and my goal is 155lbs, within normal range of my height... and youre taller than me. This is not a healthy goal, imo. Youve got to be really thin already.

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