Starvation/Famine Mode

catrinpersephone
catrinpersephone Posts: 30
edited September 22 in Food and Nutrition
Hi. I was having quite an unhealthy eating lifestyle before hand, eating around 600/700 calories a day. So then I decided that I need to do this the healthy way, or I was going to put everything back on! But at the moment my goal calories is 1,200 and I'm finding it difficult to eat that much.

Also, another reason I'm doing this is to get my body out of starvation mode, which makes you gain weight like crazy whenever you eat, like, 100 more calories than usual.

So, by not eating as much as I'm supposed to, plus still being in starvation mode means that I'm not achieving anything but still (as I imagine, not weighing myself until Wednesday) gaining!

Help?

Replies

  • vkpmusic
    vkpmusic Posts: 343 Member
    You WILL gain at first, b/c your body is holding on until it figures out you're not going to starve it any more. There was a great article on this that was posted here not long ago....let me see if I can find it....hold on.
  • vkpmusic
    vkpmusic Posts: 343 Member
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/3047-700-calories-a-day-and-not-losing
  • xarrium
    xarrium Posts: 432 Member
    It takes a while to come out of starvation mode, and chances are that you will gain some--it's a case of "it gets worse before it gets better". This principle is why people on a lot of fad diets gain back more weight than they lost once they "finish" their diet plan... it sucks for now, but keep up the healthy eating pattern and the weight you gain from coming out of starvation will come off. Make up your 1200 per day with a spoonful of peanut butter or some nuts or cheese if you're really low on any given day, and make sure you're eating back enough exercise calories to have a *net* intake of 1200 calories each day. It will seem like you're shooting yourself in the foot for the first little while, but don't get discouraged right away--this is a long-term eating plan, not a quick-fix!

    Good on you for taking on a healthy lifestyle, and good luck!
  • catrinpersephone
    catrinpersephone Posts: 30
    Thank you so much guys! I can tell it's not going to be easy, but worth it, right? I'm dreading putting on the pounds, because I'm only 5'1 it seems to show every pound :/. I'll try to stick with it!
  • ms_sf49ergal
    ms_sf49ergal Posts: 7
    i have been there and done that. you have to let your body gained the weight that you lost during the starvation mode. it's the only weight you can back in track to eating healthy again and loosing weight the proper way.
  • LinnPitt
    LinnPitt Posts: 55
    you wouldn't think I would know much about "starvation" mode being as heavy as i am. but while my husband was in iraq I would go days on end without eating. then only eat the minimum then repeat that cycle. needless to say I was not in a good place mentally or emotionally. when he came home he expected me to begin eating normally again immediately. that was a horrible mistake. everything I put in my mouth made me sick. it took me months to get back to a more healthy eating habit.
    I did lose 90 pounds in that year he was gone but gained 30 of that back immediately.
    I had dangerously low vitamin and mineral deficiencies that could have sent me to the hospital. I did serious damage to my body .
    please to anyone who reads this starvation is definitely not the answer. it is dangerous and potentially deadly.
  • MzBug
    MzBug Posts: 2,173 Member
    With the help of a doctor and dietician/nutritionist I went from about 800 a day to 1400. I worked up to it over a couple months. It wasn't easy the first few weeks. You will gain a bit at first, but a few weeks into it you will start to see a loss. I actually had to use a timer for a while to remind myself to eat. I am also doing low/moderate activity now as well. When I first started regulating the food they didn't want me doing any exercise until I got over 1200 a day. I feel better now than I have in years.
  • catrinpersephone
    catrinpersephone Posts: 30
    Well I'm weighing myself tomorrow morning so I'll let you all know how it goes and hopefully you can keep encouraging me!
  • catrinpersephone
    catrinpersephone Posts: 30
    Guess what? I'm pretty sure I went up to 7st 8 (110lbs) but when I weighed myself this morning I was 108.6lbs (7st 7lbs (my scale rounds it up D:)) YAY! I'm so happy!
  • vkpmusic
    vkpmusic Posts: 343 Member
    Just keep being healthy and the rest will work itself out! Proud of you!
  • NoAdditives
    NoAdditives Posts: 4,251 Member
    I'm going through the same thing. I met with my trainer yesterday for the first time and we were both surprised at how little I was actually eating. Thankfully she turned me on to this site! But yesterday and today it's been hard to eat enough. Right now I'm having to drink a soda just to get a few more calories and carbs in. It is kind of fun though and it's certainly better than being told I'm eating too much! The change in energy has been really great, especially since I've got a toddler and a baby to take care of. A few hundred extra calories makes a huge difference.
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