3 months, ZERO PROGRESS

It baffles me why anybody would recommend consuming more calories in order to lose weight. Physics, not even once.

To anybody that says they just can't seem to lose weight, try going on the "3rd world country diet". Eat a bowl of rice and beans for every meal along with some fruits and veggies, including root veggies like potatoes. Eat a serving of protein once a day (or with every meal if you can afford it - many people in 3rd world countries can't afford meat with every meal, or even daily).

I don't know if you are weighing and/or measuring your food......

One thing I do know is that you can very easily miscalculate by eye leveling your food if you are new to this process. I was very very shocked when I weighed my first chicken breast at 3 ounces.... I mistakenly bought the thin sliced boneless skinless chicken breast from Costco rather than the bigger sized breast.

Initially, my thought was that I messed up..... but during that same weekend I pulled out my food scale I purchased a couple of years ago. Basically that's when reality set in for me and I realized why I hadn't been losing weight. ..... SIMPLY EATING TOO MUCH!!!!

Why do people keep saying that to lose weight you should eat more? Seriously WTF this place is terrible for advice.

Before telling someone to eat more to lose weight, please find me a comprehensive list of (quality) literature that backs this up. I will then squash this tiny (non-existent?) pile of literature with the thousands of studies which have universally and repeatedly shown that fewer calories = more weight loss, PERIOD.

Can't believe I just sat and read this entire thread and people are still doing the starvation mode thing. It's a myth, sorry but that's the truth and I know so fro. Personal experience. Back in 2005 weighing 231lbs I decided to do Lighterlife. The idea being you have nothing but 3 of their foodpacks a day and 4 litres of water. Each foodpack was approx 130 calories and contained all the vitamins etc you need (!) I lost 12lbs in my first week and went on to lose around 5lbs a week every week. I even got to the point where I was only having 1 or maybe 2 of the foodpacks each day. I still lost 5lbs a week on average. I did this crazy diet for 18 weeks, lost 95lbs and thought it was fantastic. Well it was except.... my hair started falling out, my nails stopped growing, I felt weak dizzy and tired, and I had a headache for most of those 18 weeks.

Roll on 3 years and I'd put it all back on. Roll on another 5 years and I was almost 100lbs more. Starvation mode is a myth, and I'm the proof. If you aren't losing near enough all the odds say you aren't in a deficit. Read the link to the a calorie counter blog.

I've been back with MFP since the middle of August, I log religiously and I measure and or weigh everything. I've lost 32lbs since 18th August. It does work if yiu commit to it and use it right.

Or you can just insist you're the exception to all the laws of physics and flounce.

Either way, I hope you find the right path on your journey.

I went through and still going through the same exact thing as you. Our stories match to a "T". I have one point of advice due to seeing a little results though and that is " Do Not Weigh Yourself" I repeat "Stop Weighing Yourself on the scale". It will only put you in a "give-up Mode" Trust Me. If you have to weigh in do it only 1 time a month. I prefer last day of month.

In addition to the other suggestions (weighing/measuring every single thing you eat, attempting more accuracy in exercise calories, etc) I would also say that if you are basing your calorie intake off a package, add another 20% to the calorie total. Food companies are permitted a 20% discrepancy in calories (whether under or over) and that can really add up if it's consistently 20% more calories than you think you're eating!

And when you're eating out, it's hard because the calorie counts are based on a "perfect" serving size of whatever the item is, but fast food workers will vary wildly in how much they actually give you. So one person's large fries is perhaps 30-50% larger than another person's large fries. Make sense?

Sorry if someone already mentioned this...I didn't read through all the pages, haha.

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It baffles me why anybody would recommend consuming more calories in order to lose weight. Physics, not even once.

To anybody that says they just can't seem to lose weight, try going on the "3rd world country diet". Eat a bowl of rice and beans for every meal along with some fruits and veggies, including root veggies like potatoes. Eat a serving of protein once a day (or with every meal if you can afford it - many people in 3rd world countries can't afford meat with every meal, or even daily).

Why would I go on a 3rd world country diet when I live in a 1st world country, work hard and make money?
How many of those poor 3rd world county guys can't afford food but have a gym membership where they squat, deadlift bench press, etc on the regular?

Why do people keep saying that to lose weight you should eat more? Seriously WTF this place is terrible for advice.

Before telling someone to eat more to lose weight, please find me a comprehensive list of (quality) literature that backs this up. I will then squash this tiny (non-existent?) pile of literature with the thousands of studies which have universally and repeatedly shown that fewer calories = more weight loss, PERIOD.

Why don't you just post the thousands of studies you have so we can see them?

To lose weight there needs to be a deficit; however, not to the point where it takes your body into a starvation mode!! Looking at 3rd world countries, these individuals are starving and will hold onto fat cells and their muscles are not being fed. Have you seen the pictures of those whom are starving. Thin arms and legs.

We do not live in this type of world, hence why Americans are known as FAT and obese. Do not tell someone to starve themselves or to eat as little as possible! Absolutely not healthy. You eat the calories needed to maintain energy to be active throughout your day. More active individuals need more calories and those less active need less. You create a deficit that works for you, eat healthy, and become more active.

Shame on you for even bring up 3rd world eating! WTF!!! Research more before you even post something like this!!

"Starvation mode" isn't a thing that really exists. I agree that (except in extremely rare instances) one should not push their deficit above 1000 calories, but you won't suddenly stop losing weight if you eat too little.

This Doctor says otherwise. Its happened to me. <http://blogs.webmd.com/pamela-peeke-md/2009/07/stop-starving-yourselves.html&gt;

She's wrong. Well, technically she's right, but you'll notice she does not mention the magnitude of the effect.

The degree to which your body will adapt metabolically to a low-calorie diet is not nearly enough to stop weight loss on a VLCD.

No offense, but unless you can produce some credentials, I'm going with what the MD on WebMD and my personal physician have told me.

Dunno about what your personal physician has said, but the blog post you put up doesn't say anything about the degree to which metabolic adaptation occurs. And it certainly doesn't say that eating too little will make you stop losing weight.

"Starvation mode" isn't a thing that really exists. I agree that (except in extremely rare instances) one should not push their deficit above 1000 calories, but you won't suddenly stop losing weight if you eat too little.

This Doctor says otherwise. Its happened to me. <http://blogs.webmd.com/pamela-peeke-md/2009/07/stop-starving-yourselves.html&gt;

She's wrong. Well, technically she's right, but you'll notice she does not mention the magnitude of the effect.

The degree to which your body will adapt metabolically to a low-calorie diet is not nearly enough to stop weight loss on a VLCD.

No offense, but unless you can produce some credentials, I'm going with what the MD on WebMD and my personal physician have told me.

Dunno about what your personal physician has said, but the blog post you put up doesn't say anything about the degree to which metabolic adaptation occurs. And it certainly doesn't say that eating too little will make you stop losing weight.

"Although you may think it makes sense, eating very little over the long term does not help you shed pounds. Instead, it actually teaches your body how to hold onto your weight. You see, the body is hardwired to do whatever it takes to help you survive. When you drastically cut your calories, you will drop some weight. However, if you keep doing that, the body adapts and adjusts to what it considers to be life threatening starvation. Your body does not know whether you’re on a desert island with nothing to eat, or you’re sitting in an office in Manhattan deliberately starving yourself. It’s all the same to your biology. The end result is that the body becomes very efficient at burning the fuel it has (your fat) and eventually you’re not burning much at all and thus the thwarted efforts to drop weight." - :-/ sounds pretty much like thats exactly what she said....

Not really.

Believe what you want, though. The science - and logic - is clear. Use your head: do anorexic people not lose weight?

Anyway, that's the beauty of science. I will let Neil tell you about it.

"Starvation mode" isn't a thing that really exists. I agree that (except in extremely rare instances) one should not push their deficit above 1000 calories, but you won't suddenly stop losing weight if you eat too little.

This Doctor says otherwise. Its happened to me. <http://blogs.webmd.com/pamela-peeke-md/2009/07/stop-starving-yourselves.html&gt;

She's wrong. Well, technically she's right, but you'll notice she does not mention the magnitude of the effect.

The degree to which your body will adapt metabolically to a low-calorie diet is not nearly enough to stop weight loss on a VLCD.

No offense, but unless you can produce some credentials, I'm going with what the MD on WebMD and my personal physician have told me.

Dunno about what your personal physician has said, but the blog post you put up doesn't say anything about the degree to which metabolic adaptation occurs. And it certainly doesn't say that eating too little will make you stop losing weight.

"Although you may think it makes sense, eating very little over the long term does not help you shed pounds. Instead, it actually teaches your body how to hold onto your weight. You see, the body is hardwired to do whatever it takes to help you survive. When you drastically cut your calories, you will drop some weight. However, if you keep doing that, the body adapts and adjusts to what it considers to be life threatening starvation. Your body does not know whether you’re on a desert island with nothing to eat, or you’re sitting in an office in Manhattan deliberately starving yourself. It’s all the same to your biology. The end result is that the body becomes very efficient at burning the fuel it has (your fat) and eventually you’re not burning much at all and thus the thwarted efforts to drop weight." - :-/ sounds pretty much like thats exactly what she said....

Not really.

Believe what you want, though. The science - and logic - is clear. Use your head: do anorexic people not lose weight?

Anyway, that's the beauty of science. I will let Neil tell you about it.

You are lumping in too large a deficit with actual starving... not the same. Of course you are going to lose weight no matter what with a deficit. But starvation mode does exist, and if you are still taking in calories just under the point your body decides its starving (and no, 1200 is Not a Magic Number, just a baseline), it will slow your weight loss to a crawl.

Of course you are going to lose weight no matter what with a deficit.

It is not true that if you have a deficit you wil lose "end of story" or "period"

Which of these are true?

Cause you've said both.

You are correct. I reacted rashly to a blanket statement that should not have been made... I should have said your progress could be so slow that you will give up before seeing results...

Of course you are going to lose weight no matter what with a deficit.

It is not true that if you have a deficit you wil lose "end of story" or "period"

Which of these are true?

Cause you've said both.

You are correct. I reacted rashly to a blanket statement that should not have been made... I should have said your progress could be so slow that you will give up before seeing results...

Great, so we agree!

Starvation mode" isn't a thing that really exists

Not really, The point was that starvation mode does exist and can thwart your weight loss efforts.

OP--from your last post it looks like you have a plan and have waded through all the advice you received here, great.

I am glad you sound much less defensive. You sounded just as frustrated as many of us have been.

In a few months or years, go back to this thread. If you stay on MFP and keep active on the forums you will realize that your posts are going to closely resemble all those you retaliated against in defense. You are not aware yet, but you were retaliated against the people who gave you advice you didn't like, the ones who were exactly in your shoes when they got stuck.

That is where we disagree... I was doing 900 cals a day for a couple months (I now hate tuna boxes...) before I asked my doc why i wasnt losing (thought it was lack of exercise). She told me about starvation mode, and recomended a few apps for my phone including MFP. The difference was like night and day when I actually started following the 1k deficit = 2lbs a week plan on MFP. I still dont exercise.

BTW congrats on 61lbs... :-)

You don't need to agree with me. Science agrees with me just fine.