Does yo-yo dieting ruins/lowers how much you can eat in later life.

santd
santd Posts: 234 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I'm 55 years of age, and spent most of my life on diets. I've lost large amounts of weight (4 times) in my life! why did you put it all back I can here you saying....life I will say.

But I have noticed with myself (and we are all different), if you under eat, it does have a detrimental affect on your metabolic rate, to which you can't seem to increase afterwards.

The first time I lost 9 stones (126 pounds)-I dieted on 1500 cals
The second time I lost 12 stones (168 pounds) -I dieted on 1400 cals or I wouldn't lose!
The third time I lost 13 stones (182 pounds)- I dieted on 1300 cals or I wouldn't lose!
The forth time I lost 14 stones (196 pounds)- I had to diet on 1200 cals or I wouldn't lose.

Yes the above is ridiculous to gain weight again, and again, that's my problem, and I'm ashamed of myslef. But after losing the 14 stones this time, I've now gained 33 pounds back, and I've got to stop it now before it all goes back on. I do feel I've damaged my system somehow in that i can't eat the quantity of calories anymore that I used to.

Is this age? or a damaged system? please help.

Replies

  • nicoleagafitness
    nicoleagafitness Posts: 100 Member
    You never could eat the calories you used to without gaining weight. You have to have a maintenance plan in place.
  • Project2015
    Project2015 Posts: 43
    agreed, honestly you can only keep it off through maintenance. This is why I always tell anyone who asks for advice; dont plan to diet, plan to change your lifestyle. which is what i am having to do myself now.
  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,151 Member
    It gets harder to lose as we get older.
  • galprincess
    galprincess Posts: 683 Member
    I am 30 next yr and have lost weight after all 3 of my pregnancies this is the easiest ive found it and yet ive eaten the most I ever have. Look at the types of food you are eating, water you are drinking and also if you exercise that could also make a difference.

    We all know or have been told it gets harder as we get older id concentrate on how much and the types of food you are eating.
  • WalkingAlong
    WalkingAlong Posts: 4,926 Member
    It's probably mostly age.

    http://www.weightwatchers.com/util/art/index_art.aspx?tabnum=1&art_id=35501
    Metabolism after Weight Loss
    The good news is that after the weight-loss goal is achieved and weight has stabilized, it does not appear that the dip in metabolism is permanent. Several rigorous studies done at the University of Alabama in Birmingham showed that metabolism goes back to expected levels with sustained weight loss, discounting the theory that a lowered metabolism helps to explain the common phenomenon of weight regain following weight loss.

    The study it referenced:
    http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11063433?dopt=Abstract
    CONCLUSIONS:
    "Energy restriction produces a transient hypothyroid-hypometabolic state that normalizes on return to energy-balanced conditions. Failure to establish energy balance after weight loss gives the misleading impression that weight-reduced persons are energy conservative and predisposed to weight regain. Our findings do not provide evidence in support of adaptive metabolic changes as an explanation for the tendency of weight-reduced persons to regain weight."
  • 999tigger
    999tigger Posts: 5,235 Member
    Part of its age, but how much exercise were you doing and I assume those 4 diets were at different ages? Exercise cna make a big difference although you cant outpace a bad diet etc. I would just look at a positive spin is that youve done it before and you can do it again, but you also need a maintenance plan in place so that next time you keep it off.
  • mshannond
    mshannond Posts: 60
    santd wrote: »
    I'm 55 years of age, and spent most of my life on diets. I've lost large amounts of weight (4 times) in my life! why did you put it all back I can here you saying....life I will say.

    But I have noticed with myself (and we are all different), if you under eat, it does have a detrimental affect on your metabolic rate, to which you can't seem to increase afterwards.

    The first time I lost 9 stones (126 pounds)-I dieted on 1500 cals
    The second time I lost 12 stones (168 pounds) -I dieted on 1400 cals or I wouldn't lose!
    The third time I lost 13 stones (182 pounds)- I dieted on 1300 cals or I wouldn't lose!
    The forth time I lost 14 stones (196 pounds)- I had to diet on 1200 cals or I wouldn't lose.

    Yes the above is ridiculous to gain weight again, and again, that's my problem, and I'm ashamed of myslef. But after losing the 14 stones this time, I've now gained 33 pounds back, and I've got to stop it now before it all goes back on. I do feel I've damaged my system somehow in that i can't eat the quantity of calories anymore that I used to.

    Is this age? or a damaged system? please help.

    You've probably damaged your metabolism. I know women in their 60's who've never dieted in their lives and eat a good 2000 calories a day and are around bmi 22-23. Low calorie diets slow down the metabolism and cause the body to lose muscle & conserve fat. When you gain, you gain back more fat & look flabbier & heavier due to lost muscle tone. Your slow metabolism will make you even heavier than before. You will lose lots of more muscle mass as you age, so protein, muscle building & exercise are key here to speed up the metabolism. As you get older you also need less as you have less muscle to feed and require less energy.
    Your circumstance sounds like a combination of age, but the majority will be due to muscle loss and slow metabolism caused by lots of low calorie diets! Exercise, a decent amount of calories, and a little extra muscle will speed your metabolism up and get you losing on higher!
  • WalkingAlong
    WalkingAlong Posts: 4,926 Member
    The 'muscle torches calories' argument has been largely debunked. It's about 6 calories per pound per day. For a woman to gain 10 lbs. of muscle would be a big accomplishment. The extra 60ish calories a day she burns isn't going to make a big difference to her diet.

    Most people burn less as they age because (1) they are less active and (2) the body has slowed the rate of tissue regeneration.
  • santd
    santd Posts: 234 Member
    Thanks everyone.

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