Diet Myth #5: To lose weight, follow a very low-calorie die

autumnridge
autumnridge Posts: 97 Member
edited September 2024 in Health and Weight Loss
Facts: Many people think that eating less and/or skipping meal will make them lose weight. However, one of two things will happen. They will get so hungry that they'll overeat later in the day - or they will eat too little. When you eat too little, your body thinks it's in starvation mode. This slows down the rate at which you burn caloriesl. At first you might see some weight loss. This is usually the loss of lean muscle tissue and water along with just a little fat. When you gain the weight back, it will be all fat. A better approach is to eat smaller, more frequent, healthy meals and snacks to keep your blood sugar balanced. To lose one pound a week, try decreasing your total daily calories by just 500 a day. Eat every three to four hours. This will maximize fat loss and keep your metaboism operating at top speed. Copied from John Deere Premier News via UnitedHealthCare.

Replies

  • chevy88grl
    chevy88grl Posts: 3,937 Member
    Yep.. I think too many people think starving themselves is the only way to lose weight (is it because that is what has been shoved down our throats for so many years?). You have to eat to fuel your body to lose weight in a healthy manner. No, this doesn't mean eat McDonald's or junk - but by all means.. EAT!

    I eat 2200-2500 NET calories a day and I am currently maintaining 145lbs - which is 5lbs less than my goal weight.
  • mhig011975
    mhig011975 Posts: 181
    I usually net 1000- 1200 calories, but if I'm not hungry I AM NOT GOING TO FORCE MYSELF TO EAT.
  • Schwiggity
    Schwiggity Posts: 1,449 Member
    I usually net 1000- 1200 calories, but if I'm not hungry I AM NOT GOING TO FORCE MYSELF TO EAT.

    WHY ARE WE YELLING?!
  • smallerthighs
    smallerthighs Posts: 148
    @mhig011957...I hear you..and agree!!! I'm the same!!!
  • chevy88grl
    chevy88grl Posts: 3,937 Member
    I usually net 1000- 1200 calories, but if I'm not hungry I AM NOT GOING TO FORCE MYSELF TO EAT.

    If it works for you - great. But, there are MANY people who are starving themselves at 1200 calories (search the posts on the forums - you'll see the many, many, many posts) and aren't losing weight. Too many people think 1200 calories is some magic number to weight loss when in reality their bodies require far more calories than they are giving it.

    I should note that I was one of those 1200 calorie people at different times in my "dieting" endeavors. I finally stopped listening to what other people told me and started learning what *I* needed to do for me. Learn what YOUR body wants and listen to it.
  • millymoozie
    millymoozie Posts: 150
    I usually net 1000- 1200 calories, but if I'm not hungry I AM NOT GOING TO FORCE MYSELF TO EAT.
    that is not a healthy amount for a guy & its not going to be productive in the long term to losing weight ,,ive done it like you & it went horribly wrong for me ,,i was 200llbs & i have lost a big amount & im eating 1500 cals per day ,whilst starving myself on low cals the weight loss was stupidly slow ,,,look at my picture this is all since eating more (healthy things of course) every few hours ,i also drink protein shakes each day ,,,you need to learn the science of losing weight & what your body needs to be able to work properly to enable you to lose ,,learning to starve yourself is not a realistic plan for the rest of your life ,learning to eat healthy foods & change your way of thinking towards food is a life long thing & if you suss it & understand it you WILL lose weight & you WILL keep it off & live a happy HEALTHY life .
    good luck to you & i urge you to rethink ,,i know how good it is & how it could change your life x
  • JennsLosing
    JennsLosing Posts: 1,026
    I usually net 1000- 1200 calories, but if I'm not hungry I AM NOT GOING TO FORCE MYSELF TO EAT.

    WHY ARE WE YELLING?!
    i dont think it was meant to be yelling...probably more like placing emphasis...
  • salmanajmal
    salmanajmal Posts: 93 Member
    hi all,

    i had made the same mistake. i should have been consuming 1450 calories to lose 2 pounds a week (1000 deficit) instead i would consume about 800 and would burn almost all of them by exercise.

    i lost 1 kg in less than a week. a week after this, my weight dramatically shot up by 2 kg and i started suffering badly from constipation. when i discussed this issue with my mfp friends, i was told that my body had gone into starvation mode and due to low metablism my digestion had been affected badly.

    after that i have started taking 1400 daily for about five days and the results are satsifactory.

    thank you all
  • Ocarina
    Ocarina Posts: 1,550 Member
    I successfully eat 1800 calories a day and am loosing weight. Eating on a low calorie diet is just unnecessary suffering unless your doctor puts you on it.
  • Eve1972
    Eve1972 Posts: 297 Member
    I usually net 1000- 1200 calories, but if I'm not hungry I AM NOT GOING TO FORCE MYSELF TO EAT.

    Amen!
  • rat70
    rat70 Posts: 129 Member
    I usually net 1000- 1200 calories, but if I'm not hungry I AM NOT GOING TO FORCE MYSELF TO EAT.

    Sometimes, after dieting, we lose the ability to tell when our bodies are hungry. Each to his or her own but there is a lot of evidence that eating more is recommended.
  • rat70
    rat70 Posts: 129 Member
    I like to see reminders like the OP. thanks for posting. I have worked out my own calorie goal using Fat2FitRadio's online BMR calculator. I figured out how many I need to maintain my current weight and subtracted 500 (for 1lb loss per week). That is higher than MFP recommends but its working so far. If my weight loss stops, I'm going to try eating more cals rather than less first to see what happens. It will be great to work out the maximum calories I can eat and still lose the weight. I do try to eat a healthy and nutritionally rich diet. It is all an experiment but I intend to keep experimenting til I reach my goal!
  • fionarama
    fionarama Posts: 788 Member
    I get sick of this old chestnut. It all depends on what you are used to eating. If you were eating 3000 calories a day suddenly eating 1200 calories a day will seem like starvation . If you never ate that much anyway 1200 calories is fine. Also depends on height, shorter girls generally find they can't eat that much, and activity levels.
    I s ill think 1200 calories is quite a lot of food if you are eating good clean unprocessed food. I think the starvation thing is only going to happen if you body is actually not got food in it to process it. I notice on some people's food diaries they are still eating junk, just small quantities instead. I can't understand people who expect to lose weight and be healthier but still think it important to eat chocolate biscuits or McDonalds or whatever. Eating like this does mean you have to eat tiny meals and then yes you will be starving as you will eat your calories very quickly . If your calories are made up on vegetables, boiled rice and potatoes, grilled lean meat , wholegrain cereals etc you will have three healthy substantial meals on 1200 calories, and you wont' be starving yourself.
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