Starvation mode

If you eat just a 1,000 calories a day and your body burns 2,500 calories just on keeping you alive, I think thats your BMR or RMR or something like that.

Anyway, so you consume just 1,000 calories a day and thats fine, but doesn;t your metabolism catch on after a few days and then stop burning the 2,500 to keep you alive, rather it burns less than that now?

I ask because I just went a week doing a 1,000 calorie a day diet with exercise eating very high quality stuff, no junk and I still weigh the same....I was always told that no matter what you eat if you create a calorie deficit you will lose weight.....I understand that a week is unrealistic to expect drastic results, but the same weight? Doesn't make sense.
 
you sure you're calculating your calories correctly?
 
maleficent said:
you sure you're calculating your calories correctly?
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I'm just using averages for arguments sake about the metabolism figuring out that your not eating much and then subsequently not burning as many calories to keep you alive.....but as for me, yes I have been diligent about counting and adding everything that goes into my body. I write them all down and then add them up.
 
KingJabrone said:
I'm just using averages for arguments sake about the metabolism figuring out that your not eating much and then subsequently not burning as many calories to keep you alive.....but as for me, yes I have been diligent about counting and adding everything that goes into my body. I write them all down and then add them up.
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it's not just about counting calories. I swear, if I hear another person say a calorie is a calorie, I'm gonna vommit. Look at what you are eating too....



All Calories Are Not Created Equal

Bodybuilding.com - ISSA - Are All Calories Created Equal?
 
Steve said:
A calorie is a calorie. Just as a kilogram is a kilogram.... it can be nothing else.

Say something like, "not all macros are created equal." That makes sense.

Until then though.... hold that vommit!
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juussst.....had to get all techincal on me....lol :ack2:
 
hahahah, nah.... i promise i wasn't trying to be difficult. i just like things to be correct. too much shit getting passed around as good information in this industry already.

plus, the starvation response doesn't have a whole heck of a lot to do with macros anyhow, which is what this thread was about. sure you could get technical on that context and get into leptin's response to high carb intakes (refeeds).... but the starvation response is primarily about calories.... or lack thereof
 
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Steve said:
hahahah, nah.... i promise i wasn't trying to be difficult. i just like things to be correct. too much shit getting passed around as good information in this industry already.

plus, the starvation response doesn't have a whole heck of a lot to do with macros anyhow, which is what this thread was about. sure you could get technical on that context and get into leptin's response to high carb intakes (refeeds).... but the starvation response is primarily about calories.... or lack thereof
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Steve - on the issue of " counting calories ".

I realize each of your clients has different issues and different needs. Some may be seeking strategies for rapid weight loss and some are open to being ' born again ' to a new long term lifestyle changes that they can sustain a healthy body fat for the years to come.

For those interested in long term and sustainable changes, how do you coach people to transition from tracking every calorie every day using something like Fit day to simply eating healthy without ' obsessing ' about every calorie they consume or obsessing that one day their calorie intake may be greater or less than the day before ? Or do you ?

Guess I was just curious the emphasis you place on the the tactic of " counting calories " daily with those clients of yours interested in making sustainable long terms changes....and how and if that emphasis changes over time.

Welcome your thoughts.
 
Steve said:
hahahah, nah.... i promise i wasn't trying to be difficult. i just like things to be correct. too much shit getting passed around as good information in this industry already.
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agreed..... forums are breeding grounds for piles of bad information. I will try to be more specific next time....

Steve said:
plus, the starvation response doesn't have a whole heck of a lot to do with macros anyhow, which is what this thread was about. sure you could get technical on that context and get into leptin's response to high carb intakes (refeeds).... but the starvation response is primarily about calories.... or lack thereof
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True but he was saying he was eating "high quality foods" and for a week only took in 1000 cals. Now, granted, I am all against starving one's self (because the bottom line is it isn't healthy and it doesn't work) but if you did lower your cals and created a deficit for just one week, theoretically you *should* loose some weight.....hence my comment about he needs to look at what he is eating......

I can say all foods are not created equal??? :)

Diane
 
Wrangell said:
Steve - on the issue of " counting calories ".

I realize each of your clients has different issues and different needs. Some may be seeking strategies for rapid weight loss and some are open to being ' born again ' to a new long term lifestyle changes that they can sustain a healthy body fat for the years to come.

For those interested in long term and sustainable changes, how do you coach people to transition from tracking every calorie every day using something like Fit day to simply eating healthy without ' obsessing ' about every calorie they consume or obsessing that one day their calorie intake may be greater or less than the day before ? Or do you ?

Guess I was just curious the emphasis you place on the the tactic of " counting calories " daily with those clients of yours interested in making sustainable long terms changes....and how and if that emphasis changes over time.

Welcome your thoughts.
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It really is a case by case basis, Wrangell. For me anyhow.

In general though, I really don't recommend counting calories for the average overweight person until it's apparent that it's necessary. I've had much more success giving someone a list of foods that they can choose from and let them go at it from there.

More often than not, 'cleaning up' the diet in terms of food choices will be enough to initiate weight loss for a while due to the caloric density of 'good' foods compared to bad foods.

That said though, and depending on a clients goals, eventually calorie counting is almost a certainty. Granted, one can stay at an average weight without counting.... but if someone wants to get lean.... that's another story.

And for some, in the beginning, overweight or not, calorie counting is the right thing to start out with.

Haha, I guess what I'm saying is, there isn't a right/wrong answer. Different people respond to different things, which I know you know.
 
Wrangell said:
For those interested in long term and sustainable changes, how do you coach people to transition from tracking every calorie every day using something like Fit day to simply eating healthy without ' obsessing ' about every calorie they consume or obsessing that one day their calorie intake may be greater or less than the day before ?
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You can count calories without being obsessive, either about every calorie you consume or about day-to-day variations. Just as you can weigh yourself regularly without being obsessive about every little uptick and downtick.

If I've been eating at a given calorie level for awhile, and I'm paying attention, I can tell about how many calories I have left for the day without adding it up - and I can tell if the food in front of me will fit into that. That's just practice / experience.

I personally have a lot of trouble with not paying attention. Once you've managed to gain 40+ pounds in 6 weeks without noticing it, you realize the brain's infinite capacity to ignore reality. So I count calories (and weigh myself) to make sure I keep paying attention. But that's just me.
 
allyphoe said:
But that's just me.
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Key words there.... and thanks for sharing!

That's sort of my point Wrangell.... it's such an individual thing it's amazing. Some people actually enjoy counting calories. For others it's a must if they're going to stay on track.... even though they've been doing it so long that they could probably do without and be fine. Others despise it and it's best to guide them away from it effectively once they understand the basics. On and on and on.
 
Starvation mode?

I have been cutting down my calories a lot and keep hearing from friends/family that I'm going to put my body into "starvation mode" and I'll just gain weight. I don't see how this would be possible if I put OUT more calories than I take IN. I kind of think this whole starvation mode thing is a myth. What are your thoughts?
 
Thank you! Wow--I'm sorry for posting that--I should have searched for old topics. The thread is very informative though, so thanks!

I think I agree with you that it should not be either a scare tactic or a myth...it's somewhere in-between.
 
The *real* starvation response is very real. It's just not what most think. Most think it's, "you gain fat no matter what, even in a caloric deficit." No. That's not it.

But when you start dieting, your body is going to respond, period, and there's not much you can do to combat said response. You want to lose weight. Your metabolism if going to slow down.
 
One thing that I have noticed is that now that my mind is in "diet mode" I am barely making the minimum that I set for myself for calories...For example today I consumed around 645 (low I know!) and worked out and burnt off 360 (supposedly) and yet I couldn't eat. I felt a bit nauseous actually. So am I doing myself damage here? Am I going to still be able to lose weight?

I lost a lot in a short period of time...8 pounds in a week to be exact...but it's really hard to figure out if I am eating too little or too much.

I know you're not a doctor (or maybe you are, who knows) but I just want to know if what I'm doing is ok...
 
There are a whole host of reasons why 645 calories in a day, plus working out, is not healthy. Are you not able to lose weight on 1200-1800 calories per day? Have you tried eating a diminished but REASONABLE amount before you jumped into this starvation thing? I also lose my appetite when I decrease my food too much, and I feel like crap when that happens so I'm not sure its worth it.
 
Yea, that's not good.

At all.
 
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