Starvation Mode

[judych 225]

The idea that "not eating enough" causes the body to stop losing weight because it goes into "starvation mode" is a popular myth among dieters.

Article By: The Weight Watchers Research Department

There are various articles on line about this....I for one am old school: calories in versus calories burned = weight loss.

I also believe that I had enough fat stored as energy that I could survive on a deserted island for months without food....just give me Protein and water!

It has also been my personal observation that the people who worry about getting enough calories in, are also the ones complaining about slow weight loss. Just my observation.

'm sure I'll get a lot of " flak" from this one.....but....it is just a line we use to rationalize eating more....if it were true , the opposite should hold true. if we eat too much are body would go into " dump the fat mode ".... seems my body skipped the memo on that one !

...what site is this on?? i would love to read it all.... thanks. judy

[elcee 3,341]

The thing that always puzzles me about starvation mode is how if it exists there are people that are anorexic or malnourished and starving in Africa.

What I do believe is true is that the cycle of dieting/notdieting/dieting again somehow messes up your metabolism. I don't think that you stop losing when eating the restricted amounts but I do think that as soon as you start eating "normally" again you quickly regain the weight that was lost.

I think part of this problem may be due to the fact that the less we weigh the less we need to eat to maintain that weight.

So as an example a person weighing 200lb might be eating 2500 cal per day. They go on a diet and eventually get down to 120lb by severely restricting calories. Once they have lost the weight the diet is over so they then go back to eating more. They think that if they could maintain their previous weight on 2500cal they can do the same now. What they don't realise is that to maintain the loss they probably need to stick to 1200 cal per day for life.So the weight is quickly regained.

This is why the band is such a fantastic tool. Most of us have been able to lose weight before but we have been unable to sustain it. The band assists by enabling us to continue to eat and be satisfied on small quantities of food.

[betheboo 40]

Here is my personal experience ... @ one point in time I was eating 300 cal/day & doing boot camp work out 4 days a week. I only lost 4 lbs that month! My body I believe did hit a starvation mode.

I now eat 600 cal/day & work out 30 min 1-3 times a week... I ave 12 lbs a month.

Mind you I've lost 113 lbs now & my 1 yr was 4/6

For me if I eat more than 800 cal/day or if I get in a bad diet pop kick I don't loose. But every body is different

[Humming Bird 275]

Like B-52, I have not counted calories since day one. With a properly adjusted band I lost 100 pounds in the first year.

I never have understood why sometimes people would go by what the different tracking sites say about how many calories a person should be eating. These sites do not take in to account that we have had weightloss surgery do they?

It is a whole different ball game after WLS.

[waitingpatiently 250]

well maybe it just doesn't exsist for me---hahaha

When I was a teenager (healthy and fit just average weight) I had to have I massive reconstruction done on my face. My jaws were wired shut for 12 weeks and I had over 300 stictches in my mouth....the only think I could "eat" were thin liquids...could not have any texture what so ever. During that 12 weeks I watched myself dissapear in the mirror. When all was done, I was 5 foot 7 and 95lbs......If my body didn't go into starvation mode then, I better assume that I wasn't built with that feature. I have never required a lot of calories. As a teenager and young adult I ate very little and was very active so I guess I never put much thought into ever being over weight. It wasn't until after children I became less active and had a problem. suddenly eating 1200 calories a day I would be adding pounds every month. I determined for me to loose weight (1-2 pounds a week).....I must be under 900 calories....to maintain I can do about 1000. Those are my magic numbers.....I think everyone has them. We all are made differently so yours may be less.....but are most likely higher than mine.

The point is learn your body......sometimes it takes months, if not years, to figure out what our body wants from us. just hang in there, make good food choices,(because even though our brain wants the chips, our bodies have no need for them) and figure out your magical numbers.

[DELETE THIS ACCOUNT! 12,703]

A little bit of info... I just got back from my monthly doc visit, and I saw the nutrionist in the hallway and asked if I could speak to her. She's a lovely woman and of course said yes.

I told her specifically about this thread and the starvation mode debate. She said she hates the term "starvation mode" because that is not what it is at all, it's really a self induced metabolic syndrome by lack of calories. She said when you aren't eating enough calories to sustain your body, it's not a matter of hanging onto calories but more that your metabolism goes "Oh I don't have to work so hard" and slows way down. That is why sometimes even a little caloric increase, 100 or 200, can make a huge difference in waking up the metabolism.

Now, when you TRULY are starving, it's a complete lack of nutrients and your body starts essentially eating it's own muscle tissue, resulting in the skeletal figures we think of when we think of starvation or even anorexia. (this is also why so many anorexics die from heart failure, the heart is a muscle).

So, straight from the expert. We're not starving by eating too little, we're slowing down our metabolism. I think that is where the debate comes in, because we call what is essentially a self induced metabolic syndrome "starvation mode", creating big misconceptions.

[waitingpatiently 250]

A little bit of info... I just got back from my monthly doc visit, and I saw the nutrionist in the hallway and asked if I could speak to her. She's a lovely woman and of course said yes.

I told her specifically about this thread and the starvation mode debate. She said she hates the term "starvation mode" because that is not what it is at all, it's really a self induced metabolic syndrome by lack of calories. She said when you aren't eating enough calories to sustain your body, it's not a matter of hanging onto calories but more that your metabolism goes "Oh I don't have to work so hard" and slows way down. That is why sometimes even a little caloric increase, 100 or 200, can make a huge difference in waking up the metabolism.

This I can believe....if you aren't eating enough to substain your body...I could see where the body would slow the metabolism down. That is logical.

But I guess we can start a new debate on how many calories actually needed to hold off self induced metobolic syndrome (SIMS)---haha..................Its not 2000 calories!!!

My guess is it will be different for each person.

New question: So if a person has been doing well at a certain calorie intake, and loosing their 1-2 pounds a week, hasn't added any additonal exercise.....when they hit a patch of not loosing.....we should be able to assume that it isn't SIMS right?

Afterall, they are loosing weight and then their bodies shouldn't need any additional calories because its not working as hard as it was when you were 5,10,15 heavier. In fact, it might be worth considering that since you have lost weight and your body isn't working as hard as it was that by eating the same amount of calories after loosing a significate amount of weight MIGHT be why you are not loosing anymore.

Think about Weight Watchers.....You are allowed so many points if you are 300lbs....but as you loose weight, you aren't allowed to keep eating the same amount when you are 200 lbs, you have got to reduce the points.

Now if a person adds additional exercise to their daily routine, then they very well may need to add additional calories. but just because you stop loosing weight, it doesn't mean you should automatically add more calories.

[armymom2012 51]

I am no nutritionist by any means so I couldn't tell you how to lose weight. Plus, I think everyone is different in how their body reacts to certain types of food and stressers in your life and whether you are male or female. It is proven men tend to lose quicker than women and still be able to eat more, even my doctor will tell you that.

So although I can't totally disagree with B52 on some of his theories, you have to find what works best for you and be honest about it.

A few weeks ago I lost 4# in one week. Usually I may lose a pound or two. I changed my diet around some that week, because I was slowly dragging throughout the day with no energy. I was having trouble getting my Protein totals in for each day, because I couldn't stand drinking a Protein Shake. Then I decided to switch it up a bit and made homemade tuna, chicken salad, fish and even some turkey that week with almost every meal, even Breakfast.< /p>

Although I went from eating around 500-600 calories to nearly 900 I lost weight and stayed full much longer than I did trying a liquid diet of protein. So in my case adding more protein in the form of food choices is what helped me out. This past week, with finals coming up and working all day I didn't have the time to make all that stuff and did more of the old routine and only lost a half pound, still eating around 700 calories as well as walking a couple miles 4 days a week.

But then again I am in this for the long hall. I was told that this was not going to be like bypass surgery and I would lose weight at a slower pace and I am fine with that, because past experience proved that if I tried to rush the process, more than likely I wasn't learning how to do it correctly in the first place. Put too much pressure on yourself to speed it up and your surely to fail somewher along the line when you hit one of those dreaded Plateus they tell us about.

[waitingpatiently 250]

Armymom2012- I agree with you whole heartedly!! Unless you are a completely seditary person with little or no activity then only eating 500-600 calories a day is probably too low for you. My mother in law thats only activitive is walking from one room to another room in our house, probably only eats about 700 calories a day....and is 5"1 and 240 pounds. Because she does absolutely nothing EVER...she does not need any more calories...infact with a bmi of something like 90 she would need to even eat less or exercise to loose anything.--infact her doctor wanted her to drop her calories to 600 by drinking 3 Protein drinks a day.

Funny how most of us didn't have a problem loosing weight during the pre-op phase when most of us were on liquid diets and only getting 500-600 calories a day in....I lost 5 pounds a week during that time.---ummm maybe the next time I hit a slump I will shock my system with a week of liquids....that will teach it a lesson--haha

BTY- I hit a slump on april 13. I had been making good progress with 1-2 pouns a week on april 13 (THATS FRIDAY THE 13th) I was at a Sping Ball with my daughter and eventhough I saved all 30 of my carbs for that evening ..I slurged and had 1 brownie...and it ended my ketosis....even though I still had calories left over for the day, I guess the extra influx of carbs was not good,ketosis was over. The last 12 days I kept eating the exact same foods, still exercised and still stayed under my 800 calories....but the scale didn't move. Yesterday I decided to deprive my body of almost all carbs (less than15!!) still kept the calories at 800 and this morning the scale dropped 2 pounds!! So sometimes we just need to show our bodies whose the boss. shake things up. Shock it.-but whatever you do.....just don't give up. 5 more pounds before I hit 199!!! I set a goal to make that my May 4---thats when we leave on our cruise!

[DELETE THIS ACCOUNT! 12,703]

Waiting patiently raises some excellent questions.

From my understanding talking to the nutrionist, if you're a woman eating less than 1200 calories per day and your weight still stalls out for a long period (plateaus are normal), chances are good if you increase your calories a little you'll boost your metabolism.

If you're eating 1200 or more a day (and some do need more!), then you might want to play with your nutrional intake. For instance, if you normally eat considerable carbs, you might want to cut back on them and increase Protein. Vice versa if you normally eat mostly Protein (but never below 60g per day of protein, she said). If you do increase your carbs, be sure it's good carbs: Whole grains and high Fiber. We want to stay clear of anything white, enriched, and/or bleached.

Really, it all boils down to everyone is different. I can eat good carbs daily (and I do) and still consistently lose weight. Some people simply can't. Some lose great at 1000 calories a day, however considering I'm still very obese, my body needs more or my metabolism slows. We're all different. Just like there's no one size fits all that actually does fit all in clothes, there's no nutritional plan that fits all either.

Btw, side note, be prepared to adjust your caloric intake as you lose, too. Obviously you don't need as much to sustain a 150 pound body as you do a 300 pound body, so needs will change.

[armymom2012 51]

The thing that always puzzles me about starvation mode is how if it exists there are people that are anorexic or malnourished and starving in Africa.

What I do believe is true is that the cycle of dieting/notdieting/dieting again somehow messes up your metabolism. I don't think that you stop losing when eating the restricted amounts but I do think that as soon as you start eating "normally" again you quickly regain the weight that was lost.

I think part of this problem may be due to the fact that the less we weigh the less we need to eat to maintain that weight.

So as an example a person weighing 200lb might be eating 2500 cal per day. They go on a diet and eventually get down to 120lb by severely restricting calories. Once they have lost the weight the diet is over so they then go back to eating more. They think that if they could maintain their previous weight on 2500cal they can do the same now. What they don't realise is that to maintain the loss they probably need to stick to 1200 cal per day for life.So the weight is quickly regained.

This is why the band is such a fantastic tool. Most of us have been able to lose weight before but we have been unable to sustain it. The band assists by enabling us to continue to eat and be satisfied on small quantities of food.

Where I tend to agree in most of your reply, yes people in Africa and people who have anorexia do live off of barely anything and can survive. (To a Point). There are still many more than die every day from malnutrition and starvation or suffer lasting health problems because of it. I should know, I had anorexia in my teens up till the time I was 20. There was a time that I ate barely enough to stay awake in the day, once an All Star softball player, I became someone I barely knew. I could no longer play ball, my grades were shot to hell because my mind was starving to. Unlike some young girls, I was able to finally snap out of it and realize that I had a problem and get help. Never realizing that 20 years later, I would be battling a totally different type of eating disorder of sorts. The difference now is that when I look in the mirror. It really is an over weight person stairing me in the face and instead of fearing it, I choose to work with it and not against it, by learning to eat right and not use food as a means of happiness and content anymore. Looking back I realize that was what I had been doing and at the end of the day, I was no more happier having that whole pizza than I would have been with just a slice.

But back to the debate of whether being banded can put you into starvation mode or not, I really don't think so unless your mouth is wired shut. Because most of us could go awhile with little food as long as it was the right kind of food. Although I will say that even 3 weeks after surgery, I suffered extreme fatigue and problems focusing my eyes, where I never had an issue with before the extreme dieting prior to surgery. That is why I think after the annitial shock of starting the process, it is so important to take your Vitamins and learn about eating healthier. Because our bodies can tell us when something is not right, but you have to be in the frame of mind to listen to it.

[flab u less 45]

Ok so Now that I am very confused.(lol)

I am 210 pounds 5'3". And exercise 6 to 7 days a week.busy burning 550 calories when i exercise. Soo... what should my calories be as a banded lady???? I keep gaining. Not a lot I was at 207 two weeks ago. Now 210.

[DELETE THIS ACCOUNT! 12,703]

Here is a simple calorie calculator: http://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm

Despite what the calculator says, my nutrionist says 1000-1200 calories per day are good for a woman with Lap Band. She also recommends at least 60g of Protein, no more than 125g of carbs, and no more than 20% fat daily.

Do you have a nutrionist through your surgeon? If so, I'd meet with them and ask them, especially since Protein vs carbs advised seem to vary greatly from surgeon to surgeon.

[waitingpatiently 250]

Ok so Now that I am very confused.(lol)

I am 210 pounds 5'3". And exercise 6 to 7 days a week.busy burning 550 calories when i exercise. Soo... what should my calories be as a banded lady???? I keep gaining. Not a lot I was at 207 two weeks ago. Now 210.

Fab u less-there isn't an easy answer. Best thing to do is speak with the nitritionist. Each nutritionist is different as well as each doctor. I speak to mine all the time because she lives two houses down from me. You may just need to try some different approaches to see what works best for your body.

I'm 5'6" and 204 pounds. both doctor and nutritionist say keeping my calories to less than 900 is great (if I can do it, but if I need the other 100 calories, then to use them. I do also have PCOS so that make weight loss a little harder sometimes.

How much you are eating now, I think 1000-1200 like Mis73 said is great place to start. If you have had weight loss at that level and don't anymore, and haven't changed your exercise routine drastically....then you might want to cut back a 100 calories and see what happens.

If you have never seen great weight loss, and you are only at 1000-1200 calories, then maybe adding an extra 100 might wake your metabolism up. You seem to be exercising a lot, so it could be possible you need more. It maybe a little of trial and error untill you figure out what works best for you.

[flab u less 45]

Up until Sunday I was at 500 to 600. But hardly had energy for the gym and getting through the day.my nutricianist said that that's what t should be but still was gaining like a pound a week. So as of Sunday I am doing 800,to 900 and we will see how I do on Saturday again.

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