Extreme low calorie diets may be harming you more than you know...

[cheri]

With so many people trying to get as much weight off as they can as quickly as they can... so much so they are eating so very little and may unknowingly be damaging their health. I wanted to post this and a few other issues your weightloss journeys... I hope this helps... this has been confirmed by a friends doctor and my doctor has also said this in the past.. so I wanted to pass it on to you

A doctor in Wisconsin who specializes in weightloss has said that extreme low calorie diets are unhealthy and can have some detremential effects to your body. It is harmful to reduce your daily calorie intake lower than 700 calories per day... even lower then 1400 calories can have negative affects.

If you reduce your calorie intake too much, your body adjusts to a semi-starvation state and looks for alternative sources of energy. In this case, in addition to burning fat, your body will eventually burn muscle tissue. Since your heart is a muscle (and your body will start burning your largest muscle first), prolonged starvation will weaken it and interfere with its normal rhythms. Extreme low-calorie diets lack protein, carbohydrates, fat, vitamins and minerals. Without these nutrients your body cannot function normally. Extreme low-calorie diets are NOT recommended. Safe weight reduction relies on a balanced diet combined with physical activity. Many fad diets emphasize eating a lot of one kind of food rather than a variety of foods. But eating a variety of foods is the only way to ensure that you are obtaining all the nutrients your body needs. Before trying a new diet, see a nutritionist or clinician.

If you have ever been on a low-calorie diet, you may have noticed that the rate of your weight loss tapered off over time. Also, most people who go back to eating normally after being on a very low-calorie diet will gain back all the weight they lost, plus a few pounds. Resistance to weight change is mostly due to changes in the metabolic rate. When you consume fewer calories, your metabolic rate decreases and then your bodies need for energy also decreases.

On-going exercise and healthy eating can help you get through that period of time with no weight loss. If you are meant to lose more weight, eventually weight loss will continue. Keep in mind that sometimes a weight loss slump is the body?s way of telling you that you may not need to lose more weight.

Some people also feel that you can diet and not exercise or exercise but not diet to lose weight... WRONG. You need to do both. I can tell you from personal experience after losing over 100 pounds that you HAVE to exercise while you are dieting. What good is losing all that weight when you are not exercising to tone all of that up? It is an essential part of your diet experience... believe me. I have lost weight without exercising... and it aint purty. My doctor told me that I HAVE to exercise to get myself looking better. I feel that some of my body had been looking like a deflated balloon but you know what... when I exercise... it looks pretty durn good in some of the bad areas.. so I am going to continue doing it right... exercise... drinking water.. taking vitamins, and not going absolutely crazy over these extreme diets will keep the weight off because doctors will tell you that diets that restrict, restrict, restrict people are so demanding on the dieter that people are unable to stay on them for the long term. People go off and on them so much that they will not work any longer. I have also seen people jump from diet to diet to diet to keep the weight coming off... Eating less and less calories... less and less carbohydrates.. hurting their bodies and metabolism. And you know what... I want to LIVE after I get to goal.. I don't want to die or permanently hurt myself trying to get there. So please play it safe. Eat a balanced diet. Yes, that includes everything that so many people are doing without to get that quick weightloss. You all know how to do this... talk to your doctors.. There is no use hurting yourself while dieting because then you can't enjoy the success of getting your body to where you want it to be... You want to be thin AND healthy... not just thin.



cheri

[Tooter]

Thank you, Cheri. It's funny, I was just re-reading The Schwarzbein Principle tonight and was reading, pretty much, the very same thing you posted.

[cheri]

Tooter... I think if most people would talk to their doctors they would find they would be steered away from extreme dieting. (Atkins is not extreme dieting btw since we can have lots of veggies) I remember the first time I tried the lowcarb diet... I thought okay... my common sense tells me that if I cut my carbs lower and eat less then what atkins says I should lose even faster.. I started skipping meals but then something bad happened and people might remember me posting this years ago... I ended up in my doctors office because I was extremely dizzy and actually passed out. My doctor read me the riot act and told me I wasn't eating near enough. He is all for the Atkins diet but thought I was doing it to the extreme... and I got sick. I upped my carbs and the amount of food I was eating and ended up losing much better and felt better and best of all I could really stick to it. I post now and then reminding people about this because I love everyone here and want them to diet safe.

[jezzie]

You want to be thin AND healthy... not just thin.

You've got that right. Without good health it's all meaningless.

[Tooter]

Cheri, I totally agree with you. Atkins was never ment to be doing "Induction" for the rest of your life. Induction was for 2 weeks to clean you out and let you start from scratch. There are other chapters in the book. lol I think we all have tried the "extreme" thing when we get caught up in "Weight Loss" mentality. It's like most of us threw out the other chapters in the book on adding in Good Carbs and how to adjust and readjust. You are so right, it's not just about weight loss, first and foremost it must be about Health.

The only other thing I could add to your awesome post, is that Fats and calories are also important for our Hormone systems to funtion properly. Good Fats are EXTREMLY important for this. Reguardless of what anyone might say, there truly IS a starvation mode. You can totally screw up the delicate balance that different hormones play in your body and you can do permanent damage.

Schwarzbein talked about how this can totally mess up your thyroid and other organs and glands.

It shouldn't be a RACE to get thin. It should be a Journey to good health.

With all the damage that most of us have done to our bodies, it takes time for our bodies to heal. Give your body that time. Just keep eating right. Keep at it. After your body has time to heal up, the weight comes off and you'll be the weight you are supposed to be, what ever that is.

I LOVED your post.

[JaneyDoe]

Bravo Cheri! Excellent post

[AllieCat0817]

Originally Posted by cheri

A doctor in Wisconsin who specializes in weightloss has said that extreme low calorie diets are unhealthy and can have some detremential effects to your body. It is harmful to reduce your daily calorie intake lower than 700 calories per day... even lower then 1400 calories can have negative affects.

If you reduce your calorie intake too much, your body adjusts to a semi-starvation state and looks for alternative sources of energy. In this case, in addition to burning fat, your body will eventually burn muscle tissue. Since your heart is a muscle (and your body will start burning your largest muscle first), prolonged starvation will weaken it and interfere with its normal rhythms. Extreme low-calorie diets lack protein, carbohydrates, fat, vitamins and minerals. Without these nutrients your body cannot function normally. Extreme low-calorie diets are NOT recommended. Safe weight reduction relies on a balanced diet combined with physical activity. Many fad diets emphasize eating a lot of one kind of food rather than a variety of foods. But eating a variety of foods is the only way to ensure that you are obtaining all the nutrients your body needs. Before trying a new diet, see a nutritionist or clinician.

If you have ever been on a low-calorie diet, you may have noticed that the rate of your weight loss tapered off over time. Also, most people who go back to eating normally after being on a very low-calorie diet will gain back all the weight they lost, plus a few pounds. Resistance to weight change is mostly due to changes in the metabolic rate. When you consume fewer calories, your metabolic rate decreases and then your bodies need for energy also decreases.

On-going exercise and healthy eating can help you get through that period of time with no weight loss. If you are meant to lose more weight, eventually weight loss will continue. Keep in mind that sometimes a weight loss slump is the body?s way of telling you that you may not need to lose more weight.

Some people also feel that you can diet and not exercise or exercise but not diet to lose weight... WRONG. You need to do both. I can tell you from personal experience after losing over 100 pounds that you HAVE to exercise while you are dieting. What good is losing all that weight when you are not exercising to tone all of that up? It is an essential part of your diet experience... believe me. I have lost weight without exercising... and it aint purty. My doctor told me that I HAVE to exercise to get myself looking better. I feel that some of my body had been looking like a deflated balloon but you know what... when I exercise... it looks pretty durn good in some of the bad areas.. so I am going to continue doing it right... exercise... drinking water.. taking vitamins, and not going absolutely crazy over these extreme diets will keep the weight off because doctors will tell you that diets that restrict, restrict, restrict people are so demanding on the dieter that people are unable to stay on them for the long term. People go off and on them so much that they will not work any longer. I have also seen people jump from diet to diet to diet to keep the weight coming off... Eating less and less calories... less and less carbohydrates.. hurting their bodies and metabolism. And you know what... I want to LIVE after I get to goal.. I don't want to die or permanently hurt myself trying to get there. So please play it safe. Eat a balanced diet. Yes, that includes everything that so many people are doing without to get that quick weightloss. You all know how to do this... talk to your doctors.. There is no use hurting yourself while dieting because then you can't enjoy the success of getting your body to where you want it to be... You want to be thin AND healthy... not just thin.



cheri

AGREEEEDDDD! Skinny flabby = NOT CUTE. EAT EAT EAT! Exercise exercise exercise!

[Tooter]

Originally Posted by AllieCat0817

AGREEEEDDDD! Skinny flabby = NOT CUTE. EAT EAT EAT! Exercise exercise exercise!

Our "Sgt AllieCat" has spoken!!

[astrl]

It's interesting that you posted that, cheri. My doctor put me on a 1200 calorie diet last month. While I don't actively follow it, I usually stick pretty close just doing Atkins '72 Induction.

[jezzie]

I've never done low calorie. Well never lower than 1650 anyway.

I did go too far in the other direction.
When Dr. Atkins first started doing Infomercials (before A_N_A) it was all about fat.

Bacon and eggs, lobster drenched in butter, etc. etc..

He definitely did not emphasize vegetables in those days.
(Nor net carb, SF treats)
The only greens I ever ate: two cups of loosely packed salad.

Yes the weight melted off but there was always this nagging voice in the back of my mind.
I'm glad I finally listened to it. Three pounds a month loss is fine with me.
.

[Tooter]

Originally Posted by jezzie

I've never done low calorie. Well never lower than 1650 anyway.

I did go too far in the other direction.
When Dr. Atkins first started doing Infomercials (before A_N_A) it was all about fat.

Bacon and eggs, lobster drenched in butter, etc. etc..

He definitely did not emphasize vegetables in those days.
(Nor net carb, SF treats)
The only greens I ever ate: two cups of loosely packed salad.

Yes the weight melted off but there was always this nagging voice in the back of my mind.
I'm glad I finally listened to it. Three pounds a month loss is fine with me.
.

LOL I did that too!!! It's all about "balance"...I'm finding that out. I'm actually learning how to eat all over again. It's been an awesome journey.

[dae_tona]

Been there, done that. Starved myself to get down to a certain weight and when I started eating again, the weight came back on and I looked heavier than I EVER had before. (even though I wasn't all that heavy)

The other thing I realized - if you get thin eating 800 calories, then you will have to eat 500 calories to maintain that goal. I learned this from my own personal experience. Not worth it.

[CARLINI]

Originally Posted by Tooter

It's funny, I was just re-reading The Schwarzbein Principle tonight and was reading, pretty much, the very same thing you posted.

This is a great book and in reading it, for the first time, I got an explanation as to why I was sick on a low fat diet.

Thanks for this much needed post Cheri. Strangely enough, I was thinking about this very same thing in the shower this AM. In the last few months, I've made an effort to change my way of thinking from one of a "diet" to really one of a "way of life". I want to healthy and happy, not just skinny. So my focus is health, and not how fast I can lose weight. I don't fight my body anymore. I respond to the various messages it sends me. For example, I never ignore hunger anymore so I can lose weight faster. Why? Cause we need to eat to be healthy! After all the years of abuse with food, I'm trying to treat my body with some respect and give it what it needs to repair itself. Is eating very lowfat, lowcarb and lowcal good for my body? Sure it’s not! And why would I want to do that to myself?? We only have one body people, lets treat it kindly.

[palegirl]

I'm struggling with this right now. I'm so afraid to eat, I really want to maintain my current weight, and while not eating I'm not losing, which makes me even more terrified to eat. And then I binge, but now for me a binge looks a hell of a lot like anyone else just eating a meal. My head is really messed up right now, I'm eating almost nothing and I'm terrified of food. I don't think it's helping me that I look great. I never in a hundred years thought that I could look the way I do right now, I think it's my ideal body (in clothes only.)

Oh, and I've noticed that my skin isn't healing any more. I have bug bites still itching that are more than a week old, and raw skin & blisters on my feet that are more than a week old... The weird thing is that when I do eat it's fat and protein, so I would think my skin would be okay. But I can't really deny that it's not. It makes me scared of what's happening inside my body that I can't see.

[AllieCat0817]

Palegirl- sending you a hug!!! I'm not sure what the answer is for you, but many here can identify with what you are saying. At least you know there is an issue here-- I do see red flags. There are many here with experience with what you are saying. We should NOT fear food, it is our friend. We need it to live.

[jezzie]

palegirl ..... Great to see you again.

~jezzie from the Mid Hudson Valley.

[heather2578]

Thanks Cheri!! Eating too many calories is unhealthy, but we have to remember that eating too few of calories is unsafe too. Have to find that safe range, and there seem to be many theories on how to do this. I'm aiming for 1500-1800. I do not want to lose muscle or hurt my metabolism anymore than it already is!!

[Beaglesaroo]

Thank you for the initial post Cheri!

This point is good to remember too:

Originally Posted by cheri

Tooter... I think if most people would talk to their doctors they would find they would be steered away from extreme dieting. (Atkins is not extreme dieting btw since we can have lots of veggies) I remember the first time I tried the lowcarb diet... I thought okay... my common sense tells me that if I cut my carbs lower and eat less then what atkins says I should lose even faster.. I started skipping meals but then something bad happened and people might remember me posting this years ago... I ended up in my doctors office because I was extremely dizzy and actually passed out. My doctor read me the riot act and told me I wasn't eating near enough. He is all for the Atkins diet but thought I was doing it to the extreme... and I got sick. I upped my carbs and the amount of food I was eating and ended up losing much better and felt better and best of all I could really stick to it. I post now and then reminding people about this because I love everyone here and want them to diet safe.

And the this one brings up an extremely important point that many people seem to forget:

Originally Posted by dae_tona

Been there, done that. Starved myself to get down to a certain weight and when I started eating again, the weight came back on and I looked heavier than I EVER had before. (even though I wasn't all that heavy)

The other thing I realized - if you get thin eating 800 calories, then you will have to eat 500 calories to maintain that goal. I learned this from my own personal experience. Not worth it.

[Tater Head]

I needed to hear as a reminder today, so thank you.

Also, off topic, how you guys getting more then 1 quote in your post?

Debbie

[oreo2]

Good post.

[Dharma]

Lack of fat in the diet is the most dangerous thing of all!!!! Very low calorie diets are also low in fat (have to be). There are studies that show that fat in the absence of high carbs will NOT be stored as body fat.

I too experienced BAD symptoms from lowering my fat and calories too much last year. It's not worth it...

[Beaglesaroo]

Originally Posted by Tater Head

I needed to hear as a reminder today, so thank you.

Also, off topic, how you guys getting more then 1 quote in your post?

Debbie

Next to the quote button there's a button with quotation marks.....find a post you want to quote, hit that button, find the next post you want to quote and hit that button....Then go to the post reply button.

I'm not sure if there's a limit to how many you can quote, I've done 3 at least.

[Tater Head]

Originally Posted by Beaglesaroo

Next to the quote button there's a button with quotation marks.....find a post you want to quote, hit that button, find the next post you want to quote and hit that button....Then go to the post reply button.

I'm not sure if there's a limit to how many you can quote, I've done 3 at least.

thank you

[sugarless4life]

Originally Posted by Dharma

Lack of fat in the diet is the most dangerous thing of all!!!! Very low calorie diets are also low in fat (have to be). There are studies that show that fat in the absence of high carbs will NOT be stored as body fat.

I too experienced BAD symptoms from lowering my fat and calories too much last year. It's not worth it...

Very good advice. FAT IS OUR FRIEND.

Betty