How do we lose weight if we're eating so few calories?

[Roudoudou 4]

Hi, everyone! I know after weight loss surgery, we're eating maybe 400 - 600 calories per day. Maybe a bit more, but certainly less than 1200 calories per day. I was always told that you never wanted to eat less than 1200 calories per day or your body would go into starvation mode. So, how does this work? How do we lose weight when we're eating so little? Wouldn't our body try to "hold on" to as many calories as possible and make the weight come off very slowly?

Just a bit confused as it seems counter-intuitive to what I've always heard. Any insight would be appreciated!

Thanks!

Ann

[chilo1 62]

There is a lot of controversy about this subject. I, for one, believe that that is the case, we do go into starvation mode after a few months and we need to up our calories eventually to around 1200. A lot of people however continue to lose weight on less than 1000 calories, but in my opinion it's not the healthiest way to do it.

[Rootman 1,101]

If you have excessive fat to burn and are eating SOME caloric intake and getting adequate Vitamins then it is completely healthy to eat that few calories. Yes, your body does some things to slow down the metabolism and effectively go into "starvation mode" but it cannot maintain it, eventually the signals that tell the body to not burn the precious fat resources it has packed away for years HALT and the body MUST burn fat in order to survive. Muscle can also be digested as well and this is why you need to eat enough Protein and exercise some to maintain the lean muscle mass.

The body cannot break the laws of physics, it needs energy to survive and gets that energy though food and deposits a portion of the excess that's left as body fat. Don't eat enough and the body slows down, nails, hair and skin slow down their growth, SOME cell division slows down, you get weary and tired. Keep up the low calories (LOW - not NONE or say a ridiculously low amount like 300) and the body reabsorbs and uses the fat as energy. If the body STAYED in starvation mode you would get very week and probably get very sick or die - like anorexics do.

[Tiffykins 672]

True starvation mode is a myth, and has been debunked by hundreds of dieticians and exercise physiologists. Think of the tribes in India and Africa that eat meat primarily, very little to zero carbs, and they aren't dying from starvation. Our bodies have enough fat stores to supply energy for months. I rarely hit over 800 calories a day in my losing stage, and never, I mean NEVER experienced a stall until I got within just a few pounds of being at goal and even then it only lasted around 10 days, then I dropped several pounds dropping me 2 pounds below goal. The difference is if you are burning 1200 calories a day, and only 400 calories at a normal body weight. Think anorexic/bulimic/excessive and obsessive exercisers that have little to zero body fat that are truly starving themselves, there's a big difference when our obese bodies have high percentages of body fat to burn and use for energy. The liver will breakdown the fat to glycogen for energy.

Your body be lethargic, and you can feel listless with the huge caloric decrease, and it takes time for the body to adjust. The big difference is staying hydrated, feeding the body nutrients/vitamins via healthy food options that are lean, low calories, healthy fats and Vitamins to ensure proper nutrition that is being absorbed.

There is muscle wasting, and other breakdown of body functions if you are truly starving yourself, but going low calorie for short amounts of time is not going to automatically stop or halt your weight loss.

Even as I was getting into maintenance, adding in more calories, fats, and carbs, my body still lost weight. It took several months for me to get my loss to stop.

[Roudoudou 4]

Thank you for the great answers, especially Tiffy! That makes sense. I feel good, I'm losing, so I'm going to keep doing what I'm doing. Thanks again!

Ann