Weight Gain with fewer calories??

I was just wondering, I have heard that if you cut your calories too low, you will start to gain weight?? I heard it had something to do with the fact that your body "goes into starvation mode" and holds on to whatever is in there and thus the weight gain. This sounds completely untrue to me, but if others out there think so, please let me know your understanding because it doesn't make any sense to me.  But I do want to know.

Seldom will you gain weight. More likely your weight loss will slow or stop, you lose muscle mass, your metabolism slows, your body dislikes you. Starvation mode is more commonly seen as a halt in weight loss despite having a large calorie deficit.

In certain cases, when people are eating too little but eating on a stave-binge cycle (eating 500 cals a day 4 days, 2500 cals the next day), they can gain weight even though the calorie average is still too low (900 per day in this example).

Also, the body can only burn so much fat per day, because the metabolic process is slow. So in addition to being harmful, undereating is also pointless, because your body isn't burning any excess fat than it would on a healthy moderately calorie restricted diet. Though you may lose more muscle mass.

I would like to know more about this as well. I have a calorie deficit of about 1500-2000 calories a day, and have been stuck at the same weight now for almost two weeks, and have even gained a pound despite working out and everything. Ugggh.

minda_spk explains it very well.  If you have a moderate calorie deficit over a long time or a severe calorie deficit over a short time your body reacts as if there is a famine i.e. it slows down the rate at which is uses energy in an attempt to keep the person alive.   When this happens, the person will find it easier to gain weight by just eating a little more than normal because they're not using up the same energy.    There are lots of recorded cases of people post gastric-band surgery, living on extremely low calories due to their very small stomach size, and not only failing to lose more weight but even regaining it

Obviously, if you keep eating at a very low level you will eventually lose more weight.... 'starvation' they call that and it's potentially fatal

A calorie deficit of 700 is the most efficient for weight-loss and good health.  Go past a deficit of 1000 and you're more at risk of malnutrition.   So raise your calorie intake if you want to a) lose weight and b) not be sick

My biggest confusion is deciding how much I really burn?  Maybe gi-jane can help...  At 5'8", ~150, 25 y.o., I walk at least an hour every day to get around, am active enough around the house cleaning, cooking, and at work I walk around at least once an hour to get stuff done.  Mondays and Wednesdays I have vb practice and play squash and burn between 1000-1400 cal in 3 hours according to my HRM.  I play squash on Fridays, for about 400 cal, and sometimes I'll do weights or run if I'm bored on the other days.  I eat 1500 cal consistently but am not losing any weight.  Am I not eating enough, if I burn 3000 cal 2 days a week, but only around 2200 the other days?

About three years ago, I dropped the amount I ate to very little in order to compensate for my new desk job. I lived a very sedentary life sitting in my office chair all day. I would estimate I ate around 1000 calories a day, and mostly carbohydrates.

Over the course of 3 years, I went from 130lbs to 185lbs. I gained 55lbs.

I finally decided that enough was enough. I started reading. I realized that I had basically been starving myself. I wasn't providing my body with enough calories or the right kinds of nutrients it needed. In those 3 years, I basically slowed my metabolism down to a crawl. And all that time I was wondering, "How am I gaining so much weight? I'm barely eating." I was hungry all the time.

Since I started seriously dieting 2 weeks ago, I've lost 6 lbs. I eat 1400-1500 calories a day. I do not do any more or less physical activity than I used to, though I do find myself enjoying my walks more.

The moral of the story is, I'm eating more and losing weight because my body sees that it's no longer starving. It's increasing my metabolism on its own. I also make sure to eat lots and lots of protein now, something that was seriously missing before. Spacing out meals throughout my day also helps. I eat about 6 times a day, small meals, snacks really, but I'm eating all the time. This keeps my body burning and I'm never, ever hungry.

There's lots of information from experts online about the appropriate calorie deficit. Really, do not overdo it. You'd think you would lose more when you've got a 1500 calorie deficit, but you're not. I keep my deficit at around 600 on the average day, more if I go for walks and such. It's been working like a charm and I feel fantastic!

Original Post by tink8:

At 5'8", ~150, 25 y.o., I walk at least an hour every day.... etc.

Use the CC calculator and set your activity level to 'moderately active' as a good working average. 150lbs is a perfectly healthy weight for someone 5'8". Because you're going to be quite muscular through the exercise you do I think you're unlikely to get below your current weight.

Give me some tips then all! Because I struggling to meet the 1000 calories a day! Sounds weird but I started a low carb and low calorie diet and my body really responds well to that. Carbs make me bloat, my digestive tract icky ( tmi I know). But when I cut the carbs my belly isn't bloated, I don't feel heavy or sluggish, and so on. So I like the low carb but it is hard to get to a 1000 calories when you are eating lots of veggies, protein and occasional high fiber breads. I do eat! Here is an example of a day for me....

Breakfast: omlete made of 1 egg, about half a cup of cheese, and some strawberries. Sometimes half a toast with almond butter as well

Lunch: Low carb shake or chef salad, sugar free jell-o

Dinner: Fish or chicken grilled, large salad, with balsamic vinegar or lemon juice and salt ( so good!!!) , or steamed veggies with butter.

That is just an example of a day for me.

Jell-o has no calories, strawberries nada, and the rest make up about a 200 calorie meal. So that would be putting me at about 600-700 calories a day. I am not a snacker at this pt. because I am not hungry, and sometimes I don't finish all my meals because I get full.

So to me it seems balanced and not very depriving except on carbs. I don't want to hit a platue or mess up my body but I just don't understand what I am not doing. As of now I have dropped 10 lbs. and a few inches since Aug. 3rd. and a total of 25 lbs. since february. I want to keep seeing results so I don't get discouraged.

Tips galore! Prepare for a long reply : )

First of all, the body is amazingly adaptable, which is why you don't feel hungry. In my experience, the lack of hunger is also a pretty good sign your metabolism is figuring you out and will slow soon. 10 lbs since Aug 3rd is nice, though on this diet I would predict that you will almost completely stop losing weight by the middle/end of september. That's what my body would do anyway. Point is, a lack of hunger is not a reliable sign that all is well.

There is absolutely no need or benefit to eating less than 1000 calories a day. I think I wrote this earlier, but your body can only metabolize a small amount of body fat for energy each day, so eating less than it can use is just going to make your metabolism dislike you. This is also why it's recommended to only lose 1% of your weight per week, because more than that is not fat, it's muscle (or sometimes water early on in a diet).

Now that the lecture is done (and it may be unneccessary since you're asking for advice, but I can't resist), on to specific tips : )

1. Strength training. Research shows that resistance training is the best way to retain muscle mass during weight loss, and biggest help in keeping a metabolism from adjusting quickly to a calorie deficit. Plus, in my experience, it's guaranteed to make you hungrier : ) Don't be a afraid of weights. Right now I'm using the New Rules of Lifting for Women, and loving it. It's maybe 40 min, 3 times a week, so make resistance training a priority. Personally, I also find it makes me think a lot more in terms of 'feeding my body.' Making sure the protein, fats and veggies are all coming into play.

2. Force yourself to up your calories. It might seem counter-intuitive, but a month from not when you can't lose weight on 1000 calories a day, your options are nil, and the chances of really getting enough nutrition from under 1200 a day is unlikely. Your body will adjust to a new eating schedule.
- Make a 2 egg omelet for breakfast
- Add a snack of nuts and/or fruit mid-morning
- Add beans to your salad, or a side dish to your shake (bananas go great with chocolate shakes)
- Add in a small afternoon snack, nuts and fruit are always my go-to (apples and peanut butter... yum), but be creative.
- If you're still having trouble eating enough, adding in some higher calorie proteins some days at dinner is always an option. Like red meat. Also you could add pan fried veggies, sweet potatoes, etc.

The thing about eating every 3-4 hours is that this is shown to be the best way to control one's blood sugar, which equals increased insulin sensitivity, which equals less resistance to weight loss and a better metabolism, so make an effort. Nuts, fruit, peanut butter sandwichs, campbell's soup at hand all travel well on the go. Also, the whole 'don't drink your calories' rule is really meant for people who are having trouble keeping calories low. Nesquik comes in 100 calorie bottles with 8 grams of protein. Yoohoo juice boxes are also 100 calories. I, obviously, love chocolate milk, but my point is to read labels, you may be surprised how things not marketed as 'health food' can easily fit into your diet.

I also eat low carb. Not really on purpose, but because I strive to eat a protein and nutrient rich diet and carbs just don't end up there often. Here is a sample of my day, just to help out ()

Breakfast: 2 egg veggie and cheese omelete (374)
Snack: Light protein shake and banana (205)
Lunch: Salad (lettuce, tomato, cucumber, cheese, croutons, meat/beans). (400)
Snack: Apple slices with peanut butter (260)
Dinner: T-Bone Steak, spaghetti squash, green beans (500)
Snack: Nesquik and mixed nuts (260)
Total: 2000

This would be a workout day, on non-workout days, I cut out one snack, and eat 1800 calories. It's easy to get caught up in the idea of what healthy food is, and end up eating too few calories. There are a lot of healthy things that are fairly high in calories. Avacados, nuts, and fruit being good examples. If you want to eat more calories without a lot more mass, that's where I would start.

Hope this helps