Diets: Mistakes and Myths #2

M&M #2: You Should Starve Yourself to Lose Weight WRONG!

I cannot count how many times I have heard people talking about losing weight and the only logical way was for them to starve themselves. They at that point tell you that it's OK, because they're on a "diet". They obviously want to lose weight at a very fast pace and in their eyes, dramatically cutting down a big amount of calories is the way to go. Let me make it clear: Nobody should ever have the feeling that they need to starve themselves to lose weight. Ever!

It is logical to think that in order to lose weight we need to lower our caloric intake, but there is a correct way to do so. Starving yourself won't help you with that. I can assure you 100% that starving yourself to remove those few pounds will only bring you two results: 1.) you will only harm your body (even if you can't see this happening), and 2.) the weight that you lost during that starvation diet will come back twofold. Losing weight is important but not as nearly as much as being in good health.

Let's Talk More About the Health Issues from Starvation and the Non-Productivity of It

During that starvation process a few symptoms will occur:

1. Lack of energy resulting in fatigue
2. Lack of concentration
3. Dizziness
4. Stomach pain
5. Difficulty to get warm
6. Depression 
7. Mood swings

Now that's what you can feel and see. With starvation, obviously malnutrition occurs, and this will bring a whole new set of health issues that you won't feel or see at first. Let me paint you a picture.

The body needs a certain amount of calories to function properly, even when dieting. If the number of calories drops too low, here's what will happen: 

Your body will enter a survival mode; it will grab onto anything that it can to find to use as energy. After the body's glycogen stores are exhausted, the body will break down fat. But fat can't be converted back to glycogen. The body will then break down protein and tissues (muscle and bones). The minimum that your body needs to function won't be filled anymore. Within a certain amount of time, serious health issues will appear. For example the size of the muscles around your heart will reduce, leading to low blood pressure and a slow pulse - if this continues, it will lead to heart failure. Your lungs will be affected, and your kidneys (dehydration, electrolytes imbalance) and liver will also reach failure. All that doesn't sound like fun, especially when good weight loss results can be achieved without going through that starvation diet process.

Those crash/starvation diets will result in "yo-yo" dieting. The weight lost will be mostly water weight and lean muscle mass. And as previously explained, all this will come back to haunt you. You will have lost a few pounds but you will have the look known as "Skinny Fat". To maintain a proper diet you need to have a healthy balance of eating. Other posts will be about different diets and goals. 

But on average you need to follow a few rules during a weight loss diet. You need to adjust your diet for the long term. Short starvation cycles will never work in the long run. You need to eat to lose weight. Crazy? Absolutely not. You need to eat five small meals per day. Why is that beneficial when wanting to lose weight? You are boosting your metabolism - you're in what's called a thermic effect. It's like leaving the engine on all day, so your body keeps working and working. This keeps your metabolism in high gear. One other rule of weight loss is exercise. Working out burns fat. Plain and simple.

In conclusion: Eat five times a day, eat protein (complete) in each meal, eat whole wheat carbs, veggies and fruits, low fat, stay hydrated all day and exercise 3 to 4 times a week. Stick to these guidelines and you will be on the path to a better healthy life style.