Tell me if you personally would gain or lose weight on this

[Timmy2023]

39yo, 5ft 4, 144lbs. Walk about 11,000 steps a day (4 miles).

An example of a usual day:

Breakfast: porridge measured out - 280cals

Snack: 2 ryvita with Philadelphia light. Approx 100 cal.

Lunch: Baxter's chicken broth 164cal. 1 slice of rye 120cal

Dinner: grilled chicken breast, lettuce, tomato, cucumber, red cabbage, red onion, half a pitta bread. Approx 430cal.

Approx 1000 calories.

Would you lose or gain?

Oh my body definitely clings onto fat if I don’t eat enough. I’m sorry some people disagree with that, but for me it’s true. When I went into a severe calorie deficit after my jaw surgery I lost lots of weight. If I go into a moderate calorie deficit over a sustained period of time, then yes my metabolism then does get very sluggish. My appetite increases hugely and then the very moment I start to eat normally I gain rapidly.

Longer term if I stick to around 2000 calories a day, I am able to maintain a slim body, whilst not depriving myself. Eating too little just fucks with my hunger and metabolism to be honest and it’s certainly something I would not want to do day in, day out. Your body can adapt to lower intakes and then you’re fucked for the future.

It’s not that people disagree with it. They’re simply saying that ‘starvation mode’ just doesn’t exist, and that if somebody is being totally honest logging 1000 calories per day they will lose weight. It’s impossible not to, unless you’re some sort of medical marvel.

@Kanaloa

But restricting calories for extended periods of time does decrease your metabolic rate over longer periods of time. Your body definitely thinks another fast is upcoming and will stubbornly hold onto any fat incase of future famines. It’s a survival mechanism and it’s why people who diet get fatter and fatter. Unless of course they have an iron will and stick to 1000 calories every day for the rest of their lives.

Right, but what you’re describing is somebody who does not eat 1000 calories a day. OP says she does eat about that amount. So if she’s being honest about that then she (and everyone else) will lose weight. If she is in fact eating huge amounts then restricting calories she probably won’t, but the whole ‘eating less makes your body hold onto fat in starvation mode’ thing isn’t really true. If you binge eat then starve yourself you might not lose weight because overall your intake is still high, but it isn’t because you aren’t eating enough, it’s because some days you are eating too much.

@Kanaloa

I was on about 1000 a day for 6 weeks after my jaw surgery. Lost weight. I then started eating around 1500 a day for a further 6 weeks and I gained weight rapidly like I had never gained before. I certainly didn’t have the capacity to binge eat. Before my jaw surgery I happily ate 2000 a day and maintained but my body definitely cling onto fat for ages after my surgery.

It took months of consistently eating well plus weights to sort my metabolism out. I can now maintain on 2000. I think that’s what people mean by starvation mode. Dieting makes it sluggish and you don’t always need to binge eat to put weight on rapidly.

Maybe that’s what people mean, but in that case it isn’t relevant to op’s situation. She says she eats about 1000-1100 calories per day. If this is what she is eating then she will lose weight, because the body does not store fat when you are eating 1000 calories per day, it will use that fat and you will lose weight. The idea that eating less calories than you need means your body stores fat and goes into starvation mode is really misleading.

This is such a fucked up thread

The best seven words on the entire thread.

This thread is a goldmine for those with eating disorders. Lots and lots of tips on how to (further) restrict eating. Fucking hell.

I'd lose but I'd be miserable, grumpy and tired. I'd rather stay fat.

Probably stay the same. Am 5 2, eat a healthy diet, but if I eat anything more gain easily.

@Timmy2023
Looking at your height and weight you have a BMI at the top range of normal. You do a lot of exercise so you must be pretty fit and healthy . You don't need to lose weight. Eat too little and you can mess up your metabolism meaning you may become a yo-yo dieter for life . It's not worth it . Just carry on with the exercise and make sure your body gets the nutrients it needs .

It doesnt reduce your metabolism to the extent that you wont lose weight otherwise people wouldnt starve to death and anorexia wouldnt be such a serious fatal condition

You might be talking about two different issues, one is whether you/people would lose weight eating low cal, of course they would

The second issue is whether eating like that is likely to lead to someone not sticking to what they have decided for themselves and eating more and therefore not eating low cal = weight gain or weight maintenance.

But the first situation will always lead to weight loss if you eat less calories than your body needs.

I'm in my early 40s. Would lose weight, I suspect rapidly, and be sad and hungry.

I would be starving and angry all day.

I am 5ft 10, it’s 10:39 and I’ve eaten a full fat kefir yoghurt with granola, a slice of white bread toast and butter and an orange.

How can you manage to be active on so few calories?

I would lose weight and collapse from lack of calories probably.Then would binge eat.

Lose fast. I’d starve on that. I need min 2k to maintain (active lifestyle and fast metabolism) 1000cals would be too low calorie intake for me. I’d become ill.

Yes I'd lose weight, but I'd also not have the energy to keep active (I love running and pilates and my body needs fuelling for those), my hair skin and nails would be crap, I'd be missing out on tasty, filling and healthy meals just to be deprived and miserable on an unrealistically low level of calories.

If your BMR is 1300 you should not be going below this, and if you're relatively active you absolutely need more and you'll still lose weight. As you suggested I'd recommending investing in a dietician to help you work out what you need etc and also might be worth getting bloods done if you're recording calories actively and only having 1k but not losing weight.