To be uneasy/confused by what the weight loss coach said?

[QuestionableMouse]

Just left an appointment with her after being referred by my GP for help losing weight.

She told me I must eat within and hour of getting up and something at lunch or my body will go into "starvation mode" and hang on to fat. I thought the whole starvation mode thing was proven to be rubbish? And that I have to exercise more.

It's left me a bit bemused and not sure how helpful the whole thing is going to be!

She's talking absolute nonsense about diet, though she's right to suggest you exercise more.

Yeah nah. That's bullshit. Although eating in the morning can help to ensure you eat fewer calories throughout the day. It's got nothing to do with starvation mode though. It's because of we wait until we are starving before eating we are more likely to overeat.

It’s bollocks. Lots of people don’t eat until later in the day and it’s better for you IMO!

Are you a snacker? I eat less if I follow that advice because I don’t get the starvation signals.

Earing in the morning - breakfast break fast of overnight, helps... skipping breakfast is detrimental.

I suppose suggesting lunch is in keeping with small meals regular and often, less likely to graze etc.

Maybe she cba explaining properly? Either way not good for a professional

You need a different coach. She hasn't got a clue.

I'm struggling a bit ATM due to anemia but I'm trying!

I do eat on a morning but it's usually not within an hour of waking.

I usually get up, have a coffee, do whatever housework needs doing and then eat.

Not particularly. I used to be but not so much now.

Yes starvation mode is absolutely a myth. If not eating stopped people from losing weight, how are anorexics thin? People in concentration camps? How do people starve to death? Ridiculous notion.

She used the phrase "starvation mode" several times.

I’ve actually heard the same “starvation mode” speech from two very well-known Slimming Club organisations, but am pretty sure it’s been debunked now.

I agree. Show me a fat starving person!

She talks rubbish and I am shocked that she has a job she knows nothing about the subject of.

Skipping breakfast isn’t detrimental, it doesn’t exist. Whenever you eat you’re breaking a fast, aren’t you. You contradicted yourself - breakfast = breaking your fast, doesn’t matter if you do that in the morning or at lunchtime, doesn’t matter if you do that with cereal or a jacket potato.

Absolutely agree. The truth is the less you eat, the more weight you will lose. And the longer you go between meals the better. Some might not consider it to be healthy but it’s the truth.

Only going off what the NHS dietician told my mum recently...

It’s far better not to eat in the morning.

I hardly ever eat breakfast because it just makes me hungrier and I eat more later in the day. But everyone is different. The science suggests there is no right or wrong about it. https://www.sciencefocus.com/the-human-body/michael-mosley-the-truth-about-breakfast
I worked in healthcare . When people were unable to eat for medical reasons the weight fell off them rapidly. People in areas where food is scarce are underweight and malnourished. The idea of your body going into starvation mode when you are cutting calories is rubbish

Yeah, that advice doesn't seem up to date with current thinking.

I think eating regularly can help some people lose weight if that person is in a habit of restricting then binging or skipping a meal then eating lots of high calorie foods. My friend lost weight by eating 3 times a day proper full decent sized meals with no puddings and no snacking (eg scrambled egg and spinach on toast for breakfast). It was just what worked for her - it reassured her brain that another decent meal was coming soon. But it didn't work by correcting "starvation mode" in a physical way, regular meals just helped her brain to enable her stay in a calorie deficit.

Of course exercise is good for your overall health and wellbeing but there's quite a lot of evidence now that it's not very impactful on actual weight loss with that being very much tied to diet not exercise levels. As I understand it your body is generally clever enough to try and make up the burnt off calories with additional food/appetite so it's really about diet.

Honestly I think my weight is mostly due to hormones/pcos but my GP isn't interested in looking into it more despite me actually begging in my last appointment! I'm 40 so peri may also be at play ☹️

to be honest, it's individual.

People should learn to listen to their actual needs. SOME people are better off eating in the morning, and will have a light lunch and not be overly hungry later.

SOME people work better when they are on a an intermittent fasting plan and feel better keeping all food between a few hours, say 11am to 5pm.

Not everyone has the same activity either. If you are going for a 15k run, you probably should fuel up a bit before you leave!

Exactly.
I do know someone who is obese who doesn’t eat all day until their evening meal, but they are so hungry by then that they have massive portions.

Isn't the current advice to eat through the day (eg eat 3 meals and non skip any) because when we're not hungry we can make better (less emotional) choices eg more protein/fruit/veg, fewer simple carbs and better portion control. It's why people advocate meal prepping salads in the fridge or overnight oats or whatever. And if we stay satiated we remove the food noise and we're less likely to crave and snack on sugary things?

Being generous, I wonder if that what's she's meaning by "starvation mode". More the psychology behind what we eat and why. Less about the metabolism which has been debunked

Nonsense.

I've always eaten breakfast in the morning and I've always been slim. It's been the same with my whole family and they've all been slim.

I still eat a good lunch and dinner. That's just the way I work.

It's purely up to individual preference when a person breaks their overnight 'fast'. I have to eat breakfast in the morning or I feel sick and hungry all morning.

Others can't face food in the morning. Neither way is wrong.

And bodies don't go into 'starvation mode' after a few hours of skipping food in the morning.