David Dernie
New member
Hello All!!
Whilst I'm relatively new to this forum and I think it's awesome for keeping each other motivated I'm concerned at how so many people want super fast weight loss diets and are happy to do/try anything for it.
There are so many types of diets out there that all make massive claims about how quickly their diet will help you lose weight. And, for most of them, I'm sure they do. Most diets are a variation of a theme; reduce calories either by food or exercise or both. Some calorie deficits are much bigger than others, and some are so extreme you will lose a lot of weight.
Also as a general rule the bigger you are at the start the more weight you'll lose in the first instance, so try not to compare yourself to someone who is significantly bigger than yourself if they are losing a lot more weight than you.
BUT....
What happens once you go back to your normal eating habits or crash because the diet is so extreme?
You've guessed it weight gain, and lots of it.
WHY does this happen?
When you start on a diet the general idea is to reduce calorie intake so that your body uses more calories than you consume, and therefore, weight loss.
Lets use an example. Your normal calorie requirement is 2500 calories and suddenly its dropped to 1500.
Leading to a 1000 calorie deficit. Over a weak you'll lose approximately 2 pounds.
The larger the deficit the more weight you'll lose.
But in time, your body will reduce its calorie demands to match what you're giving it, meaning your body kinda adapts to only having 1500 calories and lowers its resting metabolic rate.
Weight loss slows down and comes to a grinding halt.
This leads to perceived failure and your normal eating habits commence. Suddenly bumping your calorie intake back up to normal levels, in this case 2500 calories.
Suddenly you're feeding your body 1000 calories more than it needs and hey presto weight is put back on.
The Solution
A healthy weight loss is around 1lb per week. Of course if you have a lot of weight to lose this will be significantly more in the early days but it will start to level out. Anything more than 1lb for most people is a loss of water weight and not fat.
Another important point is that weight loss is not linear, meaning you might not lose weight every week. In these cases don't panic. Keep consistent, take your measurements, give it another week and adjust from there if needed.
Personally, I love flexible dieting.
Why?
For me, life is not always planned or certain. Flexibility is a must. I need to stay in shape, feel good, work hard, have high energy levels, socialise and have fun. I can't do this if my diet is too restrictive.
I eat the foods I love and follow a simple set of guidelines......
Simple.
Hope this helps,
David
Whilst I'm relatively new to this forum and I think it's awesome for keeping each other motivated I'm concerned at how so many people want super fast weight loss diets and are happy to do/try anything for it.
There are so many types of diets out there that all make massive claims about how quickly their diet will help you lose weight. And, for most of them, I'm sure they do. Most diets are a variation of a theme; reduce calories either by food or exercise or both. Some calorie deficits are much bigger than others, and some are so extreme you will lose a lot of weight.
Also as a general rule the bigger you are at the start the more weight you'll lose in the first instance, so try not to compare yourself to someone who is significantly bigger than yourself if they are losing a lot more weight than you.
BUT....
What happens once you go back to your normal eating habits or crash because the diet is so extreme?
You've guessed it weight gain, and lots of it.
WHY does this happen?
When you start on a diet the general idea is to reduce calorie intake so that your body uses more calories than you consume, and therefore, weight loss.
Lets use an example. Your normal calorie requirement is 2500 calories and suddenly its dropped to 1500.
Leading to a 1000 calorie deficit. Over a weak you'll lose approximately 2 pounds.
The larger the deficit the more weight you'll lose.
But in time, your body will reduce its calorie demands to match what you're giving it, meaning your body kinda adapts to only having 1500 calories and lowers its resting metabolic rate.
Weight loss slows down and comes to a grinding halt.
This leads to perceived failure and your normal eating habits commence. Suddenly bumping your calorie intake back up to normal levels, in this case 2500 calories.
Suddenly you're feeding your body 1000 calories more than it needs and hey presto weight is put back on.
The Solution
A healthy weight loss is around 1lb per week. Of course if you have a lot of weight to lose this will be significantly more in the early days but it will start to level out. Anything more than 1lb for most people is a loss of water weight and not fat.
Another important point is that weight loss is not linear, meaning you might not lose weight every week. In these cases don't panic. Keep consistent, take your measurements, give it another week and adjust from there if needed.
Personally, I love flexible dieting.
Why?
For me, life is not always planned or certain. Flexibility is a must. I need to stay in shape, feel good, work hard, have high energy levels, socialise and have fun. I can't do this if my diet is too restrictive.
I eat the foods I love and follow a simple set of guidelines......
Simple.
Hope this helps,
David
