I'm eating about 400 calories a day should I EAT LESS?

Question

For the last 3 weeks I have ate on average 400 calaories a day
. I usually eat one piece of fruit , or some lettuce leafs, and a spoonful of low fat yoghurt and a glass of fruit juice daily.
Do you think that is too much should I stop eating the yoghurt.

I am 30lb overweight and need to lose weight quickly!

Answer 1

400 calories is not enough calories for you to exercise and perform daily functions. Don't try to lose weight by starving yourself...it just isn't healthy. When you say overweight, is this your own assessment or the assessment of a certified nutritionist or doctor?

You cannot get fat eating fresh fruit and vegetables.

From what you mentioned:

Yogurt is good...stay with lowfat or non-fat if it makes you feel better, but this appears to be your only source of calcium right now, so don't cut it down. If you become calcium deficient, guess where your body is going to get it from? Your bones. You do NOT want an osteoporosis condition. Consume 2 to 3 8oz servings daily if you are not drinking milk. Depending on your age, you'll need at LEAST 1000 mg of calcium per day.

Fruit. You cannot get fat from eating the whole fruits. If you are hungry, eat a whole fruit. The fiber and sugar ratio of the whole fruit is much healthier than drinking it in its juiced form, which proportionately has more sugar. You want the fiber of the whole fruit to aid in keeping your weight down.

Vegetables. You cannot get fat from eating vegetables. Plus, the fiber from vegetables will also bind with the fat and toxins from your other foods (if you are eating any)...and out it goes into the toilet!

Proteins and carbohydrates. Where is it? You need these for your brain and muscles to develop and function. If you detest meat, go for beans and legumes...a wonderful source of dietary fiber. Favor complex carbohydrates over simple carbohydrates if you are concerned about weight. And definitely try to incorporate whole-grains into your meals wherever you can. Again, these beneficial fibers will bind to any fat and toxins that you are eating. Dietary fiber is insoluable material that cannot be absorbed into your body...so you also can't get fat from eating too much dietary fiber (but you might experience diarrhea...ease off the fiber if this happens.)

Also, not all fat is evil...some are essential for metabolism and healthy cholesterol levels (see link).

Don't plan on losing the weight too fast...this is also not healthy (it can cause irreversible damage to your liver and kidneys). Also, losing weight fast implies that you can gain it back in the same amount of time. Go for the healthier lifestyle instead if you want to manage your weight.

You want a healthy figure. You don't want to look like skin and bones, ready to faint.

Answer 2

I dont think you are eating enough to lose weight
I know this sounds weird but your metabolic rate will drop so low with only 400 calories a day that your body will go into 'starvation' mode and try to retain as many calories as possible.
What you could do is eat great big bowls of vegetables that are low in calories but trick your body into thinking that you are eating heaps. Also, if you dont eat enough fibre you will get constipated (eewwww!) and your bowel will slow down and not work properly.
I know what it is like to want to lose weight quickly - I know that feeling of desperation that you need to get it off but the way you are doing it is not good for you. Lettuce is not worth eating - has virtually no nutrients so go for brocolli, beans or cabbage instead. Fruit juice is a poor source of nutrients - try eating the whole orange instead - has more fibre.
I have been on very low calorie diets and didnt lose good amounts of weight until I added extra healthy food (vege/fruit).
You also need a little protein - so even if you have an egg white omelette with vege you will still lose good amount of weight.
What you say you eat each day does not amount to 400 calories - it is much less than that.

Just eating a balanced healthy diet: veges, fruit, cereals, protein some dairy would be a much better choice and you would lose weight faster.

Answer 3

Ok, well, 400 calories a day is an EXTREMELY unhealthy diet. A man's regular diet should be about 2,500 calories a day. If you are 30 pounds over weight, just make sure you have enough healthly foods to get you through the day, making sure that your diet is not over 2,000 calories. A 400 calorie diet is very bad for you. Your body will not have any fat reserves to take energy from, and instead, it will actually start eating away at your protein to make up for the missing fat! Eat a healthly diet, and excercise daily. Watch what you're eating. If you drink alcohol, stop drinking. Smoke, stop smoking. Anything that you don't necessarily need to eat/drink such as that extra coffee from Starbucks or that cookie, don't. Instead, try drinking a bottle of juice, 100% juice of course, something like Naked or Oddwalla, and instead of that cookie, eat some granola. It will help you get through the day much better. Drink plently of water too. If you are not loosing weight, but are gaining weight, and you have been following a healthly diet, excersing, and watching everything else you're doing, it will be, most likely, because you are gaining muscle, and losing that fat.

Eat plently of your food groups, maintain a good calorie limit, about 1800-2000 depending on your weight goal loss, drink lots of water, and excercise. Those are key components to maintaining a healthly weight AND life!

Answer 4

This low level of calorie intake will switch your body into starvation mode, where it conserves calories. This means you will minimise any weight loss!

Look around you if ANY of these faddy methods worked would we all be getting so overweight?

We are what we eat, but we are at least as much what we don't do. Calorie intakes in 1900 and 1950 were higher than they are now, we just don't use them up!

Eat a balanced diet with plenty of fruit and veg.

Take a healthy amount of exercise 30-40 minutes of vigorous exercise per day 4-5 days a week. I hate to think what percentage of the UK population does that 2%? 5%?

I have seen hundreds of questions with this same pattern :- I am fat, tell me where on line I can get this super diet or herbal/dangerous/illegal drug that I hear will fix it for me in 10 minutes without the need for me to get off the couch!

No fixes pal , less in more out, its the only way.

Answer 5

how much do u weight and how tall are u. u say 30 lbs overweight but didn't really give enough details. how quickly is quick? hope u don't think it should happen in a 1-2-3 or even 4 weeks. when i helped my sister lose weight, i had her eating something (healthy) every 4 hours (improving her metabolism). she lost 24lbs in the 1st month, but she was way more than 30 lbs over weight. before, she was only eating one meal a day which put her body into a starvation mode, so with everything she ate would be stored as fat. BUT when she stopped starving herself she started to lose the weight because it's not natural to starve u'r self.

Answer 6

no, what you're effectively doing is starving yourself. Please for your own sanity start eating properly. A healthy diet means light break such as yoghurt/fruit, or cereal. Have a sandwich at lunch and then a good dinner. Salads are great if you only light meals. But what youre eaten in a day should be a small lunch or breakfast. If you dont start eating your body will begin to burn muscle not fat as it trys to cope with the reduction in energy. 30lb would not be classed as overweight to any great degree, its the difference between needed the loo or not. Please for your own sanity get help, it sounds like youre getting an eating disorder. An average woman needs 1500 calories to function basically.

Answer 7

what the hell is wrong with you. Eat something. Sorry, but that is not how you loose weight and that is really not healthy. do you have any idea the vast impact that kind of eating can have on your cardiovascular system? The body goes into a starvation mode which makes it very hard to loose weight when you eat something like that. You are actually working against yourself. Look, you don't want to loose weight anyway, you want a body that looks good. THOSE ARE NOT THE SAME THING. Work out, exercise, get a hoby but eat something. Loosing weight is about caloric intake vs caloric output. Burn the calories, don't try to diet because it doesn't work. If you want to learn more or need help with this PLEASE CONTACT ME but do not treat your body like this.

Answer 8

wow, you need to stop! You're going to become very ill. 400 calories a day is 5x less than your body NEEDS to function! that probably means your body is working so hard that you will eventually be hospitalised due to exhaustion or starvation.
Why must you lose it quickly anyway? If you lose weight quickly your more likely to put it back on just as quick!
Steady yourself with a calorie intake of around 1500 - 1700. NOT 400! Combined with exercise the weight should easily come off!

Answer 9

Your correct calorie intake should be about 2500.
To loose weight in a sensible way you should be taking in around 1780 to 2000 calories. This should be accompanied by some daily exercise.
Your diet will lose you weight but you will not only lose fat but also body muscle and you will be too weak to do anything. Once you have reached your target weight in this way you will start eating more and up will go your weight. Slow steady and with exercise is the best way.
Happy Easter (No chocolate)

Answer 10

You cannot lose weight fast if you want it to stay off and keep the great figure taht your muscles give you.

You should aim to lose no more than 1 pound per week. You don't need to go mad on exercise, just an extra 30-45 mins walking each day is enough.

Control your calories to 60 kcal per kilo normal and 45-50 kcal when dieting. Cut out the processed foods and go for wholefoods, that take longer to digest and contain more nutrition. Also plenty of water, no sugar.