If only eating 700-800 calories a day makes your body go into starvation mode...?

Question

Then why are there skinny people who only eat 700-800 calories? Shouldn't their bodies have gone into starvation mode, not causing them to lose weight?

Oh trust me, I eat more than that, I was just wondering because some of my friends eat around that much and are superskinny.

Answer 1

Of course you lose weight when you starve to death. Thats obvious. See prisioners of war, concentration camps, people stranded at sea for days.

That doesn't mean their body hasn't gone into starvation mode. It doesn't mean that their body wasn't burning whatever it could to survive--muscle tissue, organs. Their organs are shutting down to.

What we have said is that you aren't losing weight at the RATE that you would if you were on a healthy diet. Lets say following the routine of The Biggest Loser and over the course of 3 months you lose over 40 lbs...you are eatting several times a day so your body is burning the calories extremely fast. Your body is thinking "I better get rid of these calories b/c I'm getting more food in a couple hours".

Now with starvation your body is saying "this might be the only meal I get for days, better hang on to this" and stores it into fat. As the object isn't to store all food you eat into fat immediately--thats why this method doesn't work. Now of course you aren't eatting so you will lose weight. Until death once your body shuts down organs. But if you don't die, and eventually hope to eat again....your body is confused and still stores it as fat. That is why as soon as you start to eat (even a healthy diet b/c it is more than that starvation you were on) you put on the fat outrageously fast.

People in the starvation camps--when they were liberated by the American GIs--doctors had to be careful how much food they gave them. B/c your body just can't handle a normal diet after surviving so long on nothing.

It's always my opinion that these people have studied for more than a decade. They have an entire lineup of people (far more than the 100 or so we've seen on Biggest Loser) behind them saying that is the best way to lose weight. Now if starvation worked so well like people seem to think--show me some research of nutrionist/diet experts with over a decade of experience that says starvation is the way to go. There is never a line of 100 people behind that nutritional quack who lost weight by starvation. Therefore it should be obvious by number of people who have been successful which method is the best for losing weight.

Lets say there are 2 overweight people who both weigh 200 lbs. One decides not to eat and the other eats 6 times a day, tons of food, but all healthy food, on a proper weight loss diet--each week the one eatting more food will lose more weight. Every single week. Meanwhile the one starving herself is merely weaker, lacking muscle tone and definition, has a higher percentage of body FAT and has a higher risk of stroke, of heart disease, and organ failure. After the period of 2 months, the one who was starving begins to eat--and her weight balloons back up again. She is as fat as before and wonders why she can't lose weight. The one who was eatting a lot of food continues to lose weight and laughs --but loves the look of her new thin body.

Answer 2

Ok first off if you are only eating that much your crazy,secondly once your body sees you are not feeding it whatever you eat is stored as fat.The reason for this is the brain is telling the body you are not getting anymore food you will loose some weight then it shuts down everything else is stored as fat.Skinny is not in some of the girls get deathly ill from this it is not sexy and not attractive.The clothing co. out here make everyone think I cant get this outfit unless Im 80 lbs.Not true.Keep yourself healthy.I would rather be a little on the thick side than to be skin and bones.Dont do this you will not be happy with the results.

Answer 3

The skinny people eating 700-800 calories probably have an eating disorder. It's pretty common, but realize your body will eventually eat up muscle in stead of fat. In starvation mode your body starts storing fat and starts wasting other important body organs. It's pretty gross. Believe it or not, eating boosts your metabolism it's like stoking the fire, people get to wrapped around not eating......instead of healthy lifestyle.

Answer 4

Pretty much... Going any lower than 1000-1200 calories a day is REALLY bad for you. Find alternate sources of protein and calories such a yogurt (Greek yogurt is the best) or beans. Try fitting in healthy calories as well, just cuz something is fried doesn't always mean its terrible for you. Fat in foods gets a bad rap because that is what people naturally assume causes them to gain weight when in reality it's other ingredients in the food that cause your body to absorb all the negative aspects of fat and discard most of the bennifits from it.

Answer 5

Consuming a low number of calories will cause one to lose weight. However, there is a difference between losing weight, and losing body fat. The latter is much more important. Calories from carbohydrates, fats and proteins provide us energy, and when caloric intake is limited, the energy has to come from somewhere. Because fat stores provide a great amount of energy, the body conserves it for later use, and begins to catabolize muscle tissue for energy. This can and will result in weight loss, however, it will also result in an increased body fat percentage when comparing the ratios of fat mass to lean mass. We always equate health with weight, and we shouldn't. A look at the BMI scale should remind us of that. This is why we stress the importance of a low body fat percentage, as opposed to low body weight.

Answer 6

Because the body can only hold onto your fat stores for so long before it has to consume them for basic bodily function (IE: Breathing and Circulation). And once those are gone your body will start consuming muscle tissue for energy. Some people can get away with eating next to nothing and still live a productive life, while others require much more for survival, especially if they are real active.

Answer 7

Starvation can be a long process. If taken to the extreme it causes problems that are not always visible to the naked eye. After a period of time it causes your organs to shut down. It also puts you at HIGH risk for heart attacks, stroke, and death.

Answer 8

Of course they lose weight, but that doesn't mean they are just losing body fat. When you starve yourself, your body tries to hold on to as much fat as possible, so guess what goes first..............muscle and bone (lean mass).

When you lose lean mass, this actually increases the percentage of your body weight that comes from fat. You do eventually lose fat, but the majority of losses will be from muscle/bone and this is what causes you to end up fatter when you gain back the weight.

HTH : )

Answer 9

Because their body has been starving for so long it is feeding off of itself. These people probably have no muscle mass, because that is what is used first. So they may be thin, but only because they are suffering from malnutrition.

Answer 10

if you eat less than it will cause your body to start to eat body fat
but will develop fat around organ
which is consider to be more dangerous

if you eat less
you will feel more fatigue
angry
hard to think
and unstable

just eat healthily and consciously
plus regular exercise