Crash dieting

[Idontcare34]

Wondered peoples thoughts and experiences of this.

A friend of mine was very over weight ( like 7 stone) and had managed to lose 3 stone in 96 days by eating 600 calories a day. Yes she looks better for it but I am concerned it isn't healthy.

The rest of our friendship circle are either very negative about it ( more maybe a bit jealous) or think it's fantastic and encouraging.

Now I think it's great she has chosen to get healthy but surely 600 cals a day isn't great health wise.

Btw. She knows I'm posting for some outside views and is happy for me to do so.

Her diet at the moment is

Breakfast banana
Lunch snack a Jack's and an orange
Dinner 300 cal dinner and whatever calories left in either biscuit or half a snack a jack

I really dont know how she has stuck to this tbh I eat more before lunchtime

Wondered if anyone has lost weight in this way and if so did it impact your health or mental wellbeing?

 

[Mrs Cucumber]

As soon as she starts to eat proper again, she's going to gain weight, it's not a substanable way to loose weight. Good on her for making that first step though but maybe look at apps like my fitness Pal ect to get a idea of how many calories a day she needs or even the NHS website on the BMI chart gives a rough idea of how many to eat to help loose weight.

 

[Immoslips]

Yep. I used to do this.

banana for brekkie (I hate bananas!)
a Lychee (or grape), satsuma and WW yoghurt for lunch
an hour in the gym
often skipped tea.

I lost weight, had headaches, bad mood swings, terrible skin, didn't go to the toilet for days on end and developed piles!

I also developed a fear of people watching me eat that is still with me to this day. I hate people commenting on my food.

I have a healthier diet now but I put on about two stone and I don't like myself at the moment. The extra weight is probably due to all the wine I consume to be fair haha!

Someone I know is anorexic and really likes to let everyone know this too. She often digs for compliments saying how fat she is so people will say she isn't but in the next breath will be bragging about how she's the skinniest in the group and letting us know that people are telling her how skinny she's looking. Her hair is thinning and in terrible condition. She has terrible mood swings, her skin is more wrinkly than you would expect for her age. I find her really triggering.

 

[2xblended]

Of course it isn't healthy in the long run. Our bodies require sustenance to function. It's all fine when you're losing weight at the start, but after some time our bodies run out of energy to keep basic functions going (eg. menstrual cycles). It's terribly unhealthy both mentally and physically- creates hormonal imbalances, suppresses thyroid function, leads to early osteoperosis, memory lapse...all sorts of problems.

Sorry to say that you have described an eating disorder. People being overly supportive will trigger her further, and people acting harshly and seeming jealous will also trigger her further. It's a vicious cycle.
If she doesn't try to find a balanced, healthy relationship with food now, she's going to be battling an ED all her life. She'll become terrified of eating more, any weight fluctuations due to water weight will be triggering, she will develop safe foods and bad foods...lots of potential trouble.

A varied diet, at a more reasonable calorie intake, and learning to practice moderation rather than severe restriction would be just as effective, but far less taxing and less likely to result in a severe eating disorder.

Sorry if any of this sounds harsh, I sincerely don't mean it to be. I have battled an ED and have been around so many people who got triggered into ED behaviours that started with just a simple diet, that I am familiar with what you described and see it as a massive red flag.
I would urge your friend to approach her diet with more flexibility. She will be more successful and her body would thrive with more calories and a wider range of food, IMO. You don't have to literally starve to lose weight. Moderation and patience will get you just as far, and you'll be less likely to regain the weight later on.

 

[Idontcare34]

Thank you everyone. You have all confirmed my worries. I am genuinely worried that this may develop into into an eating disorder I am going to have a chat with her and encourage her to possibly go to her gp and get some support.

 

[Podcat]

She's seriously been eating 600 cal a day for 3 months?! Bloody hell.

I mean, it obviously isn't NHS recommended but Dr Michael Mosley has long been an advocate of very low calorie diets particularly for kick starting weight loss. Google Michael Mosley 800 calories for info on his book and articles he's written about it. Though I doubt he would endorse her particular diet as it doesn't look like she's getting many nutrients!

I definitely agree she should probably look to gradually increase what she's eating and repairing her relationship with food. She can continue to lose weight slowly as long as she is eating below her calorie maintenance, you can find calculators online to find this out.

 

[Idontcare34]

She's seriously been eating 600 cal a day for 3 months?! Bloody hell.

I mean, it obviously isn't NHS recommended but Dr Michael Mosley has long been an advocate of very low calorie diets particularly for kick starting weight loss. Google Michael Mosley 800 calories for info on his book and articles he's written about it. Though I doubt he would endorse her particular diet as it doesn't look like she's getting many nutrients!

I definitely agree she should probably look to gradually increase what she's eating and repairing her relationship with food. She can continue to lose weight slowly as long as she is eating below her calorie maintenance, you can find calculators online to find this out.

Yes she has a few slightly higher days or "cheats" as she calls them now but only a few the rest she has stayed below 600 I am going to suggest the fitness pal app and possibly going to the gp ( hopefully she will take notice! ) x

 

[2xblended]

I wouldn't suggest an app. She may use it to cut her calories further. The tools that are helpful when you have a normal relationship with food can become dangerous if you're disordered around food. Seeing her calorie total on a tracker like that app can trigger her to eat less.
I say this may be dangerous in her case because eating 600 cals then "cheating" is disordered. Normal people don't do "clean" food and "cheat" days. Food is not a moral good or bad existential battle. It is nutrition. And sometimes an emotional crutch.

Have a discussion- without judgement- and let her know she is loved, she is more than her weight, that this is potentially risking her long term health, and she can reach her goals without such severe measures, as that would be safer. I would also ask if she's got anything stressing her out in her life, because often stress triggers these sorts of behaviours (it starts as a simple diet then spirals when life gets stressful and food-or lack thereof- becomes an emotional crutch).
Of course, a visit with a GP or counselor who specialized in EDs would be brilliant as well.

 

[Forfoxsake]

The minimum that Myfitnesspal usually gives someone is 1200 cals a day and I think that's very low to get enough nutrients in.

The medical profession does sometimes advocate very low calorie diets of about 600 cals a day short term for people who are very overweight (things like Lighterlife or Cambridge shakes), but it's supposed to be doctor supervised and not long term. And v low cal "fast" days a couple of days a week is the 5:2 diet as per Michael Moseley etc. But it would concern me that your friend is starting to call days where she eats more "a cheat", and that she's developing disordered thinking around food with these extremes becoming her norm.

 

[Laur91]

I’d suggest a nutritionist or dietician instead of GP. Depending on the GP the advice could be skewed also, they’re not all highly trained in nutrition or diets at all.

chances are in 3 months time or maybe less she will begin eating in her old ways. A restrictive diet only leads to a restrict-binge cycle. She will start to crave the foods she’s cutting out of her diet, she will then binge on them and then restrict again due to the ‘guilt’ she will most likely feel.

if suggesting professional help doesn’t go down well then point her in the direction of some intuitive eating instagrams or nutritionist instagrams. A good one is Pixie Turner - shes all about no bullshit and very anti-diet culture (cheat meals, good vs bad food etc). Good luck, you sound like a great friend

 

[Petulant_vlogger]

I'm overweight and it had never really bothered me until I got a new phone about 2 years ago. It had a "health app" installed on it. So I started using it out of curiosity. I was fascinated by the step counter and then started using the food tracker on it. At first I was eating what I normally would and then entering it to the tracker. Then I started to compete with myself to have fewer and fewer calories every day. I ended up on 300 cal per day for about 3 weeks. I dont have a bathroom scale but my Jean's had started to feel looser. My husband confronted me on it and I insisted I was fine and knew what I was doing. Then he went out and bought me a big mac and chicken nuggets and voila... I was cured lol

 

[Horatio]

I also developed a fear of people watching me eat that is still with me to this day. I hate people commenting on my food.

Someone I know is anorexic and really likes to let everyone know this too. She often digs for compliments saying how fat she is so people will say she isn't but in the next breath will be bragging about how she's the skinniest in the group and letting us know that people are telling her how skinny she's looking. Her hair is thinning and in terrible condition. She has terrible mood swings, her skin is more wrinkly than you would expect for her age. I find her really triggering.

I relate. My food issues manifested differently but were fundamentally the same - I wanted to be thin. But im exactly the same about food, really don’t like to be watched eating or cooking and HATE it if people comment on what I’ve eaten or how much.

I also find being around anorexics who are obvious about how thin or restrictive with food they are very triggering - purposefully or not, I had a friend who tried to hide it and for years wouldn’t address it at all but it was obvious and that was just as difficult for me to be around. (Maybe selfishly)

Isn’t it wild how many women we all probably know who have an issue with food to a greater or lesser extent ? Almost every woman in my life , certainly those around my age who I am vaguely close to are at least slightly neurotic about their weight, through to being hospitalised for anorexia.

 

[Lilbear1]

If you have ever watched "my 600lb life" (channel quest red) Dr N puts them on 500cals a day. But thats to lose weight before gastric surgery.And obviously they have alot to lose.

 

[lizziew92]

Hi, 600 calories a day sounds awful. I can't believe she's managed to keep it up for 3 months.

When I was a teenager I wanted to be 'thin' like my friends who were so naturally, I wouldn't eat at all during the day at college and just drink 2 x 500ml cans of sugar free energy drink then go home and eat 3/4 of what I was served for dinner by my parents so this was probably around the same calorie intake. I kept this up for about a year. Looking back on photos I look gaunt and ill. I only stopped doing this because I started driving lessons and realised I couldn't concentrate so started eating small amounts then eventually snapped out of it in the end.

My weight has yo yo'd over the years and I've done various restrictive diets over the last 10 years including...

1200 calories a day on MFP (this worked but I was starving and thought about food 24/7)
Slimming World - worked to begin with but hit a plateau even though I was following the 'diet'. Also hated the coma inducing group meetings
Slim Fast - just don't go there
I consumed nothing but juice for 7 days after watching Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead on Netflix - think I did nearly die

Fast forward to now and I am learning to love my body and have a healthy relationship with food. I accept that I will never be thin. I'm not overweight but carrying a few extra lbs, however I think we're only here once (#YOLO ) and you have to find a balance which allows you to go out and have fun and not worry about going for meals (oh the excuses I've made in the past - hope your friend doesn't do this already). I'm actually vegan but realise this isn't for everyone, and try and make it to the gym 3-5 times a week. I don't calorie count but try and eat wholesome foods rich in nutrients 80% of the time.


I hope your friends sees sense soon, I wouldn't suggest and 'diets' SW (don't get me started on that one!) just make it more of a lifestyle change centered around healthy eating and maybe some gentle exercise. If she is several stone overweight then her flat calorie burn will be very high for the day, like probably 3000 cal plus, so she could easily eat 1800-2000 calories a day of healthy, nutritious food and still expect to lose a good 2lb a week if not more!

I think if you lose the weight at a steady pace rather than in a very short space of time you are much more likely to keep if off as you change your mindset and are less likely to go on extreme binges on 'cheat days'.

Good luck to your friend and hope she stops restricting herself soon as otherwise it's going to be a downward spiral of issues with food which will take a long time to fix.

 

[Fin]

I cannot imagine how she is feeling surviving on 600 calories a day. Three months is far too long to do that. A couple of years ago I was barely eating after surgery and when my bloods came back my doctor gave me a stern talking to due to my ketone levels, he said it can be dangerous.

 

[hrh89]

clearly not a healthy way to lose weight. I would expect she may suffer with some hair loss or low iron, she must feel like tit underneath it all.

If she went back to eating properly but still at a deficit then she wouldn’t gain weight I’m not sure where people get this from! Yes if she went back to eating loads then she’d gain but say she went back to eating 1500 a day. She would not start gaining, just continue to lose at a slower healthier rate.

I think it’s silly doing such low calories and sounds utterly miserable.

 

[DishtheDirt]

The thing with having such a low calorie diet is that you miss out on vital nutrients that the body needs, long term that can cause all sorts of problems.
Clearly, eating like this is not sustainable and she will probably, at some point have a 'blow out' and so begins disordered eating in the form of binging and starving to some degree or another.

If she is so set on losing weight and having so few calories, she would be better following something like The Cambridge Diet or something similar. I know a lot of people disagree with these types of diets but at least they have got the nutrients that the body needs and they have a plan to follow to get you back to normal eating when you have lost the weight.
It's got to be better that what she is surviving on now?

 

[Wormhole]

Now she has lost that first chunk of weight is she in a better position to start doing some increased physical activity? Lots of super overweight people don't or say they can't excercise as it's too tiring / painful on joints etc

If the crash diet has helped her get to a point where she can exercise more comfortably could you suggest more physical exercise and higher calorie intake.

I would worry about exercising on that diet alone but if she could start having a more substantial breakfast followed by some activity even just a brisk walk then hopefully the weight loss will continue at a healthy rate and then increased fitness also