1) Low-calorie Diet
A low-calorie diet is often referred to as a ‘calorie restricted diet’ and it is a favorite of slimming celebs all over the globe. It is a very basic approach to weight loss and works on the principle that if you reduce your calorie intake, then you will lose weight.
- Around 1200 calories for a woman
- Around 1400 calories for a man
It is estimated that someone on a low calories diet will lose 2-3 pounds per week. While this may work short term or as a stimulus to get you going on your weight loss journey, in the long term can lead bingeing and weight gain. Binges and yo-yo dieting are commonly associated with low-calorie diets because after depriving your body of a normal calorie intake for a period of time your food cravings often increase. Low calories diets are hard to stick to for a period of time. Calorie deprivation and weight loss and often followed by binges and regaining those lost pounds.
Many will claim that low-calorie diets won’t work because the body enters starvation mode, now that is not exactly true. The body can live on a low-calorie diet and will not enter starvation mode until you are very undernourished. What does happen is your metabolism slows down which increases your chances of weight gain when you go off the diet. It is import to note that studies have shown low-calorie diets can actually be more effective than the slow and steady diets in terms of reaching weight loss goals. The key is to wean off the low-calorie diet and keep making healthy food choices.
Long Term Impact:
Low-calorie diets over time slow metabolism, disrupt hormone balance and increase the risk for yo-yo dieting. It is the opinion of many providers that low-calorie diets put dieters at the largest risk for rebound weight gain and slowed metabolism if done for extended periods of time. Low calorie diets lower metabolism because the body learns to adapt to lower calorie intake to survive. The thyroid gland, which is responsible for the body’s metabolism will signal to the body to converse energy. Therefore you are fully utilizing every single calorie that you eat.
Over time the body learns how to optimize a number of calories that are consumed and when returning back to a more normal calorie intake weight gain can occur. It should be noted that if you start off at 200lbs eating 2900 calories per day, then drop down to 160lbs on 1200 calorie diet, your calorie requirements have changed. You need fewer calories maintain 160lbs then you need to maintain 200lbs. Therefore you do not need as many calories as you needed before the diet. So if you return to 2900 calorie eating you will gain weight, however, if you can wean off the low-calorie diet to a calorie diet to a caloric intake needed to maintain 160lbs you may need more like 1800-2000 calories per day. When you weigh less you need fewer calories to survive.