Should I do this to lose weight?

[Anonymous]

so all my friends are very slim(5"9 120 pounds and under), the thing is, that before they had a little extra weight(ex: 5"8, 160 pounds) and I was curious as to how they lost all that weight, because I would like to lose weight also, and they told me that this is what they used to do:

eating 500 calories or less and exercising for about 30 minutes.

now, they are kind'ove pressuring me to do it, and I've asked them about risks and stuff, and they have said that's its fine if you don't do it for too long, and as long if you have extra bodyfat. so are they right? should I try this?

[kheserthorpe]

The lowest semi-sane diets I've seen were around 700 calories.

If your start pushing your calories that low, you need to be extremely specific about what those calories are - namely almost entirely protein.

If you don't eat and attempt to live off body fat, your muscles flip from using carbohydrates to using fat for energy. Sounds good right! It is.

Only problem is your brain/nervous system actually use a lot of energy, and they _cannot_ use fat. They can use things called 'ketones' instead of sugar. Your body can make ketones out of protein. Now if you don't eat, where does your body get protein? It rips it out of muscle tissue! Great ... err are ... well not so much. That kills your body tone and slows your metabolism. If you're unlucky, you might damage your heart.

So if you want to drop weight as quickly as possible, you need to eat enough protein to support ketosis (production of ketones) while the rest of your body lives off stored fat.

If you want a guide on how to do this, check out Lyle Macdonalds 'rapid fat loss handbook'. As he says in the intro, crash dieting is generally stupid, but if you're going to do it, you might as well do it the right way ...

[kheserthorpe]

For the record, I used RFL (Rapid Fat Loss) to drop about 15 lbs. I'm a 6'3 male. I was eating more then 500, but sub 1000 calories 5 of 7 days a week on it. But almost all calories from protein, plus tons of vegetables. Like I said, the lower your calories go, the more the composition is critical.

[lucyloo2]

That's really helpful and I'm not even the question asker, lol :) Thanks! Ha

[Asker]

yeah it is helpfull

[Dawn_Is_the_Enemy]

You can eat more calories, but the thing is burning it off. One good thing to do if you want to get rid weight is. In the morning exercise. I mean after you wake up. Since your body is in a metabolic state, it becomes an instant burner right there. Your breakfast should be your biggest meal essentially. Also, instead of eating a lot in a long period of time. Eat at smaller portions but more frequent, like every 4 to 5 hours.

[lucyloo2]

Hey girl :)

There is a great website called LiveStrong.com. There, you can track your calories, your workouts, calories burned, and more information about food and diet.

500 calories a day is extremely unhealthy. You are basically starving your body and unknowingly holding on to fat. Your body will be in survival mode, so it'll conserve the fat you consume since you're not eating enough. You'll eventually loose the weight, but you'll gain it right back after you start eating normally. The average girl should consume about 1200 calories a day. A girl your age, maybe a little more or less. LiveStrong will let ya know!

It's great you want to get in shape, but do it because YOU want to. Don't let your friends peer pressure you. And your body is still growing, so give it time.

Ride your bike, take a walk, excersise the way you want to. Eat sensibly- you know what's healthy and what's not. You won't feel weak and foggy like you would if you ate 500 calories a day. It actually might be fun.

Good luck :)

-LL

[Asker]

thanks

[Karatequeen]

This is a terrible diet. You need to eat more than that. You should never go below 1100 or 1200 calories.

[Musical546]

no. instead eat like 1500 calories and exercise and try to burn 1700. as long as the calories burned exceeds the calories eaten you will loose weight. going on 500 caloriea is not healthy. remember you also loose calories when you're sleeping, sitting, studying and w/e

[Caustic_Fox]

no. no no no. it may have worked for them but its insanely unhealthy to eat only 500 calories per day. unless of course you're trapped on a island with nothing to eat but coconut, and even then a couple coconuts will give you way more than 500 calories.

if you want to lose weight get your diet in order, lift weights and do cardio

[Xx_DRE_xX]

Try this, this is how many calories a day you need 10x whatever your weight is. You can workout or eat a little bit less to losss calories which means weight. Try Greek yogurt I heard it helps get rid of 81% of your belly fat if you eat a cup a day.

[Silas92]

Thats seriously not healthy for you. Even if you merely hangout around the house you need more than 500 calories a day.

[Anonymous]

No, this is not a good healthy diet. This is an extreme low calorie diet, which should only be done if you are morbidly obese, your life is in danger, and under the care of a physician.

[buttercup5]

Nope, that's too few.