Crash Diets

The Skinny on Why They Can Be So Bad
And can even make fat gain more likely!

Crash diets are everywhere! You have probably heard of the maple syrup diet, the cabbage diet, chicken soup diet, the chocolate diet and so on.

All crash diets share one common factor - Severe restriction of calories without consideration for nutrient intake.

Everyone knows that the suggested guidelines are to lose weight slowly, safely and healthily - yet the lure of losing a heap of weight, in as short a time span as possible is often too tempting in our "get XYZ Quick!" culture.

Perhaps you know someone who has followed such a diet, or maybe you have tried one yourself? You may have heard how it’s possible to lose 5-10lbs in a week, and how weight has seemingly dropped off?

Maybe you haven’t heard how miserable, depressed and tired the person felt? Perhaps you haven’t been told how hunger seems to fill every thought and cravings become almost too much to bear?

What about the rumours concerning the weight gain that piles back on after crash diets have finished?

Let me tell you, for many this is stark reality!

The purpose of this article is to explain the pitfalls behind these types of diet and to shed light on EXACTLY WHY THEY CAN BE SO BAD FOR YOUR HEALTH!

Your Metabolism

The energy which we use in the basic processes of staying alive, while at rest, is referred to as the Basal Metabolic Rate(BMR) and it plays a VERY important role in how body weight is regulated.A more in depth explanation can be found here in my article about Your BMR.

Crash Dieting and The Body

In other words, the amount of calories eaten over the course of the day is LESS than the amount of calories you need if you were to lie in bed all day!

This approach is often adopted using the rationale that there is no requirement to exercise while following this type of diet. Others realise the importance of exercise in losing weight and usually perform cardiovascular exercise sticking to their "fat burning zone" alongside the severe diet.

In either scenario, the first thing that happens is a depletion of the body’s carbohydrate, or glycogen stores. These are essentially the stores of the muscles and the liver, and contain roughly 1500kcal worth of carbohydrate (or approximately 375g in weight)

Due to the severe lack of food, the carbohydrate stores cannot replenish, and so the first body weight loss simply comes from the emptying of these stores.

For each gram of carbohydrate lost, the body loses an additional 2-3 grams of water! (Carbohydrates are explained in more detail in my Carbohydrate Facts article.)

So, the weight loss that’s encountered in the first week of a crash diet is usually just the body's carbohydrate and water stores becoming depleted - and that folks, is it!

Within 24 hours of commencing a crash diet our BMR can reduce by as much as 30%!!!!

That’s a significant decrease, and translates to fewer calories burnt over the course of the day making fat loss even more difficult.

Once the body's carbohydrate stores are completely exhausted, the brain looks for glucose from other sources in order to facilitate correct function and prevent onset of coma.

The next most readily available source of glucose is through the breakdown of muscle tissue to supply amino acids, which are then subsequently broken down in the liver to glucose.

Our muscle is known as active tissue, in that it burns energy just through living. One pound of muscle burns in the region of 6 calories per day compared to fat which is roughly 2 calories per day. In this example it's easy to see why it can be beneficial having more muscle mass!

The more muscle we have, the greater our calorie requirement is.

As the brains requirement for glucose continues, more muscle is broken down to supply amino acids (and to assist in cardiovascular exercise if included), which in turn means the body's BMR drops further due to the decrease in active muscle tissue.

Through the actions of carb depletion, water loss and muscle loss, a significant amount of weight can be lost in a short time.

However, very little of this is from actual FAT loss!

Ill say that again,

VERY LITTLE IS FROM FAT LOSS!

As the diet continues, this downgrading process marches on, with more muscle lost and an ever decreasing BMR.

The Importance of Resistance Training

By performing regular intense weight training, muscle mass and hence forth basal metabolic rate can be maintained at higher levels which not only makes the fat loss process easier, but also ensures that your BMR remains high, making fat GAIN in the future LESS LIKELY.

Many women make the mistake of thinking that engaging in weight training will add huge amounts of muscle mass and make them look more masculine. Ladies please rest assured - This WILL NOT HAPPEN!

The Diet Ends - Then What?

Due to the severe restriction of calories and loss of muscle mass (if high intensity resistance exercise has not been a part of the diet) the dieter’s basal metabolic rate is likely to be MUCH slower than at the start of the diet.

Often due to the relief of completing the crash diet, people will resume eating quantities of food similar to that eaten at the start of the diet. In addition, many, having lost some weight, reduce or cease the amount of exercise performed.

The result of such behaviour is usually a rapid weight gain of several pounds in the first two weeks (mainly due to carbohydrates stores re-filling) followed by steady climbing of weight as body fat is accrued.

Summary

Many people make the mistake of failing to realise that once fat has been lost, if their new healthy eating and exercise behaviours are not sustained, they find themselves back at the starting point, or worse!

If you have any questions about crash diets, or any other aspect of weight loss, why not contact me?

Find out How to Lose Weight Effectively Here!

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