Crash Dieting and Metabolic Rate

The problem with this functional equation is that basal metabolism may vary widely based on many factors including: genetics, physical activity, food preference, meal size, and diet habits.

  It’s fairly common in America to attempt weight loss through a “crash diet”, (extreme energy restriction or starvation), for some amount of time to quicken the dieting duration and, in theory, see greater weight loss results.  It may seem logical to assume that restricting more calories will result in more successful weight loss outcomes.

This however, is not so.  A person’s metabolic rate (the amount of energy expended by the body in a given amount of time), adjusts to compensate for the lack of incoming energy to maintain physical and mental function. When a person’s energy needs are not met, several automatic bodily responses are activated that begin preparing their body for starvation/famine.  The body tries to compensate for any decrease in energy intake by conserving all of the energy it does receive.  The body uses as few calories as possible to complete any energy-expending activity.  Often people find themselves exhausted and unmotivated to perform normal daily activities during crash diets.  Lack of activity, in turn, reduces metabolic rate even further and makes it even more difficult to lose weight.

        Instead, it is recommended that people follow a well-rounded nutritional diet as well as follow an exercise routine, which will allow weight to be lost gradually and prevent a body from entering a starvation state.