# Losing weight quickly - fasting?



## blondekitten (Apr 4, 2006)

Ok, I want to lose about 10 pounds. I eat pretty healthy & I excersize (only about 2-3 times a week though) but I want to really start excersizing a lot and eating really healthy. I don't mind doing either of those things, but It's hard for me to stay with a program because I am so impatient. I start getting really frustrated because I don't see a change quickly and I get angry and just feel like totally quiting excersize and eat whatever I want just because I'm mad that I didn't lose weight in like a week 
	

	
	
		
		

		
			





I read that some people will fast for a few days (up to a week) and lose about 5 pounds before they start a "diet" so that they will be motivated after seeing their weight loss. I really think that this would work really well for me (esp since i only want to lose about 10 pounds). 

But, is this healthy? I don't want to completley fast, probably just eat a small amount of fruits & vegetables & drink only water. Will this slow my metabolism down? I know the weight I lose will be mostly water weight but I think it would really help motivate me. Please let me know if this is healthy or not...thanks!!!


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## koolmnbv (Apr 4, 2006)

I always diet and lost weight quickly but I can gain it back just as quickly. That is the downfall to fasting and cutting way down on calories (like fruits n veggies only) you will lose very quickly. I can lose 10 pounds in about 10 days If I fast on fruit n veggies but if I go back to eating normal I gain it back. Now I've done this so much that I have to literally watch everything I eat or I will gain weight. If I could go back and start over I would never have started yoyo dieting (even though I think it's easier). I tell my sisters and everyone that will listen to me that starving/fasting is easy and quick but even aside from the health aspect, you will regret it when you lose 10lbs in 2weeks but gain back 12! I would recommend just cutting back a lil eating healthy and making healthy snack replacement choices and aim for 2-3 pounds a week. Even at a healthy rate you will have your 10 lbs. off in about 3 weeks. Just my 2cents,Good Luck


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## Janice (Apr 4, 2006)

Good advice koolmnbv! I completely agree with it.


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## jess98765 (Apr 4, 2006)

great advice girlie!


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## mitsukai (Apr 6, 2006)

it's absolutely unhealthy for you. when you don't give your body nutrients and energy, it has to go get that energy somewhere, right? well it doesn't turn to your fat stores. fat is hard to digest, so your body eats your muscle for energy first. so you dont really lose any fat unless you starve yourself to the point of being anorexic, and thats obviously unhealthy. not to mention what kool said, you will most likely gain a lot of that weight back very soon. you're better off being patient :} there are some energy/"diet" pills that will help but you can't expect magic.


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## DaisyDee (Apr 7, 2006)

It's also really bad for your skin to lose weight too fast.  It loses elasticity and you end up saggy a lot more quickly in life...as in SAGGY BOOBS, etc...  

If you lose weight at a healthy pace, it gives your skin time to shrink properly.


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## mspixieears (Apr 7, 2006)

Quote:

   Originally Posted by *DaisyDee* 
_It's also really bad for your skin to lose weight too fast.  It loses elasticity and you end up saggy a lot more quickly in life...as in SAGGY BOOBS, etc...  

If you lose weight at a healthy pace, it gives your skin time to shrink properly. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	


_

 
Totally, plus you end up with icky stretch marks all over the place. Slower is best, it might take ages but it's worth it.


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## sunsational (Apr 28, 2006)

i know a lot of people that fast for religious reasons and they're all older than me but i dont see them with saggy skin or wrinkly skin or whatever?


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## Jessica (Apr 29, 2006)

The only way to lose weight and to keep it off is to change your eating habits.  You know what to do and your doing it, but for some reason you're giving up before you reach your goal.  I think the real answer lies behind why you sabatoge your weight.  You already know the right things to do, you already know that it's not good to crash diet.  You certainly don't need us to tell you that it's wrong to starve yourself.  Next time you feel like ruining your progress, go for a walk or call your closest friend.


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## tarteheart (Apr 29, 2006)

Bad idea.  If you cut too many calories, your body will go into starvation mode and hoarde any other calories you consume and store as fat.  Some people who try to "diet" find that they gain weight while on super low calorie diets, and just by actually eating MORE, their bodies are lifted out of starvation mode and are able to lose weight.  You need to eat AT LEAST 1200 calories a day -- I think that on average, a healthy calorie in take for most women is around 1300 to 1500 a day.  You cannot lose weight just by reducing calorie intake, because as I said, it will put your body into starvation mode and it will hoarde the calories that you are trying to lose.  You're best to increase your physical activity more, and be aware of what your calorie intake is now so that you can reduce it to a healthier level, if necessary.  The most pounds you should be trying to lose per week is 2; I believe that's around 7000 calories per week reduced in both intake and through exercise.  One pound a week is much healthier, easier, and more likely to maintain, by reducing intake and increasing exercise to burn 500 calories a day.

I am not a doctor or a nutritionist.


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## lovalotz (May 3, 2006)

I agree with the food choices. Replace your soda intake with water!! 
Also excercise goes a long way.
It's all about the paitence


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## Angelic Me! (May 3, 2006)

Fasting is what muslimes do in there holly month Ramadhann !! i think it`s in October or november!!! ?

it`s really good though !!
because you fast 14-15 hours a day no eating no drinking... your body become Clean and that is agood thing right?? and after these hours they Eat Deats & Milk For start and then they start eating anything they want the rest of the day !!.. because your body loss alot of vitamins and energy thats why they eat that !! ----(( BY the way i try it and it`s not a bad thing at all ))----
but muslimes do it just to feal how the poor peopel feal..and for (ALLAH) << GOD!
they do it every year for amonth !!

any way i just have so many information that i like to Share 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




Soory if this Bother anyone 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




Thanks Sweeti 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 nice topic


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## martygreene (May 3, 2006)

Since it's been brought up, I'm going to address the difference between fasting for religious reasons, and fasting for weight loss reasons.

Fasting for religious reasons is done in a very specific controlled environment, and is NEVER a long-term affair. Yes, Ramadan is a month long, but it's not a month-long fast. During Ramadan those who observe fast during daylight hours only, and eat normal and healthy meals during the dark hours. For Yom Kippur, fasting is done for just slightly over a day, and if there is any sign of complication or if you have medical cirumstances, you are to cease the fast. Neither of these religious fasts are for physical cleanliness or purity, but spiritual. When done in short, controlled means such as this, they do not pose the health risks which attempting to use fasting as a method of weightloss can create.

Fasting for weightloss largely causes you to lose your water weight, and little more. As mentioned by other posters as well, fasting in this way can cause the body to put its metabolism in an altered state, the beginning of a state known as ketosis. In ketosis your body begins to burn muscle mass for energy _before_ it does fat. Ketosis is a dangerous state for your body to remain in for any prolonged period of time. It is this metabolic state that causes the permanent damage to those who battle with anorexia, it damages your immune system and can have such drastic side effects as comas. Aside from the health risks of prolonged fasting, those who attempt to fast for wieght loss usually succumb to a high-calorie binge after a short period of time, negating any possible weight loss and possibly gaining weight. This fasting-binging pattern can establish itself and create other problems. This sort of patterning is particularly dangerous for those with a low self esteem or self image, as it has been known to lead to bulimia.


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## Jessica (May 4, 2006)

Thank you Martygreen for the well written response!!!!  You nailed it (no pun intended).  So many times we are looking for the quick fix....well, the quick fix may actually be very harmful.


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## Angelic Me! (May 4, 2006)

Quote:

   Originally Posted by *Jessica* 
_Thank you Martygreen for the well written response!   
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




   !!!  You nailed it (no pun intended).  So many times we are looking for the quick fix....well, the quick fix may actually be very harmful._

 


yes you abslutley right .. ididnt understand it befor but Now i did Thanks


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## stacey (May 8, 2006)

About fasting. 

I'm Muslim and 1 month out of the year (during Ramadan) we have to fast for 30 days. That means, no drinking, eating or not having anything enter your mouth from sun up to sun down. Since last Ramadan I was breast feeding I didn't get a chance to participate in fasting for the Holy month. But from what I've heard because Muslims don't eat for that long a period and eat at night they actually gain weight. I'm looking forward to doing it this year so I'll get back to you with my personal experience.

I'm sure, though, if you do "fast" it would be the same as cutting your intake. I'm sure you're not going to go to the extreme as not eating/drinking from sun up to sun down but just limit your intake during the day, am I right?

HTH, I don't know if that made sense.


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## mitsukai (May 8, 2006)

while i was doing research for the pamphlet i made, i also found that some scientists did a study on rats, that showed that crash/yo-yo dieting actually produced harmful effects:

www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=5000103029

...a project now involving researchers from five universities who are focusing on "yo-yo dieting": repeated cycles of weight loss and gain. Many people diet this way, even those who are not overweight, and we are examining the effect of yo-yo dieting on metabolism and health.
...We studied several groups of adult male rats, putting one group through an experience similar to human yo-yo dieting. These rats were put on high-fat diet and became obese. Then they were placed on a balanced weight-loss diet until they returned to normal weight. After that, they were given free access to the high-fat food and they regained their lost weight. This cycle was repeated so that our yo-yo dieters completed two cycles of loss and regain.
...The results were striking. The yo-yo dieters needed 21 days to lose their excess weight during the first cycle. But after they regained this weight and started the second cycle, it took them 46 days to lose it again, even though their diet was exactly the same. There was an even greater difference in the time it took the rats to put the weight back on. In the first cycle, the animals needed 45 days to return to their obese weight in the second cycle took only 14 days. Weight loss was two times slower and regain was three times faster during the second round of yo-yo dieting than during the first round. They gained more body weight per gram of food eaten, and so were able to maintain their weight on fewer calories.
...Greenwood's lab discovered that yo-yo dieting altered the body composition of female rats so that such animals tended to have a higher percentage of body fat than animals that remained obese. Even though animals that had been through several diet cycles weighed less than nondieters, more of their weight consisted of fat so they ended up with just as much body fat.


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## kaliraksha (May 10, 2006)

I think there is also a Hindu holiday where women fast for a day for their husband's health and long life.

I've had to go on a liquid diet after surgery once... and I lost ten lbs... but I looked dead, lifeless... no glow... skin and hair just ick.


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