Fasting and The Starvation Mode Myth?

by Stephanie
(Burlington, VT USA)

I know that what you read on the 'net is largely whooey. (We may be too.) But the one that gets me is that fasting is going to make you fatter because of the starvation mode business.

Your metabolism slows down so that it takes less calories of energy for your body to do whatever it was formerly doing with more? Ok this makes no sense to me. But even if so, the rate of fat loss per calorie deficit may slow. But it sure isn't going to go zero because your body needs to get its energy from somewhere. So if you are at a massive caloric deficit by water fasting, how could you possibly GAIN weight on a water fast.

I have a speculation. Have you noticed who spouts this stuff? Weight Watchers, SparkPeople and their ilk. Could it be that they want you to have to count your calories precisely so that you need their services? Then they have to tell you that to do otherwise is dangerous so you don't feel empowered to do it on your own? Call me cynical. Now don't get me wrong. You can (I have) lost weight with calorie counting regimes. But the my way is the only way attitude has always irked me.

So my questions are several fold...

- What knowledge/opinions have you on the super low calorie diet causing weight gain?

- Is there a means of guessing how much weight is lost on a water fast... I don't know per day or however you want to give the info. There is probably enough collective anecdotal evidence to venture a guess. I read 3-4 pounds per day early in a fast at once source. That seems high to me.

- How much of that winds up being muscle mass? Is there information available from studies on muscle vs fat? I am not terribly worried about it. Just curious.

Here goes me on day 2 of a water fast. Breaking in slowly-ish. Just planning a few days. Using mindfulness allows me to realize that the hunger pains aren't that bad!