Is Starvation Mode Real? Here’s The Truth

Is starvation mode real?

That’s a question that I bet you ask yourself from time to time.

And, to be honest with you, it’s actually a valid question.

Mainly because of how much content there is nowadays about the dangers of “starvation mode.”

Where coaches, trainers, and fitness influencers make the claim that not only will you not be able to lose weight if you don’t eat enough calories, but you might even gain weight.

So, because this has been such a hot topic in the fitness space over the past few years, I figured I’d write an article outlining the reality of starvation mode and whether it’s actually true.

All I ask of you is that you read this entire article from start to finish.

Because by the end you’ll have a much better understanding of how fat loss ACTUALLY works and whether eating low calorie actually hinders it.

How You Gain And Lose Weight

Before I discuss “starvation mode” more specifically, I need to briefly explain how weight loss and weight gain actually happen.

Because it’ll lay the foundation for everything else I discuss in this article.

At the end of the day, whether you lose weight, gain weight, or stay the same weight is all predicted on how many calories you eat.

Not how much you’re exercising.

Not how healthy you eat.

Not what supplements you take.

How much you weigh is predicted on your calorie intake.

Now, I’m not saying those other things don’t matter.

Because they absolutely play an indirect role in what you weigh.

But calories themselves are what directly determine what you weigh.

Great, But What Do I Do With That Information?

Now that you know what determines your weight, let’s discuss what that actually looks like in practice.

Here’s a simple, easy-to-understand example.

Let’s your best friend Becky (don’t know why I picked that name) maintains her weight off of 2,000 calories a day.

• If she eats 2,000 calories a day, she’ll stay around the same weight (calorie maintenance).
• If she eats 1,700 calories a day, she’ll lose weight (calorie deficit).
• If she eats 2,300 calories a day, she’ll gain weight (calorie surplus).

So when you hear people say “you have to be in a calorie deficit to lose weight,” now you know what they’re referring to.

A calorie deficit is the only way to lose body fat.

And, simply put, it’s when you consistently eat less calories than you need to maintain your weight.

So, in the example above, if Becky eats below 2,000 calories a day then she’s in a calorie deficit.

The closer she is to 2,000 (like 1,800) the smaller the deficit.

The father away she is from 2,000 (like 1,300), the bigger the deficit.

So while the only way to lose fat is to be in a calorie deficit, there are different “degrees” of deficits. Some are larger than others.

Now that you know how fat loss actually happens, let’s dive into the truth behind starvation mode so you can find out if it’s even real to begin with.

The Myth Of Starvation Mode

The term “starvation mode” has been thrown around A LOT in the fitness space in recent years.

To put it simply, most people who refer to “starvation mode” argue that our bodies hold onto fat as a survival mechanism when we eat really low calorie.

Their reasoning is that, when we don’t eat enough food, our bodies like to hold onto fat as an energy source to tap into later if we need it.

But here’s where their logic goes out the window.

If what they’re saying is true, then legitimately starving people in third world countries would be overweight and so would my ancestors who were put into concentration camps during the Holocaust.

If their argument truly held up, then anybody deprived of calories would be putting on excess body fat.

Now, I know the two examples I gave are extreme.

But they really do exemplify the absurdity of making the claim that low calorie diets cause weight gain.

They don’t.

In fact, extremely low calorie diets cause rapid weight loss.

And that weight loss comes from both fat and muscle.

I hate to break it to you, but you’re not the exception.

If you were legitimately eating something like 1,200 calories a day, you’d be losing body fat.

There’s no two ways about it.

You’d be in a calorie deficit. Just like I talked about earlier.

So, that begs the question.

Why do people, maybe even you reading this right now, struggle so much with weight loss even when on a really low calorie diet.

Let’s discuss the most common reason.

Is Starvation Mode Real: The Reality Of A 1,200 Calorie Diet

Here’s why so many people who slash their calories super low end up struggling to lose weight.

And, by super low, let’s just use 1,200 calories as an example.

It’s simple. It’s because they’re not actually eating 1,200 calories every single day.

In fact, there’s actually a study that looked at individuals that claimed they were eating less than 1,200 calories a day but weren’t losing weight.

The studied showed that one group underreported their calorie intake by an average of 47% and overreported their physical activity by 51%!

In a nutshell, the study showed that most people eat way more calories than they think AND burn way less calories through exercise than they think.

No wonder most people struggle to lose weight!

Now, before you get mad at me for insinuating that you’re lying about your calorie intake, hear me out.

I’m not saying that you’re being intentionally untruthful about what you’re eating.

What I am saying is that most people who swear they’re eating 1,200 calories every single day are only telling you part of the story.

Here’s The Reality

Remember Becky from earlier in the article? Good, glad you’re paying attention.

Let’s use her as an example again.

Here’s the scenario.

She swears up and down that she’s eating 1,200 calories a day but not losing weight.

And, remember, her calorie maintenance is around 2,000 so eating anything below that on a consistent basis will result in fat loss.

So, here’s what’s really happening.

Like most people in this situation, Becky isn’t being 100% dishonest.

She actually eats 1,200 calories a day some of the time.

Specially Monday through Thursday.

She’s able to use quite a bit of willpower during the week, in part because she’s busy with work and with her kids. She just doesn’t have that much time to think about food.

But here’s what happens.

Because she’s eating such a low calorie diet during the week, she inevitably becomes extremely hungry once the weekend rolls around.

Which, as a byproduct, causes her to eat 3,000+ calories on Saturday and Sunday.

Here’s a rough outline of what her weekly calories actually look like:

• Monday: 1,207
• Tuesday: 1,355
• Wednesday: 1,295
• Thursday: 1,230
• Friday: 2,150
• Saturday: 3,430
• Sunday: 3,120

Being In An Overall Calorie Deficit Is What Matters

Notice a theme here? See how, as the week goes on, her willpower wanes and she becomes increasingly hungry.

So, in this situation, it wasn’t the 1,200 calories that caused a weight loss plateau.

It was the fact that 1,200 calories a day was inherently unrealistic and unsustainable for her which led to several inadvertent high calorie days thereafter.

Notice how, in this specific example, Becky ate low calorie from Monday to Thursday.

Then, on Friday, she ended up eating more because hunger started to increase.

Then, over the weekend, the increased hunger paired with more temptations (parties, dinners, family events, etc) resulted in a few high calorie days.

And those high calorie days took her out of a calorie deficit.

Here’s the bottom line.

If Becky only payed attention to how many calories she ate during the work week, she’d be right to assume that she should be losing weight.

But, when you dig a little bit deeper, you notice that the high calorie days over the weekend brought her weekly average number of calories way up.

Remember, the only way to lose fat is to be in a calorie deficit.

Which means that Becky needs to be in a deficit for the week as a whole. Not just during the work week.

When you add up each day’s calorie total and divide by seven (to get her weekly average), you see that she averaged 1,970 calories a day.

Which, if you remember from earlier, is right around her calorie maintenance.

That’s why she’s not losing weight.

An Important Note About Calories

I wanted to touch on an important point about the example above.

You might be reading this thinking that what I’m saying doesn’t apply to you because there’s no way you’re eating 3,000+ calories a day over the weekend.

And, candidly, you could be right. Obviously I don’t know you’re specific situation.

But here’s what I do know.

With the standard American diet, it’s not hard at all to have some 3,000+ calorie days here and there.

You might not want to hear it, but it’s the truth.

It’s not uncommon for an individual meal at a restaurant to be 2,000+ calories with our large portion sizes here in the United States.

Not to mention how much oil and butter is used by chefs at most restaurants.

It’s important to know that most people UNDERESTIMATE how many calories they eat.

So it’s not uncommon for someone to blow past their calories here and there, especially over the weekend.

Anyway, now that we’ve talked about why eating a super low calorie amount can hinder weight loss, let’s talk about some solutions that you can implement right away.

Is Starvation Mode Real: How To Be Successful In Your Weight Loss Journey

I want to give you three tips that you can start incorporating right away to push through your weight loss plateau.

So that you don’t have to worry about the potential dangers of trying to eat an unrealistically low calorie amount.

1. Pick A More Moderate, Sustainable Calorie Deficit

You probably knew this one was coming.

I get why you might want to pick a super low calorie target to aim for.

Because you assume you’ll see more progress and lose weight quicker that way.

But, by going with a more moderate calorie deficit number (~500 calories below maintenance), you can do a better job of managing hunger.

So you’ll be less likely to blow past your calories over the weekend.

Plus, you’ll be able to get a bit more food on a consistent basis which can make weight loss suck less.

Remember, successful weight loss is about losing fat and actually keeping it off.

Just like so many of my awesome online coaching clients have. I’ll show you a picture of some of those incredible transformations right here below.

What good is it to lose a ton of weight quickly only to put it all back on several months later?

That’s the major downside of dropping your calories super low.

So, just pick a more sustainable calorie target so that every pound you lose is weight that you can keep off for life.

2. Track Your Calories Over The Weekend, Not Just During The Week

I think this tip is pretty self-explanatory.

Think about it like this.

If you’re more likely to blow past your calories over the weekend than you are during the week, don’t you think it probably makes sense to track your calories on Saturday and Sunday?

Because, by paying attention to your food choices, you’ll be less likely to go off the rails.

Even if there’s more temptations over the weekend, at least you’ll actually be aware of how many calories you’re eating.

And, candidly, even though tracking over the weekend doesn’t sound very fun, it can actually be liberating.

Here’s why.

It allows you to still enjoy your favorite foods in moderation as long as they fit into your calories.

If you don’t track at all, you’ll likely either go off the rails completely or deprive yourself of your favorite foods altogether.

But, by tracking, you’re sort of living in the middle ground.

You’re able to keep your nutrition in check without completely depriving yourself of what you enjoy.

3. Eat Food That Fills You Up More

Being in a calorie deficit is never going to be easy.

It’s just the harsh truth.

With that said, there are some tried and true ways to reduce hunger and make a calorie deficit suck less.

In my opinion, the best way to do that is to center most of your meals around protein and fiber specifically.

That’s the best strategy to curb some of those cravings that make hitting your calories so difficult.

Trust me. Both protein and fiber are incredibly satiating.

What was the last time you ate a big salad with tons of veggies and protein and didn’t feel full after?

Exactly.

Wrapping Up

There you have it!

The answer to the million dollar question: is starvation mode real?

My hope is that you now understand some of the major downsides of choosing to set your calories super low while in a calorie deficit.

And that you’ll go with a more moderate calorie deficit moving forward.

If you have any specific questions on anything I’ve discussed in this article, feel free to reach out and I’d be happy to help!

We’ll talk soon!