Originally posted by: Amused
Originally posted by: freedomsbeat212
Originally posted by: Arkitech
Originally posted by: Amused
Ark, 2 lbs/week is an average. Which means, in most people, losing more weight per week can mean they are either seriously dehydrating themselves, or are losing too much lean muscle mass, or both. The 2 lbs target is ideal for holding on to your muscle.
It's basiaclly a warning against fad diets and fasts. Yes, it is posible to lose more than 2 lbs/week of fat, but not for most people who think food deprivation is the key to weight loss.
But what is average? If a person who was eating 3000 calories a day drops down to 1200 calories which is what they should be eating (in this example) and they lose 5 pounds per week are they losing muscle or fat? I'm really suspicious of terms like "average" and "normal" these days when it comes to body weight. It seems like there's way to many factors involved to say whats average. But then again what do I know, I'm just working on a theory.
As I said before in my long winded reasoning, it's the easy answer.. "Doctor, how much weight should I be losing?" What's easier than 2 lbs? You're right - there are a million factors - current weight, height, family history, health complications, metabolisms, etc.. The 2 lbs a week is a lazy, lazy answer and is a mental panacea of sorts.. Hear me out on this.. It's a little far fetched.. Everyone knows that it's fairly easy to lose 2 pounds a week - especially if you're a lard ass like many of us americans are.. If EVERYONE that is on a weight loss program is convinced that 2lbs is normal and safe and preferred they'd be inspired by the 2 lb lost - even though that's pretty insignificant - instead of pushing themselves a bit harder.. It's complacency through ignorance, baby...
Sigh, OK. Go ahead and believe that. But realize that rapid weight loss usually means the loss of lean muscle, dehydration, and the kicking in of your body's starvation defenses. Ever wonder why people end up fatter after yo-yo dieting? It's because the body becomes more adept at storing energy as fat when threatened with starvation in preparation for the next fast.
Your body doesn't care that you want to lose weight. It only cares how much energy it has stored much like you care how much money you have saved in the bank. Make the body think it's starving and that it NEEDS those energy stores, and it will do everything it can to save it, or replenish what it lost. Not only that, but your body then sets a higher setpoint for fat stores, because the last setpoint was too easily lost.
The more rapid the weight loss, the more likely the person is to gain it back, and more.