Exercise vs. Food Intake

What is the ratio between calories and calories burned through exercise before your body goes into starvation mode? How do you know when you have exercised to much for the amount of calories you have eaten for the day so that you don't stop loosing weight? When I went to the diet clinic and didn't loose weight she would say you over exercised but never really explained herself. She said that the over exercising put my body into starvation mode. I'm confused! Help please!

I am not a doctor, but looking at the date of your VSG I would think you are just in a stall. Stalls are normal and necessary for your body. Keep exercising.

I'm going to go out on a limb here, so take what I say or leave it. It's up to you. There are many who agree with what I'm about to write and others who vehemently disagree. Here goes:

Starvation Mode in modern American dieting is a myth. It doesn't actually exist in the sense that nutritionists use it. Starvation is an extreme state brought on by prolonged lack of food to nourish the body. When one is truly starving the body has to resort to cannibalizing itself just to sustain basic body functions. Think of concentration camp victims. That's what a true starvation mode is.

During extreme weight loss a few things happen. If you are on a carbohydrate restricted diet, your body will go into ketosis. Ketosis is in lay terms "fat burning" mode. Your body uses its own stored fat for energy. To break down the fat into usable energy the body utilizes its stores of glycogen. I'm not exactly sure how the next part works, but glycogen uses water as a storage system so that every time your body starts to used glycogen it will also purge water. A pound of glycogen can need up to 4 pounds of stored fluid. Think about the first 10 pounds coming off in a regular diet - people always call i****er weight - well, that comes off fast, then the weight loss slows way down.

So when your glycogen stores are depleted the body needs to make more so it can go about buring more fat. For some people this glycogen production results in a stall in the weight loss they are experiencing. During a stall there is no reason to lessen exercise, up calories or "shake things up" to trick the body back into a weight loss mode. As soon as the glycogen stores are returned to normal weight loss begins again.

Some people are what are called stair step losers. They lose a bunch of weight, then stall for a bit. Then they'll lose some more and then stall again. This cycle will repeat until goal is reached. Then there are others for whom weight loss is steady from the get go - no stalls, just a continuing weight loss week by week.

As early out as you are, it would not surprise me if you were in a stall. Don't despair. As long as you are on a good program and following your plan you will start losing weight again. As hard as it is, be patient.

As for exercising too much.... I don't buy into that either. You just exercise all you like. Your body has plenty of fat to sustain whatever exercise you are choosing to do. The point is to burn extra calories so your body HAS to burn the fat to maintain its cells.

Again, take or leave what I said. It is only my perspective. I hope my perspective helps you in some way. If not, that's okay, too!

Thank you kairk.  It had to be said, but I just couldn't do it.  I was really hoping you or another VET would say something on this point as others really need to read your (our) perspective. 

To the OP, I agree with every single word of kairk's response. 

Thank you for the thorough explanation.  It always helps to understand the why's and how's.

Finally! An explanation on this that I can actually understand! Thank you!

My PCP and surgeon both agree with Kairk also.

A

What Kairk said.  I don't believe in starvation mode for obese people if you are getting in your protein. :)  Fluids too--you need more than the minimum if you're exercising.

One other note, the more weight you lose the less calories your body burns during exercise. Example, when I weight 200 lbs 1/2 hr on the elliptical would burn 275 calories, now at 134 that same 30 minutes burns only 130 calories. I use a heart rate monitor to get a more accurate count and have noticed that it takes a lot more effort to get my heart rate going... guess that's called FITNESS.

Good point!