What’s the difference between keeping off the weight and gaining it back?
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/02/health/biggest-loser-weight-loss.html?_r=0
So a friend passed this on my way. Another one shared it on Facebook. And it’s a fucking bummer man…
I guess like most things regarding health and science, it’s hard to make any strong conclusions from just a few studies, but this article presents some pretty discouraging data about weight loss.
- It tracks the weight gain and metabolism of contestants of The Biggest Loser. Now, this already makes me want to discount it because I think we can all agree that losing hundreds of pounds in a matter of weeks IS NOT a healthy way to go about things. But…
- The studies found that the contestants not only lost weight, but also lost their metabolisms. Meaning, they burn calories way more slowly. So it becomes increasingly hard to keep the weight off.
- They are also double and triple fucked because of their hormones. Hormones that regulate the feeling of satiety or hunger also get all out of whack. Basically, your body stops feeling full and just feels hungry all the time. So then you want to eat, and then your slow-ass metabolism can’t deal with it.
- Conclusion? The body WANTS you to be fat, damnit. If you try to lose that weight, your body will freak out and do everything it can to get that fat back.
So…. FUCK.
I guess. I mean, this raises a lot of questions/thoughts for me before I decide to give up and just be heavy.
Like…
- If I lose weight at a more normal (slow) pace, will my body adapt better and not freak out?
- And this kinda makes sense from an evolutionary perspective. We haven’t always lived in the land of plenty. Our bodies are programmed to pack it on when we can in case we end up facing famine conditions. Famine’s just not the problem any more (in this country).
- How do you keep your metabolism up? Exercise? Meth?
- And I used to think that my body was really happy at 170. Like it just wanted to be that weight. But now that I weigh more, does that mean my body is greedy and wants me to keep all 225 pounds? Does that mean that once you gain the weight, you’re fucked?
And what is a girl supposed to do?
I don’t think I can just resign myself to the weight I’m at. It hurts my legs. I can’t jump in the dodgy trampoline park. And I’m just tired so easily.
So it’s got to change.
But I wanna know what the best course of action is. What will science discover to help us MAINTAIN weight loss?
2 comments
First, it’s great to have you back! I’ve missed your wonderful writing.
Second, for what one person’s experience is worth, I think you’re onto something about the drastically fast weight loss. I have lost (slowly, over years, by improving eating habits and adding exercise) one fourth of my one-time body weight and while I’ve always seemed to have a slow metabolism, it doesn’t seem particularly slower now. In fact, when I was heavy, my blood sugar seemed much more prone to crashes. It’s easier now to go from one meal to another without snacking in between. And I can only judge from the outside, but the same seems to be true of the other big weight-loser in my house.
So don’t give up hope, but keep working toward those healthier habits. I wonder if they did a scientific study of people who had lost weight with Weight Watchers if the results would be different.
Definitely curious what more reasonable weight loss would produce. Seems logical it wouldn’t mess with your system as much.