Are You Not Eating To Lose Weight?

I don’t know how many times I hear this and my answer is the same. It’s bad for you! If you’re trying to lose weight, not eating to lose the weight is not the healthiest option available. Depriving your body of proper nutrition will have more negative effects on your health than positive and may even result in you putting on weight instead. Please consider these 4 negative effects below.

1. Little Energy

Physical activity and exercise isn’t just a great tool for weight loss. If your weight loss program includes not eating, you’ll quickly find yourself feeling sluggish and tired. As you continue to lower your calorie intake to lose weight, your body will also have less fuel to provide the needed energy for your daily activities. You’ll also have less energy if you include an exercise routine like going in the gym or running.

2. Weight Gain

We are all equipped with mechanisms that help us conserve calories for survival when we are not consuming what our bodies fully need. If you get into the practice of not eating, your body will start to conserve the calories you eat, storing them as fat for survival instead of burning it off for energy. Research has also shown that prolonged fasting can even deteriorate lean muscle mass you want.

3. Malnutrition

Our bodies require regular consumption of vitamins, minerals, fats, fibers and proteins for healthy, optimal function. Non-eating practices deprive the body of the nutrients needed for good heart, liver, lung and other organ functions. That deprivation can lead to serious cardio, circulatory and respiratory issues as the body compensates for the lack of nutrients and energy to conserve what little fuel it has.

4. Unhealthy Side Effects

Dieting by not eating over a prolonged time period begins to deprive the body of needed glucose levels too. Blood glucose is the preferred energy for our brains so dieting this way can eventually lead to headaches. Other possible side effects may include: Fainting, depression, irritability, rashes, reduced sex drive and hair loss.

So there you have it. Not eating to lose weight is terribly unhealthy and ineffective. I’d recommend stuffing your fridge with healthy, nutritional foods now!