Tori Close

Yeah, I know. Not a very nice title for a blog post. Unfortunately, that’s how I feel tonight.

I was really excited to join Weight Watchers Online. I thought it would be a great way to get some support, and have others to talk to who were dealing with the same thing I am dealing with … trying to lose weight. Well let me tell you, the folks over on the Weight Watchers board were not very supportive. Shoot, they weren’t even nice! At least most of the ones that posted on a thread I started.

Short background: I do not overeat. I am not an emotional eater either. My problem is poor eating habits. I don’t eat all day, then sit down and eat dinner with my family. My doctor told me this was the reason I had gained weight; I was not giving my body the nutrition that it needed so it was hanging onto fat for “later use”. By doing this for years on end, my body stored up everything I ate at night and turned it into fat.

If I was an over-eater I would admit it, and losing weight would be so much easier. My husband and my son can attest to that fact. My son even occasionally asks me, “Mom, have you eaten yet today?” Geeeez. (Aren’t we mom’s supposed to be making sure our kids eat?! lol) At dinner, I eat what I consider a normal meal, but even at that, I can still never finish a plate.

Anyway, here is how the forum thread I started went. I am in pink, they are in blue.

Me: I am an under-eater (used to only eating once per day) and my doctor said that was the reason for my weight gain. I know this intellectually, however trying to wrap my brain around the fact that eating so much more is going to help me lose weight is a bit hard for me. Anyone else here having to learn how to eat more (and more often) and trying to lose weight?

I would love to hear from anyone else who has had to re-train themselves on how to eat correctly, and have still lost weight. This is my first time on WW, so I am hoping it can help me. Thanks! :)

Reponse #1: I’m guessing you are eating lots of calories in that one meal. You don’t gain by not eating enough calories.

Reponse #2: Um, no. You are like my dh. He wants to eat one meal a day thinking he is eating less,in reality, he is starving and overeats.

Reponse #3: Like the others said, you had to be consuming a lot of calories at that one meal if you are overweight. One reason that we are told to eat 5 or 6 small meals is that we are never feeling like we are starving and overeat. The other is if your body thinks it is starving it is so smart so it slows down your metabolism so you don’t need as many calories to maintain your weight. I would suggest that you eat the 5 small meals a day and start working out to gain some muscle mass which helps you to burn calories, do some cardio which helps to keep you burning extra calories after your workout and don’t eat after dinnertime. That is about 6pm for me. Good luck. We all have issues or we wouldnt be working on this.

Me: Actually, I wasn’t overeating at my one meal. I kept a food log for my doctor, and he said exactly what xxxxx said, “Your body is in starvation mode so it is holding onto every single calorie you eat and turning it into fat.” (I was at about 800 calories per day) It wasn’t an intentional thing; I would just get busy and not eat until dinner. Trying to re-train myself to eat throughout the day is tough. Was just curious as to whether anyone else has been in the same situation.

Reponse #4: Sumo wrestlers only eat one meal a day. There is an article on this site about the “Starvation Mode Myth”. I believe it is under fitness & health – the science center.

Reponse #5: The starvation mode is a myth. Quit fooling yourself. You don’t need to lose 50 pounds because you under-ate. That’s ridiculous. Ever heard of anorexia? That wouldn’t exist if our bodies worked the way you *think* yours does.

Reponse #6: You do not gain weight by under-eating. It’s impossible.

Me: Wow. Sorry I brought it up. Just going by what my doctor told me. I have to say, I’m a bit surprised by the harsh reactions here. I thought this was a “welcome” and a “newbie” board. I was simply looking for others who might have found themselves in the same situation. :(

Reponse #7: Get a new doctor. Seriously.

Reponse #8: Sorry. You eat just as many calories in your one meal as anyone else does in their whole day. No one gains weight because they aren’t eating enough. Just because when you actually tallied your days you ate “normal” amounts, doesn’t mean that when you didn’t journal you restricted yourself so much. The act of journalling is a limiting exercise in itself. You may have eaten less on the days you journalled. Starvation mode only happens in third world countries where people are limited to less than 700 calories daily for months on end for people who are literally starving. Realistically, in an industrialized country with fast food available on every corner, that’s not happening. In terms of how we perceive it in this country, starvation mode is a myth.

Reponse #9: An overweight “under eater”. Um. Okay. Yeah I got fat by eating too much.

Reponse #10: Why are all those starving children in Feed The Children ads so thin if under eating causes weight gain? I’ve asked that many times here and no one ever answers.

Reponse #11: P.S. Your doctor is a fool and you are in denial about how much you eat.

Response #12: I agree – you need a new doctor and you did not get overweight by “under” eating. *insert flounce here*

Response #13: I know it’s Friday the 13th, but really, is it also National Delusional WW Week? This is like the 5th post this week in which the OP is under the delusion that undereating causes weight gain. It’s scientifically impossible and completely illogical. The body utilizes a certain amount of energy for basic biological functions, add to that getting out of bed, standing, walking, going to work and your body utilizes more than 800 calories of energy. Your body cannot “hold onto calories” if you’re using more than you’re taking in. You don’t gain weight by using more energy than you consume, it’s physically impossible.

Wow! I have never seen such vitriol spewing from people’s mouths over a simple question in my life! The conversation went on after that, but I never replied to anything else.

I admit this shook me up.

I was confused.

It made me angry.

It hurt my feelings.

Yep … Mean people suck!

And for the record, I still choose to take what my doctor told me as truth, as well as what other doctors (Dr. Oz, MD, and Michael F. Roizen, MD) and fitness trainers have said about “starvation mode” before I will believe someone without a medical degree … who also happens to be an overweight person trying to lose weight like the rest of us.

Just saying.