If you are stuck in the dreaded starvation cycle, this article is for you!

The 2 hours of cardio a day, while consuming 1000 calories of meal replacements and green smoothies. Or maybe the liquid lifestyle isn’t your thing, but you’re so swamped with work, kids, and errands that it’s hard to find time to squeeze in a bite to eat. It’s even possible that you have  time in your schedule to consistently consume nourishing meals, but you simply lack the appetite to do so. Regardless of your struggle, it is important to understand the “why” behind your food consumption if you are serious about achieving some real results.

Are consequences drastic for everyone? Not necessarily! Your age and current state of health are strong determining factors in how body responds to eating schedules and certain diet styles. However, understanding the basics of how your body functions is vital for the success of your fitness journey.

Can you lose weight by drastically under consuming calories? Of course, but it may not yield the results that you are looking for in the long run. Losing large amounts of weight in a relatively short period of time usually results in muscle loss and an increase of excess skin. You also may find that you are more likely to gain excess weight back in the form of visceral fat, which is dangerous for your health.

Starvation health effects

Speaking of health, when you skip meals, you may experience fatigue, brain fog, muscle weakness, mood swings and intense cravings due to drops in your blood sugar levels. These symptoms can cause you to binge eat throughout the day as your body attempts to regulate your sugar levels.

Missing meals also means that you’re missing out on valuable nutrients that your body needs to function at an optimum level. This tends to result in unhealthy eating habits, which further deprives your body of the nutritious micro and macro nutrients that it deserves.

One of the biggest effects that most people fail to realize when under-eating, is that you can sabotage your weight-loss efforts! When you consume very little food, your body tends to enter a “starvation mode”. Which simply means that your body begins to store your food as fat instead of burning it off as fuel to sustain your energy.

On the plus side, when you develop consistent eating patterns, you are more likely to drop the weight, keep it off and develop a sustainable active and healthy lifestyle!