Obese people more efficient at storing energy

[Guest guest]

Just sharing confirmation of info, with my sister, a dietician in a Bariatric

Center:

Barb:

Yes. This is true. People who are very obese are actually much more efficient

at storing energy. In other words, you survive on much less energy (less

calories) for survival and excess energy is converted to fat (to provide fuel

in case of famine). At least that is how your body handles it. That is why

the very low calorie diets are not effective because the body (obese person)

will slow down to adjust and survive on this much lower calorie level. Then

when you increase calories your body will work harder to store more of the

energy as fat instead of burn it because your body is preparing to last

through a famine period. Someone who tends to stay at a low weight does not

have this efficient a mechanism to survive through a famine type state.

Love, Cheryl

Cheryl _________, PhD, RD, LD

Barb B.Open Prox. RNY 6-20-01

Maintaining Goal

[Guest guest]

I can follow and understand this (while not liking it...) but where does

that leave us " efficient " people? The way this is sounding, no matter how

low our in-take our bodies will " store " fat to get us through the famine

period -- this would (as I read it) still be the case for us MO people who

are in remission, living in a thin body for now -- we are still going to

store that extra fat for the famine (?) So how does one break this cycle? Is

it possible to stop our bodies from doing this storage instead of burning --

will we ever truly find a " middle ground " with our bodies or are we just

stuck with the " efficient storage " our bodies do? And, if we are stuck with

it how do we teach our selves and our bodies to consume the right amount to

get around this thing?

hugz and tell your sister thanks for sharing and thanks you for passing it

on

~denise

> Just sharing confirmation of info, with my sister, a dietician in a

Bariatric Center:

-------

> Barb:

> Yes. This is true. People who are very obese are actually much

> more efficient

> at storing energy. In other words, you survive on much less energy (less

> calories) for survival and excess energy is converted to fat (to

> provide fuel

> in case of famine). At least that is how your body handles it.

> That is why

> the very low calorie diets are not effective because the body

> (obese person)

> will slow down to adjust and survive on this much lower calorie

> level. Then

> when you increase calories your body will work harder to store

> more of the

> energy as fat instead of burn it because your body is preparing to last

> through a famine period. Someone who tends to stay at a low

> weight does not

> have this efficient a mechanism to survive through a famine type state.

>

> Love, Cheryl

>

> Cheryl _________, PhD, RD, LD

>

> Barb B.Open Prox. RNY 6-20-01

> Maintaining Goal

[Guest guest]

This is my experience and what I have learned post op. I was more

efficient at storing energy because of the way I ate and related to

food, not because of my genetics. If anything my body did all it

could to protect me from my own behavior. Afterall I am the decendabt

of survivors of all the worlds famines and catastrophies. I am Irish,

English and ish. My behavior as a result of dieting and trying

to fit the " Cosmo girl " image, caused my body to store more fat than

others (that don't and never have dieted) and that is how *I* ended

up morbidly obese. I was trying to change my body type, rather than

embrassing me as I was. I believe the key to overcoming MO was for

me, " getting real, " getting good information and forgiving myself for

the cause of it. I am almost 4 years post op and lost 100% of my

excess weight. It took just over 3 years for my body and metabolism

to completely heal from what I had done to it (unknowingly). I didn't

diet and restrict or count calories or grams of anything to lose the

weight or maintain my loss (so far). My major concerns were and

still are listening to my body (not my head and all the false media

and medical information) and having proper nutrition in order to be

healthy. I had a very short open proximal RNY on Dec 12, 1998 at 41

years old. My beginning BMI was 47 and my current BMI is 22 and I

wear a size 6 or 8, small or medium.

Dieting (or in my ancestors case famine)is what sets us up to

experience this efficient metabolism. Our metabolism is controlled

by hormones. Some hormones increase metabolism, others slow it,

while others stimulate or decrease our appetite so that we hoard

calories or are uninterested in them. If, when you are actually

physically hungry you choose not to eat, the metabolism is signaled

by hormones to slow down, while appetite is increased. When you do

give into eating, you eat more calories and store more of them for

future use. This is good and healthy, it does not mean your body is

broken. It also takes fewer calories per day to maintain fat stored

than it does to maintain your lean body (So yes, I do beleive 300

pound people that say they eat 2,000 calories per day!). . . Reality

is that one can maintain a high fat body on far fewer calories than

the typical formulas suggest.

Is it possible to turn this around??? Absolutely, I am living proof.

And its not that difficult. It just takes time and consciously being

in tune with your body. Never ignore real physical hunger or your

body will release hormones that slow down your metabolism and increse

your physical hunger. Its called the famine response that was

mentioned. People that have never had a weight problem never ignore

physical hunger. Ask them and they will tell you they have " no will

power " and could never diet.

My personal experience is that for my entire life I was taught to

model the behavior of people with weight problems (my parents) and it

was either feast or famine . . . dieting and losing or between diets

and gaining. That isn't how the so called " blessed " people relate to

food and eating. I made a post op decision to model the eating

behavior of people that don't have and have never had a weight

problem. I am very happy with the results. *I* found my body didn't

betray me afterall . . . it did what it could to protect me from my

own behavior. My body had no idea that there really was plenty food

of all nutritional content available to me and that I would start

eating it again when I reached a weight I thought was appropriate for

it.

I know this was long, but I wanted to give some of you that are

frustrated another point of view and a different experience. I used

the book, " The Seven Secrets of Slim People " to learn a natural

relationship with food.

) Vicki (in CA)

> I can follow and understand this (while not liking it...) but where

does

> that leave us " efficient " people? The way this is sounding, no

matter how

> low our in-take our bodies will " store " fat to get us through the

famine

> period -- this would (as I read it) still be the case for us MO

people who

> are in remission, living in a thin body for now -- we are still

going to

> store that extra fat for the famine (?) So how does one break this

cycle? Is

> it possible to stop our bodies from doing this storage instead of

burning --

> will we ever truly find a " middle ground " with our bodies or are we

just

> stuck with the " efficient storage " our bodies do? And, if we are

stuck with

> it how do we teach our selves and our bodies to consume the right

amount to

> get around this thing?

> hugz and tell your sister thanks for sharing and thanks you for

passing it

> on

> ~denise

>

> > Just sharing confirmation of info, with my sister, a dietician in

a

> Bariatric Center:

> -------

> > Barb:

> > Yes. This is true. People who are very obese are actually much

> > more efficient

> > at storing energy. In other words, you survive on much less

energy (less

> > calories) for survival and excess energy is converted to fat (to

> > provide fuel

> > in case of famine). At least that is how your body handles it.

> > That is why

> > the very low calorie diets are not effective because the body

> > (obese person)

> > will slow down to adjust and survive on this much lower calorie

> > level. Then

> > when you increase calories your body will work harder to store

> > more of the

> > energy as fat instead of burn it because your body is preparing

to last

> > through a famine period. Someone who tends to stay at a low

> > weight does not

> > have this efficient a mechanism to survive through a famine type

state.

> >

> > Love, Cheryl

> >

> > Cheryl _________, PhD, RD, LD

> >

> > Barb B.Open Prox. RNY 6-20-01

> > Maintaining Goal

[Guest guest]

I can only speak for myself, but I can eat at least 5 times more now that I

am 130 pounds less and @ goal than I did at my heaviest. I think that more

than my body storing energy, my metabolism quit working. So if I ate only a

small meal once a day (which was common) it stayed with me. However, once I

started eating regularly throughout the day I started to lose weight.

Even today, at goal, if I don't eat throughout the day, on a regular basis,

the scale will start to creep upwards. A good 3-5 days of upping my intake

will take me back down to goal. I am fortunate that even eating foods that

most people would raise their eyebrows about, I don't gain. If I were to

eat " healthy " regularly, throughout the day, I will go below my goal weight.

Who woulda thought????

As for the hamburger topic, I can eat the patty of a double whopper w/cheese

& bacon. I have been able to eat meat (any kind) since 3-4 weeks post-op.

No problems with any foods. Lucky of the draw?????

KJ

RNY May 2000

TT June 2001

Mastoplexy Dec 2001

-130 lbs @goal