Are You Ready For A Slow Down?

I found this on LBT today, on the home page...written by one of the doctors. I thought it was interesting. I have always heard if you drop below 900 calories a day then you body will hoard your calories and fat....just wanted to share!

What is the minimum number of calories you should consume to avoid metabolic slowdown? How can you combat a slow metabolism?

The medical field is pretty sure now that when caloric intake drops down to around 1100-1200 calories per day, human metabolism will slow down. This is a natural, evolutionary response. Think back to the Caveman again. When humans had to scavenge for food that was not always readily available, our bodies became very efficient at storing energy in the form of fat to tide us through times when we might not be able to eat much for a few days. When food became scarce, our metabolism would slow down in order to conserve energy, at least until food became plentiful again.

Typically your body will go into this energy-conserving mode if you drop your caloric intake to around 1100-1200 calories per day. Since a well-adjusted Lap-Band should take you down to around this amount, your body will want to go into hibernation mode. Your job is to keep this from happening. How do you do this, you ask? With two simple steps:·Make sure you are getting the best nutrition you can. This means eating real food, avoiding empty calories, preparing fresh meals, and buying organic foods whenever possible. This will give your body all of the micronutrients and building blocks it needs to perform its normal daily chemical reactions that keep us feeling good.·

Exercise. This will keep your metabolism going by releasing natural hormones that control our “fight or flight” response. Ever heard of a “runner’s high?” Sometimes getting started with an exercise routine is tough, but think back about how great you felt after a work out—not just the feeling of accomplishing something, but how energized and alert you were. That’s a natural response. It had very little to do with your expensive gym equipment, your personal trainer with rock hard abs, or your perfectly set iPod tunes. It had everything to do with what a wonderful machine the human body is.