There is a reason why starvation diets are called "crash" diets. When you deny yourself of the nutrition your body needs to function, you will "crash", literally, from fatigue and weakness. More than likely you will then "crash" into the pantry and eat everything in sight to satisfy your hunger.

In order to lose weight, you need to burn off more calories than you consume. A calorie is the standard unit of measurement for burning energy. To increase the temperature of one gram of water by one degree Celcius, one calorie must be released. If a person consumes an average of 2000 calories per day, that person would need to expend enough energy to burn off more than that in order to lose weight.

It is the idea behind the starvation diet, therefore, to consume less than the daily recommended amount of calories to get through the day. By going through your regular routine and eating significantly less, you should be losing pounds every day, right? Not always.

You Need To Eat!

When you deny your body the food it needs to function, amazing things happen. Your body is equipped with its own natural security system that works to repair things that go wrong, or adjust to drastic situations like changes in temperature or lack of nutritition. When your body detects a dramatic decrease in food intake, it takes measure to ensure that you can still function.

When you starve yourself on purpose, your body seeks to preserve fuel. Therefore, your fat stores are preserved - the very same stores you are trying to burn away! As a result, the food you do intake in this time doesn't burn away as quickly as you would expect, because your body is hanging onto to every bit to save for later!

What is burned instead? Muscle. Remember, muscle weighs more than fat, and the body has to expend something in order to keep you moving. Therefore, starving yourself will do more harm than good. It may seem contradictory to your goals, but in order to lose weight you need to eat!

Of course, how well your diet works will depend upon what you eat. You will have better success with a meal of skinless broiled chicken and green vegetables than you would with a box of chocolate chip cookies...it's all a matter of proper diet planning and overcoming apprehensions about food.

Food Is Not the Enemy!

When you are able to have a comfortable relationship with food, you will have greater success in dieting and changing your lifestyle. In the media we have seen reports on good foods versus bad, good carbs versus bad...sometimes we watch and wonder how damage we have inflicted upon ourselves for eating a bite of candy bar! In truth, one should not approach dieting on the premise that certain foods are bad and certain foods are good. Rather, you need to think about how much of a certain food you are permitted to enjoy without overindulging.

Naturally, there will always be foods you should eat more often than others in order to maintain optimal health. The steamed broccoli is always going to be better than you than the glazed donut, but if you should happen to break down and take a bite of donut, don't fret! One bite of a glazed donut won't cause your body to balloon. Just enjoy the bite and remember to watch what you eat. But, you must eat!