Extreme and rapid weight loss often results from very low-calorie diets. However, diets that dip below 1,200 calories for women and 1,500 calories for men are termed extreme or severe. Extreme calorie diets should not be continued for longer than 16 weeks, says the University of Maryland Medical Center, since they are insufficient in vitamins and minerals, which must then be taken as supplements.
Nutrition
Choose natural foods instead of processed ones to get your carbohydrates, protein and fat. Not only will natural sources of these macronutrients provide you with better nutrition, but they also yield fewer calories per serving than their processed counterparts. Choose fruits and veggies over bread, cereal and pasta. Processed carbohydrates interfere with weight loss and even promote weight gain. Eat healthy sources of fat like walnuts, almonds, hazelnuts, flax seed, flax oil and olive oil, which will help keep you full and satiated between meals. Make sure to get about 30 percent of your calories from protein to help preserve your lean mass while you are losing weight.
Determining Caloric Needs
Use an online resource to first help you determine how many calories your body uses for your weight, gender and current activity level. Try the calculator provided by Nutriweb, which takes these factors affecting caloric needs into consideration.
Cutting Calories
There are 3,500 calories in one pound; in order to lose a pound, you must create a deficit of 3,500 calories through diet and/or exercise. Depending on how much weight you want to lose, and how quickly, you can create a daily 500-calorie deficit to lose 1 lb. per week. Theoretically, each additional 500-calorie deficit per day will lead to an additional pound of weight loss per week.
Side Effects
Maintaining a very low calorie diet causes serious side effects such as fatigue, intolerance to cold, hair loss, gallstone formation and menstrual irregularities. The University of Maryland Medical Center advises, "those whose diets include a high intake of fluids and much reduced protein and sodium are at risk for hyponatremia (low sodium), which can cause fatigue, confusion, dizziness, and in extreme cases, coma."
Warning
These diets are associated with the development of an eating disorder like anorexia or bulimia since more emphasis is placed on caloric intake than on proper and healthy nutrition. Most of the initial weight lost on these diets is fluid. When you finally begin to burn off fat for energy on these diets, you are also burning away muscle, which accounts for 30 percent of the weight loss. Never go on an extreme diet without discussing it with your physician.
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