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Originally Posted by NinjaCowboy Since I eat so little (not 'depriving' myself of anything, just not hungry), I just don't understand why I'm overweight or what I can do to lose the weight. (obviously not cutting calories) |
Hold onto your hat, NijnaCowboy, this is going to sound bizarre, I promise you.
You're not losing fat because you're not eating. It's that simple. Here's what happens when you don't eat, in a nutshell. With no or little energy coming in your body will burn stored carbohydrates in the form of glycogen first and foremost. Once this is used up, which usually takes two or three days depending on your activity level and size it will then focus on muscle tissue because muscle is metabolically active and it takes energy to maintain it. With no energy coming it this becomes something of a liability, so 'out it goes'. Only then does it grudgingly dip into the fat stores. This is why most diets don't work, especially "starvation" diets. When you suddenly cut off the food supply, survival mechanisms kick in causing the body to store every little bit of fat that it can, because energy has been stopped and that is what fat is, stored energy. Severe caloric restiction and fasts will result in weight loss, but not much fat loss. Even worse, as soon as you DO eat something, it immediately gets stored as fat to replace any that was used. Do this a few times and you join the ranks of the frustrated yo-yo dieters.
Right now, because of how little you're eating, your cortisol levels would be sky high. Cortisol is one of the hormones in your body that respond to stress. It causes lean tissue to be used for energy and it stops fat burning in it's tracks. You've basically created an environment that is counterproductive to burning fat.
I understand the issues (time and money) you face but there are cheap and easy foods you can cook and use throughout the day. Foods like eggs, cottage cheese, nuts and seeds, potatoes and sweet potatoes, brown rice. Chicken legs are pretty cheap, buying them and removing the skin makes them a good source of protein.
If you do want to lose the fat you will have to start eating; exercising as well, but I would focus on the eating first.
Nat
possibly unusual question... 
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