I have several friends that are doing that Dr. weight loss with B-12 shots, supplements, and prescription appetite suppressants. They are losing a lot of weight - but the diet consists of ten 1oz. portions of lean/very lean protein and very little fat, no carbs or starchy veggies. I have a copy of the eating plan and it's seems VERY low calorie and low carb. I was thinking of trying it myself without the Dr.s shots/meds. What do you think of this? I feel like it would put me into that starvation mode everyone talks about.

Low carb that is also low cal or low fat, is not very smart. It can even be dangerous (google rabbit starvation)

Hi! You posted the same question in Calorie Counters. You can read my reply over there... but the short version is, this plan does not sound good to me. There are far more reasonable programs for losing weight that don't involve making doctors more wealthy. And you should not try this one on your own.

Jay

If this it the diet you're talking about, you should read this:

http://www.cbc.ca/consumers/market/f...ernstein_diet/

How will they maintain their loss?

My friend lost 70 lbs doing this starting Feb 1 -finish 7/15, she went from 210 to 140 and is on maintenance and is still losing even though she doesn't want to (such problems, right??!! haha!).

Anyway, I think the appetite suppressant works because the food intake is so low they must be very hungry!! But it really worked and while I DO know long term is key - I so want to reach my mini goal of 185 by the end of September for my HS reunion. Just wanted to see what you pros thought of it.

For maintenance they slowly introduce carbs and wean off the meds, I think it follows a Zone sort of maintenance.

Many people do lose large amounts of weight by crash methods, with no apparent ill effects. A few of them may even keep it off (the vast majority do not).

However, crash methods also drastically increase the likelihood of side effects that range from inconvenient to life-threatening and even fatal (hair loss, bad breath, dry skin, gallbladder problems sometimes requiring removal of the gallbladder, kidney and liver damage, heart valve damage such as mitrovalve prolapse which can be life threatening, and other cardiac damage/disease, including fatal heart attacks), insulin resistance (which may result in a lowered metabolism, making future weight maintenance more difficult).

Personally, I believe my insulin resistance is a result of many years of repeated crash diets. With each diet, I had to eat less just to maintain my weight. If I were eating in my 20's what I am eating now, I would be losing 10 lbs or more a week (I know, because I did).

Kaplods, I had the same experience with dieting in my 20's! It used to work, but not now. Back then, I could lose weight just by counting calores and eating lots of salad with low fat dressing. Not now. And I beleive the difference is insulin resistance! Which I believe also makes me unreasonable hungry when I'm not doing Low Carb. The last time I did Weight Watchers, I spent some time on their message boards and people would post what they were eating. When I compared, I was always eating more food, yet I'd be so hungry I couldn't concentrate on my work. No one could ever tell me why I was so much hungrier than the other folks on the boards. Low Carb is so much better for me!

I wouldn't try the very low calorie-with or without supplements. I think it's a gimmick. I've tried my own gimmicks in the past with no success and now I'm watching the other people in my office drinking shakes and taking pills. It's too soon to see if it works for them or not, but I've proved to myself that just because it's expensive, doesn't mean it works!

Well said Kim.

I heard that if you go too low calorie your body went into starvation mode and feeds off your own muscle. I also heard that it's not healthy to lose more than 2 pounds a week. Any opinions?<--I really like this carrot BTW