Pros and Cons of Rapid Weight Loss
Sprint versus marathon diets: A science-based look at fasting and very-low-calorie diets.
Rapid weight loss is a horrible idea, they say. “It wrecks your metabolism”. “You’ll only lose muscle”.
Is it really that bad? The surge of interest in fasting for weight loss had me wondering what really happens when we lose weight quickly.
It turns out that the differences in how sprint and marathon dieting impact your body are more grey than black and white. Sprint dieting even has some potential upsides. Let’s dig into the science so that you can weigh the pros and cons of sprint dieting for yourself.
Upsides of Sprint Dieting
The clearest potential benefit of sprint dieting is that you get it over with quickly. Some people perform better when faced with a short, but intense challenge, rather than a sustained moderate challenge.
Studies comparing sprinters and marathoners on the same diet but with different daily calories can shed light on the tradeoff. In this 2016 study, the target loss of 7 kg (15 lbs) total mass was…
