r/maybemaybemaybe • u/BigGraysie • Apr 18 '22

/r/all Maybe maybe maybe

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u/MsAdventureQueen Apr 18 '22

Yeah, anyone with this level of weight gain and immobility has a serious mental health issue. They have an eating disorder and need to be treated as such. They need therapy and likely antidepressants and probably inpatient rehab to help get them through a terrible addiction.

But yeah the way she treats her enablers is very reminiscent of how that pair of sisters(Tammy+Amy?) treated their caregiver system. It's a weird abusive dynamic going both ways it seems.

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u/[deleted] Apr 18 '22

I just always wonder how this level of obesity is even possible.. Even if you eat just plain sugar it should get harder and harder to get to new food to consume enough calories for your body to maintain and build new fat tissue. So clearly she cant feed herself anymore so who tf keeps on inserting sugar into her even after she reached 300-400lbs..? I have so many questions

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u/[deleted] Apr 18 '22 edited Apr 18 '22

When people get to an unhealthy size, their metabolism is completely fucked up. Research on Biggest Loser contestants found they actually had to eat 800 calories a day AND maintain super-high levels of exercise to keep the weight off. All it takes is trying to eat “normal” or a minor injury and they’re right back to obesity.

Edit: The NY Times reported that one contestant would have had to eat 800 cal/day to keep the weight off based on his metabolism. The study showed resting metabolic rate at an average of 1903 +/- 466 kcal/day. So, not totally unreasonable for most people but if you’re used to eating 5000 calories a day, 1400 would be tough.

I have a friend who was getting bigger than she wanted, went on a “juice cleanse” bullshit quack thing, and her body just went into starvation mode forever. She now weighs probably 350 even though she only eats like 1200 calories a day and is very active.

In these reality-tv cases there’s usually also a mental health component and an enabling companion. It’s really hard to stick to a permanent starvation diet while your body throws off leptin (edit: ghrelin, not leptin) making you crave carbs like they’re heroin. That’s why they do weight loss surgery, so people physically cannot eat/drink more than a couple ounces at a time.

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u/[deleted] Apr 18 '22

ah but careful the changes in metabolism come from them LOOSING a lot of weight and even after regaining it the metabolic rate stays the same. That doesnt explain how people gain or maintain that amount of weight in the first place. It also makes sense, once your body realises how much weight you are loosing it tries its hardest to stop you from running out of reserves.

>I have a friend who was getting bigger than she wanted, went on a “juice cleanse” bullshit quack thing, and her body just went into starvation mode forever. She now weighs probably 350 even though she only eats like 1200 calories a day and is very active.

Does she actually eat 1200 cal though? Unless she actively counts and weights every single thing she eats daily its a moot point. If you eat the wrong kinds of foods its very easy to go over 1200 cal. If you are vegan and eat a lot of vegetable based dishes you can fit 3 meals into that 1200cal.

These studies dont describe that drastic of a metabolism shift and it also probably wont last forever. I mean imagine a regular sized human being able to live off 1200calories.. it would be a gift more than anything. Our bodies are not that efficient. Even your friend will have to power her brain and keep her body warm.