Energy balance
Very-low-calorie diets (VLCDs, ~420 kcal/day) produce significantly greater short-term weight loss (approx. 21 kg) compared to moderate caloric restriction (1,200 kcal/day, approx. 12 kg) over 26 weeks, but this advantage is entirely lost by 78 weeks due to rapid weight regain in the VLCD group.
While a very low-calorie diet (around 400-500 calories) will help you drop weight much faster than a standard 1,200-calorie diet in the first 4 months, it does not help you keep it off. In fact, people on the extreme diet regained most of their weight by the end of the year, ending up with less net loss than those who lost weight more slowly. Focus on a sustainable deficit and maintenance strategies rather than extreme speed.
The VLCD subjects lost significantly more weight than the BDD subjects at all periods through Week 26... VLCD subjects, however, regained weight during the next 26 weeks of weekly therapy and during a 26-week weight maintenance program... Mean weight losses at the end of the maintenance program were 10.94 and 12.18 kg, respectively.
Why this rating
Randomized controlled trial with 49 subjects, clear statistical significance (p<.001) for short-term differences, though sample size is modest.
Source
One-year behavioral treatment of obesity: Comparison of moderate and severe caloric restriction and the effects of weight maintenance therapy.
Thomas A. Wadden et al. · Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology · 1994
DOI 10.1037/0022-006x.62.1.165
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