Research

Energy balance

A 7-day diet-induced energy restriction of 50% TDEE reduces body mass and fasting blood glucose without eliciting compensatory decreases in basal metabolic rate (BMR) or physical activity energy expenditure (PAEE) in overweight and obese adults.

If you are overweight or obese, a strict 7-day liquid diet cutting your calories in half can produce initial weight loss and improve blood pressure and glucose without causing your body to immediately slow down its metabolism or reduce your spontaneous movement. This suggests short-term aggressive restriction can be a viable strategy for initial health improvements, though long-term maintenance requires different strategies.

ModerateRefutesMEDIUM confidence
In the present study, a 7-day diet-induced energy restriction of 50% did not elicit compensatory changes in PAEE and BMR in overweight and obese men and women.
Matevž Arčon et al. · Human Nutrition & Metabolism · 2023

Why this rating

Small sample size (n=19 completed), short duration (7 days), and lack of control group (pre-post design), though methodology for PAEE/BMR measurement was rigorous.

Source

The acute effects of diet-induced energy restriction on physical activity energy expenditure and basal metabolic rate in men and women with overweight and obesity

Matevž Arčon et al. · Human Nutrition & Metabolism · 2023

DOI 10.1016/j.hnm.2023.200185

crossover · n=19Cited 2×
Read the paper
DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10

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