Why crash dieting slows your metabolism

You cut calories hard to lose weight fast. You drop rotis, skip lunch, live on chai and biscuits. The scale moves for a week, then it stops. You are eating very little, but the weight will not budge. That stall is not in your head. When you crash-diet, your body quietly spends less energy than it should for your new size. Your basal metabolic rate (BMR) — the calories you burn just to stay alive — drops more than your weight loss alone explains. Scientists call this adaptive thermogenesis. This article explains why it happens and how to keep your metabolism steady while still losing fat.