What's The Weight Of Evidence?

Actual evidence almost starving for 2-5 days (ie, to lose weight) is unhealthy?

• Why can't someone willing to lose 1-2 kg just do 2-5 days eating, say, a few egg whites and whey, instead of 1-2 months on diet? I want actual evidence doing so is unhealthy.

• Answer:

  It's not THAT unhealthy, but if you don't eat enough protein, your body will have to break down muscle - not fat - to get the essential amino acids it needs to function.  So an extreme diet will cause some degree of muscle loss.  Even taking in no calories, you can only lose about 1/2 pound a day of fat a day (a little more if you're a man, a little less if you're a woman); the rest is fluid, which will come back quickly.  So a two day fast will only lose about one pound of fat.