So here are a few hard won pieces of wisdom from my own experiences and research.
It is actually not the case that fewer intake calories will result in weight loss. It is true for children, but not for us and here is why. Near constant eating results in near constant insulin release to control blood sugar, which without control will cause coma and death when too high. Eventually insulin is constantly present in the bloodstream, but the effectiveness controlling blood sugar is reduced by cellular insulin resistance. This is commonly called metabolic syndrome or pre-type 2 diabetes by the medical institution. In order to prevent high blood sugar coma, your pancreas releases more insulin, and your liver starts converting blood sugar to blood borne free fatty acids (FFA). As a result you get fatty liver syndrome and adipose tissue. This is all fine except for one thing: insulin in the blood blocks the fatty acid metabolic pathway, making it impossible for your body to utilize stored fat as an energy source and reduce adipose tissue. Understanding that, what is the solution then?
Fast for 72 hours. This will stabilize blood sugar and reduce blood insulin levels, while initiating autophagy, a cleansing process that reduces your chances of developing cancer among many other benefits.
When you begin eating again eat anything you want and as much as you want, it won’t be much at first, for one hour. Wait 48 hours. You may feel lethargic until the insulin levels in your blood drop enough to allow FFA metabolism. This is the “keto flu”. Maintain this regime until your BMI is where you want it, probably a few months.
Eat anything and as much as you want one hour out of 24 to maintain healthy body weight and chemistry. You will feel great.
Drink plenty of water, black coffee, or unsweetened tea through the process. Nothing that tastes sweet, even sweet tastes in your mouth will inspire a pancreatic insulin release. I hope this helps both of you, I have more biochemistry and physiological information to share if you’re interested. Be well!