not enough calories... good or bad?
m0jk
Posts: 133
hi im only started my diet 4 days ago, the info pack says i have to reach my calorie intake (1200) every day or my body will go into starvation mode and i wont loss weight... im having trouble balancing out my calorie in take, im eating more than i used to just smaller portions more often.. any advice welcome thanks?
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Replies
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im eating more than i used to
I highly doubt that if you're here because you need to lose weight.
If you're having trouble reaching your daily calorie goal, eat more calorie dense foods.0 -
There is this massive myth about dieting (I prefer to call it lifestyle change, because that is essentially it) which says when dieting, we need to drastically reduce our calories by x amount and only eat certain foods.
This is UNTRUE.
You can put down that horrible diet yoghurt, or ready meal, or rice cake. Instead, eat calorie dense foods - they may be higher in calories than what you expect and probably higher in fat than what you expect to eat on a "diet" but rather than thinking of it as a diet, think of it as getting healthy - there is genuinely NO NEED to deny yourself foods you enjoy and make yourself do a bunch of exercises that you hate.
If you are forcing yourself to do anything, chances are you'll lose momentum and/or be discouraged. Instead, you need to find what works for you. It could be you eat more carbs/less protein or vice versa. You may need to tweak it around tonnes before you find the right method for you.
I'm sure there will be way more helpful advice on its way, but I would suggest looking at what your BMR is - that is, the base level of calories you need per day to survive - ie if you were doing absolutely nothing. You really should be eating that at the very least, whether it's 1200 calories or 2200 calories. You can then input data such as how much you work out and your lifestyle (whether you are active at work/daytime) and it will give you the calorie intake value - you can then tweak the deficit (10%/20%) according to how much you need/want to lose.0 -
Why else would i be here? Thanks for the reply btw0
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Some people on here can be rude and condescending, shrug it off! The first thing you need to do is calculate your BMR, there are some great websites out there to do that for you! 1200 is too low, you need fuel for your body girl.0
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Best thing you can do is figure out what your calorie intake should be to maintain your weight. Then you cut that by 500 per day or 3500 per week. That is the formula from The American Cancer Society for weight loss of 1 lb per week. You really DON'T want to eat under your calories (it will happen sometimes just as being over will as well) but you want to try to give your body the nutrients it needs. There are also tons of articles out there on calorie cycle or "zig zag". Where you are eating more on one day and less on others, the goal is to keep your body from "plateauing" and continuing to loose weight.
Tons and TONS of education out there. Just don't believe EVERY THING you read! lol
Every one has an opinion. You do what's right for you and your body to reach your goals.
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Thanks missy i cant exercise right now for medical reasons but i need to loss the weight i have tried a few different food optimising diets that havent worked for me, thats why i thought id try the calorie control and portion sizes, so sorry if i seem a bit nieve ive not counted calories before as i was always very active0
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hi im only started my diet 4 days ago, the info pack says i have to reach my calorie intake (1200) every day or my body will go into starvation mode and i wont loss weight... im having trouble balancing out my calorie in take, im eating more than i used to just smaller portions more often.. any advice welcome thanks?
How tall are you? The amount of calories you need in order to lose weight is going to be different between someone who is 5'3" like I am compared to someone who is say 5'7". Someone taller than me can get away eating more calories than I can and still drop weight.0 -
Thanks ladies, theres just so much information the mind boggles thanks for pointing me in the right direction oh and consider it shrugged off already, plus sometimes people dont mean it the way it reads online, it just makes me laugh0
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im 5'90
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try to get as close as you can, no need to stuff urself0
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Thanks missy i cant exercise right now for medical reasons but i need to loss the weight i have tried a few different food optimising diets that havent worked for me, thats why i thought id try the calorie control and portion sizes, so sorry if i seem a bit nieve ive not counted calories before as i was always very active
One thing, logging food on here....make sure before you add it to your food diary that the calories, carbs, protein, portions etc are correct. There are a lot of foods that aren't. There's also a recipe option, where you can create your own recipes for foods you add a lot of different stuff to, it makes it easier to add these to your daily log, rather than having to put each ingredient in separately. Good luck on your new journey :flowerforyou:0 -
If you were active before and now not bc of the medical reasons, you're definitely going to have to cut down the amount you've been eating. Try to get to the 1200 if you can but like d9123 said, don't stuff yourself. Eating calorie dense foods will help. Keep an eye on how your weight and waist measurement is going week to week. You'll get a better idea of how your weight fluctuates especially around TOM if that effects you. If your weight and waist measurement is rising you'll know it's time to lower your intake and reassess.0
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Thanks ive been trying to keep it up as close as i can the past 2 days and this is all good info , ive been adding all the meals snacks etc. and the only thing i cant keep under is sugar .....bananas of al things grrr0
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Will do that Tina thanks.0
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If you have 70 lbs to lose it's ridiculous to eat as little as 1200 calories a day. It can't do you any good. Go back to your MFP goal and change to 'lose 1 lbs a week'.0
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Why else would i be here? Thanks for the reply btw
You wrote that you're eating more now than you used to. I said that is doubtful because you would've been eating more to gain weight in the first place. You come here and eat LESS than you were previously eating so you can lose weight. I don't think you (or the deluded person who perceived my response as "rude" and "condescending") understood what I said.0 -
im eating more than i used to
I highly doubt that if you're here because you need to lose weight.
If you're having trouble reaching your daily calorie goal, eat more calorie dense foods.
I lost 45 pounds before I joined. Didn't realize prior to joining that going under 1200 was so dangerous.
So I upped my calories.
You can keep your so you can "highly doubt it" all you want. Judgy Judgerson0 -
Adini i know what you mean but the fact is im now on diet chef which is calorie counting and portion sized meals that are ready made and Im eating more because i never ate breakfast or snacks but had mcdonalds for example or takeaway at meals times. now im having 3 meals a day and snacks0
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http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12
There is a third version.0 -
im eating more than i used to
I highly doubt that if you're here because you need to lose weight.
If you're having trouble reaching your daily calorie goal, eat more calorie dense foods.
I lost 45 pounds before I joined. Didn't realize prior to joining that going under 1200 was so dangerous.
So I upped my calories.
You can keep your so you can "highly doubt it" all you want. Judgy Judgerson
What are you even talking about? Your experience has nothing to do with the original post.
She said she is eating more NOW.
She said NOTHING about losing weight PRIOR to MFP.
THEREFORE, it is IMPOSSIBLE for her to be eating more NOW (LOSING WEIGHT) than BEFORE (GAINING WEIGHT).
FFS. Basic reading comprehension, people. Learn it before you get high and mighty over nothing.0
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