Is this a good idea?

apeyboo
apeyboo Posts: 16 Member
edited November 18 in Health and Weight Loss
Hello, so I'm wanting to try a new thing. My goal is to consume about 1000 to 1200 calories daily. If I go over 1200 calories I have to workout for an hour. Would this be a good way to get back into the habit of eating better and exercising? Also I'm trying to lose about 30 pounds before the end of August. Could I do that with this plan?
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Replies

  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    Eating 1000 cals and punishing yourself if you eat over 1200.... BAD idea
  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
    Your weight loss goal is extreme and your plan is not something that I would recommend doing. As a minimum, you should be eating 1200 every day. If you exercise, you should be logging the calories and eating back at least 50% of them.

    You are young. Start building healthy habits now.

  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    edited May 2015
    Honestly, this doesn't sound like a great plan. I don't know your height, your current weight, or your activity level, but you probably need more than 1,000 calories a day in order to meet your nutritional needs while you lose weight. Why not see what goal MFP gives you?

    "Punishing" yourself with workouts also sounds not-great. Working out is a great way to increase your fitness and sense of wellbeing. Why not just set a reasonable workout goal -- one that involves activities that you enjoy and make you feel good. Making yourself exercise if you exceed a certain number of calories can be associated with disordered eating and it isn't a path you particularly want to go down

    A good way to get into the habit of eating better and exercising is to . . . eat better and exercise. Very low calorie diets and punishing routines are not necessary.

    I don't know how much you have to lose, but 30 pounds by August is a big goal. You probably won't lose 30 pounds by August (unless you have a whole lot to lose), but you could lose SOME weight by August and that is much better than losing none.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    no, doesn't sound like a good plan at all...in fact, I'm pretty sure this could ultimately put you on the road to a disorder called exercise bulimia.
  • doktorglass
    doktorglass Posts: 91 Member
    No.
    1. Exercise is not a tool to punish your body with.
    2. Food is not your enemy. And eating is not a battle.
  • NobodyPutsAmyInTheCorner
    NobodyPutsAmyInTheCorner Posts: 1,018 Member
    It's a great idea.

    If you're an actual Hobbit. If not no. Not a good idea in the slightest.
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  • kristydi
    kristydi Posts: 781 Member
    No.
    1200 is a minimum. Unless you're very short and/or very sedentary it's probably too low for you. 1000 is not safe or smart.

    If you're pretty obese you can hope to lose about 2 pounds a week. If you're closer to your ideal weight you will lose slower. So 30 pounds by the end of August is wildly optimistic.
  • Ninkyou
    Ninkyou Posts: 6,666 Member
    No, it's a terrible idea.
  • ChantalGG
    ChantalGG Posts: 2,404 Member
    edited May 2015
    i used to eat 1200 and do that. i lost about 1 to 2 lbs a month, i switched to 1400 to 1900 calories and started losing 1 lb a week. i also started working out every other day.
  • macgurlnet
    macgurlnet Posts: 1,946 Member
    doktorglass wrote: »
    No.
    1. Exercise is not a tool to punish your body with.
    2. Food is not your enemy. And eating is not a battle.

    This.

    It's one thing to have a calorie goal of, say 1200 (which I do since I'm 5 feet tall with MFP set to Sedentary) and to make a point of moving more - dedicated exercise, extra walking, etc - so you can eat more.

    If all you have to lose is the 30 lbs, you are setting yourself up for failure. You can maybe lose half that. What you should do is set a reasonable goal and start lifting heavy. You may find that you look better at a higher weight if you preserve more muscle mass.

    ~Lyssa
  • Ready2Rock206
    Ready2Rock206 Posts: 9,487 Member
    Terrible idea. Punishing yourself for eating what is likely too little to sustain you is a disorder - you might want to meet with a therapist or a registered dietitian than deals with eating disorders.
  • juggernaut1974
    juggernaut1974 Posts: 6,212 Member
    Why would you even possibly think this was a good idea?
  • Need2Exerc1se
    Need2Exerc1se Posts: 13,575 Member
    apeyboo wrote: »
    Hello, so I'm wanting to try a new thing. My goal is to consume about 1000 to 1200 calories daily. If I go over 1200 calories I have to workout for an hour. Would this be a good way to get back into the habit of eating better and exercising? Also I'm trying to lose about 30 pounds before the end of August. Could I do that with this plan?

    How tall are you. That sounds awfully low unless you are very short.
  • Hornsby
    Hornsby Posts: 10,322 Member
    There is absolutely nothing about this plan that is healthy (mentally or physically) or sustainable.
  • LegendOfErin
    LegendOfErin Posts: 18 Member
    edited May 2015
    It's possible to lose 10 lbs per month, which would take you June, July, and August. You could easily do it without being drastic.
  • trinatrina1984
    trinatrina1984 Posts: 1,018 Member
    No, terrible idea.
  • quiksylver296
    quiksylver296 Posts: 28,439 Member
    If you have to ask.....it's not a good idea.

    Here is a good idea. Buy a food scale. You can get them for ~$20 at Target. Weigh and log EVERYTHING you eat for two weeks. Once you have an idea of how many calories you are truly eating in a day, adjust from there. Exercise for fun and fitness. Find something you love and do that - Zumba, yoga, jogging, biking, swimming, weight lifting, etc.

  • ncboiler89
    ncboiler89 Posts: 2,408 Member
    apeyboo wrote: »
    Hello, so I'm wanting to try a new thing. My goal is to consume about 1000 to 1200 calories daily. If I go over 1200 calories I have to workout for an hour. Would this be a good way to get back into the habit of eating better and exercising? Also I'm trying to lose about 30 pounds before the end of August. Could I do that with this plan?

    I'm going to beat this horse some more.
    No
  • NikiChicken
    NikiChicken Posts: 576 Member
    Hornsby wrote: »
    There is absolutely nothing about this plan that is healthy (mentally or physically) or sustainable.

    I couldn't have said it better.

    OP, you cannot outrun your fork. Measure, weigh and log your food and eat at a reasonable caloric deficit (read: a MINIMUM of 1200 calories) for weight loss. Exercise to get fit. Adjust your goals to a reasonable 1/2 to 1 pound per week and work on developing good habits for the rest of your life.
  • whmscll
    whmscll Posts: 2,254 Member
    doktorglass wrote: »
    No.
    1. Exercise is not a tool to punish your body with.
    2. Food is not your enemy. And eating is not a battle.

    This!
  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
    LegendOfErin wrote: »
    It's possible to lose 10 lbs per month, which would take you June, July, and August. You could easily do it without being drastic.

    Heavier people can lose at faster rates. OP only has 44 pounds to lose overall (per her profile.) It is unlikely that she could maintain a 2+ pound per week rate of loss for 3 months straight. You may be losing at that rate now but as you get closer to your goal your weight loss will slow down.
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  • vixtris
    vixtris Posts: 688 Member
    Sounds like a good idea if you want to set yourself up for failure and/or an eating disorder or unhealthy relationship with food.
  • rocknroll667
    rocknroll667 Posts: 56 Member
    edited May 2015
    vixtris wrote: »
    Sounds like a good idea if you want to set yourself up for failure and/or an eating disorder or unhealthy relationship with food.

    Exactly. This is setting yourself up for failure. Dieting is HARD WORK, so why add extra challenges? DO IT RIGHT. We all have experience on this site, and want to give you good advice. It's not because we're trying to be MOMMYS OR DADDYS....we've just made so many mistakes already - that we know the advice that works.

    Start at limiting your calories slightly...I started at 1,500-1,600 because I was eating 2,000 a day when I wasn't dieting - track everything with a food scale, add in workouts for TWO WEEKS! See how you feel, track where you're successful and where you fail. BE NICE TO YOURSELF! You're going to fail sometimes!!!!! Track everything you, even that piece of chocolate. Learn from your mistakes. Then, try the next two weeks after with lower calories and more exercise. TRIAL & ERROR.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,984 Member
    Nope.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
    9285851.png
  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,562 Member
    Nope. It's unhealthy and unsustainable.
  • livingleanlivingclean
    livingleanlivingclean Posts: 11,751 Member
    No.

    Why would you want to suffer more than you need to, and place so much negative association on food an exercise?
  • diannethegeek
    diannethegeek Posts: 14,776 Member
    No, this sounds like a bad plan. Not only do you set yourself up for a sort of eat/punish cycle, which is not healthy, but you're also setting yourself up for a host of side effects. Lean muscle loss, brittle bones, vitamin deficiencies, hair loss, brittle nails, bad skin, etc.
  • apeyboo
    apeyboo Posts: 16 Member
    To be in my healthy weight for my height I could lose 50 pounds. I'm just trying to lose the 30 that I gained my freshman year of college. I gained 30 pounds in one year so I'm pretty sure I could lose 30 pounds and it not have any harsh effect on my body. I'm 5'6 and 180 pounds. I'm pretty sedentary most of the time.
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