Would you drop to 900 calories per day at your doctors advice?

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Replies

  • Hornsby
    Hornsby Posts: 10,322 Member
    No...

    Ever since a doctor told me to go on a 1200 calorie diet, I have 0 faith in what an MD has to say about nutrition.
  • whatatime2befit
    whatatime2befit Posts: 625 Member
    edited May 2015
    Are you sure you are eating only 1200 calories? Do you weigh (not measure) and log EVERYTHING? Do you have cheat days/meals you count?
    I've been at this a while, and have lost quite a bit. I'm not going to say my tracking is absolutely perfect (because there are times I can't measure/weigh), but I think it's pretty good. I track everything, so no cheat meals that aren't counted (I don't believe anything is a cheat btw, if you track everything).
    How did you lose 57lbs? Has anything changed since you lost that? Changed exercise? What you eat?
    I lost it doing the same as I am now. I just strength train alot more now. I eat back about half my exercise calories (not every day, but some days I do)

    I'll try some of the suggestions above. I'll be even more diligent with weighing my food. The cycling and carb loading idea is interesting, I haven't tried that.

    Thanks for all the feedback everyone!

    Edited to answer the question about sleeping enough. No, I don't get enough sleep. I'm a mom of 3 young kids, and I work full time. I don't even come close to getting enough sleep :)
  • PeachyCarol
    PeachyCarol Posts: 8,029 Member
    Yeah, if you're strength training, and not sleeping and also working? Don't drop your calories.

    I would do what cwolfman suggested, with the caveat of making sure that you're tracking diligently. Your body might be ready for a refeed after dieting for so long.
  • Ninkyou
    Ninkyou Posts: 6,666 Member
    No, I would find another doctor.

    As for the stall, make sure you're logging accurately. Tighten up the logging, weigh your food, maybe move a little more than usual.

    But generally no, unless there was a veeeerrrrryyyy specific reason to do so, I would not ever drop my calories that low. I'm 5'2, so I get the whole being short thing, but no. I don't believe it'll ever be an appropriate calorie intake for me unless there was something SERIOUSLY wrong with me.
  • jonrenly
    jonrenly Posts: 116 Member
    I think I'd seek a second (professional) opinion.
  • DaveAkeman
    DaveAkeman Posts: 296 Member
    whatatime2befit wrote: »
    I just strength train alot more now

    My guess (and this is just a guess) . . . you're loosing fat and gaining muscle. This close to your goal, and especially with significant strength training, I think you really should be tracking BF% instead of weight.
  • yarwell
    yarwell Posts: 10,477 Member
    Yes, as the body of evidence supports use of low calorie diets for defined periods (a few weeks) in obesity. It's a standard medical recommendation in the UK, for obese people, and we don't have 1200 calories as a perceived minimum.
  • auddii
    auddii Posts: 15,357 Member
    mamapeach910 wrote: »
    Yeah, if you're strength training, and not sleeping and also working? Don't drop your calories.

    I would do what cwolfman suggested, with the caveat of making sure that you're tracking diligently. Your body might be ready for a refeed after dieting for so long.

    Agreed.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    I would not, not without at least trying other things first. Those saying you should follow the doctor's advice seem to be ignoring the fact that you aren't in a medically-supervised weight-loss program, there aren't dire medical reasons to lose fast, and there's no indication the doctor is an expert on weight loss. I also suspect that the doctor just assumes that your calorie estimate is off, as that's common.
    whatatime2befit wrote: »
    Are you sure you are eating only 1200 calories? Do you weigh (not measure) and log EVERYTHING? Do you have cheat days/meals you count?
    I've been at this a while, and have lost quite a bit. I'm not going to say my tracking is absolutely perfect (because there are times I can't measure/weigh), but I think it's pretty good. I track everything, so no cheat meals that aren't counted (I don't believe anything is a cheat btw, if you track everything).

    How has your rate of loss been? Consistent with what you would expect to lose at 1200 with your stats over time? Did the loss slow down gradually or simply stop one week. How long have you been stalled? The 4-5 months, or is this the time period over which it was slowing down?

    I'd focus on the logging/prior results to be certain that my calories were correct and consistent, and if your loss before was slower than might have been predicted with the calories you were on, that might be evidence that you were underestimating some. There could be some water retention from adding lifting, but it's been long enough that that should be gone. Plateaus do happen, so being consistent might be an option, but once I was comfortable that it was something other than gradual slow down due to lost weight and that my logging was on point, I'd probably try something like the reverse diet approach cwolfman mentioned. Or maybe play around with different carb approaches, as mentioned by others.
  • DirrtyH
    DirrtyH Posts: 664 Member
    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    No, I'd take a break and reverse diet back up to where your maintenance should be...hang out there for a bit and then cut again.

    That's actually what I'm trying to do right now. It is more difficult mentally than I expected.
  • kellycasey5
    kellycasey5 Posts: 486 Member
    Did your doctor recommend a specific plan? Many universities and major health centers offer such programs, reserved for those that are obese or overweight. Some opt for these as a last resort prior to surgery. They are physician monitored, you meet with a dietician, have lab work done every week or so, have weekly weigh ins and vital signs, and weekly classes. They will have an initial consultation to go over medical history, medications, and take full labs and ekg. You basically consume only supplied products, or a combination of that and a pre-planned meal. They are extreme diets, often requiring supplementation of potassium, vitamins, and for some appetite suppressants. They can also cause kidney, liver, and some gallstone issues in addition to menstrual irregularities, fatigue, headaches, and bad breath. I am sure there are more, but that is off the top of my head. It needs to be carefully and continuously monitored for your safety. Hydration and electrolytes are critical to the bodies proper functioning. These are not long term diets, even in such a program. You will lose weight on such a program if you follow it. Your doctor is correct in that you will lose weight on under 1000 cals/ day, however this should be done with the help of professionals.

    There are some real health concerns going that low on the calories, and it requires a perfect balance of nutrients and proteins/fats to protect your body from consuming it's lean muscle mass (NOT a good move). It can be done, but should be done so very carefully and in a program designed to do so. You want your body to run off fat, not by destroying its organs. Just my 2 cents. Many are successful on such a program, many regain the weight. Your doctor was not out of line in suggesting this as a potential option. These programs, and products, are tools designed to help people achieve weight loss.


  • cbevan1229
    cbevan1229 Posts: 326 Member
    I think I would be very miserable on 900 calories per day for any length of time. I would probably consult with another doc. My advice - worth what you paid for it.
  • 47Jacqueline
    47Jacqueline Posts: 6,993 Member
    I think your doctor is incompetent for that advice.
  • bbontheb
    bbontheb Posts: 718 Member
    besee_2000 wrote: »
    Try carb cycling. Sometimes you just need a carb load day to confuse your hormones.

    Can you please provide me with some info to back this claim up. I've never heard this before.



  • Sarasmaintaining
    Sarasmaintaining Posts: 1,027 Member
    OP, the advice your doctor gave you sounds a bit 'off'. I'd definitely get a second opinion, ideally by a licensed dietician. VLCDs are usually recommended for someone who is very obese, and is under close supervision by a doctor. Did he suggest monitoring your progress with weekly visits/frequent blood work to make sure you were ok?
  • Saryia
    Saryia Posts: 38 Member
    I don't see how it's possible for you to not be losing weight eating 1200 calories a day. Are you counting/weighing absolutely everything?

    There are medically-supervised water fasts (one man was documented as fasting while under medical supervision for over a year, during the 1960s) so you'd probably be fine if monitored. The problem with very low calorie diets is that you tend to lack the energy to do the things you need to do during the day, and that you can end up damaging your metabolism if you do it long enough.

    I think the best thing to do would be to increase your activity level, maybe try some weight training, and talk to a different doctor to make sure you don't have an underlying medical condition.
  • tonygymfit
    tonygymfit Posts: 148 Member
    No way
  • shaumom
    shaumom Posts: 1,003 Member
    whatatime2befit wrote: »
    I lost it doing the same as I am now. I just strength train alot more now. I eat back about half my exercise calories (not every day, but some days I do)
    Edited to answer the question about sleeping enough. No, I don't get enough sleep. I'm a mom of 3 young kids, and I work full time. I don't even come close to getting enough sleep :)

    Just a thought - are you taking any measurements of your body other than weight, by any chance? A few times when I hit a plateau AND was doing more strength training, I was losing fat and gaining muscle at a rate where there was no weight change. But when I looked at some measurements of certain body parts, there was a change there I could see.

    And re: the sleep - that can have a big effect, too. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1991337/
  • LKArgh
    LKArgh Posts: 5,179 Member
    edited May 2015
    whatatime2befit wrote: »
    Just wanted some others thoughts. I mentioned to my doctor today (getting a standard checkup done), that i'm on 1200 calories a day, and that my weight loss has stalled over the past 4-5 months. He said I should drop to 900 calories per day.

    A bit of background. I've lost 57 lbs to date (since Feb/14). I'm 5'1, went from 224 lbs to 167, still around 30ish lbs to lose.
    I have no obesity related illnesses at all, i'm actually quite healthy (no heart problems, no high BP, etc). He told me I have the BP and heart rate of an 18 year old.

    Basically, the only reason to drop my daily calorie allotment would be to lose weight, not for any other medically necessary reason. Would you do it? 900 cals a day is not much, i'm just worried that it would be not healthy in the long run to do this.

    Thoughts?

    If you have lost weight and are now at 167 lbs, you are eating at maintenance for 167. So most probably your 1200 calories are in fact 1800-1900. Which makes perfect sense for losing at 224, but not at 167. And explains the "slow" loss during the last year, you would have been losing much faster with only 1200 calories at over 200 lbs. If you are that off at calorie counting, then going at 900 and counting as you are now, will mean something like 1500. So yes, do what your dr is telling you and lower your calories.

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