Calorie goals

dragonrider6
dragonrider6 Posts: 18 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Do I have to eat up to the 1200 goal? I find that it is a lot of food and it's hard to make ot there. Will it stall my progress if I don't that much?

Replies

  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    Are you trying to gain weight? The reason why I ask is that most of us in a position to lose weight have no problem eating at least 1,200 calories -- it's how we wound up in a position to lose weight in the first place.
  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,562 Member
    It won't hurt your progress, but it can damage your health if you don't consistently hit 1200. And that really isn't a lot of food.
  • TeaBea
    TeaBea Posts: 14,517 Member
    1200 is a default minimum BEFORE exercise. So it's not an unreasonably high goal.

    Will under-eating stall your goals. Nope. But keep in mind when you lose weight....it's not just fat loss. Under eat large enough, long enough....you are going to encourage your body to use existing lean muscle mass for fuel. I don't under eat because I want a higher % of fat loss.

    Calorie dense foods: olive oil, nuts, nut butter, avocado, eggs, full fat dairy. Are you MEETING protein & fat goals?
  • fxckyeahhappyface
    fxckyeahhappyface Posts: 9 Member
    edited June 2016
    1200 is really the minimum number of calories anyone should eat regardless of goals.

    By progress I'm gonna go ahead and assume you mean loss, which, at anything 1200 or less, weight loss will happen. But less than 1200 on a regular basis can go a bit unhealthy.
  • Ready2Rock206
    Ready2Rock206 Posts: 9,487 Member
    How's your logging? Are you using a food scale? Using accurate entries? Often when people think 1200 is way too much food their logging is way off and they're actually eating more than they think. But if your logging is accurate add in some calorie dense foods where you get more calories without eating a lot more volume.
  • pebble4321
    pebble4321 Posts: 1,132 Member
    The question you should be asking is: "am I getting enough varied food and nutrition to keep me healthy and full of energy"?
    For just about anybody it's going to be tough to do that on such a small number of calories.
  • LivingtheLeanDream
    LivingtheLeanDream Posts: 13,342 Member
    Christine_72 wrote: »
    In what universe is 1200 calories "a lot of food"?? :noway:

    ^^ this

    how did you gain weight in the first place if you are finding it so tough to reach 1200 now....

  • dragonrider6
    dragonrider6 Posts: 18 Member
    edited June 2016
    @RunRutheeRun

    I started at 120 and would like to be at 110. I'm 5'3.

    It's not that I have too much weight but I'm unsatisfied with the way I look. I'd like to loose from the stomach, thighs and chest.

    I don't usally feel hungry and only eat when I do. I have a lot of kale, spinich, tea,broccoli, rice, and things like that. I've been trying to eat more bread and snacks recently but I don't really feel hungry and never go for bigger portions.
  • frankiesgirlie
    frankiesgirlie Posts: 669 Member
    Christine_72 wrote: »
    In what universe is 1200 calories "a lot of food"?? :noway:

    Agreed.
    Every time I read one of these "I can't seem to eat 1200 calories" posts I'm like ...yeah, right.
    Unless you're eating celery and raw spinach all day, 1200 calories is NOT a lot of food, unless maybe you're a 5 year old.
  • DamnitSherlock
    DamnitSherlock Posts: 3 Member
    My calorie goals are less than 1200, but I can see where you're coming from and I think I might be able to help.

    Try to drink smoothies with protein powder, milk, and varied fruits. Oatmeal in the morning can be good because it's high in calories and breakfast is important for your metabolism. Boiled eggs are about 78 calories and they are small, so they make good snacks. Try to find distractions while you eat so that you aren't too focused on the food in front of you.

    Nut butters are calorie dense and are good on toast. Wheat breads are usually less calories so try to use other kinds of bread if you can. Don't be scared to eat sweets, I'm not saying have ice cream and donuts every day but it's okay to treat yourself. Don't skip meals, especially not breakfast.

    If you can find a pattern in why you aren't eating enough then make a note of that and see if you can change it, i.e.: if you are waking up late and don't eat breakfast then make an attempt to change your sleep schedule so you can wake up earlier.

    Plan what you're going to eat for the day the day before so things are laid out for you already.

    Over time if you don't meet your goals of 1200 calories then you can hit a plateau and seriously damage your health.

    This is coming from someone very deep in disordered eating, I'm concerned for you, love.
    Please take care of yourself <3
  • heatherheyns
    heatherheyns Posts: 144 Member
    1200 can seem like a lot when you first start, because you scrutinize everything and cut out many of the calorie dense foods. If people move to eating tons of veggies ans low calorie foods, it can be easy to end the day and realize you didnt eat much. However this will catch up with you. I ended up with headaches and feeling terrible because I wasn't eating enough.

    If you are needing to lose weight, you used to eat more. This means you are capable of it. Add in more calorie dense foods. My favorites are nuts, like silvered almonds, avacado, or having sliced apples with almond butter or hazlenut butter at night, espeically if I am low.

    Try to think of your amount as a goal, rather than trying to eat the lowest calorie food you can.

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