1200 calories day??

binnyblonde
binnyblonde Posts: 10 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi,

I was just wondering... does anyone go by the 1200 calories that MFP suggests?? It seems a little low to me. Just wondering if any of you adjusted your daily calorie goal or went by the 1200?

Thanks for any input :0)
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Replies

  • AmyRhubarb
    AmyRhubarb Posts: 6,890 Member
    It was way too low for me. But it depends on what we enter into MFP when we set it up - anyone who puts in that they want to lose 2lbs a week will get the magic 1200 cal goal. But 2lbs a week is too aggressive unless you've got more than 100lbs to lose.

    Make sure you entered all your stuff properly and with realistic goals, and you should get a higher daily goal.

    Also remember that MFP adds any exercise cals burned back into your daily goal (because your daily deficit is already built into the goal cals) - so if your goal is 1500 calories, you burn 300 through exercise, it will add those back in - you eat them back, you'd be consuming 1800 calories, leaving you with a net of 1500 cals for the day, and right on target.
  • audierae
    audierae Posts: 7 Member
    I stick to 1200 net calories a day. There are definitely days that I go over, but I try to keep those days to a minimum. I try not to deprive myself. If I'm truly hungry and not just bored, then I will go over, but it took a long time to learn the difference. Good luck!
  • husseycd
    husseycd Posts: 814 Member
    I eat way over 1200. More like 1800-2000. I have very little left to lose though. I'm 130 lbs and 20% body fat. I'd like to be 18% BF, which should put me around 127 lbs if I maintain the same muscle mass.

    Depending on how much you need to lose, I personally like TDEE-20% or eating at your goal TDEE as suggested by Fat2fitradio. IMO, trying to eat at 1200 just sets people up to fail. It's really hard to eat that little and eventually people give up.
  • berriboobear
    berriboobear Posts: 524 Member
    I stick to 1200 net calories a day. There are definitely days that I go over, but I try to keep those days to a minimum. I try not to deprive myself. If I'm truly hungry and not just bored, then I will go over, but it took a long time to learn the difference. Good luck!

    This, because I stick to the 1200, but have learned not to get over obsessive about going over by a bit... especially if I'm TRULY hungry.
  • ukredhead19
    ukredhead19 Posts: 176
    I tried to do the 1200 calories per day, but that seemed too low for me personally...and I kept falling off the wagon because I was starving. I lowered my desired weight loss to 1.5 lbs a week and its now at 1450 or something like that. I think eating a little bit more helps my metabolism and keeps me from starving. It took me 10 years to gain the 65lbs I need to lose....if I only lose it 1lb a week, I'm okay with that! slow and steady wins the race :)
  • learninmama
    learninmama Posts: 49 Member
    I eat my BMR + 50 to 100 cals to make sure I hit my BMR daily....I spent my first 3 months eating 1300-1400 calories...hit a plateau & had to get it through my head that I have to eat my BMR....lost over 2 pounds this week eating 1800-1900 cals/day.

    You can calculate your BMR here=
    http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/
  • twinkiemon
    twinkiemon Posts: 216 Member
    I took the 1200 times 7 which gave me 8400, then took my average of 500 exercise calories x6 (6 exercise days, 1 day of rest) to get 3000 - added them together for 11400 then divided again by 7 which gives me a daily total of about 1600 calories to enjoy, so on my "1200 calorie day" I actually eat slightly over and all other days slightly under - because, no, I CAN'T do 1200 calories - I would be starving all day and when I'm hungry I'm cranky.

    (forgive the math if it's a little off - I was doing this in my head and from memory)
  • bigobelly
    bigobelly Posts: 18 Member
    i have adjusted to the 1200 cal's a day and have lost a lot of weight. now that i am used to the calories i sometimes go over but not by much. You will find that you have to cut out all the fast food, junk food, sodas and such. But you will feel lots better. Its more of a lifestyle change not a diet.
  • flinchyny
    flinchyny Posts: 106 Member
    I have my goal set for .5 lbs/wk, so it doesn't tell me 1200. I absolutely would be starving eating only that much per day, and I see my nutrition goals as ongoing/permanent, not a "diet." I think it would be very difficult for most people to eat 1200 calories/day forever.
  • KatieBee8
    KatieBee8 Posts: 61
    I stuck to 1200 calories a day at the beginning of my diet but I stopped losing and I was so hungry. I upped it to 1400-1500 (ignoring mfp) and have found that not only easier to maintain but I have been losing every week since :bigsmile:
  • Annxoj
    Annxoj Posts: 15 Member
    I try to stick to the 1200 or under I am trying new things and finding out what has exactly how many calories to try my best to make better decisions and stay under but 1200. Hands down it can be a really harsh calorie mark.. So I try my best and if I would happen to go over I just work out a bit more than usual not push myself too much but enough to help burn off excess calories.
  • ELVISDEAN
    ELVISDEAN Posts: 77
    STARTED LOSING AND FIRMING UP WHEN I STARTED RAISING MY FOOD INTAKE...COUNTING WONT GET YOU WHERE YOU WANNA BE..JUST HAVE A RUFF IDEA AND WRITE STUFF DOWN....AWARENESS IS KEY
    ELVIS DEAN
  • mdhummel
    mdhummel Posts: 201 Member
    I bumped my calories up to 1,300 calories. Even though I'd love to lose two lbs. a week I had to give myself a more realistic goal. 1,300 calories is still low, but manageable and if I exercise I get to eat back some of my burned calories.
  • Bekahmardis
    Bekahmardis Posts: 602 Member
    I eat my BMR + 50 to 100 cals to make sure I hit my BMR daily....I spent my first 3 months eating 1300-1400 calories...hit a plateau & had to get it through my head that I have to eat my BMR....lost over 2 pounds this week eating 1800-1900 cals/day.

    You can calculate your BMR here=
    http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/
    This^^^ And I let my FitBit add in all the extra exercise calories. So even though my MFP says 1300, I usually eat anywhere from 1450 to 1800 calories a day. :)
  • scottaworley
    scottaworley Posts: 871 Member
    i have adjusted to the 1200 cal's a day and have lost a lot of weight. now that i am used to the calories i sometimes go over but not by much. You will find that you have to cut out all the fast food, junk food, sodas and such. But you will feel lots better. Its more of a lifestyle change not a diet.

    I'm at 1330 calories per day, and I still eat fast food sometimes and have an occasional soda. And I just ate 2 cookies at 8:45 in the morning. The key is exercising to make up for it and balancing it with other foods to meet your macros.
  • scottaworley
    scottaworley Posts: 871 Member
    STARTED LOSING AND FIRMING UP WHEN I STARTED RAISING MY FOOD INTAKE...COUNTING WONT GET YOU WHERE YOU WANNA BE..JUST HAVE A RUFF IDEA AND WRITE STUFF DOWN....AWARENESS IS KEY
    ELVIS DEAN

    THANKS ELVIS DEAN
  • ylor89
    ylor89 Posts: 105 Member
    I did 1200 when I first started in January and was losing a pound a week up until the last two months. I've been at a plateau and when I went to see my doctor, she said I wasn't taking in enough calories because my body was going into starvation mode. :noway:

    I also have low blood pressure so I have to be careful with cutting too many calories. I've upped my calories the last few weeks though and have noticed a gain...which bums me out a bit. But I think what I'll need to do is just exercise a little more to make up for the extra calories.

    You'll want to be careful with cutting too many calories... This month, my cycle was off by an entire week (which has never happened before so that freaked me out!), and my doctor says there's a good chance that's because of my diet too.

    It works for others, and for some (like me), it's just not our cup of tea. Good luck with your fitness goals! I hope you figure out what you need to put together a healthy lifestyle! :)
  • jgarrett731
    jgarrett731 Posts: 36 Member
    I stick to 1200 net calories a day. There are definitely days that I go over, but I try to keep those days to a minimum. I try not to deprive myself. If I'm truly hungry and not just bored, then I will go over, but it took a long time to learn the difference. Good luck!

    This, because I stick to the 1200, but have learned not to get over obsessive about going over by a bit... especially if I'm TRULY hungry.

    I started with 1200 a day and found that it helped with, like you said, not obsessing about going over and then learning portion control, etc. After a week or so I found that I was always really tired so I decided to up my calories to 1360 and it has made a lot of difference. I feel so much better. I'm not in much of a hurry to lose weight and I'm more excited about losing inches and seeing muscle definition start to form but everyone's goals and timelines are different.
  • binnyblonde
    binnyblonde Posts: 10 Member
    Wow! Thanks for all the replies.... I think I may be tweaking my calories a little :0)
  • Gee_24
    Gee_24 Posts: 359 Member
    I'm on 1200 a day too. However, as Im a maid and walk for 60 mins to and back to work all in, I burn around 700 calories a day so it goes up to 1900, 5 days a week. ( roughly )

    In order to make the 1200 on its OWN work, I've had to completely cut all sweets and sodas. I now mostly eat just savoury if possible and only drink "Zero" juices like Powerade.

    If I cut out the bad drinks, then food-wise 1200 is achievable for me. I can squeeze in the odd Jaffa cake here and there, too! But knowing this is NOT sustainable for life, I'm trying to add in the odd fizzy juice and sweet because I find low sugar drinks vile and doubt that it will be a permanent life change. One must be realistic!

    A lot of trial and error for me. I think " Right I'm making 1200 calories doing this and that...but will I be able to stick to this once I reach my goal for the rest of my days?? " the answer is no. So I may just decrease it from 2lbs a week to a goal of 1lbs a week...
  • silken555
    silken555 Posts: 478 Member
    I'm at around 1200cals too but I try my best to eat most of my exercise cals back so in the end its more like 1500-1800cals consumed daily depending on what I do.
  • Graelwyn75
    Graelwyn75 Posts: 4,404 Member
    I am horrified there are several men here eating at 1200-1300 calories, to be quite frank.
    Good luck getting your metabolisms functioning as they should do once you go to maintenance.
  • Meetthegoals123
    Meetthegoals123 Posts: 4
    I'm currently sticking to on or below 1200 a day, and so far I have lost almost 22lb in about two and a half months (currently about 139lb) after the first few weeks I found it very easy to stick to this goal, for me I loved fruit juices and meat, I try eat whole fruits rather than litres of juice now! Which helps with lowering my sugar intake, and instead of having red meat almost every day of the week il go for something else, like potatos, salad, soups or fish. My weeks generally go that I will have about 2 days on around 1200 maybe the odd day of over 1200 and the rest are usually under 1200, not on purpose that's just how it seems to be for me.
  • megsmom2
    megsmom2 Posts: 2,362 Member
    I am always amazed that so many people think MFP sets everyone at 1200. It doesn't. There's nothing magic about that number, and its really too low for most people (not all...). Ive lost all this weight eating what MFP set me at....1610. If I'd only tried to eat 1200...I would have been miserable, and would have quit long before acheiving success.
  • Kaymegan90
    Kaymegan90 Posts: 35
    I started out with the 1200 calories a day and had to up it. I'm at 1,300 right now and probably going to bump it to 1400 next week. I think 1400 is probably more appropriate for me personally but it'll be different for everyone!
  • _namaste_
    _namaste_ Posts: 246
    I am horrified there are several men here eating at 1200-1300 calories, to be quite frank.
    Good luck getting your metabolisms functioning as they should do once you go to maintenance.

    I agree. I am horrified that anyone eats at 1200, to be honest. A bitty old lady in a coma would need more than 1200 calories per day just to survive... in a coma.

    It's OK though - while a lot of people on MFP will end up irrevocably ruining their metabolisms thus always having to eat less to maintain weight (which is harder to lose because they're eating too little) I will lose steadily and happily at 1650, maintain well over 2000 and eat what I want within reason for the rest of my life. Sustainable life changes, not crash diets for instant results with permanent bodily damage, thank you very much.
  • yogsvr4
    yogsvr4 Posts: 149 Member
    I did 1500 to 2100 a day (depending on how I felt). Dropped the weight I wanted and improved my cardio to where I can ride my bike 200 to 300 miles a week. I found the MPF calculator was inaccurate for me. Its a tool. If it works for you, than fantastic, but it is not the end all/be all.
  • ren_ascent
    ren_ascent Posts: 432 Member
    I have personally adjusted to the 1200 calorie a day plan, but only through making some serious changes to the TYPES of foods I eat. I added more lean protein, whole grains, veggies and cut out some sugar/salt. Also, I'm a whopping 4'11" so my body doesn't need as much. The first several weeks I was so hungry I was convinced I was killing myself through slow starvation. I'm doing much better now :wink:
  • lacy8
    lacy8 Posts: 12 Member
    When I started MFP 3 weeks ago it set my calorie goal at 1200 but I am thinking I need more too. Of course starting out I put that I wanted to lose 2 pounds a week (doesn't everyone?), but compared to the amount of activity that I am doing and the calories I eat I am not seeing the results I think I should. I think a slight adjust in calories would help me personally.

    Hope you get things adjusted so you can be on your way to obtaining your goals!
  • Sizethree4Ever
    Sizethree4Ever Posts: 120 Member
    I set my goal to lose 0.5 lb a week, and MFP gives me 1270 cal a day. My estimated BMR is: 1,220 calories/day*
    I am 5`0 142 lbs 45 years old, so I have no choice but stick to the magic 1200 cal.

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