struggling to eat 1200 calories

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  • kiramaniac
    kiramaniac Posts: 800 Member
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    You're going to hurt your metabolism if you maintain this.

    Google the "Minnesota Starvation Experiment".
    A good summary is located here: http://eatmore2weighless.com/the-starvation-experiment/
  • VorJoshigan
    VorJoshigan Posts: 1,106 Member
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    If you're struggling to eat 1200 and losing weight, how did you end up with weight to lose? Honest question.

    Not just this question, but ask yourself - What's different now that you are eating less?
  • toutmonpossible
    toutmonpossible Posts: 1,580 Member
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    Alright.... pretty sure I'm about to get yelled at by strangers here but I have an honest question. I'm 26 weigh 166 lbs and I'm 5'3. I currently am not excerising but cooking my own meals and meal planning. I have found that with eating every 2-3-4 hours I have a hard time reaching the 1200 calorie goal. I never eat less than 1000 but usually bounce between that and 1150 and i'm honestly not starving at all. Do I force myself to eat the extra 150-200 calories? even if that means a snack right before bed? I am loosing weight doing what i've been doing but i'm scared of long term concequences of not eating the 1200 calories. Thank for your help!!!

    To paraphrase what people have said in the past in response to posts like this, if you're 166 pounds, you've had a lot of practice eating much more than 1,200 calories a day. But if the food is healthy, 1,000 or 1150 is fine. There will be no long term consequences other than your losing weight.
  • jamiesillimandunn
    jamiesillimandunn Posts: 270 Member
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    Alright.... pretty sure I'm about to get yelled at by strangers here but I have an honest question. I'm 26 weigh 166 lbs and I'm 5'3. I currently am not excerising but cooking my own meals and meal planning. I have found that with eating every 2-3-4 hours I have a hard time reaching the 1200 calorie goal. I never eat less than 1000 but usually bounce between that and 1150 and i'm honestly not starving at all. Do I force myself to eat the extra 150-200 calories? even if that means a snack right before bed? I am loosing weight doing what i've been doing but i'm scared of long term concequences of not eating the 1200 calories. Thank for your help!!!




    I had trouble getting upto 1200 in the beginning too ..but I am excersicing with INSANITY so I had to get my calories up just to do the workouts I was averaging 800 a day and burning about 600 a day leaving me with a whopping 200 for the rest of the day , now I eat 1700 and burn 500-600 ish , being that you don't workout means you arent expending much extra calories than what you need in a day , it is reccomended by many drs and nutritionists to eat 1200 because that is wha the average body needs to operate life functions ! You could calculate your Tdee to find yours ....you may be losing now and that's great just keep in mind when you do hit a plateau that then will be the time to up your calories :) good luck !!
  • skullshank
    skullshank Posts: 4,324 Member
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    are you accurately logging?

    weighing...measuring...

    EVERYTHING?
  • Trechechus
    Trechechus Posts: 2,819 Member
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    Pick more calorie dense foods. Granola bars, nuts, peanut butter, potatoes, avocados, ice cream
  • bgonzalez1120
    bgonzalez1120 Posts: 5 Member
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    I made my diary public... sorry I didnt realize that was a setting.
  • bethfartman
    bethfartman Posts: 363 Member
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    I looked at your diary, you seem to be eating well to me. Personally, I wouldn't worry about it. Once you feel like eating more, go ahead and eat more. I ate around 1000 calories a day when I first started loosing weight too, wasn't starving, and I've never 'plateaued' or anything. I eat more now because I exercise tons, but I still try to stick to 1500 or less. If it's working for you, just do it. No sense in forcing yourself to eat more right now.
  • ashleyisgreat
    ashleyisgreat Posts: 586 Member
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    Obviously you haven't seen the thread about drinking a whole cup of heavy cream. That's one way to do it. :wink:
  • nack49
    nack49 Posts: 5 Member
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    I have most of the time come short of my 1200 daily goal calories also. HOWEVER, it's because I try to exercise at least 35 minutes a day. Mainly walking, swimming , water aerobics. Nothing crazy. basic stuff that you can do in your own home or neighborhood.
    Once you get into a routine , you won't want to stop...
    Try it. What have you got to lose? Just weight, right?
    Good luck
  • JenRun1
    JenRun1 Posts: 212
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    I would recommend that you start exercising and eatting 1200 calories minimum. At the rate you are going you are going to have a very hard time losing weight, and your metabolism is crashing. Im 5'3", started at 147, down to 135, and eat 1600 calories a day. I lost 12 lbs without really trying, so what I'm trying to say is you need to find a balance of diet and exercise if you want to see results.
  • SallyWilsonK
    SallyWilsonK Posts: 3 Member
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    I wouldn't eat something late in the day just to bump the calories up unless I was hungry. Nothing wrong with a bedtime snack! What I would prefer to do is add a little something earlier in the day, like switch from skim milk to 2% milk or add a tablespoon of chopped nuts to my oatmeal or cereal. Switch from diet salad dressing to regular, or add a little shredded cheese to lunch. Things like that.

    I agree, for years I was never hungry and probably ate less than 1200 calories a day. My family was always on me for not eating enough. Now I'm trying to lose weight because my body started to store every single calorie I take in. Trust me the starvation mechanism built into all of us wins every time and you will progressively gain more weight. I wish I was 26 and dealing with my eating habits; it's tougher when you get past 60. I'm pushing myself to take in a 1400 calorie minimum every day, most days I fall 50 or so short but at least my body isn't pulling from muscle to survive. Make small changes, eat balanced meals, have a treat once in awhile. pile on extra calories early in the day so that you burn them for fuel all day. Since I started following these basic rules I have lost 41 pounds with 19 to go.

    I'm no expert by any means but have exactly the same problem you do. Ignore the smart remarks that have been posted here because they're simply jealous that you are adding to your intake not subtracting from it.

    Best of luck!
  • ShaSimone
    ShaSimone Posts: 276
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    Took a look at the diary and I see nothing wrong with what and how much you are eating. Maybe throw in a half avocado with those salads and might get you up to your 1200 calories. Looks awesome to me.
  • Hollypop725
    Hollypop725 Posts: 26
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    The one thing I would suggest after looking at your diary is to incorporate more healthy fats into your diet. Avocado, nut butters, coconut oil, etc. They'll get your calories up during the day and provide a lot of other added benefits too. :-)
  • thisismeraw
    thisismeraw Posts: 1,264 Member
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    To paraphrase what people have said in the past in response to posts like this, if you're 166 pounds, you've had a lot of practice eating much more than 1,200 calories a day. But if the food is healthy, 1,000 or 1150 is fine. There will be no long term consequences other than your losing weight.

    No long term consequences? What about an increase of muscle loss? Not getting enough nutrients? Not fueling your body properly? 1000, 1100, 1150, 1200... is not enough food.

    OP, did you really just consume soy sauce for lunch one day a few days ago? Are you sure you are tracking correctly? A lot of days you aren't even meeting 1000 calories. You should be eating between your BMR and your TDEE which I'm guessing is higher than 1200 calories. Consistantly eating too little will increase muscle loss, make it harder to lose weight and make it much harder to keep it off. Less muscle means a higher body fat % and it creates a slower metabolism.
  • Mslmesq
    Mslmesq Posts: 1,001 Member
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    If you're struggling to eat 1200 and losing weight, how did you end up with weight to lose? Honest question.

    Lol. It's possible. I've been averaging 1100 a day and don't want anymore. To answer your question, for me anyways, alcohol has a lot of calories and me and my red wine bottle became too good of friends. Leastways, until I put on 15 pounds that I'm now taking off. Since being on here, I've realized food is not my issue. Wine and margaritas are. Oh how I miss my friends. :-(
  • Contrarian
    Contrarian Posts: 8,138 Member
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    What are the quick added calories you have for breakfast every day? Are you sure that is accurate?
  • DopeItUp
    DopeItUp Posts: 18,771 Member
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    If you're struggling to eat 1200 and losing weight, how did you end up with weight to lose? Honest question.







    Do you realize you ask this in EVERY low calorie question forum ?? Is it really honest , is my honest question !

    It's a fair question to ask, isn't it?
  • BrainyBurro
    BrainyBurro Posts: 6,129 Member
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    Stop eating "diet" food. Problem solved.

    this.

    if all i ate was celery and kale, i'd have a hard time reaching 1200 calories too.
  • eazy_
    eazy_ Posts: 516 Member
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    You're going to hurt your metabolism if you maintain this.

    Google the "Minnesota Starvation Experiment".
    A good summary is located here: http://eatmore2weighless.com/the-starvation-experiment/

    Are you suggesting that it doesn't matter that the men in the experiment were already lean with low body fat.

    While walking 3 miles everyday, they ate 1500 calories per day for 3 months.

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