1200cals is this not too low? Thoughts?! Please add me!

foreverlivingkatie

My PT says you should stick too 2000 as any less and your body will start storing fat not losing? I’m new to this and want to lose 18lbs. Any help or tips gratefully received!

saysaysay00

You should probably get a new PT. Very little women actually have a TDEE of 2000 calories, especially if your short or not that active.

Your body can not physically gain fat when on a deficit, it'll use the fat storages for energy, bc that's the purpose of the fat. So don't worry about "starvation mode", or your body ignoring your fat and using your muscle or bones, bc at 1200 calories you won't be starving. (Especially if you have 18lb to lose)

tiptoethruthetulips

How tall are you and what do you currently weigh? Did you set your weight loss goal to 2lb per week?

ugofatcat

I personally think 1,200 is far too restrictive, setting people up for binges and failure.

I recommend you track everything you are eating now using a food scale for 3 weeks. You need them go to the nutrition tab and look at the past 7 days to see your average. Depending on how much you are averaging each week, cut back anywhere from 200-500 calories.

callsitlikeiseeit

if i eat 2000 cals a day, im GAINING weight.

im 5'1, 40 years old. I started at close to 300 and am now about 150. i target 1200 per day, before exercise, and eat back about half of those calories. but sometimes, none, if i am not hungry. it takes planning, but if you do it right and learn what works for you, its easy to find the macro and food combos that keep you satiated.

Oishii

Try 2000kcal and see what happens. I lose on 2000kcal and I'm not alone in that. Do what your PT recommends and keep track of the results, and adjust accordingly. I'm sure your PT knows more about you, and your routine, than we do.

WhereIsPJSoles

It’s entirely dependent on your TDEE on whether you’ll lose on 2,000 calories.

If your PT made a sweeping statement about everyone having a TDEE above 2,000, I’d probably just go with what MFP puts you at for a 0.5 lb/week weight loss instead.

If they were saying you personally need 2,000 based on your stats and activities, then that sounds fine to me!

G8r4evr

I'm on 1200. It's not a lot,but it's working so far. I had a good first week

Francl27

I'm confused. 1200 or 2000? 1200 might be too low or not depending on your activity. I'd like to lose 18 lbs too, for example, but I'd be completely starving on 1200 as I typically burn 2200 on a normal day (average 15k steps).

Lounmoun

foreverlivingkatie wrote: »

My PT says you should stick too 2000 as any less and your body will start storing fat not losing? I’m new to this and want to lose 18lbs. Any help or tips gratefully received!

No, your body will not store more fat if you eat less than 2000 calories. If you would lose weight on 2000 calories then you would lose faster at a lower amount.
You certainly might need more than 1200 calories to fuel your body depending on your size and activity level.
What is your height and weight? Put your information into my fittness pal and choose a goal of losing .5-1 lb a week and get a calorie goal to lose weight.

Nottaway1

Try both, I would bet you’ll fall in the middle. Weight lost should dictate calories, Aim for 2 lbs a week. If you lose more than 2 lbs, increase 100 calories. If you don’t lose, decrease by 100. I start at 2k and lose 2-3 lbs/week. After 6 months or so, I’ll drop to 1750 to maintain 2 lb lost.

estherdragonbat

With only 18lbs to lose, 2lbs/week is too aggressive. 0.5 is safer and easier to stick with.

svenissimo

Nobody here has enough information to give you a sensible answer.

• how heavy are you
• how active are you
• What is the exercise plan that you are following
• how old are you

These things are needed to give you a starting point for sensible and sustained weight loss. My assumption is that the only person that knows this is your PT so they should have worked that number out based on fact.
Its true it is only a starting point as everyone is different but we really don't vary as much as people would have you think.

if you ignore and jump in at 1200cals you may have no where to go as your body will slow down and make do on those cals. I've done it. 1200 may not even be above your metabolic basal rate (coma calories).

To everyone here that has a goal. Make 2018 the year that you don't repeat the same mistakes. Get educated, read up, work hard and plan for the long term. You don't need rapid weight loss. you need sustained and maintainable loss.
Do you want to lose 18lbs or do you want to get healthy and stay that way? What needs to change?

Usually if someone thinks that they will be 'done' when they get to certain scale weight that they will likely be 4lb heavier next year.

Why pay for a PT if you don't believe them?

just ask your PT 'why' they came up with that number. If they give a generic answer then cancel the payment. else give some information and we will try and help.

MichelleSilverleaf

foreverlivingkatie wrote: »

My PT says you should stick too 2000 as any less and your body will start storing fat not losing? I’m new to this and want to lose 18lbs. Any help or tips gratefully received!

Based on this I'd say your PT doesn't know what he/she is talking about and it might be a good idea to find a new one. In the meantime plug in your stats on this website, set a reasonable loss goal and eat to that number MFP gives you.

kimny72

foreverlivingkatie wrote: »

My PT says you should stick too 2000 as any less and your body will start storing fat not losing? I’m new to this and want to lose 18lbs. Any help or tips gratefully received!

Your body doesn't store fat if you eat too little. Unfortunately many PTs know nothing about nutrition.

With ony 18 lbs to lose, you should set your goal to no more than 1 lb per week. Put in your stats and MFP will give you a calorie goal. Log your exercise and eat at least some of this calories back. Log accurately and consistently, choosing the database entries carefully (as many have been incorrectly entered by users). Get training guidance from your PT if you want, but ignore their diet advise. I am 5'4 and 130 lbs lightly active, and I would gain a lb or two a month eating 2000 cals. I lost weight eating @1500 cals.

Slasher09

If PT says 2000, but you think 1200 is too low, why not try in the middle? Try something like 1800 cals for a week or two. If the scale doesn't budge, try 1600 for a couple weeks, etc.

WilmaValley

If you can hone in on your hunger cues, you will know the right amount of calories you can eat to gain, maintain or lose. Every body is different.

Iwantahealthierme30

My TDEE is 2300, meaning I can eat that much without gaining. Find out what your TDEE (maintenance calories) are. 1200 is very low. I tried that once and was dizzy & weak before I found out what my maintenance was. I'm on 1660 now and it works. I'd try 1600.

estherdragonbat

AudreyJDuke wrote: »

If you can hone in on your hunger cues, you will know the right amount of calories you can eat to gain, maintain or lose. Every body is different.

That works for some people, and works with practice for some more, but it's not always true for everyone.

A lot of times, people in the 'honeymoon' phase of weight loss post something along the lines of, "1200 calories is too many. Do I really have to keep eating if I feel full at 900?" Chalk it up to being highly-motivated at the outset, eating foods that are more satiating, drinking more water, etc.

In my case, I eat at a moderate deficit and generally walk about 2 hours a day and strength-train three days a week. Two months ago, I had surgery. On medical orders, I was forbidden to lift more than three pounds for a couple of weeks. And, because I had a catheter bag for the first five days, I didn't want to leave the house. (I was worried about the bag showing and I was worried about the need to check discreetly whether it needed draining.) Now, I had MFP set up for me to lose 1lb a week prior to the surgery. I was eating back half my exercise calories. After the surgery, I reset it to 1/2-lb. I figured, even though I couldn't exercise, I also wouldn't need the extra calories because there was no workout to fuel. And, for the first time in nearly a year, hunger was big problem for me. Okay, it was only for those five days, until I could start walking again, but it was the only time that I found it hard to stick to the program.

It's not exactly news to me that exercise helps reduce my hunger pangs (within reason! Like I said, I eat back half my calories to fuel those workouts). But I hadn't expected such a dramatic difference when I had to go five days without it. But for those five days, my hunger cues were pretty unreliable.

kimny72

I don't understand why people are suggesting OP pick a random number in between and try it. We are literally on a website that figures out a good starting point for you, you don't have to guess.

OP no doubt got 1200 calories because she chose 2 lbs per week which is too aggressive. If she chooses a realistic pace and adds her exercise calories on top of her goal, I'm sure mfp will have her eating more than 1200. Maybe even closer to 2000. Then she can tweak based on results. No need to guess.

apullum

Your PT is wrong. Commenters saying that 1200 is never appropriate for anyone are also wrong.

1200 is the minimum number of calories recommended for women. It is appropriate for a small group of people (no pun intended), such as very short women. I am less than 5 feet tall and I lost weight eating 1200 calories plus exercise calories.

MFP, however, gives most women the minimum 1200 calories if they put in a weight loss pace of 2 lb. per week. However, if you aren't in that "very short" category, you can likely lose weight at a slower pace by eating more than 1200. Try calculating your calorie goals with a 1 lb. per week weight loss instead.

Unknown

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doittoitgirl

Have we toyed with the idea that perhaps
1. The OP misunderstood their PT or that
2. Perhaps the PT told them something to the tune of that but for a reason. If the OP is doing really strenuous workouts, 1200 isn't going to be enough to sate them. I tried doing 1200 and started to see a PT. And my PT was right, 1200 is too low if I was to continue to work out at the level I was and stay healthy. 1200 is for short/sedentary/senior individuals and not appropriate for an average woman who works out.

OP, my suggestion is if your are concerned about the advice given to you, speak to another professional. Find a RD instead of your PT to discuss your workout regime and diet.

kimny72

doittoitgirl wrote: »

Have we toyed with the idea that perhaps
1. The OP misunderstood their PT or that
2. Perhaps the PT told them something to the tune of that but for a reason. If the OP is doing really strenuous workouts, 1200 isn't going to be enough to sate them. I tried doing 1200 and started to see a PT. And my PT was right, 1200 is too low if I was to continue to work out at the level I was and stay healthy. 1200 is for short/sedentary/senior individuals and not appropriate for an average woman who works out.

OP, my suggestion is if your are concerned about the advice given to you, speak to another professional. Find a RD instead of your PT to discuss your workout regime and diet.

The problem isn't that they gave her 2000 cals, that could be a good number for her, though for many of us it would be too much. The problem is they told her her body would "start storing fat not lose it" if she eats under 2000 cals. Which is simply not true and evidence that this PT is spreading woo.

You really don't have to go to an RD to get a calorie goal, although she certainly can if she wants to. Lots of women complain that MFP gives them 1200 cals, but often that's just because they are choosing an unrealistic aggressive goal and not logging their exercise. When used correctly, MFP will give most users a reasonable starting calorie goal.

WinoGelato

kimny72 wrote: »

I don't understand why people are suggesting OP pick a random number in between and try it. We are literally on a website that figures out a good starting point for you, you don't have to guess.

OP no doubt got 1200 calories because she chose 2 lbs per week which is too aggressive. If she chooses a realistic pace and adds her exercise calories on top of her goal, I'm sure mfp will have her eating more than 1200. Maybe even closer to 2000. Then she can tweak based on results. No need to guess.

Yes to all of this.

I also am skeptical of a PT that makes blanket statements with incorrect information and suggest you ask your PT to focus on the fitness aspect and stay away from the nutritional/calorie portion of your program.