1200 calorie diet what is the best nutrition ratio to shoot use

shamac35153

So I’m not Keto what is the best nutritional percentages to use on a 1200 calorie diet. Also I’m over 50 not sure that matters. Over the course of a year and a half I’ve lost 30 pounds I’m very active and am finding it very difficult to loose a pound. Any suggestions are welcome. Active meaning I run do spinning class and do weights as well not sure I can fit anymore into my schedule as far as exercise.

TavistockToad

MFP macros are fine.

MikePTY

If you are very active you should be eating more than 1200 calories.

Maxematics

A couple of things:

1. There aren't any "best" percentages that cause a faster rate of weight loss or anything, but most places recommend a macro ratio of 40% carb, 30% fat, 30% protein as a starting point for weight loss, as keeping protein and fat up can help with satiety. If you find those percentages do not work for you in that regard, you can always readjust until you find something that does; everyone is different.

2. You've lost 30 pounds in the past 1.5 years but you find it difficult to lose a pound? How long has it been since you haven't lost weight?

3. Seeing as you're active, 1200 calories may be too low for you. However, depending on your answer to question 2, you may actually be eating more than 1200 calories per day without even realizing it.

kshama2001

There are mistakes that people commonly make that cause them to not lose weight that we might be able to spot if you change your Diary Sharing settings to Public: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/account/diary_settings

lorrpb

MFP macros are fine for most people. What are your stats and how much do you have left to lose?

Maxxitt

Being over 50, I would try to approximate a daily intake of .8-1g of protein per pound of goal weight while in a deficit (advancing age affects ability to utilize protein), and to get .35 g of fat per pound of goal weight, and fill the rest in with carbohydrates, especially vegetables in a rainbow of colors. This is for health reasons, not to lose more weight. Unless you are quite short in stature, 1200 is plenty low enough. That amount of daily calorie intake makes it a bit difficult to meet micro-nutrient goals in most people, so a daily multivitamin every now and then might be useful (the "over-50" kind doesn't include iron, which is appropriate unless you are menstruating).

A possibility may be that being in a constant deficit for a year may have also caused you to curtail your non-exercise activity. That, plus having 30 fewer pounds to move around drops overall calorie requirement so that weight loss can stall. When people up their calories a bit and resume losing weight, it's due to an increase in energy that allows them to be more active (outside of planned exercise) without really thinking about it.

lemurcat2

IMO, the MFP default ratios are a little low protein (especially for a woman in her 50s, who is not going to maintain muscle as easily as some) if at 1200. I'd do 40-30-30, with the 40% carbs, which provides 90 g of protein. Then adjust based on results.

It shouldn't matter for weight loss, however, except that some find it easier to sustain a deficit with more protein.

If you are active 1200 would normally be too low, however. The questions others are asking are the important ones.

apullum

Do you mean that you eat 1200 plus exercise calories, or 1200 total?

Do you use a food scale to weigh all solid food?

How tall are you, what is your current weight, and how much are you trying to lose?