1200 or less?! Losing weight for a very small person

SaraSch2020

Hi community, I am hoping to pick your brains on something. I want to lose weight (not a lot, maybe 5 kg). My normal BMR is 1350 calories a day in order to maintain my weight. MFP have calculated that I should consume 1200 a day in order to meet my weight loss goal. A calorie deficit of 150 surely is not going to help with that though, is it? In an article I read that MFP advise for women to generally not eat less than 1200 calories. I appreciate this may be the case for many women, but surely not for all? I am quite small and I don't think that this goal is going to work for me. I have been 'living by' this goal for a month now and the scale hasn't moved. Do you think I should adjust my calorie goal downwards? Or am I risking any health issues? Thanks for your input!

globalc00

If the scale hasn't moved in a month, then you are eating close to maintenance. Instead of lowering your calories, you can burn more calories instead by moving more or exercising more if you can.

autumnblade75

Weight loss when you are already small will be excruciatingly slow. Are you weighing all your food on a food scale and selecting listings from the database that match the labels on your foods? If not, you may be eating more than you think. You could get a scale and be more meticulous to see if that helps...

LazyBlondeChef

I am in that situation. I am set to 1200 calories per day plus I add the net calories from working out. I eat between 1100-1300 calories per day ... sometimes a little higher if I do a longer workout. At current weight my BMR is 1267 and TDEE 1520. I've been losing about a pound a week for the last 2.5 months. In the past I ate 1300-1400 per day and consistently lost less than a pound per week. I'll be eating around 1500 calories per day in maintenance depending on how much I exercise.

I eat two solid meals a day plus an evening snack where I choose whatever I need to meet my preferred macros. I'm working with a dietician so I have no concerns with the amount of calories I'm getting.

I thought I had read that women should eat a minimum of 1000 calories per day to be safe.

yirara

LazyBlondeChef wrote: »

I am in that situation. I am set to 1200 calories per day plus I add the net calories from working out. I eat between 1100-1300 calories per day ... sometimes a little higher if I do a longer workout. At current weight my BMR is 1267 and TDEE 1520. I've been losing about a pound a week for the last 2.5 months. In the past I ate 1300-1400 per day and consistently lost less than a pound per week. I'll be eating around 1500 calories per day in maintenance depending on how much I exercise.

I eat two solid meals a day plus an evening snack where I choose whatever I need to meet my preferred macros. I'm working with a dietician so I have no concerns with the amount of calories I'm getting.

I thought I had read that women should eat a minimum of 1000 calories per day to be safe.

1200 to get all the nutrients needed and keep the organs running properly.
Yeah, being small sucks unfortunately. The best thing that TO can do is ignore BMI and focus on TDEE. BMI is the energy your body needs when just laying about. TDEE is the BMI plus everything you do throughout the day. That can be sport, but also just getting up and brushing the teeth, taking the lift (though stairs would be better of course) and anything else. Even fidgeting burns calories.
Plus, what is extra important when being small and at normal weight: using a food scale. TO cannot afford to guess as it's so easy to be off by 100 or more calories per day.

nooshi713

How small are you, OP? How active are you usually? Your BMR may be 1350 but your TDEE may be 1600. You will have to be very accurate with your logging. It is tough being small. There isn’t much room for error.

lemurcat2

Yes, what Nooshi says.

Where are you getting your BMR? A BMR of 1350 isn't that low. My BMR is supposedly 1200 (I'm not particularly small either -- 5'3).

This doesn't mean I have to go super low to lose. If I calculate maintenance WITHOUT exercise on MFP (which is all it will tell you), it gives me 1680 (I said lightly active). If I add in exercise on a TDEE calculator (even just moderate exercise), it gives me 1860.

If you have only 5 kg to lose, you are likely in a range to aim at no more than 1/4 kg (about 0.5 lb) per week. For that goal, MFP gives me 1430 BEFORE exercise (again, I said lightly active, which is before exercise and NOT a particular hard level of activity for most to meet -- you are likely at least that active). I also add back the exercise I do. (If you really are completely sedentary, I'd work on that if possible before cutting my cals extremely low. It would be far better for health.)

I do think there are rare women for whom eating below 1200 may be appropriate (ones quite a bit older, way below average height, or extremely obese such that losing weight rapidly may be worth the risks). With only 5 kg to lose and a not unusual BMR of 1350, you do not seem to fall into any of these categories.

If you aren't losing, it's more likely to be a lack of patience (when near goal small fluctuations in water weight can hide losses in the short term -- how consistent have you been over the month and how often do you weigh? What are the numbers you are talking about?) or else some easy to make and common logging errors.

nanastaci2020

Is your BMR 1350, or do you mean you've calculated your TDEE to be 1350? BMR is what your body uses for basic bodily functions, but TDEE includes additional energy used for moving thru your day and exercise. What are your stats?

If your TDEE is truly 1350 then 150 deficit daily would result in an average loss rate of about 1.3 pounds per month. So it is doable, but would require patience and accuracy. The human body normally has constant water weight fluctuations so it can be hard to 'see' the scale results in the short term when the progress is so small.

You could also look for ways to increase your TDEE. Meaning more movement, more calorie burn. Not just 'exercise'. Are there times you are sitting, that you could be standing? Can you add additional movement? Walking for errands, instead of drive thrus for bank, pharmacy, etc. Take the stairs instead of elevator/escalator. Park further from the store instead of looking for the closest spot. If you have a desk job, put an alarm on your phone every hour to stand up and stretch and walk around for 2-3 minutes. These are not calorie burns you can put into numbers, but over time they will add up and benefit you.

AnnPT77

Adding to other good advice above: I've been averaging about a 150 calorie daily deficit for about the past year (intentionally slow).

My weight late 2019 was upper 130s pounds. Now, it's mid-120s.

Yes, small (real, accurate) deficits are enough to lose weight. It takes time (lots) to show up clearly on the scale. But it's practically painless, IME.

charmmeth

yirara wrote: »

[
1200 to get all the nutrients needed and keep the organs running properly.
Yeah, being small sucks unfortunately. The best thing that TO can do is ignore BMI b]actually BMR[/b and focus on TDEE. BMI b]BMR[/b is the energy your body needs when just laying about. TDEE is the BMI b]BMR[/b plus everything you do throughout the day. That can be sport, but also just getting up and brushing the teeth, taking the lift (though stairs would be better of course) and anything else. Even fidgeting burns calories.
Plus, what is extra important when being small and at normal weight: using a food scale. You cannot afford to guess as it's so easy to be off by 100 or more calories per day.

This is really good advice, but you have mixed up BMR (basal metabolic rate) with BMI (body mass index), so what you write is a bit confusing. I've corrected it in my quotation as the point is a really important one.

RelCanonical

AnnPT77 wrote: »

Adding to other good advice above: I've been averaging about a 150 calorie daily deficit for about the past year (intentionally slow).

My weight late 2019 was upper 130s pounds. Now, it's mid-120s.

Yes, small (real, accurate) deficits are enough to lose weight. It takes time (lots) to show up clearly on the scale. But it's practically painless, IME.

Agreed. Another note is that for petite people (which I'm assuming OP is since their BMR is 1350), each pound "counts" more than in taller people. 5 pounds up or down with me looks like a lot more gained or lost than a much taller person. Because of that, a slower rate of loss is still effective.

LGreenfield7

Hey. you mention that you are a very small girl. My girlfriend is 120 lbs at 5foot nothing. 5KG is a lot of weight on a small frame... i mean A LOT. My girlfriends weight tends to fluctuate a bit. At 123 she looks heavier. At 119 she looks like she keeps herself healthy. If she drops down to 115 she looks incredible. She is currently eating around 1250 calories per day. Exercise and other daily activities burn her down below the 1950 mark. When consuming 1200 she does continue to lose weight. I would say eat the least amount of food that you find "comfortable" (I know it sucks eating in a deficit. and add more and more exercise until you reach your goal.