**Controversial** Eating 1,200 Calories or Less

ChrisM8971

Ok i am new to all of this, MFP to says to eat 1200 calories a day. But now that i am exercising i always eat back those calories that i burned off is that correct????? Help

Yes that is the idea of MFP, the only pitfall that I can think of is that MFP sometimes overestimates calorie burns (some are about 30% higher than my HRM)

WhataBroad

Ok i am new to all of this, MFP to says to eat 1200 calories a day. But now that i am exercising i always eat back those calories that i burned off is that correct????? Help

YES!! but unless you know for sure how many calories you burned, a safe bet is to eat back 50 - 75%

cwolfman13

Ok i am new to all of this, MFP to says to eat 1200 calories a day. But now that i am exercising i always eat back those calories that i burned off is that correct????? Help

Yes...that is what is meant by NET calories. Just make sure you're making some allowance for estimation error. Overestimating calorie burn is easy to do. I used to take about 80% of what my HRM told me for an aerobic event. Databases can be very, very unreliable for calorie burn.

You are doing it correctly though.

VelvetMorning

People lead fairly insignificant and dissatisfying lives where their opinions are not taken to heart by their immediate peers. When their brave, confident internet personas are challenged with the same apathetic responses they receive in person it causes an immediate defensive reaction where they will literally get agitated by someone not taking their advice that they feel must be listened to because of underlying egotistical short comings.

The people who don't care one way or another, or post their two cents without having to point out why and how they are accurate and no-one else is ("I'm a doctor," "I know someone who..", "I read a study....") likely do not suffer from this!

That's how they come off to me, anyway. Hence explosive topics when something mildly controversial comes up. It could also be a vague, discontent, subconscious jealously when people become literally angry at someone who eats 1,200 calories or less because they lack the will power to do so. Who knows.

loren_jaylon

Some were telling me the same thing...I listened and guess what I got fatter ;( ...So I customized my own to eating 1000 calories for the most part I stay under my caloric count, so within the last 10days I went from 228 to 219.

bacitracin

http://lmgtfy.com/?q=bmr

JennetteMac

I think people & society in general are focusing too much emphasis on just the numbers more than reality. We can perfectly survive & function on a low calorie diet. 200 years ago people didnt worry about calories, they got up in the morning and went about their day, they were much more physically active than we are today, and were overall much more slender than the average person today. They didnt have to jog, eat salads all the time in order to lose weight, or be haunted by that bag of potato chips thats hiding in the pantry. They were already slender because of a much more active lifestyle. Back then if there were any fat people, it was the rich or wealthy... Today is all backwards where a head of lettuce costs more than a .99 cent double cheeseburger.

The best thing is to focus on a healthy lifestyle, such as eating food, real food that is low in calories yet very healthy, such as fruit and vegetables and lean meats and just becoming more active. The result is weight that that you can live with and maintain for a very long time... Stop worrying about the numbers and eat sensibly folks....

Samuraiko

What is Flame Baiting?

Flame baiting is deliberately posting a topic or question that is guaranteed to cause a huge amount of controversy. "Flame wars" are when two or more very heated (haha no pun intended) sides are represented and it almost stops being about the original topic, and more about verbally barbecuing your opponent into a huddled mass of charcoal.

MrGonzo05

People lead fairly insignificant and dissatisfying lives where their opinions are not taken to heart by their immediate peers.

Do dah. Do dah.

Phoenix_Warrior

Quote fail] ]It could also be a vague, discontent, subconscious jealously when people become literally angry at someone who eats 1,200 calories or less because they lack the will power to do so. Who knows.]]

lolz. I'm losing 1.5 lbs a week eating 1550. I don't give two sh*ts if you want to starve yourself to get to the same place I'm getting (not you specifically but others). So I would sign they off in bogus crap. There are plenty of successful people who try to steer others towards properly fueling the body but you know the whole talking to a wall sentiment.

VelvetMorning

It could also be a vague, discontent, subconscious jealously when people become literally angry at someone who eats 1,200 calories or less because they lack the will power to do so. Who knows.

lolz. I'm losing 1.5 lbs a week eating 1550. I don't give two sh*ts if you want to starve yourself to get to the same place I'm getting (not you specifically but others). So I would sign they off in bogus crap. There are plenty of successful people who try to steer others towards properly fueling the body but you know the whole talking to a wall sentiment.

Then obviously you fall into the category of people who don't care and don't suffer from any of the above, right?

zyxst

What is Flame Baiting?

Since I didn't see an answer, flame baiting is posting something to provoke angry replies.

There are plenty of answers already posted. For me, I don't give a f**k how many calories you eat. I'm not the Food Police.

peleroja

I'm under 120 pounds, have an office job, and my maintenance calories are only about 1600 if I can't work out. 1200 is, frankly, on the high side if I want to lose anything, even a slow loss. I don't care what people say because I've seen it on my own body and I know what works for me. Great if you're a 110 pound lady who hits the gym an hour a day and can pound 2000 calories a day, but that's not my life and I can't eat like it is.

4daluvof_candice

I eat 2086/day
exercise 30-45 min/day
5-6 times/wk
lose average 5 lbs/mo

Yum Yum!!!

1200 calories I would pass the hell out!!!!:sick:

geebusuk

I'm always amused that no one seems to be THAT bothered by a 20 year old 6'4" bloke well muscled bloke eating 1400 calories, say.
But you get a 50 year old 4'11" woman eating 1100 calories and "OMG she's gonna die!"

Similarly, I'm sure plenty eating 2k, hell 4k+ don't get decent micronutrient levels, while some eating 900 probably do much better.

Most of the 'reasons' seem to be accounting for situations that may not be at all relevant to the person in question.

Quite like, as mentioned above, the bible, as it goes.

Phoenix_Warrior

It could also be a vague, discontent, subconscious jealously when people become literally angry at someone who eats 1,200 calories or less because they lack the will power to do so. Who knows.

lolz. I'm losing 1.5 lbs a week eating 1550. I don't give two sh*ts if you want to starve yourself to get to the same place I'm getting (not you specifically but others). So I would sign they off in bogus crap. There are plenty of successful people who try to steer others towards properly fueling the body but you know the whole talking to a wall sentiment.

Then obviously you fall into the category of people who don't care and don't suffer from any of the above, right?

yeeesh, I'm secretly jealous I dont has the willpower to put down my hummus and wheat thins or cookie to lose just one more ounce quicker.

VelvetMorning

It could also be a vague, discontent, subconscious jealously when people become literally angry at someone who eats 1,200 calories or less because they lack the will power to do so. Who knows.

lolz. I'm losing 1.5 lbs a week eating 1550. I don't give two sh*ts if you want to starve yourself to get to the same place I'm getting (not you specifically but others). So I would sign they off in bogus crap. There are plenty of successful people who try to steer others towards properly fueling the body but you know the whole talking to a wall sentiment.

Then obviously you fall into the category of people who don't care and don't suffer from any of the above, right?

yeeesh, I'm secretly jealous I dont has the willpower to put down my hummus and wheat thins or cookie to lose just one more ounce quicker.

lol, no one was saying you were jealous honey.

Akimajuktuq

- Because people don't know how to use MFP and don't understand that its 1200 NET calories...a far cry different than 1200 gross calories.

- Because people take the most aggressive approach whether they have 5 Lbs to lose or 200 lbs to lose and don't know the difference.

- Because there are an *kitten* load of young girls on this site who don't even need to lose weight who are netting well below 1000 calories...this is called an eating disorder.

- Because some of us actually care as much or more about actual NUTRITION than just losing a few Lbs...it is next to impossible to actually meet your body's requisite fat, protein, and vitamin and mineral needs when you're eating 1200 calories and exercising 800 of those off.

- Because some of us understand that when you do this for a prolonged period of time you destroy LBM which is very difficult to get back

- Because some of us have been around the block a few times and have been here awhile...and we get to see posts of 1200 calorie "success stories" turning into, "why is my hair falling out" and "why don't I have a period anymore" posts.

I could give you more but you don't really care anyway so why bother...enjoy your awesome and amazing "journey"

This X 1,000,000.

Also consider that there are a lot of us who have "been there, done that" (for 20 years!) and we are trying to save other people unnecessary struggles that do NOT work for the long term and do not promote ideal health. But nah, we are just being "mean" and "judgmental" and "unsupportive" .

Phoenix_Warrior

It could also be a vague, discontent, subconscious jealously when people become literally angry at someone who eats 1,200 calories or less because they lack the will power to do so. Who knows.

lolz. I'm losing 1.5 lbs a week eating 1550. I don't give two sh*ts if you want to starve yourself to get to the same place I'm getting (not you specifically but others). So I would sign they off in bogus crap. There are plenty of successful people who try to steer others towards properly fueling the body but you know the whole talking to a wall sentiment.

Then obviously you fall into the category of people who don't care and don't suffer from any of the above, right?

yeeesh, I'm secretly jealous I dont has the willpower to put down my hummus and wheat thins or cookie to lose just one more ounce quicker.

lol, no one was saying you were jealous honey.

Maybe it's subconscious?!

VelvetMorning

It could also be a vague, discontent, subconscious jealously when people become literally angry at someone who eats 1,200 calories or less because they lack the will power to do so. Who knows.

lolz. I'm losing 1.5 lbs a week eating 1550. I don't give two sh*ts if you want to starve yourself to get to the same place I'm getting (not you specifically but others). So I would sign they off in bogus crap. There are plenty of successful people who try to steer others towards properly fueling the body but you know the whole talking to a wall sentiment.

Then obviously you fall into the category of people who don't care and don't suffer from any of the above, right?

yeeesh, I'm secretly jealous I dont has the willpower to put down my hummus and wheat thins or cookie to lose just one more ounce quicker.

lol, no one was saying you were jealous honey.

Maybe it's subconscious?!

I think the subconscious ones are the ones who get really really mad but don't apply to the above theory! You know, the whole, "Holy F YOU IDIOT YOU WILL DIE" type of responses (less dramatic though, thankfully)