starvation??

liv0512

Hi all

Well eating habits going very well but tonight I saw the below message and wondering am I in starvation? I see a congrats when ppl are under the calories etc.

Based on your total calories consumed for today, you are eating too few calories. Not only is it difficult to receive adequate nutrition at these calorie levels, but you could also be putting your body into starvation mode. Starvation mode lowers your metabolism and makes weight loss more difficult. We suggest increasing your calorie consumption to 1200 calories per day minimum.

Am I not eating enough??

RaineyLaney

Hi all

Well eating habits going very well but tonight I saw the below message and wondering am I in starvation? I see a congrats when ppl are under the calories etc.

Based on your total calories consumed for today, you are eating too few calories. Not only is it difficult to receive adequate nutrition at these calorie levels, but you could also be putting your body into starvation mode. Starvation mode lowers your metabolism and makes weight loss more difficult. We suggest increasing your calorie consumption to 1200 calories per day minimum.

Am I not eating enough??

Open your food diary so we can see just what you are eating and how many calories. What do you eat daily in calories if it is under 1200?

liv0512

I had coffee and cereal this morning. A salad ,an apple and then for dinner 2 beef wraps with tomato, lettuce, cheese. I had a tea after dinner...10 glasses of water.

Food diary now available

ktno1

You should probably be eating a bit more, especially considering you're exercising. Your body needs fuel! Looking at your diary, maybe consider putting a protein portion into your lunch? Instead of just a salad, have a chicken salad or tuna salad, or something like that. It will give you some extra calories and should give you some more energy through the day too!

To me, the under 1200 calories thing isn't just about calories. It's about nutrition. It's hard to get enough protein and fat into your body and enough of all the vitamins, minerals, etc. that you need when you're eating so little.

Don't worry about losing weight. You will definitely still lose if you're netting 1200 calories a day. You could net higher than that and still lose.

ETA: I'm a similar weight to you and losing nearly 1kg a week eating 1300-1500 a day.

stt43

I don't believe that your body stops burning fat if your calories are too low, which is what people seem to call 'starvation mode'. But you should drop your calories by as small amount as possible. The lower your calories the more muscle you will lose, the less nutrients you will get, the harder it will be to stick to your eating plan, the less active you will be, and the worse you will feel.

Gkfrkv

If it's a one time thing, then no, you wont go into starvation. But if you eat less then 1200 on a daily basis it's going to be difficult to get all the nutrients you need, and your body is going to start conserve all it can because it thinks your in the middle of a famine.

michable

I started off here at 1200 calories, and got sick of seeing that message when I went under my cals for the day, so I decided to use the TDEE method - 20%, upped my calories to1400, and now when I go under my cal limit, I don't get the message anymore (because I am always over 1200 now).

laserturkey

You are definitely undereating. You're netting below a thousand most of the days I looked at in your diary. You can eat a lot more and still lose weight.

davert123

Are you hitting your macros (Protein, Carbs and fat). Also be careful of MFPs protein calculation - it can be very low sometimes so do research on the net and work out how much you need. If you ear too little (whatever that level is) then it would appear your body adapts and you would need to cut back even more to get the same loss. Also if you eat too little then your body will start to process your muscle as food (really) and since muscle uses more calories than fat as well as letting you move around without injury etc then you will find it harder to burn calories in the future.

davert123

Regarding the congrads etc. For me I don't say well done if people are consistently under. If they are near their target either way then it is worth congratulating. People saying congrads if you eat less than 1000 are not helping you :-)

Mokey41

You aren't anywhere near starvation but you are under eating most days. There are very few people who should be living on 1200 calories or less a day and you don't appear to have the stats to be one.

illuvatree

Definitely eat some more, especially when you exercise!