So confused..too many contradictions on the boards :(
PunkyDucky
Posts: 283 Member
I'm 27, 5'5", 218lbs, i use the T25 dvds 5 times a week (Burn about 250-300 calories a session)
I'm currently eating about 1,200 calories a day since last week and have lost 8lbs.
I've researched the boards non-stop about how "starvation mode this" and "slower metabolism this" "weight gain occurrence" will happen at 1,200 or lower. But then i see others say it won't happen.
I've also seen that upping my calories will help me lose too, but I've tried almost every TDEE calculator out there and they've given me different calorie goals needed to lose weight.
What's wrong with eating at 1,200 calories a day?
From the TDEE calculator it says i need to eat about (range bc they aren't all the same) 1,500-1,700 calories to lose weight, will i gain weight after being on a 1,200 diet?
I'm currently eating about 1,200 calories a day since last week and have lost 8lbs.
I've researched the boards non-stop about how "starvation mode this" and "slower metabolism this" "weight gain occurrence" will happen at 1,200 or lower. But then i see others say it won't happen.
I've also seen that upping my calories will help me lose too, but I've tried almost every TDEE calculator out there and they've given me different calorie goals needed to lose weight.
What's wrong with eating at 1,200 calories a day?
From the TDEE calculator it says i need to eat about (range bc they aren't all the same) 1,500-1,700 calories to lose weight, will i gain weight after being on a 1,200 diet?
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Replies
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Those work out to be the same number. MFP is designed so you eat your exercise calories back, or 1200 plus your 300 burned, or 1500. The TDEE calculators are designed to include your exercise numbers, so you wouldn't eat them back, which gave you the same amount of 1500. It depends on how you want to do it personally. I like eating aiming for the same amount each day, so I use my TDEE daily average. If your want to tailor it more to your individual days, record your exercise burns and eat whatever amount MFP suggests. Hope this makes sense!0
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My personal experience is that I lost weight at about 1200 a day. However, a diet has to be sustainable (mentally and physically) to be effective in the long term.0
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Weight loss is simple: Calories In minus Calories out. Eat at a deficit and you lose. The greater your deficit, the faster your weight loss pace. You could be on an all-Twinkie diet, as long as you are in caloric deficit.
General nutrition is not that simple. It involves making sure you get the right balance of macronutrients (fat, protein, carb), along with micronutrients (vitamins, minerals, etc.).
When you consume very low calories, it is difficult to get the nutrition you need. You might short yourself on some key nutrients, thereby causing long-term damage to your heart, kidneys, liver, etc. Getting faster weight loss now but doing long-term damage is a bad trade-off.
The right balance is up to each person to decide. A person with a lot of weight to lose (like me) can lose faster at first. A person with less weight to lose should not try to lose too fast.
Just apply common sense. If something seems unreasonable, it probably is.0 -
Try this link and see if anything gets clearer:
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants
I don't think 1200 +50% exercise calories is bad per se, but most people could stand to increase their calories a little and still manage to lose weight. Eating at a flat 1200 will work for some, but most of the "I'm hungry all the time" posts come from the 1200 calorie folks so it doesn't work for everyone. I'm 5'2" and eat a flat 1600-1750 and manage .5 lbs a week when I don't get the crazy water weight fluctuations from various things.0 -
Okay eating 1200 calories does not fuel your workouts. Esp doing circuit training 5x a week. At your weight you could be eating a lot more and still lose weight...But I looked at your diary you are not logging how do you know how much you are eating.I'm 27, 5'5", 218lbs, i use the T25 dvds 5 times a week (Burn about 250-300 calories a session)
I'm currently eating about 1,200 calories a day since last week and have lost 8lbs.
I've researched the boards non-stop about how "starvation mode this" and "slower metabolism this" "weight gain occurrence" will happen at 1,200 or lower. But then i see others say it won't happen.
I've also seen that upping my calories will help me lose too, but I've tried almost every TDEE calculator out there and they've given me different calorie goals needed to lose weight.
What's wrong with eating at 1,200 calories a day?
From the TDEE calculator it says i need to eat about (range bc they aren't all the same) 1,500-1,700 calories to lose weight, will i gain weight after being on a 1,200 diet?
That 8lbs...a lot of it was water weight and you will see some of it come back and then it will go again.
Online TDEE calculators are estimates too...I used my own data to calculate mine.
Eating 1500-1700 seems reasonable as I eat 1600 and lose while lifting weights and HIIT.
The thing with weight loss using 1200 calories it's hard to keep that low...you will break eventually. Esp if you are working out a lot.
Starvation mode etc wont happen if you are truely eating 1200 calories....but you will get lethargic, tired and not be able to sustain it, if you go lower consistently you will be worse off with hair falling out etc and you will lose muscle not just fat...
Why not eat at a reasonable deficet and lose the weight at a reasonable rate...
ETA: if you are confused look at the tickers on weight lost or read their profiles to learn who to listen to...clears up any confusion.0 -
The problem with 1200 calories is that it's as low as we can safely go. So, if you start out at 1200 calories and are losing fine, then your metabolism slows and you can't lose more, but you can't safely go below 1200. It happened to me. I took off 90 lbs at 1200 calories a day, then nothing would make me lose. After a year of sticking to my diet and losing nothing, I had to switch to a vegan diet and up my calories to 1300-1400 a day to lose weight. I took off 33 more lbs. I couldn't continue to eat like that, as I was tired of living on beans and veggies. So, I went back to my original diet, but I gained weight back.
This time, I went to a diet doctor, asked his advice, and started at 1600 calories a day. I am losing fine. After losing 25 lbs, I went down to 1550 calories. Then, once I lose 25 more lbs, I will go down to 1500 calories, and so on. I won't hit 1200 calories until I am nearly at goal. My diet doctor explained that everyone's metabolism will eventually slow down and everyone will need to decrease calories at intervals to keep losing. An overweight person who starts out at 1200 calories a day will get stuck and be unable to lose after a while, as it's unsafe for anyone to go below 1200 calories.
If the TDEE calculator is saying to eat between 1500-1700 calories a day to lose weight, then you can use that as a range. Meaning, don't go below 1500 or over 1700 a day. Just stick within that range. With the exercise you are doing, that should be fine.0 -
Here's why I think 1200 is too low.
If I maintain my weight at 2000 calories, that means I can lose weight at anything less than that - the larger the deficit the quicker the weightloss(in theory).
So, what happens if I lose weight at 1900 calories, and then I stall out --- well, I could drop down another 50 calories to 1850 and start losing again.
.... so then what happens if I start losing at 1200 and my weight loss is super for a while, until I adapt to living on lower calories and then stall or plateau? I would cut down to 1150 or 1100 or 1000 calories. Wow, that's not a lot of calories.....
So, I'd rather eat as many calories as possible while losing weight instead of cutting it down as low a possible (which isn't sustainable in the long run, and can cause people to eventually binge).
Why not do something that you can do successfully for life, instead of doing something that will eventually fail?0 -
You lost 8 pounds in 1 week and you're asking what is wrong with 1200?
Ask yourself one question: Can you really keep that up or is it going to end up driving you into a major binge and possible rage quit?0 -
1200 has never been enough for me, and I'm not a big person who has a huge appetite or anything. I'd rather go at a little slower pace and feel satisfied, plus the more I read about calorie restrictions having long-term effects on slowing the metabolism, the more I'm questioning the safety of going that low for any period of time. I think eating better quality food and working out more, specifically with weight training, is what makes the most sense. If you find that you can eat 1200 and not be starving, and still be in a good mood, maybe that will work for you, but watch out for that day a few weeks in where you're so hungry you just want to eat everything. That can be a sign that you need to loosen the restriction.
And even if you do decide to eat more calories than you have been, you can still keep lean muscle mass and burn fat by strength training. I just picked up The New Rules of Lifting for Women and it's super enlightening on this subject!0 -
What's wrong with eating at 1,200 calories a day?
From the TDEE calculator it says i need to eat about (range bc they aren't all the same) 1,500-1,700 calories to lose weight, will i gain weight after being on a 1,200 diet?
I don't think there's anything wrong with eating 1200 kcals. If you're okay losing a certain amount of weight (depending on your TDEE - hence depending on your calorie deficit) in a certain time, then nothing wrong with it. Some people feel very hungry with such low calories, but that's up to you.
You will always lose weight if you eat 1500-1700 kcals, just less weight in the same amount of time.
Example: my TDEE is 1810 kcals, if I eat 1200 my deficit is 600 kcals, I can lose 0,5-1 kg a week. (And I eat my calories back). But what if I get tired of eating that much and I'm still hungry? I eat, who knows, 1300-1400 kcals. I still lose weight, just 0,5 kgs per week.
As long as you drop some weight your TDEE gets lower, but you also have less kgs to lose, hence you won't see any damage by eating a little more.0 -
I am far from an expert on this, but I have read a lot of the "Getting Started" threads and done a lot of trial and error.
IMO you probably will lose weight at 1200 calories a day. The problem is that it's impossible to maintain long-term and doesn't give you a whole lot of energy, especially when working out. You also have to wonder what type of weight you are losing at that type of deficit.
I actually gained weight when I was "dieting" because I couldn't maintain that long-term. I would binge and "treat myself", then feel guilty about it. I also was not religious about logging my food because if it wasn't in writing I could deny what I really was eating. I wasn't helping myself at all.
I'll be 35 next week, and I'm 5'7". Last spring I weighed just under 200 lbs. Today I weighed in at 166 lbs. I just started exercising a few weeks ago, and I'm still trying to be more consistent with it. I've had the most success with eating at around 1600 calories a day. I eat back 50% of my exercise calories. I don't deny myself any foods that I know I will want to eat at some point, although I do eat less and less processed foods.
The boards can be confusing. I stopped paying as much attention to a lot of opinion based posts, and started reading through the sticky posts in "Getting Started". There's been some great advice on this thread already, from people that I think know what they are talking about.
Just don't get discouraged. Wanting to do this is the first step!0 -
Chances are, you probably eat more than 1,200 calories and don't realize it. If you're logging accurately though, and weighing your food, you can up your calories if you wanted to. It's really your choice. You can continue eating at 1,200, and eventually wind up feeling hungry, and you may even get tired of feeling hungry all the time n throw in the towel. Or, you can increase your calories and still lose weight.
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So, I plugged in your numbers. I get a TDEE of about 2775. Your BMR is 1791. If you were my sister, I would advise you to start at 1800 for 3 weeks of so and see what happens. Eating too little will lead to you being tired, grumpy and cause you to have a raging binge eventually. Don't get caught up in the " I want to lose it all now" mindset. You want your loss to be sustainable, so take it a little slower and eat foods you like in the proper ratios. The link posted above is EXCELLENT!!! Good luck to you.0
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With the amount of body fat you have, starvation mode is never going to happen, ever. There is some adaptive thermogenesis going on when we lose weight but if someone is exercising and using weight training in the protocol that will be minimal. 1200 calories is only a problem if your adherence to the diet is compromised....basically if you find yourself hungry often and binge then you might want to look at your food choices and/or increase your calories........0
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@OP - I have lost just over 80 lbs and did not do it by eating 1200 calories. That little for nutrition would make me cranky, effect my performance as far as workouts and just getting daily activity done and would make me resent the lifestyle change. No - very low calorie diets (which I, personally, consider the 1200 calories to be) set most people up for failure over and over again.
At the end of the day - you are in charge of this lifestyle and your goals. You can gain alot of knowledge on these boards about 'how-to' and still mentally convince yourself 1200 calories is the way to go for you. You may succeed. You may not. It is understanding who you are, what triggers you and what motivates you. For me, I finally understood that the feeling of deprivation of low calorie intake frustrates me and causes me to fail. I love that I can eat more calories per day and still lose weight and I can take all the time I need to make manageable change to my lifestyle.0 -
I'm older than you and I have never eaten less than 1600 during my weight loss. The main issues with eating so few calories is that 1) you WILL binge. There's no way someone your size can eat so few calories for more than a few weeks without having massive craving or get hungry, 2) you will lose muscle, 3) your workouts will not give you any result (see number 2), 4) you will probably lose your hair, 5) you WILL give up.
PLEASE get a reasonable goal. Check http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/, pick a 25% deficit if you want, but eat more.0 -
I'm 27, 5'5", 218lbs, i use the T25 dvds 5 times a week (Burn about 250-300 calories a session)
I'm currently eating about 1,200 calories a day since last week and have lost 8lbs.
You can probably keep going at that for another 30 lbs then you may wish to edge up your calorie intake. Right now you have about 200,000 calories of excess fat on board that will fuel the difference between what you use and what you eat, but as that number gets smaller you need to use it at a lower rate to achieve a sensible transition to maintenance.
But that's over 6 months away.0 -
Those work out to be the same number. MFP is designed so you eat your exercise calories back, or 1200 plus your 300 burned, or 1500. The TDEE calculators are designed to include your exercise numbers, so you wouldn't eat them back, which gave you the same amount of 1500. It depends on how you want to do it personally. I like eating aiming for the same amount each day, so I use my TDEE daily average. If your want to tailor it more to your individual days, record your exercise burns and eat whatever amount MFP suggests. Hope this makes sense!
Bingo...0 -
Agreed. Lots of body fat to compensate.I'm 27, 5'5", 218lbs, i use the T25 dvds 5 times a week (Burn about 250-300 calories a session)
I'm currently eating about 1,200 calories a day since last week and have lost 8lbs.
You can probably keep going at that for another 30 lbs then you may wish to edge up your calorie intake. Right now you have about 200,000 calories of excess fat on board that will fuel the difference between what you use and what you eat, but as that number gets smaller you need to use it at a lower rate to achieve a sensible transition to maintenance.
But that's over 6 months away.0 -
I felt (feel?) the same way. It is all very confusing. At the beginning of all this I was constantly changing my goals based on what I was reading on the forums. After months of experimenting I think I have finally found something that works. Like most people have said - 1200 total is too low for majority of people. Just keep experimenting & you will find what works for you. The important part is to make sure you get enough calories to lose at a slow to modest speed (.5 - 2 lbs a week depending on how much you have to lose), fuel your workouts & get the nutrition your body needs. Good luck!0
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Why even ask? You're gong to eat 1200 calories anyway. Just keep doing what you're doing till you get stuck or aren't getting results anymore.I'm 27, 5'5", 218lbs, i use the T25 dvds 5 times a week (Burn about 250-300 calories a session)
I'm currently eating about 1,200 calories a day since last week and have lost 8lbs.
I've researched the boards non-stop about how "starvation mode this" and "slower metabolism this" "weight gain occurrence" will happen at 1,200 or lower. But then i see others say it won't happen.
I've also seen that upping my calories will help me lose too, but I've tried almost every TDEE calculator out there and they've given me different calorie goals needed to lose weight.
What's wrong with eating at 1,200 calories a day?
From the TDEE calculator it says i need to eat about (range bc they aren't all the same) 1,500-1,700 calories to lose weight, will i gain weight after being on a 1,200 diet?
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness industry for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition0 -
I don't know if anyone mentioned this yet, but a very large deficit will make you lose more muscle along with the fat. So you'll lose weight faster, but you'll be losing the sexy muscle at a higher rate!0
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I was wondering how many has been losing at a true 1200...as it's almost impossible to get the exact number of calories in and out...
To me 1200 is something very arbitrary...it could be an actual 800 while 1500 for another...0 -
I think the whole "starvation mode" thing is a big discussion.
IME, eating less than you burn WILL make you lose weight. If I don't lose weight it's either because:
- I'm not patient enough
- I retain water due to PMS/high sodium/whatever
I eat 1200 a day now and feel slimmer. Just didn't notice any difference with higher intake so settled for this. If I exercise, I eat more though. It's challenge, but doable. Question is if I can keep it up once uni starts and I can't cook at home as much.0 -
I was on 1200 for about 6 months & upped it to 1350-1400 calories. While I usually work out 4 times per week, I usually maintain about 1500 daily calories and add about 200 calories when I work out. Through this whole thing though, I vever starved or was hungry. Just cut the salt & drink more water.... This helps0
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My aim is around 2000 calories a day, which I find is perfect to keep me energized for my day to day life and workouts with protein and good fats making up mosty of it. I think you really have to find a balance, so I'm all for experimenting with your day to day calories, but it does sound like your not eating enough.0
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Why even ask? You're gong to eat 1200 calories anyway. Just keep doing what you're doing till you get stuck or aren't getting results anymore.I'm 27, 5'5", 218lbs, i use the T25 dvds 5 times a week (Burn about 250-300 calories a session)
I'm currently eating about 1,200 calories a day since last week and have lost 8lbs.
I've researched the boards non-stop about how "starvation mode this" and "slower metabolism this" "weight gain occurrence" will happen at 1,200 or lower. But then i see others say it won't happen.
I've also seen that upping my calories will help me lose too, but I've tried almost every TDEE calculator out there and they've given me different calorie goals needed to lose weight.
What's wrong with eating at 1,200 calories a day?
From the TDEE calculator it says i need to eat about (range bc they aren't all the same) 1,500-1,700 calories to lose weight, will i gain weight after being on a 1,200 diet?
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness industry for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
This is exactly the kind of rude response I'm talking about.0
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