How necessary is the 1200 calorie minimum?

Chubbs291
Chubbs291 Posts: 2
in Health and Weight Loss
I am doing a strange type of diet where I diet during the work week and then eat whatever I want on the weekends. It's not really that I planned to do it that way, its just that I can find the self-control to diet during the week but don't have the willpower to diet on my days off.

I have read much about the 1200 calorie daily minimum. However, is it necessary to eat 1200 calories every day during the week when I go way over that on the weekends?

For example, during the week I have been eating about 800 calories per day Monday through Friday and then probably 2,500-3,000 calories. Since that works out to an AVERAGE of over 1200 calories per day, and I don't go more than five days on the "crash diet" at a time, is that good enough to avoid slowing my metabolism?

Or will my metabolism still slow from eating so few calories for five days straight? Thanks!

Replies

  • jeeplovin
    jeeplovin Posts: 96 Member
    It is your weekly calories that matter. If at the end of 7 days, your total calories are where they should be, you are fine. I go on a weekly calorie goal also. It makes it much easier for me. It is alot easier, to be strict during the week, and have room to
    eat on the weekends, while still staying within my weekly goal.
  • SezxyStef
    SezxyStef Posts: 15,267 Member
    I personally wouldn't suggest it...esp if you want to exercise through the week.

    And what are you going to do when you reach goal????

    Eat like you do on the weekends everyday??? or continue with this starving through the week? and binging on the weekend...to top it all off your a guy and the min for a guy is 1800 not 1200...and you could be eating at maintenance on the weekend...

    I know my maintenance is now about 2200 calories a day.

    Why not just eat how you plan on eating when you have lost the weight...now just in small portions...

    I go a bit off on weekends too but it doesn't matter because over all my weekly goal is still pretty much in tact and I am losing weight...but I eat 1600-1700 each day and maybe as high as 1800 on the weekends...still way below maintenance.
  • kgeyser
    kgeyser Posts: 22,505 Member
    :huh: No, I do not think it is a good idea for a 30 year old male to starve himself 5 days a week, then binge on weekends. I don't care what the weekly average is, it's not healthy physically or mentally. Why on earth would you restrict yourself so severely? If you used a healthy calorie count, you would still lose without having to go through all this.

    Read these, you're putting yourself through weight loss agony for no reason:

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/819055-setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets

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