Yes, 1200 calorie diets work!
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I know I will be trolled and flamed for posting this message but I am sick and tired of everyones high horse mentality when it comes to calorie counts. 1200 calories, if done correctly, is more than sufficient.
I began my journey January 1, 2014. I just completed 5 months and have lost over 55 pounds. I went from 280 to 225 and I feel great. Average calorie count is 1050 with an initial goal of 1200. After a few months, I moved my goal to 1400 and now I am at 1600. Yes, if you plan on just eating a cheeseburger at 1000 calories for the day, your screwed and will harm yourself. But let me give you an idea of my meals.
Breakfast is high protein egg sandwich OR oatmeal and high fiber toast. Either one is about 300 calories. Lunch is a special K protein bar at 170 calories. Dinner is either chicken breast with rice (370 calories), Large Baked potato with veggies (about 500 calories) or an extra large salad (350 calories). You see, at the end of the day, I have ample protein and fiber, good source of fuel (Carbs) and come in under 1000 calories. This leaves me some wiggle room if I want a small (and smart) dessert, some fruit with my lunch, or anything else. You see, I picked HEALTHY, LOW CALORIE foods to fill me up.
I will repeat. 1200 calorie diets, eating garbage, will allow you to lose weight but you will not feel good. But 1200 calorie diets that are low calorie, high nutrient food is a great way to lose the weight and keep it off.
Someone here will complain about my use of a protein bar. Many argue they are candy bars on steroids. They are meal replacements, quite tasty and have good nutrients (fiber and protein being the main ones). Regardless, you can not argue with the results. This diet has allowed me to lose over 55 pounds in 21 weeks. Right now, I average a weight loss of 1.2 pounds a week!
So before you all chastise someone for asking about a 1200 calorie diet, troll someone who supports the 1200 calorie diet, or even worse, name call (eating disorder, stupid, unhealthy) those who use the diet, take a look in the mirror. Why do you hate the low calorie diet so much? I think if you are honest with yourself, you will realize that is comes down to will power. Doing 1200 calories is the hardest diet out there. You go to bed hungry for the first few weeks before your body adjusts. Many don't make it past the first few days. So although I applaud those of you who are eating better and losing 0.2 or 0.4 pounds a week because you think everyone needs to eat 2000 calories and just exercises the deficit off, I wish you would applaud those of us who have the will power to change and who are losing 1.5 to 2 pounds a week because we refuse to listen to those who say it can't be done....
Let the trolling and flaming begin....
Ummmmmm, I was STILL losing 1.5 pounds a week eating at 1750 so not too sure what you are trying to say there. No one said it can't be done, tons of people have lost on a big deficit because, well duh IT'S STILL A DEFICIT. We just said there's a better way. One that doesn't leave you going to bed hungry at night a b****y as all hell.0 -
I workout 4 - 5 days a week. I switched my goal to my BMR around 1400-1500 and still eat back some or most of my exercise calories. It is possible to eat more than 1200 even when sedentary and not working out.
These two things contradict each other (working out 4-5 days a week and being sedentary/not working out). Can you clarify? I have worked out three times in the past three weeks for under 30 minutes, personally, and my steps are under 2000 / day. That's what I'm defining sedentary is when it comes to me.
I have a sedentary job (office job), so I would normally select sedentary for my MFP setting, however that is just too little for me to eat and be happy. I changed my goal to stay closer to my BMR and I have my goal set to 1480 to eat daily. I workout 4-5 days a week and when I do I eat those exercise calories back netting usually around 1400.
I don't work at all at the moment - and I don't chase around kids or spend my days cleaning the house. The activity I mentioned is everything I do, period. I have done even less than that for a fairly lengthy period of time. My TDEE according to most calculators I've played with (and backed up by the fitbit) is in the 1800s on a normal day. I'm basically trying to go from being a lump in front of my computer to acting like a normal person right now.... and then we'll worry about being fit after that. lol
Gotcha!! My son is 13 so not much running around for me, but I do walk around stores a lot, do around the house chores and a lot of cooking. So if not any of that is part of your lifestyle, than I can understand. When I don't workout I eat just 1480 cal, but I guess even with a sedentary job, I do more around the house and at the stores.
I get it
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When morbidly obese people are on a Medi-fast program, they have 500 calories a day. It is the right thing to do to get yourself out of the morbidly obese category as soon as possible. 1200 calories is the minimum a woman should consume a day, which is why I feel comfortable eating it. Plus, I'm very full after eating... I'm eating such healthy food, fruits and veggies mostly with some carbs and beans, so the calories are low but the portions are big and satisfying. I'm new to myfitnesspal and I love it... and I think I'll avoid these forums going forward. Best of luck to everyone.0
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Congrats on your weight loss.
Cutting at such drastic deficits promote muscle loss. End result? Skinny fat. Why not eat 2000 (or more?), lose a little slower, but look better in the end?
Oh you....
Now you are just talking silly.....0 -
I've been iffy on the 1200 calories diets but with these results I may try this and modified it a bit .
I've gained crazy weight over the past few months and its a let down cause I had lost over 60lbs0 -
I've been iffy on the 1200 calories diets but with these results I may try this and modified it a bit .
I've gained crazy weight over the past few months and its a let down cause I had lost over 60lbs
Please don't... As someone who was on the 1200 calorie diet and had to get an EKG this morning, I would suggest you treat your body right.
Shortness of breath, hair falling out, swelling in my feet and legs and my heart beating out of my chest was a wake up call. I want to lose weight, I want to hit my goal, but I don't want to die doing it.
Happened today, true story!0 -
When morbidly obese people are on a Medi-fast program, they have 500 calories a day. It is the right thing to do to get yourself out of the morbidly obese category as soon as possible. 1200 calories is the minimum a woman should consume a day, which is why I feel comfortable eating it. Plus, I'm very full after eating... I'm eating such healthy food, fruits and veggies mostly with some carbs and beans, so the calories are low but the portions are big and satisfying. I'm new to myfitnesspal and I love it... and I think I'll avoid these forums going forward. Best of luck to everyone.
If you don't get enough fat in your diet, you can't absorb the fat-soluble nutrients from those healthy foods, which leads to malnutrition. And the idea is to eat the highest number of calories possible while still losing weight, not eat the minimum you need to stay alive. For most of us that's more than 1200 calories anyway.0 -
When morbidly obese people are on a Medi-fast program, they have 500 calories a day. It is the right thing to do to get yourself out of the morbidly obese category as soon as possible. 1200 calories is the minimum a woman should consume a day, which is why I feel comfortable eating it. Plus, I'm very full after eating... I'm eating such healthy food, fruits and veggies mostly with some carbs and beans, so the calories are low but the portions are big and satisfying. I'm new to myfitnesspal and I love it... and I think I'll avoid these forums going forward. Best of luck to everyone.
I've already eaten 1100 today and I'm looking very forward to the 800 I have banked for dinner. I weigh 125 lbs less than you. Good luck sustaining a 1200 calorie diet for the next 12 months (the time I estimate that it will take to get to your goal, based on your ticker). Don't run away from the forums because you don't like what people have to say, listen to the "mean people," they know what they're talking about.0 -
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I eat 1200 calories. . . .twice a day.0
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Today is Friday, and I've scheduled a double workout just so that I can consume nearly 1200 cals of pub grub and beer this evening alone. Never mind what I've already eaten today! :drinker:0
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But, I often exceed it.I am doing a diet of 1200 or less. Average about 1000 over last 53 days. I have lost 18 pounds and feel great. Feel free to browse my diary. I go for my proteins first, then enjoy good healthy vegetables and fruits. There have been days that I have had less than 800 calories, but felt full. Why eat extra food just to make a number?
I am monitored weekly by our nurse at my place of work and my PCP is impressed. I have never felt so much full of energy in my life before. I have cerebral palsy which causes spastic and tight muscles along with a scissor gait when I walk and limited use of left arm. I feel so much more agile and less off balance having lost weight.
I started on 4/15/15 with MFP at 182 lb. (5'10") and am now 164 lb. In the proceeding year I was as high as 195 lb. and nearly a 40 inch waist. Today I and fitting comfortably in 32's. I want to be down at the lower end of the BMI scale near 130 lb. and a 28-30 waist or wherever my body feels best. This weight might seem lower, but having CP, I do not have the typical muscle mass. In my teens I was around 112 lb. and that was considered normal for my CP.
Responses welcomed!
Your calorie goal is 800... :noway:
What the ....??? You are a 46yo male with a goal weight of 130lbs. I'm a 52yo 5'4" female who lifts and walks/jogs/runs and I will have a rockin' bod at 146lbs.
Thought the same thing... 5'10" male at 130lbs? :huh:
ETA: didn't catch the CP reference. My apologies. :flowerforyou:
Thanks for the advice. I am also taking vitamins doctors advice. As I said, I am being monitored. I plan on increasing my calories as time goes on. My doctor has been pleased that I have dropped from two BP meds to one and will soon be off both.0 -
Your heart is made of muscle tissue...To anyone who is losing weight eating very little calories (1200-ish) do ANY of you actually track your body composition to determine if you are losing muscle?
I do. Since I started at over 40% body fat as it is, I haven't seen anything but a decrease of body fat. Mind you that I'm using an impedence scale, so it's just a trend I'm following and not the actual numbers, but the calipers put me over 40% as well before I started using the scale.
I wonder if there's just kind of a minimum LBM that a person can't really dip below without actually outright starving themselves though. What do you think?
Well there certainly is a minimum LBM that if you drop below would result in death but if you were truly starving I don't think you would stop losing LBM until you actually died.
The reason you lose muscle is either you are protein malnourished and your body cannibalizes your muscle to get the needed nutrients or you are exercising and causing microtears and damage to your muscles that you simply aren't supplying your body with enough energy in the form of calories to conduct repairs so rather than fix the damage your body just ingests the damage tissue for fuel.
The concern with very high deficit diets is that you will lose weight quickly to be sure, but you will lose muscle also which will be very difficult to regain.
That's what I was thinking. There's sort of a bottom. I don't know that I have any muscle mass to lose at this level. Not that that translates to a bigger point of any kind. It's just something I wonder about.0 -
I agree. Get rid of the packaged crap! There are great whole food protein bars and treats you can make yourself without the preservatives!
http://leitesculinaria.com/88638/recipes-homemade-larabars.html
Keep learning! It is a science!0 -
Your heart is made of muscle tissue...To anyone who is losing weight eating very little calories (1200-ish) do ANY of you actually track your body composition to determine if you are losing muscle?
I do. Since I started at over 40% body fat as it is, I haven't seen anything but a decrease of body fat. Mind you that I'm using an impedence scale, so it's just a trend I'm following and not the actual numbers, but the calipers put me over 40% as well before I started using the scale.
I wonder if there's just kind of a minimum LBM that a person can't really dip below without actually outright starving themselves though. What do you think?
Well there certainly is a minimum LBM that if you drop below would result in death but if you were truly starving I don't think you would stop losing LBM until you actually died.
The reason you lose muscle is either you are protein malnourished and your body cannibalizes your muscle to get the needed nutrients or you are exercising and causing microtears and damage to your muscles that you simply aren't supplying your body with enough energy in the form of calories to conduct repairs so rather than fix the damage your body just ingests the damage tissue for fuel.
The concern with very high deficit diets is that you will lose weight quickly to be sure, but you will lose muscle also which will be very difficult to regain.
That's what I was thinking. There's sort of a bottom. I don't know that I have any muscle mass to lose at this level. Not that that translates to a bigger point of any kind. It's just something I wonder about.
and much more than that as well. Muscle isn't just for lifting heavy things and looking good, there are a lot of completely essential functions that muscle carries out and once you burn through your glamour muscle you will start to burn through that essential tissue as well. Now that is if you are truly starving and I doubt anyone here is at that level.0 -
I am getting hangry just thinking about only eating 1200 calories a day!0
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Everyone is different. This is a fact some people can get by on 1200 and still be at a reasonable deficit because they don't burn much. This is true.
But not for most people. Therefore I advise caution keep an eye out for the signs that your diet is too restrictive. I would measure your muscles and actually look for atrophy. I'm not trying to preach to you. I am simply saying that you are close enough to the line that caution is extremely advisable.
I also think that eating more calories and exercising to be fitter and healthier is the better route than an overly restrictive calorie count. And honestly there isn't much that anyone can say to disprove that. It IS far far better to burn calories than to starve them. But if this doesn't fit into your lifestyle then well I guess it doesn't.
Just watch out man cos the health consequences of a vlcd can take a decent amount of time to set in. And once they become obvious the damage may be permanent.0 -
Today is Friday, and I've scheduled a double workout just so that I can consume nearly 1200 cals of pub grub and beer this evening alone. Never mind what I've already eaten today! :drinker:
now thats dedication i can relate with lol0 -
According to MFP, 1200 calories a day allows me to lose 0.5 lbs a week. At 61" and 148, I'm just not able to eat much. I do eat back some of my exercise calories.So in...
Okay OP..you are a 29 year old man eating less than 1200 calories of course you are losing weight but you are also losing fat and muscle...congrats to you.
In the long term you will notice the following as well...
Low energy
Lethargy
brittle nails and hair
Hunger cues will diminish
Your metabolism is going to slow eventually too
You will do damage to your heart and muscles
You will not be able to exercise much
And then...you will break...you will eat a wad of food
Long term you become nutrient deficient, your metabolism will adapt and make it hard to lose weight, your bones will become brittle due to lack of muscle...
But hey you lost weight...good on you.
As for the will power...naw...my goal is to be healthy and happy not weak, lethargic, unhealthy and skinny with no muscle mass...
Self control means eating as much as I can while I still lose weight not as little as possible as a form of self punishment for gaining weight.
There is no way as a man at 1200 calories you are getting in adequate nutrition...1200 is the bare min for a woman ...
But hey do what works for you...flay yourself as much as you want, don't learn to eat all food in moderation and when you come off this 1200 calorie a day diet and go back to "normal" and gain your weight back because you didn't learn moderation in all foods only self deprevation you will understand why there are those of us who say no to 1200...
I'd love to eat 2,000 a day and still lose but when I get above 1600 I actually gain. I used to be able to eat more but not at 49 yo, with a borderline low thyroid.
Being small has some advantages but this isn't0 -
Well, here is my two cents....of course 1200 calorie diets work, I am a case in point.....started January 2nd and lost 40 pounds in less than 3 months (no lie) by doing massive amounts of cardio and 1200 calories a day. Felt great actually doing it but then where does that leave when you are done losing the weight? You WILL NOT sustain such a lifestyle so get that in your head right now and guess what happens your first cheat meal? Your body holds onto every effin' calorie it can and you WILL gain massive amounts of weight as soon as you deviate from the norm.......so yeah, you will lose the weight but then how do you maintain? I myself am now eating about 2200 calories per day for the past month and lifting weights to try and gain back the muscle that I lost along with all the fat I lost so basically I am going in a circle, chasing my tail.....and I am also gaining back a little fat at a time because I am no longer doing all the cardio and my body is holding onto those extra calories because its still in that starvation mode or whatever (thats a whole other argument you dont want to get into on MFP). So, just realize that you are going to have to pay the piper eventually and you better have a plan on how to do it. I would start easing yourself into eating a more sensible amount of calories now so that when you get to the endzone you can sustain the weight loss and actually have some muscle left on your frame as well. Good luck!0
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Preach! The 2 weeks I tried the 1200 were HELL. I lost hair, my eyes were all blurry and my skin was a mess. Now I eat about 1500-1600/day and eat back after heavy lifting but only if I really feel hungry. (3 lift days a week, 1 light cardio/pilates) I am losing inches and growing some fabulous muscles.I did that once too. 1200 calories a day, and running 40 miles a week. Lost of lot of weight. Also lost a lot of muscle, my period, some friends, sleeping without nightmares, and the ability to find joy or happiness in anything. Then stopped losing.
1200 is just too low for most people to sustain over the long term (more than a year or two). And, most people eating 1200 do stop losing before they reach their goal weight.
But hey, I'm happy for you. I hope you are the one in a million that can get the results you are looking for with that 1200 or less.0 -
I'm female, 5ft 1, and lightly active. When I joined MFP I had no idea how many cals I should eat. I told it I wanted to lose 2lb per week (didn't know any better) and it told me to eat 1200 calories a day. I did it for 1 week and started waking in the night with palpatations, dizziness and a panicky feeling. Never experienced anything like it - it was really scary. I think I may have had low blood sugar as a result of the low calories?
Anyhow, now, better informed, I realise I am moderately active, want to lose 0.5lb per week, and eat around 1300 + all my fitbit calories back - usually 200-400 extra. I am losing weight very slowly, but I feel happy and can resist the temptation to snack - and no more 2am panic attacks! I have no idea if my experience is typical, but I know for sure that even for small women with a small amount to lose, 1200 cals is not always the best approach, and can really disagree with some people.0 -
And a mobidly obese person doesn't need to eat 500 calories. And if so it should be with a doctors supervision and supplemental support. Morbidly obese isn't an arbitrary statement either. Morbid is based on 35 to 45% BMI. And lets face it, that's about all BMI is good for, that and charging more for insurance.0
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I personally think 1200 is low for a male. I do 1250 when I dont work out and Im not bitter, or losing sleep or starving. And I have cheat days and prob will the rest of my life. But I also could prob eat the way I do the rest of my life.....I think everyone is different.
agreed but im on month uhhh 3 now and I've lost weight, of course.
I'll be going back to the gym soon here though I felt better
and also felt better about eating over 1200 calories if I exercised
but in reality I don't ever want to be eating more then like 400-500 calories before dinner and I shouldn't be eating a huge ole unhealthy meal. I had a cheat day yesterday now im back on schedule0 -
Your heart is made of muscle tissue...To anyone who is losing weight eating very little calories (1200-ish) do ANY of you actually track your body composition to determine if you are losing muscle?
I do. Since I started at over 40% body fat as it is, I haven't seen anything but a decrease of body fat. Mind you that I'm using an impedence scale, so it's just a trend I'm following and not the actual numbers, but the calipers put me over 40% as well before I started using the scale.
I wonder if there's just kind of a minimum LBM that a person can't really dip below without actually outright starving themselves though. What do you think?
Well there certainly is a minimum LBM that if you drop below would result in death but if you were truly starving I don't think you would stop losing LBM until you actually died.
The reason you lose muscle is either you are protein malnourished and your body cannibalizes your muscle to get the needed nutrients or you are exercising and causing microtears and damage to your muscles that you simply aren't supplying your body with enough energy in the form of calories to conduct repairs so rather than fix the damage your body just ingests the damage tissue for fuel.
The concern with very high deficit diets is that you will lose weight quickly to be sure, but you will lose muscle also which will be very difficult to regain.
That's what I was thinking. There's sort of a bottom. I don't know that I have any muscle mass to lose at this level. Not that that translates to a bigger point of any kind. It's just something I wonder about.
and much more than that as well. Muscle isn't just for lifting heavy things and looking good, there are a lot of completely essential functions that muscle carries out and once you burn through your glamour muscle you will start to burn through that essential tissue as well. Now that is if you are truly starving and I doubt anyone here is at that level.
This. My question involved NOT starving. Like I wonder if people at very high body fat percentages can sustain their low lean body mass without cannibalizing muscle as long as they're not crossing into actual starvation territory. I have no idea what the science ison that. It's a curiosity thing, not a claim.0 -
I personally think 1200 is low for a male. I do 1250 when I dont work out and Im not bitter, or losing sleep or starving. And I have cheat days and prob will the rest of my life. But I also could prob eat the way I do the rest of my life.....I think everyone is different.
agreed but im on month uhhh 3 now and I've lost weight, of course.
I'll be going back to the gym soon here though I felt better
and also felt better about eating over 1200 calories if I exercised
but in reality I don't ever want to be eating more then like 400-500 calories before dinner and I shouldn't be eating a huge ole unhealthy meal. I had a cheat day yesterday now im back on schedule
Well if that isn't disordered thinking then slap me on the butt and call me Sally. Bless your heart. What a sad way to live life.0 -
I don't find it necessary to punish my body for being fat by eating under my BMR. I'll just keep eating 2,000 calories a day and losing weight, and save all my will power for picking up heavy objects.0
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29 year old male, look about average height, and 60 pounds overweight yet you only lost 1.2 pounds a week? Isn't it stupidly obvious to you that your body was fighting you the entire way?0
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+1 exactlyI've been tracking for the past 110 days
Aiming to net 2100 calories a day. I run, I lift weights, I eat any and all foods (that I enjoy eating)
I've lost over 20 pounds.
It took me years to gain all this weight, I don't thinks it's safe or smart to lose my excess weight over night or 5 months.
But I am not on a diet like you are, I am eating the way I plan to for the rest of my life, just a little bit less for now!
Good luck with not feeling like death, and gaining it all back when you start eating again.0 -
I used to lose weight very easily by eating low calories, but at the age of 40 that all changed. I am a life long yo-yo dieter. Last year I decided I had better get back to dieting. I went on a strict diet. No loss. I started gaining. I cut back more and lost a little then it crept back. I was getting extremely frustrated. Then my sis-in-law told me about MFP. I was extremely skeptical at first, I had NEVER heard of eating back 'burned calories'. But over the past year I gained 30lbs and needed to do something. Now I eat approximately 1500-2000 calories a day. Sometimes a little more! But I am never over my net calories...I am slowly, steadily losing. I really didn't believe it was possible. I lost 10 of the 30 I gained and feel like I am finally eating healthy. Will power. I have it, but realize I don't need to, nor should I starve myself. It is what has kept me on this roller coaster for so long. I hope you have success, but I just wanted explain the flip-side. 0
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