New here. 360lbs and doing the 1200 calorie diet. Am I nuts?

LiftAllThePizzas

Yes, eating less than necessary is nuts. N-V-T-S nuts!

HerkMeOff

That's totally sustainable for a long, long time, given how much you have to lose.

:huh: :huh: :huh: :huh:

Serah87

I'm sure you understand that this is going to take some time. It took me 2 years to lose 100 pounds. So, with that in mind, it's important that you do something that is sustainable. Have you tried to find your TDEE and BMR? Those would be important numbers to know. That's why I'm going to post the links again (they were posted above). Find those numbers and then you need to eat between the two.

Read these links and learn all you can about how to do this in a healthy way. Restricting your calories too deeply can cause bingeing, giving up, and some health consequences that are not pleasant (losing hair, vitamin deficiencies, etc.).

Very best of luck to you!

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1175494-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/819925-the-basics-don-t-complicate-it

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/872212-you-re-probably-eating-more-than-you-think

THIS!!!

Slow and steady is the healthy way to go and to keep it off for good!!

Over 2 1/2 years for me and still have a few vanity pounds to take off which I am working on now after taking a break.

fatcity66

Yeah you heard me. 360lbs and I'm 5'6"! I'm just now ending Day 2 of my 1200 calorie a day diet. Do I feel hungry? Only when I stop to think about it. If I start to feel the munchies I drink a bottle of water, then get up and do something to occupy my brain. I read that I should be eating almost twice as much as I am just to maintain my weight but obviously, I don't want to maintain this! LOL I just wanted to maybe get some pointers from some of you. I don't want to become sickly but I'm already at the point where I can't fit in most amusement rides and by next summer, I aim to change that!

Don't start so low, it gives you no room to adjust as you lose weight and your body adjusts to your diet. I'm pretty sure you could eat 2000 cal/day and still lose at a good rate for a while. My brother weighs about 270 (6'4"), and yes he is taller, but he's eating 2000 cal/day and losing at least 2 lbs a week. And all he does is walk for exercise. You weigh almost 100 lbs more than he does. Why torture yourself?

jomel2012

Good Evening! I just want to applaud your courage to take this journey to better health and while I know the struggle of trying to just get the weight off, you have to get more than 1200 calories in each day to be able to function. Your body will rebel if you take the calories down too drastically. You should be eating every 3-4 hours to keep your metabolism in check. You can do 100 calorie snacks, fruit, etc. but find some things you enjoy. Are you working out? if not I would suggest working out and increase your calorie intake to at least 1,700 calories per day. I am 5'7 and weigh 230 lbs....I set my goal to 1700 calories per day - I have a shake for breakfast- a morning snack-a shake for lunch-a afternoon snack- and a regular healthy dinner and I workout 5 days per week for at least 30 minutes to a hour and I am still losing weight and coming under my calorie intake each day. I know each person has to set the guidelines for thier journey in order for it to work for them so my advice is a suggestion, because at the end of the day it's your choice. Good Luck! Keep me posted and I will do the same!

csadler78

Rather than restricting yourself to such a small caloric intake, you could focus on a specific calorie deficit instead. The more you work in a day, the hungrier you will be. But, because you've worked the calories off, you can eat them and still make progress.

HopelessMagic

Alrighty, so more? I definitely don't want to make myself ill so I'll eat a bit more and see how it goes.

sympha01

You're not NUTS but maybe you're not making the best choices right now? It's great to be gung ho and committed to improving your health. BUT you may find that 1200 calories crushes your soul over a long period of time. And you may feel that ULTIMATELY you won't get the results you really want, because your mind and body will rebel BIG TIME and kind of force you to start overeating again.

I started at >335, and I made a similar error in the first few weeks. And I didn't feel hungry, etc. either. But I did start MISSING things, feeling a bit wistful over missing even small indulgences. And after a bit I started realizing that even with fast weight loss it was going to take a long time. And could I really commit to a 1200 calorie diet for YEARS? How sad would I feel? How difficult would it be to stay healthy and meet nutrition goals with such a low calorie goal? Would my skin turn nasty? Would my hair fall out? Would I be constipated all the time? Would I feel deprived? Would I start resenting the diet? Would I eventually not only give up, but massively overeat ALL THE FOODZ out of the sense of deprivation?

I bumped my calorie target up to 1500, then 1800. Still losing weight at the rate of about 2 lbs a week. Now I eat at about 1900 per day. STILL losing at 2 lbs a week, though I exercise quite a bit now and I'm prepared for the rate of loss to start slowing now that I'm smaller. At that calorie level, I can not only SUSTAIN my diet even through special occasions (I did Thanksgiving and Christmas and ate all the delicious foods and desserts and drank wine -- in small to moderate portions -- enjoyed myself, and still stayed under goal! I blew my goal at Easter, but only by 100 calories so I STILL WIN.), but I actually enjoy my diet. I eat delicious healthy foods. I get reasonable portions of yummy treats like chocolate or ice cream or booze on the regular. My body is properly fueled all the time and I feel fantastic while I'm losing. I've learned to like exercise. My body can DO COOL STUFF now. I often feel like I can keep this up FOREVER. People are constantly telling me how healthy I look: friends, family, acquaintances, even people I know only casually like the clerks at my neighborhood grocery store. It's not just weight loss. My skin, hair, and eyes are all brighter because I eat healthy and treat myself right. (I get rando compliments from people on my skin and hair now; I haven't experienced that since I was in my 20s). My posture is good and I move with confidence because I'm properly fueled to sustain healthy exercise.

But it's not about me. It's about YOU. I'd just urge you to consider what you need to do to keep yourself HAPPY and HEALTHY while you work on reducing your weight. Because it might seem not hard in the first couple of weeks but it's a GRIND, man. Do everything you can to make it pleasant and enjoyable and feel as good as you can while you're doing it. Don't compromise with the feels! Don't try to sustain any plan that gives you the sads. Make sure your plan is JOYFUL because really, it totally can be.

sympha01

Alrighty, so more? I definitely don't want to make myself ill so I'll eat a bit more and see how it goes.

Whatever works for you. At that weight you could eat literally nothing but supplements and be fine for quite a while.

Please don't do that. Just because you weigh a lot does not mean it's okay to punish your body like that. You need some protein. You need some carbs. You can only get carbs from food. Your body will cannibalize its own lean mass (muscles and organs!) to get protein if you're not eating food. And what you want your body to cannibalize is fat mass, so that doesn't do you a bit of good.

This link is very helpful about appropriate goal-setting for people just starting out.
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants

Mr_Knight

Please don't do that. Just because you weigh a lot does not mean it's okay to punish your body like that.

Done right, it's not punishment at all. A body with that many reserves doesn't need any macros it can't derive from those reserves.

Just make sure to do it with competent, professional help.

12skipafew99100

OK all you nay sayers. Look at it this way. If she got gastric bypass she would be eating way less cals than that. She will be successful if she continues.

You CAN do it. I believe in you. Try to eat nutricious foods and take a daily vitamin.

Good luck!!

Mitsuo8

I feel like only eating 1200 calories is going to set you up for failure. You should start at a more reasonable calorie count for your height/weight. If you starve yourself you are more likely to give up, like I have in the past. My plan is to lose 1 1/2 pounds per week. I am at 1240 calories right now and I am 5"1 and 195 pounds. Remember slow and steady wins the race...

sympha01

Please don't do that. Just because you weigh a lot does not mean it's okay to punish your body like that.

Done right, it's not punishment at all. A body with that many reserves doesn't need any macros it can't derive from those reserves.

Just make sure to do it with competent, professional help.

No. Do not "just eat supplements." That is punishment. Eat food. Your body has reserves of calories in terms of stored fat, but not enough nutrition in that fat. Protein and carbs in particular. I don't call people or advice given on the forums crazy lightly. But that is freaking madness. I can imagine that maybe under doctor's ORDERS for a VERY BRIEF period of time (like <2 weeks) to attain massive weightloss in preparation for major life-saving urgently needed surgery. But not under simply "doctor supervision" like it's your own idea and a doctor is going to sign off on that.

sympha01

OK all you nay sayers. Look at it this way. If she got gastric bypass she would be eating way less cals than that.

Good luck!!

For a limited amount of time. A doctor would not have a patient eating <1200 calories for years. And it's going to take her years.

But more to the point, she hasn't had gastric bypass surgery. A VLCD diet prescribed for gastric surgery patients is not appropriate for just anyone who wants to lose weight, without doctor supervision, no matter how obese they are.

zoeysasha37

You can definitely eat more then 1200 :-)

radiosilents

Well, I guess everyone's different, but I'd be hard pressed to take that approach. I started at 372 and now at 359 I'm at just below 2000 calories, which is my aim, but sometimes I go a little over. It's taken me about six weeks to lose 10 pounds, but I am OK with that because I am looking for the changes I am making to my diet and overall lifestyle to be permanent, once and for all. I'm changing the way I eat gradually so that I become more healthy overall, not ONLY to lose weight.

This attitude adjustment comes after a lifetime of yo-yo dieting. I'm done.

LiftAllThePizzas

OK all you nay sayers. Look at it this way. If she got gastric bypass she would be eating way less cals than that. She will be successful if she continues.

Depends on how you define "success." Many of us are interested in something more than changing a number on a scale.

Healthy_Yuliya

Please don't do that. Just because you weigh a lot does not mean it's okay to punish your body like that.

Done right, it's not punishment at all. A body with that many reserves doesn't need any macros it can't derive from those reserves.

Just make sure to do it with competent, professional help.

^^^
This. Very Low calorie diets a recommended for people by doctors with BMI higher then 30. Because the health risks of staying in the obesity range.
"VLCD may allow a patient who is moderately to extremely obese to lose about 3 to 5 pounds per week, for an average total weight loss of 44 pounds over 12 weeks. Such a weight loss can rapidly improve obesity-related medical conditions, including diabetes, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol."
If you don't find it hard to do then I say go for it, consult a doctor first. But if you feel like your mood swings and negative emotions are strong an hunger becomes a constant that is no longer cured by snacking and a constant fixation. Even meals don’t really cure hunger. Food fantasies start, where you start daydreaming/dreaming about eating really filling things (usually a lot of meat, holiday meals for example). Snacking starts to lose its appeal as snack food really would solve nothing. Your hunger starts to reach a ravenous level, then I would up the calories it is better then falling of the wagon completely.

FeraFilia

I started at 330 pounds. I'm eating between 1600 and 1900 calories per day (MFPs goal for 2 pounds per week, at sedentary), and have lost 20 pounds in six weeks.

My only exercise is walking, and I use my FitBit to adjust my calorie goal accordingly.

You don't need to restrict that far.

sympha01

Please don't do that. Just because you weigh a lot does not mean it's okay to punish your body like that.

Done right, it's not punishment at all. A body with that many reserves doesn't need any macros it can't derive from those reserves.

Just make sure to do it with competent, professional help.

^^^
This. Very Low calorie diets a recommended for people by doctors with BMI higher then 30. Because the health risks of staying in the obesity range.

Please bear in mind the monstrous suggestion that this person actually suggested was not a VLCD diet. He suggested it was perfectly okay to give up food ENTIRELY and just take supplements "for quite a while" because the OP's current obesity level is so high she's got "plenty of reserves."

That is the most irresponsible suggestion I've seen on the forums in a while. Give up food and just eat supplements "for quite a while." And that's saying a lot.

Also, someone should follow a VLCD diet when it is prescribed by a doctor and with the doctor's FREQUENT supervision (including fairly frequent blood and urine tests to check electrolytes, etc.). Not on your own initiative, no matter your size.