1200 cal is NOT enough

GunslingerGirl

I eat anywhere from 1200-1500 a day and I'm doing fine. I tried the TDEE setting stuff and it said with the job that I had ( which didn't do much exercising) that I should be eating nearly 2,200 calories and that felt like so much that I just ignored it.

It's true that 1200 doesn't fit all. But neither does 1500 or higher. It all depends on how your body works.

Edit: And you OP, are close to being under weight for your height and (from your picture) your frame.

codenumpty

I'm not trawling through every single post here but going back to the 1200 is not enough then why...................

When I entered all my stats on MFP correctly, said I wanted to lose 1kg per week, which is not excessive, did it give me 1200 calories per day???

autismmomx2

I think we need a group hug. Just sayin...

shall724

yeah you're done talking to me that way already. shut UP Shall724. I'm done with you. ....and Shall724 was forever hidden.... peace

Wacko alert!

MelaniLight

yeah you're done talking to me that way already. shut UP Shall724. I'm done with you. ....and Shall724 was forever hidden.... peace

Wow...simmer down. Shall724's original post was in reference to a different post above yours. No need to jump all over her.

helsbelshms

I'm not trawling through every single post here but going back to the 1200 is not enough then why...................

When I entered all my stats on MFP correctly, said I wanted to lose 1kg per week, which is not excessive, did it give me 1200 calories per day???

MFP Gives a deficit of 500 cals per day for every lb you want to lose, with 1200 as the minimum it will recommend. 1kg is 2.2lb and it is recommended that we lose between 0.5 - 2lb for a healthy weight loss. So 1kg per week is aggressive, but without knowing your stats I couldn't comment on whether that is a good or bad amount to lose.

I had to override MFP because it didn't give me enough to keep me satisfied, plus I'm losing weight quicker at a higher amount than MFP says I will. We're all different, see how you go and if it is too hard just up your calories by 100 a day until you're satisfied. For me it's a marathon not a sprint, I know where I want to be and I don't care how long it takes to get there. If I'm losing on higher calories I'm happy, I'll readjust the lower I get.

Don't listen to everyone telling you what you should eat, read through the forums and educate yourself, then you can decide if you're doing the right thing. Good luck.

shall724

yeah you're done talking to me that way already. shut UP Shall724. I'm done with you. ....and Shall724 was forever hidden.... peace

Wow...simmer down. Shall724's original post was in reference to a different post above yours. No need to jump all over her.

Thank you Mel! My post was related to the entire 17 page thread being toooo long and overheated...not to any individual poster. Period.

xXBabyBelleXx

This is very good advice, I tried eating at 1200 but found it horrible. I felt faint most days and it really was like some horrible diet.

I've now increased my calorie intake using the TDEE and I now feel so much better for it!

I have lots of energy and I now run three times a week.

I'm also weight training and have set myself a goal to be able to do a full pull up! Enjoy!

MoiyaHatake

1200 is a baseline for a lot of people based on level of physical activity, age, current weight, etc. The basic facts are simple: the calories you consume that are needed for basic body function and survival is about 1200, this does not include calories you burn off by being more than mostly sedentary or how your uniquely coded genetics deal with excess calories. In my teens I could eat all I wanted and could not, no matter how hard I tried, gain more weight. I weighed 98 pounds until I was an adult, had a child, and became sedentary. My biology was affected, changed, and my genetics basically was already coded to deal with weight at a certain age differently. How I can help my body is by knowing how it handles calories. When I joined another site after finally reaching 200 pounds and becoming disgusted with how painful it made simple tasks I consumed only about 1200-1400 calories per day and then I added walking for more than half a week, up to 6 or more miles per day, and it still took more than a year to lose 40 pounds. When you try to throw out raging facts about how something is unhealthy or ridiculous for everyone just because it's not right for you without mentioning actual facts-for example, this site recommended to me to use a baseline of 1200 calories a day because of my age and weight and lack of physical activity, but if I enter any physical activity, whatever it may be, it gives me an allowance to consume more calories based on my desired weight loss goal-then all you are doing is hurting all the people who read your comment. People who find weight gain and weight loss difficult, personal, and sometimes a very painful and depressing process that involves many types of shaming. You've just hurt people who are already trying so very hard to believe they deserve to feel good about themselves. Maybe next time think about what you're going to say before you say it so it can be heard and discussed instead of starting an unintelligent shame-fest.

MoiyaHatake

I'm not trawling through every single post here but going back to the 1200 is not enough then why...................

When I entered all my stats on MFP correctly, said I wanted to lose 1kg per week, which is not excessive, did it give me 1200 calories per day???

MFP Gives a deficit of 500 cals per day for every lb you want to lose, with 1200 as the minimum it will recommend. 1kg is 2.2lb and it is recommended that we lose between 0.5 - 2lb for a healthy weight loss. So 1kg per week is aggressive, but without knowing your stats I couldn't comment on whether that is a good or bad amount to lose.

I had to override MFP because it didn't give me enough to keep me satisfied, plus I'm losing weight quicker at a higher amount than MFP says I will. We're all different, see how you go and if it is too hard just up your calories by 100 a day until you're satisfied. For me it's a marathon not a sprint, I know where I want to be and I don't care how long it takes to get there. If I'm losing on higher calories I'm happy, I'll readjust the lower I get.

Don't listen to everyone telling you what you should eat, read through the forums and educate yourself, then you can decide if you're doing the right thing. Good luck.

Your response to this persons concern was really awesome, intelligent, and kind. So of course I had to show my appreciation. ^_^

msf74

paperpudding

I have been eating 1200 a day and running 3-5 miles a day every day for two months. I keep plateauing and I guess now I know why. I am not educated on how or when to change things up. I was counting on MFP to tell me when I need more food / calories. I thought the 1200 was my baseline. I didn't know if I worked off 550 calories, I was supposed to eat that much again. Is that what I'm supposed to do? Can someone on here lead me in the right direction?

I don't need yelled at. I don't need someone to sit here and "point out the obvious" I DONT KNOW the obvious. None of this makes any sense to me. I've lost 72 pounds since February, but I'm at a plateau I can't get off of right now. I have 32 pounds to go to reach goal. I'd really like to get there. I'm feeling great. My workouts are amazing. Honestly, if I didn't ever eat it wouldn't bother me. Honestly I'm not hungry, ever. So that's an issue. I DO KNOW I have to eat and I DO eat.

I just dont know what I'm doing or what I'm doing wrong. I would like someone serious to help me. Not someone rude or sarcastic or someone who says "I dont have the time for that bs" I'm new, uneducated in this area, and I need help. Please.

Thank you.

First piece of advice - if you dont want people to be rude and sarcastic to you, you need to post courteously yourself.
Most of your posts have been very far from courteous so far..

However in answer to your question - if you are using MFP method of calculating calories, you are suppossed to eat back exercise calories. Some people say the exercise burns are over estimated so they eat back half or so, not all of them.

You are also suppossed to re calculate your calorie goals every 5 - 10 lb lost - as your body will be smaller and you will require less.
If I remember rightly MFP did give me reminder to do so when I got to that point.

paperpudding

This is very good advice, I tried eating at 1200 but found it horrible. I felt faint most days and it really was like some horrible diet.

I've now increased my calorie intake using the TDEE and I now feel so much better for it!

I have lots of energy and I now run three times a week.

I'm also weight training and have set myself a goal to be able to do a full pull up! Enjoy!

You are 35 years old and probably taller than 5 ft.

I agree 1200 would be too little for you.

But it is not too small for older shorter less active women.

Using TDEE method or MFP method isnt the issue - both of those, calculated and used correctly, gets about same number.

Nobody is disputing that 1200 for everyone is bad advice or that eating more than 1200 is good advice for most people - what people are objecting to is the blanket nature of the advice (and the attitude it was given with)

paperpudding

Gustaaf, your profile is private - but I see you are a man and I presume you are taller than 5 ft.
Probably younger than 50ish too. If the 85 in your user name stands for year of birth, you are 29?


Of course 1200 is too little for you - but it is not too little for many other people, ie older shorter, not so active women.
For them it is not a low calorie intake but a correct calorie intake.

helsbelshms

I'm not trawling through every single post here but going back to the 1200 is not enough then why...................

When I entered all my stats on MFP correctly, said I wanted to lose 1kg per week, which is not excessive, did it give me 1200 calories per day???

MFP Gives a deficit of 500 cals per day for every lb you want to lose, with 1200 as the minimum it will recommend. 1kg is 2.2lb and it is recommended that we lose between 0.5 - 2lb for a healthy weight loss. So 1kg per week is aggressive, but without knowing your stats I couldn't comment on whether that is a good or bad amount to lose.

I had to override MFP because it didn't give me enough to keep me satisfied, plus I'm losing weight quicker at a higher amount than MFP says I will. We're all different, see how you go and if it is too hard just up your calories by 100 a day until you're satisfied. For me it's a marathon not a sprint, I know where I want to be and I don't care how long it takes to get there. If I'm losing on higher calories I'm happy, I'll readjust the lower I get.

Don't listen to everyone telling you what you should eat, read through the forums and educate yourself, then you can decide if you're doing the right thing. Good luck.

Your response to this persons concern was really awesome, intelligent, and kind. So of course I had to show my appreciation. ^_^

Why thank you, it's nice to be appreciated :flowerforyou: .

xteenastyle

I agree with you!! 1200 is NOTHING. That is what some anorexics even eat. It is extremely low and your metabolism will be slowed down. I used to only be able to maintain on 1200 – then I increased and now I lose weight on 2000 calories.

I'm a high carb vegan and I don't gain weight, I eat over 2400 calories every day and am sedentary. I exercise light when I want to, and usually eat back those calories I burn. And also, the more you weigh, the more you burn..... So you're basically starving if you weigh 180lbs and only eat 1200.

And if you are shorter/smaller then sure you may only need 1200, but I definitely think people should just eat however much they want. Eat healthy, eat good food, be satisfied at every meal. Then if you have something to lose, you will. (ps. high carb low fat vegan is awesome just saying)

snowflake930

OP this may be true for you, but it isn't true for me.
I am, and have been, on a 1200 calorie regime, ok'd & recommended by my doctor, since March 2012. I have lost over 160# and feel better than I have in decades.

We are not all the same. There are a lot of factors that come into this for each one of us.

Find what works for you, if possible, with the help of a qualified professional.

This is an internet forum. Take the advice you receive here for what it is worth....................just saying..............

This topic comes up almost daily here.

lukefloyd1

I'm sorry I even looked at this part of the site. I will not return to it so this is my last post. Don't waste time responding.

Unknown

This content has been removed.

hookilau

WOW - why does everyone have to be so nasty about her post or any that they don't agree with?
That is one of the reasons I left WW (plus the fact that they STILL try to sell you their garbage foods).
The first day I was there I posted one comment about the site and the sarcasm, nasty remarks and just plain meanness was unbelievable.
Oh! I am not saying that her comment was not a bit condescending, I would just not even bother responding to something like that.

:laugh: hangry.
People on WW boards are the hangriest.
I stay away from them.
These boards are tame by comparison & for *sure* contain better more accurate information, more successful users, and more help when you get stuck

LSinVA

Oh please. One was written by an RD. I really don't think your own personal observations from time spent in MFP forums on what percent of people fail at what calorie levels is more authoritative.

Besides, I posted a peer reviewed meta-analysis that refuted your whole premise and you ignored that.

And "Dr." Oz is supposedly a "doctor" too and yet he gives terrible "advice". This is the problem we have today with a lot of people. No one questions anything. If it's on TV or written by some "reputable" media source(Oprah, HuffPo, Livestrong etc), they take it as gospel. I see my own mother falling for this crap all the time. People need to do what works for them, of course. However, you can't deny there is a *kitten* ton of horrible advice out there from some allegedly more "authoritative" sources.

If 1200 isn't working, all anyone is suggesting is that maybe it's not enough food and for a good majority of people, it is not. Perhaps the way the post was worded wasn't well thought out but that's the gist of it.

monikabenoit

Awwwwww......I go to the forums just to see the memes - where are the sarcastic memes!

biggsterjackster

That was my point so how are you contradicting me? Basically what I am trying to say is that most people should not be eating so little, especially people around my height and weight.

Keyword most. Title would have been accurate if it read "1200 cal is NOT enough for most adults"

Yep, than I guess I am not most of them. 1200 cal is just fine for me.

sho3girl

sadly I'm the height of a small child (4'11") so my allowance is 1200 calories

psuLemon

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