UNDEREATING

bostongirl987

hey guys,
i am 5'2 and about 120 lbs. I work out about 6 days a week, quite hard at the gym doing a lot of cardio and burning 300-500 calories a day or so. I usually eat about 1200 calories a day, and am very healthy eating lots of protein and veggies. I sometimes have sugar and I drink alcohol but don't mix - just pure liquor. I heard of something called undereating but I don't know why I don't lose the weight because I always see my skinnier friends eating cookies, burgers, and other junk and barely working out! i am not fat but i want to lose a few pounds. what should i do? please help!

Edestiny7

Eat your exercise calories. You should not let your NET calories drop below 1200 per day. If you are only eating 1200 and burning 300, that gives you a net of 900. It slows your metabolism. You need to feed your body.

MartiWillett

Eat your exercise calories. You should not let your NET calories drop below 1200 per day. If you are only eating 1200 and burning 300, that gives you a net of 900. It slows your metabolism. You need to feed your body.

amen!

kelzz193

You def aren't eating enough! You must eat your exercise calories to loose weight.

TateFTW

For women looking to drop those last few lbs, keeping track of diet is extremely important, because you need to do a very good job of staying just below maintenance.

I just used a calculator I trust online and it said your maintenance calories would be around 1500. If you burn 300-500 calories, then you should be consuming at least 1500 calories on your training days. Yes, I said "at least". You won't lose any more weight at first, while your metabolism gets going again (and might even gain a few ounces), but it's important to do this. once you have your metabolism going again (this usually takes about 2 weeks) things should start going the right direction again.

Basically, you need to eat maintenance calories and just let the calories you burn be your deficit. I'd recomend setting your goals to 1500/day and not worrying about entering your exercise. After 4 weeks, if you are not losing and everything else is well controlled (very good diet and consistent exercise), then drop 100 calories or so and try that for a few weeks.

cjegger

You're 5' 2", 120 lbs., and you think you need to lose? I just read your profile and you say you want to look like a model. Oh, honey, models are NOT healthy! You have a very unrealistic goal and idea of how you should look.

TateFTW

You're 5' 2", 120 lbs., and you think you need to lose? I just read your profile and you say you want to look like a model. Oh, honey, models are NOT healthy! You have a very unrealistic goal and idea of how you should look.

She didn't say she needs to lose. She said she wants to lose, and just a few lbs at that.

cjegger

double post

cjegger

I did say THINKS she needs to lose.

TateFTW

I did say THINKS she needs to lose.

Yeah. Needs. That's what I said you said.

She wants to weigh 110. 5" 2' 110lbs is perfectly reasonable, and losing another 10 lbs us hardly unrealistic. Hell, she's here to ask about undereating, which is a good thing, because she is. If she heeds my advice and starts eating more, she should be able to drop a few more lbs and be far healthier than she is now.