But I don't WANT 1200 calories

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swanny320
swanny320 Posts: 169 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
So I keep reading about how if one doesn't eat at LEAST 1200 calories, then one's body will go into starvation mode and you won't lose....but the thing is, I am a naturally small boned individual and before I even started eating better and working out, I never ate that much to begin with. My problem was that I ate CRAP. Now that I'm eating really good food, I'm finding that it's rare that I even make it to 1200 calories.

So my question is this: Shouldn't I listen to my body instead? I mean, if I am NOT hungry, why should I MAKE myself eat more than what my body seems to want just in an effort to hit some arbitrary number. Am I alone in this?
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Replies

  • AshDHart
    AshDHart Posts: 818 Member
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    Listen to your body. Are you losing weight? Do you have enough energy? Is so then keep eating the way you do.
  • swanny320
    swanny320 Posts: 169 Member
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    Yes, I have energy and I've been losing weight until a couple of days ago...
  • withchaco
    withchaco Posts: 1,026 Member
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    I see two sides to this issue.

    Side 1: Not everyone needs "at least 1200 calories." Your requirement may indeed be smaller. Mine is, too.

    Side 2: Not feeling hungry may actually be a sign that your metabolism is slowing down/ is too slow. Do you have more energy after you started eating healthy? Has your exercise capacity increased? If not, you might have to eat more.
  • therealangd
    therealangd Posts: 1,861 Member
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    Because it's not healthy. That's why.
  • Seajolly
    Seajolly Posts: 1,435 Member
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    Just because you aren't hungry doesn't necessarily mean that you shouldn't eat 1200 calories or more. If you've been eating little for a long time, your stomach will have shrunk and you won't be that hungry. This is a coping mechanism for our bodies in times of little food so we won't feel as hungry. Does that mean it's healthy to eat less than 1200? Maybe, maybe not. Everybody's different.

    Listen to other signs. Are you tired often? Do you get tired easily when exercising? Do you ever feel faint after doing exercise? Are you putting on weight if you eat 1 day above average? Has your weight loss stalled? These are signs that you're probably eating too little.
  • CodyD18
    CodyD18 Posts: 161 Member
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    I can function on less than 1200 for a few days and then I just completely crash and I feel like I'm dying. I'm 210 lbs though. Either way, you should have at least 1200 to make sure your body has all of the nutrients it needs. I think my brain plays tricks on me sometimes because when I'm eating fast food or something I can eat a whole bunch! But then when I'm eating healthy food I'm not so hungry all of a sudden.
  • gellie2nice
    gellie2nice Posts: 2 Member
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    I feel the same way, some days I get full a lot faster and only make it to 700-900 calories. When eating healthy its hard to make it too 1200 (just for me) including all the healthy snack I eat. I hope my body does not go into starvation mode because I have 60lbs left till I reach my goal. This is so frustrating.
  • Twylla
    Twylla Posts: 51
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    I am currently having the same issue i was eating crap before I came on here and now it just seems like so much food when it's healthy fruits and veggies that have next to no calories alot of the time...I try to make myself eat them though because i have been told it will actually make you gain cuz your body stores up what you do give it!
  • swanny320
    swanny320 Posts: 169 Member
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    Yes, I've cranked my exercise way up...almost every day and while, yes, I feel tired after a good workout, I'm not tired in the sense of not having energy.

    I guess what I'm having trouble understanding is why it would be UNHEALTHY to not eat 1200 if I feel good and the food I eat is good, clean, food. I'm definitely not PURPOSELY trying to deprive my body of food....I like food and if I was hungry, I'd eat it...but it seems I'm usually pretty content around 1000 calories.
  • k8edge
    k8edge Posts: 380
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    Because it's not healthy. That's why.

    Word.

    1200 calories is relatively easy to reach if you are eating a well balanced diet. I sometimes fall 30 or 40 cal below... But I also sometimes go above. It is all about balance and filling you up with the good stuff.
  • Ariyasnow1
    Ariyasnow1 Posts: 117
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    I'm all for the 'listen to your body'. As long as you are not eating crap, then I say eat when you are hungry and don't eat when you are not hungry. Simple as that. Some days you may get 1200 cal, some days you may get only 600. It is not a life or death situation if you don't make 1200 EVERY friggin day... And it is not just about Calories either...Keep in consideration of your fats, protein, sugars, sodium..ect...

    Good Luck.
  • swanny320
    swanny320 Posts: 169 Member
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    I also have issues with the concept of "starvation mode". I'm not sure I buy into this notion that if you don't lose weight, you should up your calories. If it wasn;t possible to lose weight from eating less, Auschwitz victims would have been fat, right?

    Interestingly, I googled to see if it was a myth and I found this:

    http://fattyfightsback.blogspot.com/2009/03/mtyhbusters-starvation-mode.html

    Thoughts?
  • monoxidechick
    monoxidechick Posts: 339
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    I think its also about the nutrients, its hard to get all the vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients that your body needs on less than 1200 cals even with eating really good food. Especially if you are excercising and using extra nutrients, it is going to need more of them. I would be tracking all of the other nutrients to be sure that you are getting the right number of the requirements on most of these.
  • holly0623
    holly0623 Posts: 66
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    I don't understand how 1200 can be the minumum for a 5'8 person who weighs 135, and a person like me who is 4'11 and 116. I makes sense that I would need less right? I get what you mean about being smaller and not needing as many calories. I'm not sure where that specific number came from , but I would like to know the mininum calories i could be eating and still be getting the right nurtrients.
  • moremari
    moremari Posts: 119 Member
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    1200 is the initial recommendation by nutritionists. It's the safest way to lose weight and hence MFP needs to be responsible. When I saw the nutritionist abt 4 years ago I was told 1250, pick any diet plan, i.e. Atkins, zone and so on. I was also told to work out 5-6 days a week. There was another topic on this today and the opinions were generally keep in mind the big picture. Good luck!
  • TourThePast
    TourThePast Posts: 1,753 Member
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    I can function on less than 1200 for a few days and then I just completely crash and I feel like I'm dying. I'm 210 lbs though.
    You're also a bloke (from your photo) so unless you're about four foot nothing, the minimum figure for you is 1500, not 1200 which is the figure for most women.
  • Soziberry
    Soziberry Posts: 115
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    Just try it for a week! Eat something that is healthy but high calorie like nuts or fibre carbs and see how you go. Eating disorders can switch and we can become obsessed about each mouthfull we eat. If the guide is 1200, maybe find a more accurate program to workout your daily amount? I found 1 called Diet Organizer and you enter lots of data, fitness and age, height etc... Then it tells you what would be ideal for you, like how a Dr would. Hope this helps.
  • swanny320
    swanny320 Posts: 169 Member
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    I eat NO processed food. I only eat organic fruits, veggies, and meat. I think people don't realize that not consuming TONS of corn based sweetners (high fructose corn syrup, maltodextrin, dextrin, etc ) )really limits the calories ( and again, it's not intentional...I'm just avoiding processed crap for health/personal belief reasons).
  • skinnyminnie
    skinnyminnie Posts: 95 Member
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    I agree with this:

    "I don't understand how 1200 can be the minumum for a 5'8 person who weighs 135, and a person like me who is 4'11 and 116. I makes sense that I would need less right? I get what you mean about being smaller and not needing as many calories. I'm not sure where that specific number came from , but I would like to know the mininum calories i could be eating and still be getting the right nurtrients. "

    I'm short and small boned too, and I eat about 950 calories a day and feel better than I've felt for years and years! I'm never hungry because I only eat fruits, vegetables, whole grains - all the good stuff. And I've been doing this for quite a while now. I think you should listen to your body. You know what makes you feel the best and operate at your best. :) Good for you!!
  • swanny320
    swanny320 Posts: 169 Member
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    Interestingly, I walked through the store and looked at supposed "health food" and found all sorts of cleverly disguised sweeteners (read sugar or corn based) in them. I think if people ate NO processed food for a week, they'd be floored as to just how little they consume in calories yet by eating lots of good, clean food (no processed, just fruits, veg, and grass fed animals) yoy get lots of nutrition

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