1200 max ???

Lotus1980

Hi all, as i am new to this (this is my 3rd day) i'm not sure if i should be sticking to 1200 calories maximum?, should it be minimum? or is it ok to go over 1200 by say 100-200 calories.

Thanks for any replies

PinUpMommy

1200 is the BARE minimum that you should be eating. Most people work better on a few hundred more calories per day. I have my goal set for 1 lb per week, and I'm eating 1650 calories per day. But with my working out, I'm losing around 2.5 lbs per week.

abbie017

Remember 1200 is a goal - and a goal is something you set out to attain, not fall short of. A lot of people see the calorie count as the enemy, and that's not the healthiest approach. The WHO has set the female minimum caloric intake per day to be 1200 calories - in English, that means, you need 1200 calories to LIVE as a woman. Doing further activies means you need more calories. This means, eat back your exercise calories (or at least a portion of them). Falling short of 1200 on a regular basis may be detrimental to your weight loss.

Good luck!

justleeanne

Hi there, I started off on 1200 but have now set my goal to 1lb per week which gives me 1430 a day.

I just try and eat between 1200 and 1430.

Pseudocyber

I'm a man, 5'9". As long as I'm obese, I'm sticking to my 1000 Cal/day diet. I went to my Dr., had full blood work done, and he said everything is looking good - including blood glucose levels in the "almost normal - non-diabetic" range.

When I'm ONLY "overweight" I'll up the cal's.

Do what works for you, with your Dr.'s blessing.

Teeladog

Exercise and then eat back your exercise calories...

Losing2Live69

My body could not tolerate eating only 1200 calories. I was constantly hungry and also started having headaches and dizzy spells. I also stopped losing weight after about 3 weeks. I had to up my calories to 1400. I now zig zag between 1400 and 1600. Listen to your body. If it isn't happy with only 1200 calories....it will let you know.

abbie017

I'm a man, 5'9". As long as I'm obese, I'm sticking to my 1000 Cal/day diet. I went to my Dr., had full blood work done, and he said everything is looking good - including blood glucose levels in the "almost normal - non-diabetic" range.

When I'm ONLY "overweight" I'll up the cal's.

Do what works for you, with your Dr.'s blessing.

Thanks for adding this, pseudocyber, I should have said something similar! Doctors know better than all of us well-meaning MFP friends! If your doctor has you on a special diet, follow his/her orders. Otherwise, don't put yourself on a very calorie-restrictive diet because you may be harming yourself. And if you want to do one, check with a medical professional/nutritionist/dietician!

sla0814

1200 is the BARE minimum that you should be eating. Most people work better on a few hundred more calories per day. I have my goal set for 1 lb per week, and I'm eating 1650 calories per day. But with my working out, I'm losing around 2.5 lbs per week.

Same here!:)

_Sally_

MFP had started me out with a net calorie goal around 1200 but that seemed too low to me, so I upped my general activity level in the MFP wizard and got something like 1320 net calories and that was much more comfortable and attainable.

I don't think going over by 100 calories is a big deal. This isn't an exact science and the level of accuracy in the calories we are tracking isn't without a margin of error. Consistency is what will get you to your goals and if you aren't satisfied with your results after a few weeks then review your logs and see where you want to make adjustments to your plan.

Pseudocyber

Also realize this - let's say MFP or something says, that you normally burn 1800 Cal just doing daily normal life - walking around, sitting, standing, sleeping, etc.

You want to set a goal of 1200 Cal for a 600 Cal deficit - 4200 Cal/week - so theoretically, you'd lose a little over a pound a week at 3500Cal/pound.

Then one day you eat 1400 Cal.

No big deal - so you went over 200 Cal. Depending on what you eat, you might even GAIN a few pounds .... of water probably. This happens to all of us. And look at it this way - YOU STILL ATE A DEFICIT OF CALORIES. You just, theoretically slowed down a little that day.

I say, if you go over a few hundred one day, and you want to go under a few hundred the next day - it's all good. A couple hundred under/over isn't going to affect you.

The overweight of us (or obese) ... got this way from going hundreds (or thousands) over EVERY DAY.

Good luck!

Lotus1980

Thank you all so much my mind is now at ease, this is only my 4th day and i feel better already not bloated or over full and lethargic, it is shocking how many calories one can consume without noticing.