1200 Calories for All Heights? (5'2" women opionions wanted)

MJLavaty

I understand the basic concept of why 1200 calories is the lowest required intake but I can't help but to think it also has something to do with legal reasons. Obviously they can't recommend someone eat 700 calories. I am 5'2" and when I have 1200 calories as my goal, I am set to lose 0.8 lbs per week. Because I am short, this website won't allow me to lose 1.5-2 lbs per week? My BMI is around 26-27 so I am definately overweight. So I guess a couple question:

1. For those who are short, 5'3" or under, do you find you have this problem too? Is it frustrating? And what do you do about it?

2. Does everyone really believe that a women who is 5'10" compared with a women who is 5'2" get the same nutritional intake off the same 1200 calories goal (even considering they took in the same exact diet)?

It would seem to me that a larger/taller person needs more vitamins, minerals, proteins, etc than someone who is smaller/shorter. (BTW when I set my goal to maintence it states that I only need 1680 calories per day, and thats with me being overweight!)

Trixtabella

I am 5 ft 3 I eat 1200 calories and I am losing 1-2lbs a week, some weeks I have even lost 5.

I just eat at least that amount and I exercise everyday. I haven't had any issues so far but I have only been doing this for about 5 weeks.

dls06

1200 calories is what your body needs to just function. Anything lower is unhealthy.

schobert101

It doesn't have to do with being short but more with how close you are to heatlhy weight or goal. When you are closer to normal weight your total daily calorie expenditure is closer to your BMI and there just isn't that much room between. I'm 5'8' and I set my activity level to sedentary and my BMR is only 1290 and my TEE about 1570 so no matter how much weight I "want" to lose it only 'allows' me to lose (per the settings) about 1/2 pound per week. Although you still technically fall in the class of overweight at least by BMI you aren't by much. You might do better to set your goal as 1/2 per week and it will allow you more calories. Unfortunately eveyone wants it to happen fast and now so everyone sets their goal at 2 pounds per week and bingo.......everyone ends up with 1200 calories since that is the lower limit. I adjusted mine upward to 1300 which works better for me but its very close to my TEE hence very very slow loss and the need to earn more calories with exercise. It won't "allow you to lose" more than your 0.8 pounds per week only because you are close enough to normal weight, not because you are short.

LorinaLynn

Did you set your activity level to sedentary? Because if you're keeping up with your adorable little son, you are NOT sedentary, whether or not you have a desk job.

mhig011975

1200 calories is what your body needs to just function. Anything lower is unhealthy.

It doesn't matter if you are 3ft or 6ft, you still have to eat at least 1200 calories, if you are eating less your body will begin to start eating muscle.

CakeFit21

I'm 5' and actually you're right. 1200 didn't work for me, I needed more to lose weight. You can do what you want, but I doubt anyone here is going to tell you it's ok to go below 1200.

JLeible

I'm 5'5" and if I eat the full 1200 calories I don't lose any weight. I have to eat around 1000 to lose. Even if I eat 1200 and exercise everyday I don't lose. So I ignore what they say, and hope for the best. I know they says it's unhealthy - but so is being overweight.

mckshowie

you're going to get a lot of negative feedback to this question and my response is going to be... do what is best for you. if you're eating under and you're not hungry and getting the adequate nutrition, you're fine. if you weren't counting your calories and just-so-happened to be eating under 1200, no one would be all up in your business. but because you're counting, all of a sudden there's a magic number. if you're hungry, eat. if you're malnourished, eat better. if not, don't sweat it.

i can tell you, i am 5'3". i've eaten 1200 calories, 1300, calories, 1520 calories... and am not losing. i have been on this site since the beginning of may and have dropped a solid 4lbs - fluctuating +/- an additional 3 depending on the day. i exercise, i am healthy, i am active... and i am not seeing scale results. do i think that if i ate 1000 i would - yes i do. do i think that i could still be healthy and consume that number - yes i do.

There is no magic number. There is what works for you. If you are losing more than 2lbs a week (as you don't sound morbidly obese), you likely may want to consider slowing down the progress so that it stays off.

any naysayers? bring it on. you're not in my pants, you're not on my scale, and you're not in my stomach. If I eat fewer than 1200 calories, my body is not going to eat itself and I will not perish. I will listen to my body and feed it when it needs it.

dayzeerock

1200 calories is what your body needs to just function. Anything lower is unhealthy.

It doesn't matter if you are 3ft or 6ft, you still have to eat at least 1200 calories, if you are eating less your body will begin to start eating muscle.

This is not true at all. I'm a clinical nutritional counselor, and I can say through years of study and practice that this is not true. No, you do NOT need 1200 calories just to function. It is NOT a magic number and it does NOT work for everybody. The amount of calories your body needs to function on a daily basis is figured by a vast variable of things...bmr, height, weight, bone density scan, sleep patterns, etc. We do a full evaluation of this on a patient per patient instance. I still to this day have no idea where 1200 came from...Having said this, I am NOT advocating eating less than that until you do speak with a nutritionist or clinical dietician, because only they can give you the most accurate information for your own body.

yanicka

I am 4'11'' and eat 1400 calories a day. I used this technic

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/172515-frantic-about-adhering-to-the-right-calorie-intake-read-t

It's not ok to get too low because it will affect your metabolism. Think about it, would you rather scrwe your metabolism so that after you are at goal weight, you gain weight weight as soon as you eat over 1200 calories a day or maintain at 1700-1800 or even 2000 calories a day? The first scenario will garanty gaining your weight back.

MJLavaty

I get that everyone needs a basic amount but what I was arguing is that at some point it seems like someone taller might need MORE. A taller person burns more calories naturally so it seems silly to say EVERYONE needs the same basic amount. It can't be that simple.

@Trixtabella: I actually lose a little more too ; )

@LorinaLynn: Thank you! : ) I did set it to sedentary so maybe I should look into that.

@schobert101: One of the better explanations! Thanks. I also understand that. I was leaning more towards having BMI as a constant and weight as the variable.

@dayzeerock: Thank you. Exactly what I was trying to say!

I actually stick to 1200 calories for the most part. Sometimes I eat back my exercise calories and sometimes I don't. If I am hungry I always eat! And, truly, I am happy with my weight loss. My brain just wants to understand : )

yanicka

1200 calories is what your body needs to just function. Anything lower is unhealthy.

It doesn't matter if you are 3ft or 6ft, you still have to eat at least 1200 calories, if you are eating less your body will begin to start eating muscle.

This is not true at all. I'm a clinical nutritional counselor, and I can say through years of study and practice that this is not true. No, you do NOT need 1200 calories just to function. It is NOT a magic number and it does NOT work for everybody. The amount of calories your body needs to function on a daily basis is figured by a vast variable of things...bmr, height, weight, bone density scan, sleep patterns, etc. We do a full evaluation of this on a patient per patient instance. I still to this day have no idea where 1200 came from...Having said this, I am NOT advocating eating less than that until you do speak with a nutritionist or clinical dietician, because only they can give you the most accurate information for your own body.

A good rule to know your BMR is to use your weight x 10 ( x 9 if obese)

For me it is 123 x 10 = 1230 calories just to existe.

Lleldiranne

I'm 5'0". A few years ago (not using this site) I went from 135 to 118 in 9 weeks. On 1600 calories a day. I was exercising 1-2 hours a day - about 1 of cardio and 1 of weights, about 5 days a week, and didn't worry about eating back exercise calories (since I wasn't tracking exercise calories), I just stuck to 1600 calories a day. So, no, you don't need to drop below 1200 cal to lose weight efficiently. I would pump up the exercise a bit if you're only doing a few days a week, but you don't have to do more than an hour a day. And sometimes eating too few calories can slow your metabolism; eat back all your exercise calories if you're set to just 1200, and even considering bumping it up a couple hundred.

Also remember that .5-1 pound a week is considered a very healthy amount of weight loss. If you drop calories seriously and lose 2 or 3 pounds a week it'll be faster, but it will also be a lot harder to keep the weight from slipping back on afterwards. Be patient with yourself :flowerforyou:

MJLavaty

@yanicka: I definately agree! Thats where a lot of ED mentality stems from. They eat a crazy low amount of calories and then when they are finished "dieting" they gain weight abnormally with lower calorie amounts causing them to think they have to continue eating a low amount and undernourishing at the same time.

I guess its such a delicate balance that I can only assume would be different for each individual person.

spngebobmyhero

To lose 1 pound a week, MFP tells me to eat 1670 calories a day. I'm 5'11", so it made the adjustment up from 1200.

lauraemthomson

hi i am 5 foot 8 and my mfp gave me a goal of 1400kcl a day which isnt much more really, so i dont think it got much to do with height. Just need to burn more calories to lose it quicker unfortunatly. i dont know about u but 1400kcal really isnt alot. ;o(

MJLavaty

@mathjulz: Great weight loss! I can't imagine doing cardio for 1-2 hours a day. Guess I need to work on that : )

@rseitz101: I missed that somewhere. Good to know.

@spngebobmyhero and lauraemthomson: Okay so I was right, although you are probably just as hungry as I am with 1200 calories lol. No 1400 calories isn't a lot but after trying this calorie counting thing out a couple of times I have learned how to eat in that calorie requirement and fill myself up and stay satisfied.

njbooklover

bump

GiGi76

I'm 5' and actually you're right. 1200 didn't work for me, I needed more to lose weight. You can do what you want, but I doubt anyone here is going to tell you it's ok to go below 1200.

Totally agree with Karin!!! Im 5'3" and i eat well over 1200 calories.... also if your working out you need to eat some of those exercise calories back!!!

spngebobmyhero

I'm only hungry with 1670 calories if I don't eat the right foods. I have to make sure to eat lots of proteins and healthy fats. When I eat a meal with only pasta, I'm so hungry so soon after! This week I've been waking up at 4am for work and my body is all screwed up with the time and I'm hungry constantly, but normally 1670 is pretty satisfying for me!

dayzeerock

MFP is a website...nothing more, nothing less. It is not your personal dietician, nutritionist or doctor. It uses a computerized algorithm to find an "average" of what you should consume based on the minimal amount of information you provide. My last client last night, for example. She's 4'9", 93 pounds. She doesn't see me to lose/gain weight, she sees me for a medical condition that she has in which she has to maintain certain dietary standards which I assist her with. Her daily average caloric intake is between 850-1000 calories, and I would NEVER tell her to eat more than that because it wouldn't be healthy for her. BUT, we did not figure this number based on punching a few lifestyle factoids about her into a computer program. This website is a tool, a helpful tool, but it is not science. There's no such thing as a magic calorie number to eat per day that is going to help you gain/lose/maintain weight. It's different for everybody. I have two clients with eating disorders. Both at the exact same height and weight when I started with them. Due to factors you cannot judge by a computer program, one of them is on a diet eating 300 calories a day more than the other. Everybody burns differently, and as I said before, if you want to know for sure, go see somebody who specializes in that field. You're already getting a ton of completely bogus and far out answers on this post, and I don't want your thought process skewed by people who are giving you bad/wrong advice.

MJLavaty

Thanks for all the great responses! A lot of what was suggested/said really helped put it into perspective : )

Silverkittycat

MFP is a website...nothing more, nothing less. It is not your personal dietician, nutritionist or doctor. It uses a computerized algorithm to find an "average" of what you should consume based on the minimal amount of information you provide. My last client last night, for example. She's 4'9", 93 pounds. She doesn't see me to lose/gain weight, she sees me for a medical condition that she has in which she has to maintain certain dietary standards which I assist her with. Her daily average caloric intake is between 850-1000 calories, and I would NEVER tell her to eat more than that because it wouldn't be healthy for her. BUT, we did not figure this number based on punching a few lifestyle factoids about her into a computer program. This website is a tool, a helpful tool, but it is not science. There's no such thing as a magic calorie number to eat per day that is going to help you gain/lose/maintain weight. It's different for everybody. I have two clients with eating disorders. Both at the exact same height and weight when I started with them. Due to factors you cannot judge by a computer program, one of them is on a diet eating 300 calories a day more than the other. Everybody burns differently, and as I said before, if you want to know for sure, go see somebody who specializes in that field. You're already getting a ton of completely bogus and far out answers on this post, and I don't want your thought process skewed by people who are giving you bad/wrong advice.

I agree. I was tested twice within 2 months and the results varied quite a bit.

AlyRoseNYC

I'm 4'11". I have 1100 calorie days where I ate my three meals and snacks. I won't force feed myself just to get to 1200.

schobert101

Here is another thought. I guess you feel you are dicriminated against for being short................I'm going to argue (jokingly) that I'm being discriminated against for being old since BMR fluctuated with age. Although I'm 5'8" at my age of 58 my BMR is only 1267 but at your age of 27 it is 1417 (if you were my height). So I guess we all have our burderns. Now the short, old people are really in trouble

MJLavaty

Here is another thought. I guess you feel you are dicriminated against for being short................I'm going to argue (jokingly) that I'm being discriminated against for being old since BMR fluctuated with age. Although I'm 5'8" at my age of 58 my BMR is only 1267 but at your age of 27 it is 1417 (if you were my height). So I guess we all have our burderns. Now the short, old people are really in trouble

Not necessarily discriminated against...its just in the nature of the math. Never thought of it that way though! I better get into healthy eating habits before I get to old ; )

cjw6

Erm your bones don't actually use that much energy at all- your muscles maybe.

kgesq

As I understand it, any recommendation to consume less than 1200 calories should come from a doctor. My sister (5'7") claims she cut her calories to 1000 and admitted she felt like she would pass out a few times. She lost 25 lbs in about 6 months, but I think she would have gotten better, faster results from eating more. I think a doc would only recommend such a drastic calorie reduction for someone who was fairly obese.

zojo78

I'm 5'5" and if I eat the full 1200 calories I don't lose any weight. I have to eat around 1000 to lose. Even if I eat 1200 and exercise everyday I don't lose. So I ignore what they say, and hope for the best. I know they says it's unhealthy - but so is being overweight.

Exactly this for me too - even been doing Insanity and eating 1200 and not losing! When I go to 1000 I lose. I'm 5'4".

yanicka

I'm 5'5" and if I eat the full 1200 calories I don't lose any weight. I have to eat around 1000 to lose. Even if I eat 1200 and exercise everyday I don't lose. So I ignore what they say, and hope for the best. I know they says it's unhealthy - but so is being overweight.

Exactly this for me too - even been doing Insanity and eating 1200 and not losing! When I go to 1000 I lose. I'm 5'4".

So that mean that for the rest of your life you will have to eat 1000 calories or gain weight!!! How about repairing the horrible damage you did to your metabolism first?