1200 calories is not right !

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jridgway49
jridgway49 Posts: 79
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi, I'm 50 yrs old and 5' 1 1/2 in. and 141 pounds. When I plugged in all my #'s my maintain calories = 1356, so in order to lose weight, I should only be having 856 calories per day is that correct ? I starting at 173 pds, and normal range should be approx. 115 pounds. thanks for any suggestions
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  • meemo88
    meemo88 Posts: 436 Member
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    You should never go below 1200 calories. That is why mfp give you that. 1200 is the minimum anyone should eat.
  • peggyalex
    peggyalex Posts: 174 Member
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    no that isn't right! It should never tell you under 1200 cals under any circumstances. If you go under 1200 cals your body will go into starvation mode and you may actually gain weight. I would say maybe you have some of your settings wrong or something.
  • RNewton4269
    RNewton4269 Posts: 663 Member
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    1200 is the minimum..anything below that is starving your body.
  • bry_all01
    bry_all01 Posts: 3,100 Member
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    no no no no no. Do not go under 1200, at the very least. Eat the 1356, and then eat back at least half, if not all of your exercise calories. Anything under 1200 puts your body into starvation mode, therefore not losing weight.
  • rankailie
    rankailie Posts: 144
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    Hi, I'm 50 yrs old and 5' 1 1/2 in. and 141 pounds. When I plugged in all my #'s my maintain calories = 1356, so in order to lose weight, I should only be having 856 calories per day is that correct ? I starting at 173 pds, and normal range should be approx. 115 pounds. thanks for any suggestions

    MFP automatically creates a healthy deficit for you based on your goals. You need to eat the number it tells you not add a deficit to that.
  • LillysGranny
    LillysGranny Posts: 431
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    You do not need to go below 1200 calories. Try adding exercise so that you will have a 500 cal/day deficit at 1200 calories--that way you'll lose a pound per week.
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,293 Member
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    to lose 1 lb/week you would need 500 less than maintenance. I have a question for you though, is your BMR 1356 or is your maintenance 1356, as there is quite a difference. BMR is what you would burn in a coma each day, once you wake up and move you burn more. To get maintenance calories go to goals and look at calories burned from normal daily activity.

    That number should be higher than 1356, if it is 1700 you only need 1200 to lose 1 lb/week, if it is 1500 you would need 1000/week, but 1 lb/week may be too aggressive for you given your stats and goal, so you may only want to aim for 0.75lbs/week instead. You will even lose weight eating 1356 as I beleive that is your BMR, not your maintenance caloires.

    Since you are shorter you may be able to get away with less than 1200, but I would not go below 1000 Net on any day.
  • kennie2
    kennie2 Posts: 1,171 Member
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    i dont think you calculated your maintanence right to be honest
  • summertime_girl
    summertime_girl Posts: 3,945 Member
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    I don't believe 1200 calories is correct for everyone. It's a baseline. I gain like crazy with 1200 calories.
  • nananie2
    nananie2 Posts: 272 Member
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    Hi, I'm 50 yrs old and 5' 1 1/2 in. and 141 pounds. When I plugged in all my #'s my maintain calories = 1356, so in order to lose weight, I should only be having 856 calories per day is that correct ? I starting at 173 pds, and normal range should be approx. 115 pounds. thanks for any suggestions

    Are you sure you entered all the info correctly? Seems impossible to me...
  • Jrh2os
    Jrh2os Posts: 28
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    That's why exercise is so important. If you eat 1200 cals a day and exercise at least 350 calories worth a day, you should lose around a pound a week over time. Daily exercise has been the key to my being able to successfully and consisently lose.
  • tlkoehl
    tlkoehl Posts: 27
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    eat those calories especially if you are exercising too:bigsmile: if not taking in enough calories with exercising your body will go into starvation mode. It is best to lose weight slowly in a healthy way so your body has time to put muscle on too:flowerforyou: We always want fast results but fast results means putting it back on quicker. Use your wisdom and judgement when it comes to something like this.
  • kerriontheprairies
    kerriontheprairies Posts: 1 Member
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    Stay above 1200 for sure, that's basically the lowest recommended. But the more you exercise, the more MFP lets you eat because since you've burned it, you've earned it. The number isn't magic, you can eat above the number and still lose weight as long as you exercise and eat moderately healthy, but MFP's equations help with their motivating little "If every day were like today...!" updates.
  • yeabby
    yeabby Posts: 643 Member
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    I'd see a nutritionist or a doctor if you are concerned that 1200 isn't correct. That is an arbitrary number that fits most people. I'm 4'11" and 140ish and also goal weight of 115. Because of my stature my calories, set by my nutritionist and confirmed by my doctor, are set at 1000.
  • Eleisabelle
    Eleisabelle Posts: 365
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    Most women need at least 1200 calories just for their body to function--heartbeat, breathing, muscle maintenance, organ function, brain function, etc.

    If you're over 55 or obese, you may need to go lower, but not by much and you should check with your doctor. If you're active, you likely need more, even at 5'1". Every body is different, but you have to be careful not to let your body get below starvation level, or you'll begin metabolizing your own muscle--not at all a healthy way to lose weight, even if it didn't cause you to also retain fat, which it does.

    Here's an article from Livestrong that might help you understand it a bit.

    http://www.livestrong.com/article/352916-1-300-calorie-a-day-diet-for-women/

    I suspect you're looking at your BMI calculation, not your maintenance calculation. Is there a maintenance calculator on this site? I haven't found it yet...
  • jridgway49
    jridgway49 Posts: 79
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    Thanks Eric mfp says only .08 lbs a week not the 2 lbs I would like to lose
  • jridgway49
    jridgway49 Posts: 79
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    Yes i think my calories should be closer to 1000 a day because of my height, thanks
  • aclukehart
    aclukehart Posts: 22
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    i dont think you calculated your maintanence right to be honest

    no, it's pretty close to correct. i'm 5 feet tall & my maintainance is about the same, unfortunately :(
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,293 Member
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    Thanks Eric mfp says only .08 lbs a week not the 2 lbs I would like to lose

    2 lbs is too aggressive if you have less than 75lbs to lose. You could eat 1100 and that should be safe given your stats and will put you at 1 lb/week.
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,293 Member
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    i dont think you calculated your maintanence right to be honest

    no, it's pretty close to correct. i'm 5 feet tall & my maintainance is about the same, unfortunately :(

    Based on what she re-checked her maintenance is around 1600, are you sure you are not confusing BMR and maintenance calories, see my first post to see how to get your maintenance calories.

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