Anyone else notice 1200 calories is not enough?

moniames

I've just finished 30 days on mfp. This is actually working for me, and I'm so happy. I find myself exercising almost everyday now. I'm encouraged to exercise because it gives me extra calories to eat.

grrrlface

I'm on 1640 and sometimes that's not enough. :huh:

Make sure you're set to 'lightly active' (not everyone is completely sedentary, you must move around a bit everyday right?) and to lose 1lb a week. You'll have more calories to play with.

Noor13

1200 is less than half what I need o maintain lol
So, 1200 is a big breakfast for me lol

jennifer_417

I went from 1200 to 1300 to 1500 to 1800. 1800 seems to be my sweet spot. I'm losing faster than when I was trying for fewer calories.

tndejong

i have mine set at 1800 a day and lots of protein. that works for me. i have to eat a little here and there through out the day. so its hard to find things low enough in calories to do that. and i ate to get fat. im not going to starve to lose it. its long term here. so even at 1800 calories and a couple hours of exercise a week i can still lose 2-3 lbs a week.

angelahammon

yeah, when i first started i was set at 1400 calories and loosing a pound a week, i tried a few weeks ago to cut it down to 1200 and that was a big mistake, i was hungry and lost nothing, id rather loose a pound a week and stay at 1400 calories.

lambchoplewis

I am small at 5'2" and 53 so... my maintenance calories is 1200!! I do exercise and eat those calories. 1200 is NOTHING. It adds up soooo quickly. I love salmon and it is supposed to be good for me but... look at the calories!! I eat a lot of shrimp as it is high in protein and low in calories. I do plan to have a good time at an event or party and I do go over but... I get right on plan the next day and make sure to get the excess off!!

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1980karen

I could never stick to 1200, only if I'd done loads (and I mean loads) of exercise could I stay within the limit. I have just reset my goals to loose 1lb per week. My daily goal now is 1440 and I feel much more realistic!

Iron_Feline

:laugh: Why are people bumping threads that are a year old?

Are we all very bored on Sundays? :laugh:

For the record I'm 5'2 and losing on 1600. I wanted to kill people on 1200.

MadisonLeo

If you are trying to lose 2lbs a week which is ALOT of weight to lose a week (3500=1lb of fat) then you really have to have an agressive workout. I have been on the 1200 diet for 9weeks now and most days I actually eat about 2000 calories but I make sure to get at least 800 calories burned into my workouts. On my of days, I try to eat things like yogurt, fruit and veggies as they are low cal and I can eat enough to fill me up. It is hard but the only way you can really do 1200 without being hungry is workouts that burn high calories.

AllonsYtotheTardis

:laugh: Why are people bumping threads that are a year old?

Are we all very bored on Sundays? :laugh:

For the record I'm 5'2 and losing on 1600. I wanted to kill people on 1200.

Sunny people get bored on summer sundays.

Lupercalia

:laugh: Why are people bumping threads that are a year old?

Are we all very bored on Sundays? :laugh:

For the record I'm 5'2 and losing on 1600. I wanted to kill people on 1200.

Sunny people get bored on summer sundays.

Maybe you need to do a cleanse? :flowerforyou: :drinker:

luvsyoga

I started with 1200, and ate back lots of my exercise cals. But I was feeling sick, dizzy.... I upped my cals to a min of 1430, and eat most of my exercise cals and I'm losing weight. Feeling better too. I'm only 5' so I was worried about upping the cals, but it worked for me.

Coyoteldy

1200 was not enough for me either.. I am usually around 1340 but I find that WHEN I eat is just as important as what I eat... I eat several small meals a day, rather than just three. It helps me to feel like I am not starving. I also use whole grains ( popcorn is my fave) for a boost during the day. If I fuel my body frequently then it does not nag me for food later LOL. I also work out twice a day, morning and night and seldom eat back my exercise calories. So far its working!

evakel5

I am already 10 days on diet :mad: and i know very well what is 1200 cal sometimes i feel really hungry then better to drink more water and is get better if anybody want to eat 1500 cal then eat but make sure u will do fitness for your self to loosing cal back and you will see result :happy:

calibriintx

Everyone is fat. And everyone is sooo worried about eating MORE. It seems that everyone's perception of survival is spoiled. Eveyryone's feeding their fat faces too much and soooo worried about "starving" and "starvation mode' and about "not eating enough". I haven't seen that happen. The fact that you're trying to lose weight tells me, you're eating enough. And then some.

Maybe you all are fat, because you are eating too much. And more people are dying in America from too much food and its related diseases than starvation. Come on. . .when was the last time you read, "man died from starvation".

Our perception of food d eating for survival is spoiled and effed up.

You don't know what you're talking about.

cschiff

I eat 1200 on days I do not exercise, and when I do exercise I try to eat back around half the exercise calories (becuase I know the caloric burn is not always accurate, anyway). Seems to be working for me.

if you are feeling hungry, might I suggest more protein? For me, I can FEEL it when I do not have enough protein. I loveeeee egg whites and have them every single day (especially if I did not have enough protein) because they are jam packed with protein for very few calories and taste delish with some fresh veggies and hot sauce! mmmmmm

feel free to friend me, if you like and best wishes on this journey!

bonniecarbs

I thought I was "lightly active", and had my settings on that for over a year. But i JUST noticed MFP goes by your job, not your lifestyle. So I reset to "sedentary". That put me at 1260 calories. Its been 4 days on that low amount and its surprising that, for what I am trying to do, I get enough food. Not happy about it, but its enough. Now maybe I will get out of this 6 month stall.

botello89

I'm 5 - 2 and now at 157. Lost about 7 pounds since feb 1.

I'm at 1400 NET. I eat about 1800-1900 and exercise about an hour and get 400+ cal burned (according to HRM) and I eat AS CLOSE at I can to get 1400 NET. There's a day of the week I go over by 100-200 cals from going out somewhere. 1200 is too little! especially if you are netting even less than that!

bonniecarbs

Somebody said they want to kill people on 1200 calories. why? why do you give a crap what someone you don't give a crap about eats?

shesajoy

YES, I had the same issue. Normal person with a normal life, and while I love healthy food, I love food in general too much. Portion control is an issue for me. I do yoga, but don't always have time for power yoga. Recently moved out to the middle of nowhere and we have a "mini-farm", so I do a lot of walking through snow and chasing chickens and horses these days, in between sitting at my home office to work. I switched from 1200 to 1330, and even that tiny amount has made such a difference in my attitude. I was beginning to feel hopeless, thinking "I can't even have four ounces of wine with dinner if I don't work out!" Sorry, love a glass of vino ... This has worked out much better. Just that tiny bit of leeway, and knowing that progress is slow but still progress, can make all the difference. Everyone has to find what works for them. Don't let those who say things like "No, it's plenty! I just work out all the time! Get used to it!" make you feel bad. That is great if that what works for them, but if you are feeling totally deprived your attitude will eventually go down the drain. Don't do that to yourself. Our bodies are each very different from one another, and what they require.

bonniecarbs

VERY WELL SAID SHESAJOY!!

WaterBunnie

Somebody said they want to kill people on 1200 calories. why? why do you give a crap what someone you don't give a crap about eats?

I think you may have misunderstood the quote. I think they mean when they eat 1200 cals they aren't happy!

SoozeE512

I've tried the 1200 calorie thing and realized it's good for a quick loss over a short amount of time, but the loss doesn't hold up. I'm working on the whole "eating between your BMR and TDEE" thing now and I'm thinking this is going to be more sustainable in the long-run.

I'd rather a slow and steady loss that sticks than a quick loss followed by a quick gain-back.

redraidergirl2009

It's not for everyone. I try to stick to 1400 or less. Seems to be working.

WaterBunnie

rememeber to put in any house work you do whether its light or vigorous plus your walk

This really depends on your settings. If you said you were sedentary, it may be appropriate to include this. If you said you were active, your diary settings may already include calories burned during normal day to day activities such as housework. Also, I am not sure I would trust MFP to calculate the number of calories burned by normal things. MFP usually overestimates calories burned compared to what my HRM says, and I am no slacker at the gym.

Sorry to disappoint anyone who does log their housework but anyone who wears a FitBit will be able to tell you that there is a fair amount of activity already included within 'sedentary'. Mine is set at sedentary and a whole day of housework wouldn't give me more calories to eat if I hadn't also walked more than a mile.

mmddwechanged

If you search the topic I gave a hunch you may find one or two people who agree with you.

Just2Bhappy

I can't do 1,200. I become an angry moody b*tch. I eat about 1,500-2,00 If I burn 500 a day with exercise I can lose weight. It's just getting to the gym everyday.

Just2Bhappy

Somebody said they want to kill people on 1200 calories. why? why do you give a crap what someone you don't give a crap about eats?

I think you may have misunderstood the quote. I think they mean when they eat 1200 cals they aren't happy!

I think they meant when they eat 1,200 they become angry and want to kill people. LOL Like me. I just want to punch everyone in the face. Why? I'm freaking starving!