Is it really necessary to eat at least 1500 a day?

8Venus

I am 5'6 and have been trying to keeping it between 800-1250 calories a day. Is it true that once I reach my goal weight, if I return to 2000 calories a day I will gain because my metabolism will have droped? I want to lose weight as soon as possible but also dont want to screw myself later! Help! And thanks for all help in advanced!

NaptasticDiva

Actually what I have been hearing is the opposite...like you need to eat more to lose weight. 800 calories a day is not a lot unless you eat like a whole lot of veggies (that is not a lot of calories). But again..that is what I have been reading and so far, I see results from my five meals and water consumption. But I am around 1200 to 1500 calories a day as well...

Oh and I was trying to say is that you eat to boast your metabolism...lol...

tequila09

850 is too little try eating between 1200 and your bmr

Barbellerella

yes. When you return to 2000 you will be in trouble. Just my opinion from personal experience. I would definitely stay above your bmr, preferably 10-20% below TDEE. http://www.fitnessfrog.com/calculators/tdee-calculator.html

BeetleChe13

Hi and welcome to MFP. If you return to 2000 calories a day, you will probably gain weight back (without exercise) because of the excess calories (more so than your metabolism). It is not necessary to eat 1500 unless it is your BMR. (There is an MFP tool to calculate yours if you don't already know it.) I would argue that 1200, however, is a necessary minimum unless you are advised otherwise by your doctor. It is generally accepted as the lowest amount that any person's body needs for daily upkeep. If you exercise on top of that, you should eat your calories back. Your body needs the fuel.

About half of my weight loss was from eating fewer calories, first 1200 and then slowly upping it to 1700. Why are you trying to lose weight as quickly as possible? While you can lose weight quickly and safely, it is -usually- healthier to lose weight at a slower rate because it more sustainable weight loss. I hope this can serve as useful starting point, but there are plenty of other resources here for you to use.

TurnLeftNow

It's not a race to drop off the pounds. It's a change in how you live your life.

There's no need to crash diet and starve yourself. If you eat so little now you will always have to eat so little to maintain the weight. Don't you want to eat normal and healthy meals? You will gain a bit of weight at first when you switch to maintenance but it will even out and you won't continue to gain. However you are more likely to gain all the weight you lost back, if you think that this is just something temporary that you need to do. If you just starve yourself until you reach your goal weight and then go back to eating how you were, you'll gain weight for sure.

bathsheba_c

You can use MFP's BMR calculator to get an estimate of your BMR. Try to get above that number every day. Incidentally, the net they have me set on is below my BMR, so I make sure to get enough exercise daily to eat above BMR while still losing 1 lb a week. But if you can't do that, then it is better to go for lower weight loss than quick weight loss with an immediate rebound.

8Venus

Everyones answers were great! Thank you so much! I guess I do need to make a mental switch and make this about health and not vanity. I want this to be a permanent change. I'm going to research all of the new information and figure out what the proper calorie intake is for me. I love how supportive this community is, hope every one has a great night/morning dependng on local

Barbellerella

This is also a very helpful read from a smart guy I know on how to calculate all this stuff..
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12

Di3012

I am 5'6 and have been trying to keeping it between 800-1250 calories a day. Is it true that once I reach my goal weight, if I return to 2000 calories a day I will gain because my metabolism will have droped? I want to lose weight as soon as possible but also dont want to screw myself later! Help! And thanks for all help in advanced!

Finding one's maintenance level can be tricky and it is not just a matter of saying "oh females need 2000 calories per day to maintain" - age is a massive factor for a start when getting that maintenance number.

When you reach your goal, you need to then up your calories bit by bit until you stabilise with your weight and that eventual figure will the the one that is suitable for you.

Try not to bog yourself down with facts and figures, personally I find all that just give me one massive headache.

suziecue66

I am 5'6 and have been trying to keeping it between 800-1250 calories a day. Is it true that once I reach my goal weight, if I return to 2000 calories a day I will gain because my metabolism will have droped? I want to lose weight as soon as possible but also dont want to screw myself later! Help! And thanks for all help in advanced!

At a lower weight you usually will have a lower calorie amount to maintain that weight.

For instance calorieline.com calculated that when I am at my goal weight of 120 I will only be able to eat about 1350 to maintain (from memory). if I want to eat more I have to exercise. If I burn 300 calories I can eat 300 more calories for example.

Don't eat that low to lose. At your height I would be eating at least 1400.

psuLemon

Everyones answers were great! Thank you so much! I guess I do need to make a mental switch and make this about health and not vanity. I want this to be a permanent change. I'm going to research all of the new information and figure out what the proper calorie intake is for me. I love how supportive this community is, hope every one has a great night/morning dependng on local

Well you hurt vaniety by eating too little as you lose muscle and fat. If you do 20% below tdee and do heavy weight training, you will cut fat and maintain muscle. And as i always say, weight loss makes you look good in clothes but fat loss makes you look good naked.

suziecue66

Everyones answers were great! Thank you so much! I guess I do need to make a mental switch and make this about health and not vanity. I want this to be a permanent change. I'm going to research all of the new information and figure out what the proper calorie intake is for me. I love how supportive this community is, hope every one has a great night/morning dependng on local

Well you hurt vaniety by eating too little as you lose muscle and fat. If you do 20% below tdee and do heavy weight training, you will cut fat and maintain muscle. And as i always say, weight loss makes you look good in clothes but fat loss makes you look good naked.

But you will always lose some muscle along with fat when dieting.

capriciousmoon

From personal experience... after eating 700 calories for a number of months, I gained weight if I tried to eat 1200.

NorthcN

I've done a very low calorie intake like that once and lost over 100lbs in a year. I went back to a normal diet and gained it all back and then some in less time than it took to lose it . So trust me this method is not recommended by me.

Exill

The faster you lose weight, the more likely you are to gain it all back. No point starving yourself, to put yourself through all that hunger and suffering for a "quick-fix". Most initial weight lost is water weight anyway (and whatever's been built up in your bowels so your stomach shrinks fast).

I've slowly lost 20 pounds over 2 years and have been able to maintain a steady loss. I technically have an underweight bmi, but I still eat 1200-1500 calories most days (I ate 1800 yesterday--whoops). I don't even exercise that much, just walk every day.

You need to change your mentality on food and that takes a long time, to get used to the change in thinking. Give it time, be patient, eat healthy, be active, and most importantly eat good food you enjoy!

suziecue66

The faster you lose weight, the more likely you are to gain it all back. No point starving yourself, to put yourself through all that hunger and suffering for a "quick-fix". Most initial weight lost is water weight anyway (and whatever's been built up in your bowels so your stomach shrinks fast).

I've slowly lost 20 pounds over 2 years and have been able to maintain a steady loss. I technically have an underweight bmi, but I still eat 1200-1500 calories most days (I ate 1800 yesterday--whoops). I don't even exercise that much, just walk every day.

You need to change your mentality on food and that takes a long time, to get used to the change in thinking. Give it time, be patient, eat healthy, be active, and most importantly eat good food you enjoy!

Nice answer. Like how you've been able to maintain. I think you can lose faster and get the maintaining part right too. I haven't been successful yet.

Anayalata

From personal experience... after eating 700 calories for a number of months, I gained weight if I tried to eat 1200.

Oh my...

bizorra

I really enjoy the anecdote about Mary on this site:
http://calorieline.com/tools/tdee

Might help you decide how much to eat! In my experience, when I go too extreme, I end up losing control at some point and eating like an entire large pizza. Or giving up entirely because its just too hard (ie, completely unreasonable). I like the Mary anecdote because it shows (with math!) that if you make a real long-term adjustment, you'll get the weight off and keep it off.

Maurice1966

http://www.coachcalorie.com/not-eating-enough-calories-to-lose-weight/
Easy to read article

Helloitsdan

I am 5'6 and have been trying to keeping it between 800-1250 calories a day. Is it true that once I reach my goal weight, if I return to 2000 calories a day I will gain because my metabolism will have droped? I want to lose weight as soon as possible but also dont want to screw myself later! Help! And thanks for all help in advanced!

Youve already screwed yourself eating 800-1200 a day!!!

Plentiful_Tentacles

When I cut weight to lower my body fat percentage, I generally calculate my daily calorie intake by multiplying 10 - 12 by my body weight. This has worked for me, and has helped me get really lean when I needed to be. I'd strive to lose no more than a lb a week though. More than a lb can result in losing muscle tissue.

Plentiful_Tentacles

I'd also like to mention it's nice to incorporate a cheat meal once a week, for mental reasons and to keep from over starving your body. Eating a bit over your macros can help keep you motivated. Also, as you start losing weight, your daily calorie intake will go down. For example, say you weigh 150 lbs. If you cut down to 140 lbs and wonder why you're not losing anymore weight, it's because you're still eating the same amount of calories you were when you were 150 lbs. So as you lose weight, you'll have to SLOWLY progress to smaller amount of calories.

palmerig88

I'm the same height as you but older and the lowest I went was 1420. I couldn't handle that...too low. I lost the majority of my weight eating 1500-1650 per day currently experimenting with 1880 on my first week of maintenance. I'm assuming I will continue to lose thus forcing me to increase my allowance (YUM) based on the last 3 weeks of eating on a 250 Cal planned deficit. I continuedd losing more than 1 lb per week when my intention was 1/2 lb. I am assuming I have good metabolism and kept it or improved it by NOT drastically cutting calories and exercising. I would recommend setting a goal of 1 lb per week loss and eating all the calories. Stop undereating now before you have to eat that way forever. Plus I ate all my exercise calories so many days I ate 1900 or even more.

yarwell

I am 5'6 and have been trying to keeping it between 800-1250 calories a day. Is it true that once I reach my goal weight, if I return to 2000 calories a day I will gain because my metabolism will have droped? I want to lose weight as soon as possible but also dont want to screw myself later! Help! And thanks for all help in advanced!

If 2000 was your previous maintenance then you'll put on weight because you are at a lower weight and hence lower calorie expenditure than before.

So you'll have to establish what the new maintenance calories is, by increasing a couple of hundred at a time and holding for a couple of weeks at least.

Hendrix7

Work you calorie requirements for yourself instead of just pick random numbers.

Where you getting these 2000, 1500., 800-1200 figures from in the first place?

psuLemon

Everyones answers were great! Thank you so much! I guess I do need to make a mental switch and make this about health and not vanity. I want this to be a permanent change. I'm going to research all of the new information and figure out what the proper calorie intake is for me. I love how supportive this community is, hope every one has a great night/morning dependng on local

Well you hurt vaniety by eating too little as you lose muscle and fat. If you do 20% below tdee and do heavy weight training, you will cut fat and maintain muscle. And as i always say, weight loss makes you look good in clothes but fat loss makes you look good naked.

But you will always lose some muscle along with fat when dieting.

This is very situational. Not everyone loses muscle during their weight. For example me. I havent lost any muscle based on my weight and body fat calculations but i only had 20 ish lbs to lose.