1200 CAN'T be enough

XXXMinnieXXX

5'3 150 lbs. I set it to 1 lb per week.

1200 is low if you've been eating let's say 2000cals so far. Your basal metabolic rate is around 1500 calories or so says the formulae, normally that's the minimum calories your body needs to function and most people wouldn't want to go below that.

If you try to restrain your calories low like today, you will feel tired and depressed because of continuous hunger. As a start, stick to 1500 calories like today. If you need to, lower gradually.

What you need to do, though, is to make good food choices. You need the kind of food that will keep you full.

Adjust your macronutrient goals through My Home > Goals > Change Goals > Custom. Set a higher protein goal and decrease your carbs a bit. Normally MFP sets the carbohydrates high and without complex carbohydrates like whole grains, you won't feel satiated.

Eat more lean meats, eggs, good dairy high in protein like greek yogurt and cottage cheese. Get your carbohydrates from good sources like vegetables, fruits, beans and lentils. Have a handful of nuts everyday for good fat intake, as well as olive oil, coconut oil or alike.

More protein will most probably help with the hunger issues.

Oh, and drink water.

Next is to start on some exercise. Walk, run, look up for bodyweight exercises on youtube and spare 30 minutes a day for your exercise.

great advice. I'd eat 1500, exercise and just eat back the exercise calories your hungry for... not the rest. lots of protein, water and FIBER will keep you full. eat as much as you can frown scratch. just seems to help my loss and all the fiber in natural foods keeps you really full. watch sugar too, if you keep spiking sugar levels you'll be hungry when they drop! x

littlehedgy

Volumetrics baby! The idea is to eat as much food for the lowest calories. For example I stay away from dried fruit unless I'm working out strenuously. The reason being is with the water content in the undried fruit you will feel fuller. Whats more satisfying 1 cup of grapes for 62 calories or 40 raisins for about the same amount? I could have 2 cups of mashed cauliflower with butter for around the same calorie count as one slice of wheat bread.

escloflowneCHANGED

Do 1500 for a few weeks and see how it feels and see if you are losing. If you are, great. If you can do this without feeling starving all the time then why put yourself through that?

This and eat back all your exercise calories! DO IT!

travelgirl96

I am at the same caloric goal. try eatting more protein and find exercises that you enjoy. good luck - you can do this!

patroleumjam

here's the thing. I eat protein with every meal and veggies. I'm not bored right now I'm seriously hungry.

sharpeoplepc

I can't do 1200 calories! I am also 5'3". I exercise at least 2 hours a day, 5 days a week and that gives me more food to eat. I consume about 1700 calories a day. I eat 40% Carbs, 30% fat and 30% protein. I focus on eating foods that have high nutritional value and I limit my processed foods. My weight is coming off slowly but I am already a healthy weight (133lbs). I am 39 years old.

Graelwyn75

There are enough people on here, losing weight on higher calories, to suggest that it is simply not necessary to eat that low to lose weight, and imo, makes it harder to make the change into maintenance. I suggest you stick with 1500 for now, there is no need to be walking around feeling starving hungry and a big difference between overeating enough to gain the weight in the first place, and starving to lose it. There is a middle ground somewhere there.

mahak14

What you could do is do it slowly stick to 1500 and slowly make it lesser and lesser 50 calories lesser per week if you can

peachyxoxoxo

Try calculating your calorie needs on a website other than MFP. You are not like that overweight btw so maybe adjust your weight loss rate to 1/2 lb per week.

Also I eat 2000 calories a day and I'm losing weight. If you feel like you're starving you should eat more. Never deny true physiological hunger.

invisibubble

Another advocate for the Scooby Workshop Calorie Calculator here. I factor in my exercise and chose a 15% cut. Close to goal now so may drop it to 10. 1200 is not enough for you it seems.

mea90334

That is how much i get and if you do go over you will still lose weight just not as fast as 1200

woogy1956

I started tracking here in may... 1200 was not enough for me so I kept my goal at 1200 but usually eat over. Sometimes way over and sometimes just a little over. Then there is the occasional day that I eat a little under. I am still losing weight although it is a little slow. 10 pounds since the middle of may. Oh, and exercise as much as possible, that helps.

mea90334

I have been doing this for like 2 weeks and have lost 6 pounds

FitForLife81

Yup too low!!! I didnt lose a thing until I upped my calories then the weight came off. I couldnt figure out how I was maintaining at 1200.........it was because it wasnt enough!!

enliven_mal

Eat more to weigh less!
Check out that board, and read this

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/680246-tdee-bmr-what-they-are-and-what-to-do-with-them

oh! and this!

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12

It will help explain why you are so hungry!

I started gaining weight when I dropped to 1200 calories (I work out 4+ times a week and have a lightly active job). You need to eat. Your body needs fuel.

Fenestra13

I can only see one day (wed Aug 15th) in your food diary. I know today may not have been like other days, but one thing you might try to do to not feel hungry is eat more protein. MFP sets protein levels pretty low. I've been trying to eat 70-120 grams of protein a day, usually hitting about 90, and have both felt less hungry and lost more weight. I've done this at the expense of carbs, and have tried to cut out the carbs that aren't so whole grain. So for instance, I have been eating burrito bowls with little to no rice and no tortilla, not eating the bun but eating a plain black bean burger or chicken breast, etc. You have a fair amount of carbs, and you may find making a change in the balance will help.

Also, I have found that days I eat more sodium I feel a lot more hungry. I added sodium as one of the macronutrients I can see when I log in, and that's really helped me cut back sodium and feel less hungry. I love pickles, and was eating too many! And I found that there is sodium in a lot of things I didn't expect to have it. It's easy to track, and may be worth a try.

love4fitnesslove4food_wechange

I'd die on 1200 calories and I'm 4'11, soon to be 24. I think that it's really not enough for someone your age. You should be eating back exercise calories in addition to the 1200 calories.

magerum

it is enough

then why am I starving?

Because you're used to eating more.

love4fitnesslove4food_wechange

it is enough

then why am I starving?

Because you're used to eating more.

Or more logical is that it's NOT enough

jahall76

It does work for some, but for me it was not enough. I started at 1200 and just couldn't stay at that goal. I adjusted my weight loss goal to 1/2 lb per week and my calories are now at 1400. I find that those extra 200 calories make a big difference. I also eat back the majority of my exercise calories. IE. On workout days, if I burn 200-300 cal, then I typically eat between 1600-1700 cal per day. That is an entirely different topic. You'll find a lot of posts and topics about the right amount of calories, eating back exercise cal, etc ,etc if you search.

Good luck!

geekyjock76

The cookie cutter 1200 diet is not for everyone nor should it be sustained for lengthy periods of time. There is an inverse relationship between the degree of the deficit and its consecutive adherence. Generally, the larger the deficit (from both calorie restriction and exercise), the shorter the diet should be due to a greater impact on metabolic functioning and hormones that regulate it. For instance, an average-sized person with a massive 50% deficit below maintenance should only adhere to this for about 4 days before upping calories to something more sustainable - say a moderate deficit of 25%. Even at small deficits, where the hormonal impact is marginal, it can still bring problems if you maintain the diet at that deficit for far too long.

Anyway, I suggest you read these links by Lyle Mcdonald regarding setting deficits and the pros and cons of each option:

How to Estimate Maintenance Caloric Intake
http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/how-to-estimate-maintenance-caloric-intake.html

Setting the Deficit – Small, Moderate or Large
http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/setting-the-deficit-small-moderate-or-large.html

Why Big Caloric Deficits and Lots of Activity Can Hurt Fat Loss
http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/why-big-caloric-deficits-and-lots-of-activity-can-hurt-fat-loss.html

amrita0286

I had the same problem when I started so I knew I needed to exercise so I would be able to eat a bit more. I find that my body is satisfied if I eat around 1400. So I made it a habit to burn some calories with exercise so I was still hitting a net of around 1200.

Also, what are you eating? I found that processed, packaged foods and even foods that I didn't cook myself tend to make me feel even more hungry after a couple of hours. When I actually started cooking my meals, it was amazing how much food I could eat and still be within my calories for the day.

Like avoid eating junk foods and opt for raw veggies and fruits. They typically are so low in calories that it's great

Also soups always fill me up so for lunch maybe have a big bowl of soup?
For snacks, try getting jello (the sugar free one is only around 5 calories!) , rice cakes (they even have rice chips now so it's cool) and of course you can't go wrong with fruits and veggies.

Make sure you're getting your water in, I use to sit at my desk with snacks and now I find that if I'm drinking water throughout the day I'm less likely to snack on junk. Keep a water bottle with you when you're out or working at your desk. It helps

Plan out your meals so you know what you're going to eat, it definately helps me out. Figure out what satisfies you. I use to have cereal in the mornings with milk, which I do sometimes but I find an egg white omelette with 1 slice of toast fills me up more. And it's less in calories!

Oh and like everyone else has already said, start off with 1400 calories and then work from there. If 1200 still seems way to less and you are hungry, then eat a little more.

Good luck think positive you can do it !

Hezzietiger1

I started at 232 and ate 1200 for 7 months. I lost 60 lbs. I'm eating more now, but my goals are different now. My focus now is more fitness (with weight loss). I'm at 168 and eating between 1600-1800 on workout days and 1500 on non work out days. I'm burning 500-700 in the gym 5-6 days a week.

geekyjock76

I'll add two more notes: the greater the overall deficit, the more important it is to 1)consume high amounts of protein [minimum of 1g per lb of lean body mass]; and 2)engage in moderate to heavy resistance training to preserve muscle tissue or minimize lean muscle loss. Additionally, if at a deficit larger than 25% below maintenance, make sure the bulk of the deficit is coming from calorie restriction and not exercise.

elisa123gal

As you can see.. all sorts of advice. but, you can't argue with what works. If you feel too hungry right now. Up your calories and see if you lose or not. If you don't..reduce them YOu could also add exercise and stay at 1200 and eat back some of your workout calories so you can eat more. Try one of those two things.

I'm eating 1200..and it is a challenge..and I'm learning tricks along the way. I"m going to try and flex my calories..just because I think it is a good idea. you just have to do your own thing..and see what works. YOu'll go crazy taking everyone's advice.

yarwell

here's the thing. I eat protein with every meal and veggies. I'm not bored right now I'm seriously hungry.

You could easily eat twice as much protein in a day, and cut the carbs accordingly.

You have a high carbohydrate intake, you'll get blood sugar swings that make you feel hungry...

eat a lot of carbs
insulin responds to control blood sugar
blood sugar falls too low
you feel hungry
you eat more carbs
repeat until..........

HogSandwich

That BMR link wigs me out. Tells me I should be doing 2344 calories a day! I mostly struggle to hit 1200! At 5'6, 28 and 220lbs, 2344 seems insane!

I'll never get a proper grip on how this works.

impyimpyaj

That BMR link wigs me out. Tells me I should be doing 2344 calories a day! I mostly struggle to hit 1200! At 5'6, 28 and 220lbs, 2344 seems insane!

I'll never get a proper grip on how this works.

The point is, you can eat more than 1200, and you probably should. You have to give your body proper nutrition, and it's hard to do at 1200 calories. If you don't want to eat 2344, you probably don't have to. But try increasing your calories with healthy fats and protein, and I bet you'll feel awesome while still losing weight at a healthy rate.

KALMdown

I can only see one day food diary, but the Peter Pan PB is high in sugar and calories. 100 cal a TBsp. UGH I'd be starving too. And was the fruit snacks one of those gummie snacks? Then once again more sugar than sustenance. Go heavy on fresh fruits and veggies and lean meats.

Plus, I now work out so I can eat MORE!

WendyTerry420

Use the calculator in the link provided on the first page, or this one: http://thefitgirls.com/tdee-calculator.aspx

Or any. Once you know your BMR and your TDEE numbers, eat somewhere in between. Many people on MFP are consistently losing weight, without being hungry, using this method. Since I started about 6 weeks ago, I haven't felt hungry ever. Not once, except in the mornings right before breakfast.

Don't let yourself be hungry. Eat enough, and your body will thank you.

ETA: There is a 900 calorie difference between my BMR and my TDEE since I started exercising regularly. I eat right at my BMR, or a little more on an intensive exercise day. (depending on my level of hunger) It makes no sense to eat at 1200 calories if your BMR is 1500. You will lose too quickly and it could backfire on you.