Anyone successfully lose weight eating 1200 cal or less?

ItzPSGina62

I eat 1200 calories and have been doing fine losing weight. I do not go hungry most of the time. I try and make my calories count...ie I use unsweetend almond milk 30 calories per cup instead of milk at 2percent... which is 120 I also juice veggies so I can get the maximum amount of nutrients. If I eat nutrient dense food, it seems I am less hungry.

lilacsun

I started at 1200, lost 3 lbs the first week and then nothing. I started looking at the diaries of a lot of success stories and realized I may have stalled myself for years. I recently found out how to figure out my TDEE and found out that I was not eating enough to power my work outs. I'm now at 1470 a day and whizzed through with lots of energy. I still haven't weighed but I have measured myself and lost3 inches from my waist alone. I'm building muscle. You just need to keep with it tweak when you need to. Everyone has different requirements you will find yours:-)

meeka472

Yes I did. I started out I here under the care of a doctor and my doctor is the one that told me to eat between 1200 - 1300 calories a day and that I could expect to lose about 2 lbs a week doing that. I followed my doctor's advice, logged my calories here and lost the weight. The key really is in making sure you get enough protein and good fats which will in essence cause you to eat very clean.

torrmairi

I would be really, really careful about dipping under 1200. Speaking as someone who's had an eating disorder for 5 years - a lot of us kind of go, "well, it's in the short term and I have self-control" and then get really unhealthy about it.

At the very least, make sure what you're eating is nutrient-rich, so you get the most out of your calories. I always do a lot better when I eat clean with lots of protein (I aim for 1g per lb, like a lot of people here).

leahalissa

Yes. And I'm tall (5'9"), and I've kept it off 1.5 years. And I'm never starving. So... I mean, people can say otherwise but if you don't eat crap, you'll be fine. Veggies, vitamins, meats and lots of water and you'll be full, happy, and energized all day.

ElizaRoche

me!, been eating 1200/1100 cal a day since i joined mfp.. And so far almost 60 lbs less, if i eat more than that I feel bloated, stuffed and just sick.

ElizaRoche

the question you ought to ask, is "has anyone successfully maintained their weight loss after having used a 1200 calorie diet?"

answer is yes. Dunno why some ppl freak out reading about ppl eating 1200 cal. Its not like we are eating 500 like anorexics do, 1200 is healthy enough.

marvelscale

I successfully lost 16 pounds this way over time, then plateaued until I upped my calories a little. Now the pounds are coming off slowly, but still coming off.

LessStephMoreLove

I'm 5'8 and I like to stay around 1500 a day.

Tabiiiiiii

Yeah! I do 1000-1200. Pretty simple... Calories in and out. You lose more if you consume less calories. Just think about people in poverty who starve, they're eating very little so losing a lot. I know most will tell you it's unhealthy, but everyone's different and can do what they want

Enigmatised

I have done, a couple of years ago. I lost 65 lbs in total and have since gained 10 lbs back after several years. It's a success in my book. But it worked for me as I'm fairly small anyway and if I ate much more you wouldn't see any change in me. Probably better though to do a lot of exercise if you're that determined.

mfp116

overall i don't eat 1200 cal but my net cals are usually under 1200 and ive lost 2lbs every week

J_Fabulous

I'm trying to stay at 1400 per day

openairhealth

yes.

dizzycoolbabe

An article on Yahoo - top 10 reasons why you aren't losing weight


You overcompensate for exercise

Many of us are familiar with the temptation to reward our workouts with an edible treat (well, you’ve just burned off all those calories, right?), however, it may be that by increasing your calorie intake to fuel or reward your sessions you are actually undoing all the hard work of your workout. In fact, as we often overestimate the calories we burn through exercise, you may even be taking in more than you have actually worked off, leading to weight gain rather than loss.

[Related feature: Performance-enhancing diet tips]

woman eating doughnutswoman eating doughnuts

You’re not getting enough sleep

You may think that cutting back on sleep to make time for a workout is great for your health and fitness, however not getting enough sleep could actually minimize the benefits of exercise and cause you to gain weight. Not only does sleep deprivation affect exercise performance and endurance, but it slows down your metabolism, increases appetite and makes you more likely to give in to your cravings. Furthermore, lack of sleep can increase stress levels, which can contribute to weight gain.

You’re drinking too many sugary drinks

You watch what you eat, cut back on fatty foods and don’t snack between meals, but have you considered the amount of calories you may be drinking every day? While we all know the main calorie culprit when it comes to our drinks is alcohol, you should also consider the calories in fruit juice, smoothies, soft drinks and many hot drinks. Every calorie counts towards your daily intake, so don’t forget about the liquid ones!

[Related feature: Five food every slimmer should have in their cupboard]

You’re eating large portions

If you’re eating low fat, healthy meals but are still not losing weight, it may be worth looking at your portion sizes. While you may think that you’re only eating three meals a day, with the increasing portion sizes many of us consume you could actually be eating the equivalent of 6 or more standard serving sizes each day. It is worth remembering that although the food you’re eating may be healthy, it should still be eaten in moderation, as eating too much of anything will cause you to gain weight.

You’re eating too little

While eating too much food can cause you to gain weight, eating too little can also make it surprisingly difficult to shed those pounds. Your body has a natural instinct to protect itself so when it is not given an adequate amount of food it will automatically go into starvation mode, causing the metabolism to slow down and the body to hoard fat and calories. As a result of this it will become much more difficult for you to lose weight.

You’re not consistent

Perhaps even worse for your metabolism and waistline than eating too much or too little is flitting regularly between the two extremes. If you constantly take up and abandon faddy diets or go through a process of starving yourself one minute and bingeing the next, you will play havoc with your metabolism and cause your body to store more fat. As eating too little causes the metabolism to slow down, following this period with a binge will cause your body to quickly pile on the pounds.

[Related feature: Six hidden causes of overeating]

You don’t vary your workouts

If you’ve fallen into a rut with your exercise routine, you may no longer be getting the most out of your workouts. Not only can doing the same exercise activities over and over cause boredom to set in – which will make you less motivated and more likely to skip your workout – but it will also diminish the intensity and results of your training. As your body becomes more efficient at a certain activity you will no longer need to work as hard at it, meaning that will burn off fewer calories.

You don’t need to lose weight

With the growing obesity problem in many parts of the world, it seems as though everybody wants to lose weight. However, although it is a fact that many people do need to shed the pounds, you may not be one of them. Rather than striving for an unrealistic body shape (and remember the lighter you are, the more difficult it will be to shed those pounds), ask yourself – and your doctor –honestly if there are medical reasons you need to lose weight. If not, it may be time to ditch the diet and start giving your self-esteem a workout instead.

Your weight isn't a true reflection of body fat

Many people obsess over their weight as a way of measuring how much body fat they have lost or gained. However, while a set of scales will tell you your weight, it will not tell you how much of that is fat, muscle or water, and therefore is not an accurate representation of fat loss. For instance, gaining muscle through a new fitness routine can slow down weight loss, as can fluid retention. For a more accurate indication of your body fat levels, try tracking changes in your measurements and the fit of your clothes, or get your body fat measured.

You have a medical condition

Many medical conditions such as polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), thyroid problems and hormonal imbalances can cause you to gain weight and make it very difficult to lose excess pounds. Also, hidden food allergies or intolerances can make it difficult to lose weight. Furthermore, while your medical condition itself may not cause weight gain, the side effects of certain medications may pile on the pounds, so make sure to speak to your doctor about this if you are struggling to lose weight.

ClaireSD35

From my personal weight loss - yes. Although my weight loss slowed down dramatically and I found it spurted again once I relaxed a bit and started eating 1300 to 1400 a day. Also, eating just that couple of hundred calories more each day stopped me turning demonic!!

SilverOnTheTree

Short answer: yes.

I eat 1200 + exercise calories, so my net calories are 1200. I exercise about 400 minutes per week (cardio and weights).

The first 20 pounds have flown off during the past 10 weeks. In a couple more weeks, I will actually adjust MFP to a slower weightloss plan so that I can build muscle to fill out the skin which used to cover fat. (Note for picky people: my bodyfat has dropped from 42% to 31%; it's not a total LBM disaster.)

nsblue

yup

jeneemaree

It all depends on your frame and size. I have a small frame and I'm 5'3", so 1200 a day does not make me hungry. The important thing is to eat nutrient dense food and make your calories count. I often eat about 200-350 more on days I exercise because I do get hungrier. Otherwise, 1200 is fine. I've been under the net for about 40 days, working out 5 times a week and have lost very little weight. If it was "extreme" I would be losing a lot of weight, but I'm not. Also, I know I'm gaining muscle. Taking measurements is your best bet to track your progress, don't obsess too much about the pounds.

karenf289

YES. It's working for me, sometimes I am over 1200 cals sometimes under, but I am 5'4" and know my body.
Everyone is different, I wouldn't expect someone who is very tall or male to maintain 1200 cals