Dear "I don't associate with those who eat under 1200 c"...

gatorginger

I started out at 1000 calories a day and the reason I did was because I was used to skipping meals so it was hard for me at first to eat a lot every day (mentally). I am now up to 1500 calories and I eat all day long and love it. The only suggestion I can make if you want to eat more calories eat things that are higher in calorie intake like nuts as they are good for you and high in calories and also peanut butter. Don't worry about what others say, I'm sure several wouldn't like my diary as I am not the healthiest eater but I am a happy eater lol

fatmom51

Bump to read later

Kelsey__bee

I never knew there was a big issue on the site about how much everyone was eating. When I signed up for MFP it just suggested that I eat 1200 calories a day, and I assumed it was based off my height (just under 5') and my weight (118lbs). Am I supposed to manually change it or something?

It is based off that somewhat, with the biggest impact being your weekly weight loss goal. And the goal MFP gives you assumes you will also be eating back 100% of the calories you burned from exercise, as MFP ignored your planned exercise when assigning calories.

Here is a good reference, if you have over 100 lbs to lose you can lose more than 2 lbs/week safely, that being said it is best to set a realistic safe weekly loss goal and:
If you have 75+ lbs to lose 2 lbs/week is ideal,
If you have 40-75 lbs to lose 1.5 lbs/week is ideal,
If you have 25-40 lbs to lose 1 lbs/week is ideal,
If you have 15 -25 lbs to lose 0.5 to 1.0 lbs/week is ideal, and
If you have less than 15 lbs to lose 0.5 lbs/week is ideal.

Or as stated above, eat at a % of TDEE that fits your current BF%.

Thanks Eric. I'm fairly small already and more just trying to lose a little extra fat and then tighten everything up. My account is set to about 1 lb a week so I can take it slow & safe

heidiberr

I never knew there was a big issue on the site about how much everyone was eating. When I signed up for MFP it just suggested that I eat 1200 calories a day, and I assumed it was based off my height (just under 5') and my weight (118lbs). Am I supposed to manually change it or something?

It is based off that somewhat, with the biggest impact being your weekly weight loss goal. And the goal MFP gives you assumes you will also be eating back 100% of the calories you burned from exercise, as MFP ignored your planned exercise when assigning calories.

Here is a good reference, if you have over 100 lbs to lose you can lose more than 2 lbs/week safely, that being said it is best to set a realistic safe weekly loss goal and:
If you have 75+ lbs to lose 2 lbs/week is ideal,
If you have 40-75 lbs to lose 1.5 lbs/week is ideal,
If you have 25-40 lbs to lose 1 lbs/week is ideal,
If you have 15 -25 lbs to lose 0.5 to 1.0 lbs/week is ideal, and
If you have less than 15 lbs to lose 0.5 lbs/week is ideal.

Or as stated above, eat at a % of TDEE that fits your current BF%.

Everything this guy said on this thread I completely agree with.

OnWisconsin84

One thing to bear in mind is that people who don't want MFP friends who eat under 1200 calories aren't necessarily passing judgement. There are a lot of people on this site who are either recovering from full blown eating disorders, or who have simply spent their entire adult life going from one very low calorie fad diet to another and are trying to do things differently. For some of those people, seeing people on their friends list who are on a very low calorie diet can be a massive trigger for their own behaviour. That's not the case for everyone, but it might explain some of the "no friends eating under 1200" statements.

:drinker:

NocturnalGirl

I agree with most of this but i don't believe in starvation mode and i don't belive that a low-calorie lifestyle is particulary bad for health if those cals are made up of nutrient dense food.

not getting enough cals can be detrimental even if you are getting all the vitamins and minerals you need. For one it is very difficult to get enough fat and protein on an extremely low caloric intake (<1000), and not getting enough of these 2 can have serious side effects.

^what he said. I was on a low calorie intake for a very long time (still am sometimes) and even though I tried to fill majority of my calories with fats and proteins it still wasn't enough. I'd have as low as 200 calories to as high as 800. In addition to that I'd work out a lot. I got serious illnesses like blackouts, lost my period, etc etc.
I don't believe in low calorie eating, I've never supported it. I just struggle with the guilt of eating and am trying to recover.
I also have written that I don't "associate" with low cal eaters but that's because I don't want anyone triggering me while I'm in the process of getting better.

I would like to add that I am now more than my starting weight from undereating, yeah very depressing.

x_JT_x

A very good post--thank you.

You make an excellent case against the "all calories are alike," just exercise and restrict calories to create a deficit and you'll lose weight. For many of us, that just doesn't work.

I took the liberty of looking at your diary, since it was open. You seem to be following the conventional diet of high-carbohydrate, low-fat, low-protein, with plenty of grains and fruit. Does your medical condition/surgery make it difficult for you to eat foods with more fat and protein? If not, you might have better luck with a higher-fat, moderate-protein, reduced-carbohydrate diet, particularly cutting out sugar and grains. You would then be able to get a higher caloric and nutrient density in the limited space you have. Fat doesn't make you fat, nor does it cause heart disease; and reasonable amounts of protein won't ruin normal, healthy kidneys.

Best wishes to you.

Thank you for taking the time to look at my food diary, I appreciate all the help I can get . No, my surgery doesn't impact the types of foods I can eat, just the amount. Basically the upper portion of my stomach (the part that has the greatest ability to expand with added intake) was wrapped around the bottom of my esophagus to create a sphincter to prevent continuous acid reflux. So my stomach no longer has that capability. Wish I had the knowledge back then that I do now. But thankfully, you can teach an old dog new tricks . My number are set they way they are simply because I don't know enough about that sort of thing yet to adjust them any differently. Carbs are definitely my downfall. And protein intake is something I struggle with. I've been steadily trying to up that amount this past week.

Ras_py

I agree with most of this but i don't believe in starvation mode and i don't belive that a low-calorie lifestyle is particulary bad for health if those cals are made up of nutrient dense food.

Pro ED???

not getting enough cals can be detrimental even if you are getting all the vitamins and minerals you need. For one it is very difficult to get enough fat and protein on an extremely low caloric intake (<1000), and not getting enough of these 2 can have serious side effects.

is that a joke? its super easy to get hoards of fat and protein and not hit 1000 cals

x_JT_x

I never knew there was a big issue on the site about how much everyone was eating. When I signed up for MFP it just suggested that I eat 1200 calories a day, and I assumed it was based off my height (just under 5') and my weight (118lbs). Am I supposed to manually change it or something?

Kelsey, have a look at these three threads. I found them to be very informative:

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

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/686963-large-collection-of-info-for-beginners

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/710742--starvation-mode-exercise-calories-dillema

ILoveTheBrowns

if u have friends who are thinking about going to school to be a dietician, nutritionist,psychiatrist or life coach tell them to switch majors immediately because after being on this site ive found there must be a ton of them already out there.

erickirb

I agree with most of this but i don't believe in starvation mode and i don't belive that a low-calorie lifestyle is particulary bad for health if those cals are made up of nutrient dense food.

Pro ED???

not getting enough cals can be detrimental even if you are getting all the vitamins and minerals you need. For one it is very difficult to get enough fat and protein on an extremely low caloric intake (<1000), and not getting enough of these 2 can have serious side effects.

is that a joke? its super easy to get hoards of fat and protein and not hit 1000 cals

How so? Each gram of fat has 9 calories so if you aim for 80 grams of protein and 50 grams of fat that puts you at 770 calories (800*4+50*9) before eating any carbs at all. So if you filled the remaining calories with cabs you only get 57.5 carbs. And many people need (those that lift weights) more than 80 grams of protein/day.

taylor5877

is that a joke? its super easy to get hoards of fat and protein and not hit 1000 cals

NocturnalGirl

is that a joke? its super easy to get hoards of fat and protein and not hit 1000 cals

Hoards? Really?

x_JT_x

I agree with most of this but i don't believe in starvation mode and i don't belive that a low-calorie lifestyle is particulary bad for health if those cals are made up of nutrient dense food.

Pro ED???

not getting enough cals can be detrimental even if you are getting all the vitamins and minerals you need. For one it is very difficult to get enough fat and protein on an extremely low caloric intake (<1000), and not getting enough of these 2 can have serious side effects.

is that a joke? its super easy to get hoards of fat and protein and not hit 1000 cals

If there is, I'd truly appreciate you sharing a few. I struggle to meet protein requirements each day.

youcandooeet

I don't understand the purpose of this. Why would you want to be friends with someone who doesn't want to be friends with you? There are enough people on this site to find others that are more like minded. Who cares if there's another group of people that doesn't like what you do? It's not about them. It's about you doing what you think is best for your body. I have all types of friends, people that eat every calorie plus count mundane things like cooking and cleaning as exercise and eat those calories too, and I have people that have had gastric surgery and eat 700 calories a day. As long as your attitude is in line with mine, we're cool. We all have our own path to take, and if you support me, I"ll support you.

aftergypsies

What if I eat 1800 but net 1200? I don't think we have enough food in our house for me to eat 2000 healthy calories to net 1500-1600 on days I burn 400-500.

When I first started getting myself on track with my weight and wanting to lose, I did eat 900-1000 a day. I didn't actually MEAN to do this. I was just scared and really watched what I ate. I had no idea about "starvation mode" (Still not sure if real) or any of that. It just fell that way. I feel like now that I have lost 87lbs I am plateauing a lot and I may have ruined my efforts. It really sucks. I'm not sure if I have any hormonal issues helping me plateau or if it was eating such low cal on a 45 min a day workout routine. Now I try to eat more. Yesterday I ate over 1700 and didn't work out. heh

Anyway, about the topic at hand. I wouldn't discriminate but someone who brought up that maybe people with past EDs wouldn't want friends eating 1200 or under, that makes sense.

MichelleLaree13

I think it is good to have friends with similar goals.
I dont friend people that do the ABC diet (I think it is 100-500 calories a day for a while) or people who are pro ana or pro bella. I think lots of people are stuck on 1200 calories is the magic number for everyone.
At 5'2" I am pretty sure my magic number is NOT the same as somone who is 6'2" ... I am just saying we dont allfit into the same perfect mould. Some days I dont feel like eating much but I always make up for it...

jodigirl03

I didn't get to read all of the comments, as there are a lot of them. However, THANK GOD SOMEBODY FINALLY POSTED ABOUT THIS!!!
Let's see where do I start ....

FIRST OFF, my BMR is 1000, 2nd) my TDEE is 1700, and 3rd) ... I thought this was a support group???????

I understand about the anorexics coming here looking for ways to feed their addiction, let them live in thier sickness if they so chose. They'll get help when they are ready. I do get it. But do not pass judgement on all ppl because of what some do. What if I said, "all ppl who are very fit and have a lot of muscle are on steroids and therefore can not be my friend?" Feels kind of judgmental right?

I EAT 1200 cals a day PLUS my work out cals and it takes me 2 weeks to drop ONE lb. BUT I suffer through it. Happily!

For those who will ask .... here ya go!

I'm 5'1 1/2", I weigh 120, (extreme high end of 'normal') I'd like to be 115, which isn't that low. Underweight at my height is 95. (NORMAL = 100 - 120).

My diary is closed because I've been watching my cal's for so long that I just log them. And NO I'm NOT asking for your help w/ my diet. I got it mastered.

I eat healthy, whole grains, organics, gras fed, nuts & seeds etc .... ALMOST spotlessly clean. And I have tried weight loss at 1400 cal's, 1500 cal's, 1600 cal's and 1800 cal's for numerous weeks at each of those numbers and I lost NOTHING.. When I NET 1200 cal's, I lose 1 lb every 2 weeks and I am perfectly happy with that.

... and yes I lift weights, do strength training and cardio.

I'm so over ppl on here picking ppl apart and hating on someone just because they eat 1200 cal's. Live and let live!.

..... SUPPORT GROUP, remember?

Stpjudge

I eat less than 1200 calories a day and I am healthy, with the exception of the stomach problems that I have which are not related to my diet. I hid my diary because I am tired of getting unsolicited advice and comments from people regarding my food intake. I would like to have my diary public but I don't ask for people's opinions about my food choices because I don't care what they think, this is my journey and about what works for me. In my opinion, as a layman, it is ridiculous to think that there is a magical, one size fits all caloric threshold that no one should ever cross. We are all different and our bodies work and metabolize food and exercise differently.

I think that we should all focus on what works for us, as individuals rather than being concerned about what others on MFP are doing.

x_JT_x

I don't understand the purpose of this. Why would you want to be friends with someone who doesn't want to be friends with you? There are enough people on this site to find others that are more like minded. Who cares if there's another group of people that doesn't like what you do? It's not about them. It's about you doing what you think is best for your body. I have all types of friends, people that eat every calorie plus count mundane things like cooking and cleaning as exercise and eat those calories too, and I have people that have had gastric surgery and eat 700 calories a day. As long as your attitude is in line with mine, we're cool. We all have our own path to take, and if you support me, I"ll support you.

The purpose was to try and open the eyes of some condemning those that only eat 1200 calories or less. That sometimes it's done for medical or physical or misinformed reasons. I've seen a fair number of posts where folks are given a lot of grief for low calorie consumption and it struck a chord with me because I'm one of them. And I think, maybe they're like me and just don't have a choice. It's not that I have an 'I need to everyone to like me' issue. It's just something that struck me as I was reading some replies to different threads.

But please understand that I'm not referring to those wonderful folks who post or reply to educate those who simply don't understand the body's processes or don't have enough of a background to research the topic.

amishabbie17

I think what people need to remember is that we are all here for the right reasons...Regardless of our calorie intake. I'm new to the fitness pal so i'm still trying to get a feel for it and possibly use this as an additional tool. I had the gastric sleeve and at max am only supposed to eat 1200 cal. a day and thats pretty much all i can eat anyways. But if someone doesn't want to associate with me that's their loss because i've have learned alot and have alot to offer... I used to weigh over 400 lbs and now only weigh 211... I don't take advantage of it because it saved me from myself and has only made me more driven and motivated...

amishabbie17

agreed

amishabbie17

I don't understand the purpose of this. Why would you want to be friends with someone who doesn't want to be friends with you? There are enough people on this site to find others that are more like minded. Who cares if there's another group of people that doesn't like what you do? It's not about them. It's about you doing what you think is best for your body. I have all types of friends, people that eat every calorie plus count mundane things like cooking and cleaning as exercise and eat those calories too, and I have people that have had gastric surgery and eat 700 calories a day. As long as your attitude is in line with mine, we're cool. We all have our own path to take, and if you support me, I"ll support you.

agreed

youcandooeet

The purpose was to try and open the eyes of some condemning those that only eat 1200 calories or less. That sometimes it's done for medical or physical or misinformed reasons. I've seen a fair number of posts where folks are given a lot of grief for low calorie consumption and it struck a chord with me because I'm one of them. And I think, maybe they're like me and just don't have a choice. It's not that I have an 'I need to everyone to like me' issue. It's just something that struck me as I was reading some replies to different threads.

But please understand that I'm not referring to those wonderful folks who post or reply to educate those who simply don't understand the body's processes or don't have enough of a background to research the topic.

They've done their research and come to their own conclusions, and while if you explain to them why you individually are unable to eat 1200, that doesn't change the fact that they don't, in general, want to have low calorie friends. And that's their right, just like I could refuse to be friends with anyone for whatever reason as well. For example, I generally remove people from my friends list that are consistantly negative. I just don't get why would you even want to be friends with them when they don't want to be friends with you.

Sorry if I'm coming off as contrary. I'm not!

norcal_yogi

I agree with most of this but i don't believe in starvation mode and i don't belive that a low-calorie lifestyle is particulary bad for health if those cals are made up of nutrient dense food.

word!^

Rawr1978

in the past, keeping under 1200 worked for me. I lost the weight, and by the time it was all off, i was off junk food.

Now, at age 34, keeping under 1200 is impossible.

escloflowneCHANGED

If somone eats well below 1200 calories and complain about not losing weight...they get cut, easy as that!

jodigirl03

If somone eats well below 1200 calories and complain about not losing weight...they get cut, easy as that!

Well this doesn't actually apply to me because I EAT 1200, not below. I'm too hungry to go below that and I very much look forward to exercising for those extra cal's.
However, I'm just wondering.... How is this person hurting you? Because they aren't doing what you're doing or because they are harming themselves? Because I know tons of ppl in this world that self destruct rather that's by binge eating, abusing alcohol, sleeping under 5 hrs per night, living recklessly ... and I don't delte them from my Facebook or unfriend them in the real world, not speak to them at social gatherings etc.

It just all sounds so controlling to me .... like those who can't be friends with someone who doesn't do what they do or covey a healthy lifestyle. Why the need to control what others do? You don't even know these ppl in real life and maybe they aspire to learn something from you???????

x_JT_x

The purpose was to try and open the eyes of some condemning those that only eat 1200 calories or less. That sometimes it's done for medical or physical or misinformed reasons. I've seen a fair number of posts where folks are given a lot of grief for low calorie consumption and it struck a chord with me because I'm one of them. And I think, maybe they're like me and just don't have a choice. It's not that I have an 'I need to everyone to like me' issue. It's just something that struck me as I was reading some replies to different threads.

But please understand that I'm not referring to those wonderful folks who post or reply to educate those who simply don't understand the body's processes or don't have enough of a background to research the topic.

They've done their research and come to their own conclusions, and while if you explain to them why you individually are unable to eat 1200, that doesn't change the fact that they don't, in general, want to have low calorie friends. And that's their right, just like I could refuse to be friends with anyone for whatever reason as well. For example, I generally remove people from my friends list that are consistantly negative. I just don't get why would you even want to be friends with them when they don't want to be friends with you.

Sorry if I'm coming off as contrary. I'm not!

My apologies as well. Sometimes it's hard to discern intent through posts. I guess maybe I'm just not explaining myself well. It's not that I care whether or not I'm friends with someone who takes that position, or that I aspire to be. It's that I don't care to be judged about the type of person I may or not be simply because my caloric intake is at or below 1200. In the grand scheme of things, it isn't THAT big of a deal to me. It was just an observation.

Koldnomore

Since I started here I have now added to my profile various things. I will not friend anyone on VLCD or anyone who's diary isn't open. I'm a bad person, I discriminate..oh, I'm a bitc# too... so what?

I'm here for me. If I happen to find people who share the same goals & mindset then I may add them if they ask but I'm not here to babysit or figure out if someone is on VLCD due to doctors orders or if they have some sort of ED - I don't care. I look at diaries to get ideas. If someone is not eating I assume there is a problem and I will ask about it. If people would actually send messages instead of just random friend invites I wouldn't need all those rules. If you are being medically supervised then TELL me and at least I will know not to worry about it . I don't read minds.

Lastly, I want friends in similar situations who have at least demonstrated their ability to read the newbie information and research how many calories they should eat and what ratios..rather than just posting every day "why am I not losing weight?" or constantly asking questions that a simple SEARCH could answer - I don't like lazy people..so what? I don't friend them either so should I have to feel bad because of that too? I don't.

If someone chooses not to friend someone else based on "whatever" characteristic it's not likely that they are going to feel bad it. We are not forced to friend everyone here, last I looked it was still a choice.