Seeing a lot of rude comments about 1200/cal....
Replies
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Do what works for you bump everyone else. 1200 seems fine to me. You earn more calories by working out anyway. I don't get what the big deal is. I think 1200 is basic beginning calories start0
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I'm 60 years of age and 5' 3"..I too am on the 1200 calories per day. I only started about 3 weeks ago. One thing I can say, this has helped me be more accountable to myself. Like others, some days I'm under, other days I'm over with my calories as well as protein. I do know I feel better and I "look" better in some of my clothes. I lose very slow but as least the scale is going in the right direction. Like others have stated, I think 1200 is a good starting point and you can always make adjustments as you go further with your weight loss journey. Best of luck to you!0
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I have been on 1200 calories since I started here. You're on this site for guidance to succeed. Do what MFP is suggesting and you'll accomplish your goal. Don't worry about what other people's plans consist of. Also, ignore negative comments. Make good friends who are supportive and understand what you need to do.0
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Take a look at the tickers....the majority of the people truly hating on the 1200 calorie people either don't have tickers or have lost less than 20 pounds. The majority of the people who say use 1200 as a guideline and adjust it from there are the ones who have lost truckloads of weight. Guess who I believe?
This is a pretty ridiculous statement. I don't have a ticker mainly because I don't want. Does that mean I didn't lose the weight I needed to?
1200 calorie people irk me. but i know some day they will see the light.
*makes out with my ticker*0 -
anything under 1200 cals a day is considered starvation mode. food for thought.
Cite, please.
Here you go!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oHg5SJYRHA00 -
i'm also a 1200 calorie person, it it takes a lot of work to eat all those calories. i find myself full and i am not even reaching my 1200 goal. it just goes to show how much bad stuff and excessive calories i was taking in by not watching what i ate. let the haters hate- if it works for you, stick with it! your body will let you know when things are working out right.
Do you mind me asking - what are you eating? I am never full on 1200 calories, so I really am curious what is making you full.0 -
Well, I was initially doing 1200 calories, and it worked well at first. But I was always tired, lacked energy in my workouts, and after a month or two I plateaued and could not move the scale. So I started doing so research, AND I bought myself a Body Media armband. That's when I discovered that on workout days, I burn as many as 3300 calores each day. A 1200-calorie diet was giving me a 2100 calorie deficit. That explained everything. So I upped my net calories to 1650, and it made all the differnece. My energy came back, and I started losing weight again.
I'm sorry about the mean comments you are getting--some people are just unable to be constructive, I guess. But do what works for you. Pay attention to your body. If you have energy, feel good, and are losing weight at 1200 calories, then keep it up! But if you hit a plateau or find that your energy is low and/or your mood is angry or depressed, then you might want to add 100-200 calories to your limit and see how you feel. Keep adding calories until you find that balance where you are losing weight, but have energy and feel good. That's how it works. :-)0 -
Lifecycle of an MFPer
1. Start out at 1200 calories
2. Complain about how you're "stuffed" at 1200 calories and don't understand why everyone wants you to eat more
3. Make a post calling out the mean people
4. Gradually up your calorie goals when you grow tired of being "stuffed" on asparagus spears
5. Realize that you're still losing weight and feeling much better
6. Try to help 1200 calorie people
7. Get called an arrogant ahole one too many times
8. Retreat to chit-chat forum more or less permanently, only occasionally emerging to lay down a burn
9. ??
10. Profit0 -
Ignore the haters. I lost 138 pounds with 1200 calories (took 2 years) and I was overseen by my doctor and two personal trainers! I have hypothyroidism and I kind of have to stick around 1200-1300 calories to maintain, for me. Go by what works for you and your body. 1200 calories and eating every 2 - 3 hours does not make you hungry. Just be careful not to go below 1200 you don't want to go in starvation mode. Keep Positive. Stay positive. Stay Fighting. Stay Brave. Stay Amitious. Stay Focused. Stay Strong. and Stay away from Haters!0
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Something they don't understand is when we're short (I'm 5'3") we naturally need less calories.
That's right! I'm 5"2 and I have a job where I am often sedentary. MFP set me at 1240 cals/day to loose 1.5 lbs / week ( at least till I get to within 30lbs of my goal weight) .. most days i'm ok with it.. if I want to eat more I make sure I get enough exsersize.. in to cover the extra calories.0 -
Who got BINGO from the ZOMBIE?0
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everyone on here is going to have an opinion. and you will see everyone has a different fitness level and goals. me personally i have mine set at 1500 calories. i do exercise an hour or more a day. i started at 265. so i have a lot of weight to lose. but this is what is working for me. i have lost on average a pound a day. you have to customize your plan to your needs. listen and learn from others. but dont take it to heart. everyone has a different day to day life. i am not working and at home with no kids and distractions. so its easy for me to workout on my elliptical. for others they have jobs and kids to make it more difficult. what works for me is not ideal for others.0
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They're just jealous that you are smaller than they are.
:happy:0 -
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When I am cutting, I typically aim for around 1200 net calories; however, because I am short and relatively lean, that is only about 260 calories below my basal metabolic rate, which is not a large deficit at all. I think that the higher your basal metabolic rate and the consequential caloric deficit created by eating only 1200 calories, the greater the risk of creating an unwise health plan. But everyone should tailor their plan to the results that they get. If 1200 calories provides satisfactory weight loss comprised primarily of body fat reduction without any substantial decrease in lean muscle mass, then by all means, carry on. If it doesn't, reevaluate. Your fitness plan should never be static, or your results will never be optimal.0
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My doctor recommended 1200 calories as a goal. That worked for a while.
Then my weight loss stalled for two months because I found myself hit with intense cravings after a large meal, even when I was within calories for the day. I logged it all and I was eating up to 3,000 calories once or twice a week, which required hard deficits later to maintain my weight. I was still losing a bit of muscle mass each week, according to my scale.
I eat more now, and my weight loss is no longer stalled.
Staying off the hormonal see-saw has been a god send for my progress.
I have no major cravings and I slam through high intensity exercise and weights without a problem.
My intake is staggered between 1240 and 1580 per day, depending on activities.
For the first time, my muscle mass went UP on the body fat scale, and my body fat went DOWN along with my weight.
So no, if you are nearer to your goal weight and very active, I think 1200 calories per day is counter productive. Your body can probably handle it at first, because you are probably not very active at the start of a program.0 -
12,000 calories
Im jealous
lol0 -
Maybe they are struggling and it makes them feel better to make others feel worse. Sorry for their comments. We should be encouraging one another. I also have a 1200 calorie diet. Today is my 1st day but not my first time losing weight. This isn't my first rodeo. I hope you keep up the good work, you should be proud of yourself.
I'm losing at 1800 a day...so don't think that those of us that try to educate the newbies that 1200 isn't the end-all, be-all when it comes to daily calorie goals are just miserable b!tches. I can't think of ONE person on my FR that is on 1200 a day, and every, last one of them is reaching their weight-loss and fitness goals.
You know what they say about assuming...0 -
I see it from both sides and honestly if it works for you for the time being then let it work but at some point you will have to up your calories because you are upping workouts, your body will feel sluggish without those extra calories so you will end up eating more whether you planned on it or not.
It's all about your body and how it reacts, if you are eating regularly under 1200 cals and working out then you will see your body react differently than you had hoped.
I have tuned my goals at my personal TDEE - 20% (sedentry) as my minimum for daily calories and I eat back at least 1/2 my calories burned back as often as I can so that while I lose weight (or fat) my body will not have a chance or reason to be starved.0 -
I also am on a 1200 Cal a day, but thats what this program put me on to reach my goal, but if you extercise you can earn more Cal back, like yesterday after extercise it added 920 to my 1200 goal for the day which is great bc but i didnt even finish them all.and never felt hungry.0
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Everyone is different. So, just eat until your full. Listen to your body because you've done really well with that in the past. in fact, I am positive that that's what drove you to the internet looking for a way to control what you eat. So, just listen to your body, since you're super in tune with it, and understand that you are special and science and math have absolutely nothing to do with you, because they don't know you or understand you.
It will work. Go hunny, do it!0 -
Having previously lost 45 lbs two years ago in a little under 4 months....I made a comment about 1200 cal diets speaking only from personal experience.
In my experience I lost 17 lbs in the first month of that loss at 1200 calories then I quickly stalled.
I raised my calories to 1600 and eventually started calorie cycling- one day at 1800, one day at 1600, one day at 1400 one day at 1200 all over again and the rest of the weight just peeled off.
I would never make a derogatory comment about someone else's path though. My body responds to interval training in thirty to forty five minute bursts. If someone else is capable of losing a significant amount of weight doing 90 minutes of steady state cardio...thats okay too.
If you are comfortable with 1200 calories and you're seeing losses don't fret about the opinion of others : ), you're good!0 -
I hit a plateau. Was doing 1200. Exercise, eating right, etc.. stopped losing.Im not calling people mean. I want the honest truth. I'm new to this. I have no idea what I'm doing. I came here for the same reason as all of you, and want the support of my fellow MFPers. I am not "stuffed" at 1200 by any means. I have a problematic relationship with food, and always have. All I'm asking for is insight. If you think that 1200 is too low, that eventually I will plateau, I want to know this! I want your stories to help me!
THEN I figured out my BMR/TDEE, started eating more, started losing again, and have a metric buttload more energy. It was far too little for me.
MFP will give far too many people the 1200 level for calories. It's the bottom of what the site/app will ever set. One number to rule them all? no.0 -
No one with a lot to lose should be at 1200. You have your weight loss goal set too high, that's why it's 1200. If I enter a goal of losing 2 pounds per week, I get the magic 1200 too. Because it's the absolute MINIMUM, not because that's necessarily what's healthy for you.
It is your choice to eat only 1200 calories, and it might even be ok for some really small, not much to lose, sedentary people. I've noticed that many people, just like you, go along fine for awhile on 1200 cals and then when they finally have difficulties get pissed off when people say "eat more". Eat 1200 if you want, just spare us from later posts of "I can't lose weight", "I'm struggling with hunger", "zero calorie food ideas", "no fat food ideas", "I'm ready to give up", "I have no energy", "I feel like crap", "I'm losing my hair/skin/period", on and on and on.0 -
If you want to reach or exceed the 1200 goal, justeat a nestle brownie cookie bar-- it did it for me! lol0
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I swear MFP starts every woman at 1200 calories. It did me to. I can actually fix three meals a day and stay within that, but I usually don't because I burn at least 400-500 calories walking every morning and they add those onto the 1200. I probably average 1300-1400 calories a day and never feel hungry..and so far I've lost 12 lbs in a little over 2 months.
What works for one person may or may not work for someone else..and everybody and their brother has an opinion. Just do what works for YOU and don't worry about anybody else.0 -
Ignore the comments.
If you're feeling good, being healthy (NOT starving yourself) and the weight is coming off (at a steady, yet realistic, rate) then just keep on keeping on.
I have stuck to 1200 (often a bit less) for more than a year now with no ill-effect. If I eat more, consistently, I gain. I don't intentionally exercise (have an on-my-feet job though) so I can't burn off what others, who do more physical activity, can.
This is what works for me.
Yes, the weightloss is probably slower than it could be but it's still coming off and, I hope, in a way I can maintain for the rest of ever.0 -
Okay,
Here we go.
I feel like I need a disclaimer to say I’m not an expert…..I can only tell you my personal experience and what has worked for me.
I’ve been doing this for a long time so I’ve read a lot of stuff and talked to my own trainer and physician.
So, this is my take on it.
First of all – calories are considered fuel for your body – your body needs it to function – period. Even at rest you are burning calories just to exist. 1200 is usually given as the standard number you need in order to function properly, without feeling tired or sick, having memory trouble or coordination problems. This is why most people say you should never eat less.
Often you will hear talk about “starvation mode”
All I know about this is in extreme circumstances when your body doesn’t have enough food it will first store everything you eat as fat instead of burning it off (preparing for famine) ….people often wonder then why or how people starve to death, once there is no more nutrition the body will burn its fat and then eventually start burning muscle as well…
I think what they are REALLY meaning to explain is that when you don’t eat enough or eat often, your body has a way of taking notes…..
For instance, say you are like I use to be and you rarely eat breakfast, you eat crap or next to nothing for lunch, at dinner you are starved and eat like crazy….your body remembers that from dinner (say 7p.m) until noon or 7p.m the next night that it will not be receiving any nutrition(fuel, calories, food) so it gets smart and stops using what you are feeding it for energy, its saving it….
This equals poor/slow metabolism
When you begin to eat many times through the day your body realizes it isn’t in any danger of starving and begins to burn the food you are eating – you should feel more energetic and will burn more calories (and probably feel more hungry)
People often don’t feel hungry at 1200 calories because the body isn’t burning anything you are taking in , the metabolism has stalled.
The idea behind losing lbs is simple - in order to lose you must burn more calories than you take in.
Keep in mind that MFP figures your calorie deficit into the number it gives you – this is why you hear people say they “eat back calories” or why your calories will increase if you add exercise.
I used 6 or 7 different calorie calculators to figure my calorie intake and all of them gave me a different number – I went with an average.
Each time my weight stalls – I up my exercise and therefore my calorie intake and I begin to lose again.
Different things work for different people.
I am big believer in eating more to lose only because it has worked for me – and because I’ve seen so many people close to me nearly starve themselves on fad diets and detox’s only to become frustrated and quit because they are hungry and not losing weight.
Listen to your body….if you are hungry (truly hungry, not bored, not stressed, not out of habit) then eat!
I am an emotional eater so I use a scale when I think I’m hungry to determine if I am actually hungry or if I’m just wanting to eat for other reasons.
I wish you luck with your journey!
Be smart, and listen to your body, and your gut, *wink *wink 0 -
Lifecycle of an MFPer
1. Start out at 1200 calories
2. Complain about how you're "stuffed" at 1200 calories and don't understand why everyone wants you to eat more
3. Make a post calling out the mean people
4. Gradually up your calorie goals when you grow tired of being "stuffed" on asparagus spears
5. Realize that you're still losing weight and feeling much better
6. Try to help 1200 calorie people
7. Get called an arrogant ahole one too many times
8. Retreat to chit-chat forum more or less permanently, only occasionally emerging to lay down a burn
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Definitely believe you can achieve results with 1200 a day, like most have said, it all depends on the individual. Personally, I work out too much to achieve results with a calorie intake that low, because my body DOES go in to starvation mode. When this happens your not getting enough nutritions to fuel your body and while you might be losing weight its not healthy, steady progress. I experienced a plato in results at 1200 after a few weeks because my body needed more to fuel my workouts. Its all individual. Do what you gotta do. Just keep others advising in mind if you are new to all of this, but do what feels good for your body and don't obsess too much over then number.0
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