Being told 1200 cal a day= starvation mode

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  • Adrenaline_Junky
    Adrenaline_Junky Posts: 23 Member
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    Wow! Well I guess when "someone" has too much time on their hands, they can pretty much pick apart and twist just about anything.

    I still, and will alllllllllllways, advise:

    ~ Eating "clean"
    ~ Not skipping breakfast
    ~ Spreading caloric intake throughout the day
    ~ Being consistent
    ~ & drinking plenty of water

    If anyone EVER has any negative side effects from that advice... please PM me, I'd love to hear your story!
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
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    Wow! Well I guess when "someone" has too much time on their hands, they can pretty much pick apart and twist just about anything.

    I still, and will alllllllllllways, advise:

    ~ Eating "clean"
    ~ Not skipping breakfast
    ~ Spreading caloric intake throughout the day
    ~ Being consistent
    ~ & drinking plenty of water

    If anyone EVER has any negative side effects from that advice... please PM me, I'd love to hear your story!

    I actually would have negative side effects from that advice in that I would be hungry for most of the day if I ate breakfast. There would also be the negative side effect of me not being able to eat ice-cream

    People are not picking apart what you say, they are calling out a myth that breakfast 'kickstarts your metabolism' - it's just not true.
  • Adrenaline_Junky
    Adrenaline_Junky Posts: 23 Member
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    I actually would have negative side effects from that advice in that I would be hungry for most of the day if I ate breakfast.

    You'd be hungry, most of the day, from eating breakfast?
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
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    I actually would have negative side effects from that advice in that I would be hungry for most of the day if I ate breakfast.

    You'd be hungry, all day, from eating breakfast?

    For most of the day, yes

    To clarify, as obviously you do not believe me. I am not hungry in the morning. I do not get hungry until about noon. So I have more calories left for lunch and dinner. However, if I eat in the morning I get hungrier, even after I eat lunch plus I would have less calories for the rest of the day. Hence, yes I would be.
  • Adrenaline_Junky
    Adrenaline_Junky Posts: 23 Member
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    I actually would have negative side effects from that advice in that I would be hungry for most of the day if I ate breakfast.

    You'd be hungry, all day, from eating breakfast?

    For most of the day, yes

    Interesting...
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
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    I actually would have negative side effects from that advice in that I would be hungry for most of the day if I ate breakfast.

    You'd be hungry, all day, from eating breakfast?

    For most of the day, yes

    Interesting...

    Not really, it's pretty common.
  • ibadkitteh
    ibadkitteh Posts: 5
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    1200 calories per day is okay for me...i made it to 1000 calories to make my diet fast. I also exercise and do gardening everyday. I don't feel hungry at all. I lost 6lbs in one month already. Yay thanks MFP
  • truddy6647
    truddy6647 Posts: 519 Member
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    Well, even with the fact that I entered "2lbs a week" in my settings, MFP still set me up loosing 1.5 lbs a week...at 1200. I guess what I will do is stick with the 1200 for a week or two, see how it goes...then if I need to, adjust.

    Thanks for all the input guys, I appreciate it and find it all very interesting :smile:

    My doctor told me this is what a woman should be eating in order to lose weight without exercise (with exercise for at least 40 mins an increase to 1800 calories and 90 g of protein) but in the same aspect that each time one does eat there should be protein and 5 to 6 small meals a day with at least 70 g of protein thus if you eat five small meals at each meal have 14 g of protein
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
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    Well, even with the fact that I entered "2lbs a week" in my settings, MFP still set me up loosing 1.5 lbs a week...at 1200. I guess what I will do is stick with the 1200 for a week or two, see how it goes...then if I need to, adjust.

    Thanks for all the input guys, I appreciate it and find it all very interesting :smile:

    My doctor told me this is what a woman should be eating in order to lose weight without exercise (with exercise for at least 40 mins an increase to 1800 calories and 90 g of protein) but in the same aspect that each time one does eat there should be protein and 5 to 6 small meals a day with at least 70 g of protein thus if you eat five small meals at each meal have 14 g of protein

    I would ask your doctor why he thinks meal timing and macro timing is important as study after study have shown them not to be from a weight loss perspective.
  • hrbonner
    hrbonner Posts: 7 Member
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    load of rubbish. many proven studies that starvation mode does not exist.
    End of the day, your body processes the energy that you put into it, balanced against the energy that it uses.
    More energy in than you use, gain weight as the body stores it as fat.
    Less energy in than you use, lose weight because your body has to use fat stores instead.
    You do need to eat a balanced diet and not drop too low but ultimately the logic is the same as above.

    Embrace the 1200 and dont forget to exercise! After being a size 24 for the last 11 years and very overweight I actually find it hard to hit 1200 sometimes. Foods like oat so simple porridge for breakfast (approx 200 cals) fills me up and I dont feel the need to snack before lunch. Not so hard.
  • MichelleLaree13
    MichelleLaree13 Posts: 865 Member
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    Find out how many calories you need to maintain your weight. A 3500 calorie deficit will equal a 1 lb weight loss. I am sure you have heard plenty of times it is perfectly healthy to lose 2 lbs a week. A 7000 calorie deficit will equal a 2 lb weight loss. If you want to lose 2 lbs a week, the 7000 calorie deficit will need to be over a span of 1 wk. If you need 2000 calories a day to maintain your weight and you are trying to lose 2 lbs a week, you will need to create a 1000 calorie deficit per day. That deficit can be achieved by burning extra calories at the gym or by eating less. For example: 1) eat only 1000 calories a day to create a 7000 calorie deficit over a week 2) eat 1500 calories a day AND burn 500 calories at the gym a day to create a 7000 calorie deficit over a week
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,401 MFP Moderator
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    "Your metabolism doesn't slow to any noticable degree until about 72 hours after you last ate. It doesn't need kick starting. If it ever stopped, you would die."

    The key is to keep the metabolism active. By eating regularly, you are more likely to keep your metabolism working at an even rate. Skipping meals can trigger your body into thinking it needs to store the food rather than use it for fuel, now.

    Wrong on so many levels. Meal timing & meal frequency has zero effect on your body. Also, if your metabolism isn't break down food, it's running the functions of your body. When you eat, your body will then work on breaking down the food while maintaining your functions. When it's done that, then it will work on something else.



    http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19943985
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,401 MFP Moderator
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    1200 calories per day is okay for me...i made it to 1000 calories to make my diet fast. I also exercise and do gardening everyday. I don't feel hungry at all. I lost 6lbs in one month already. Yay thanks MFP

    it's actually pretty common when you just start diet and exercise. You lose weight water, not fat. Eating 1000-1200 calories a day, will just lead to your fat stores depleting quickly and then your body then catabolizing your lean body mass (aka muscle). The weight loss will slow down (probably quickly) as your metabolism will adapt. LCD's are really only designed for those obese or with medical conditions. In fact, if you set a moderate deficit, you will have greater success because those with lcd tend to gain back more easily because your metabolism adapts and you lose muscle mass during your weight loss. Also, you will require more weight loss to "be skinny" because you have less muscle to fill your skin. Below is a good thread of what I mean. If you stop concentrating on weight loss and concentrate on fat loss, you will get a tighter body and have more noticeable gains doing so.


    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/392784-skinny-fat-vs-fit-photo?hl=skinny+fat

    http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2011/07/21/meet-staci-your-new-powerlifting-super-hero/
  • soulfulsally
    soulfulsally Posts: 326
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    Well, if MFP says I should eat 1200 calories as my daily intake and I am eating 1200 a day (on days I DONT workout) then I should be eating enough...right? Isn't that the point of finding out how many calories you should be eating a day....so you can follow those guidelines??...lol
    I just joined MFP, and just started the whole food journal thing yesterday...but I guess my coworkers just got me freaked out like 1200 just isnt enough and I wont lose any weight that way--but I want to loose 2lbs a week and MFP says in order to reach that goal, I should eat 1200 a day....

    Do you know how many calories a day you were eating before to maintain your current weight? Then you could subtract from there to find a good weight loss intake for yourself. Most likely it'll be more than 1,200 a day.

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