MFP and 1200 calories for everyone no matter what?

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Replies

  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    Hey all,

    I'm curious, does MFP tell everyone no matter what size or sex that they can only eat 1200 calories per day to lose 2 pounds per week?

    I guess I just want o know if anyone else has got a different number?

    For most women, yes. 2 Lbs per week is roughly 1,000 calories per day deficit...so, for most women to lose 2 Lbs per week, they'd have to net around 1,200 calories...mind you, that's net...so when you exercise you're supposed to eat back those calories with the MFP method. Also, for many women, 1,200 net isn't even 1,000 calories deficit...but it's the lowest MFP will go.

    IMHO, it's too aggressive for anyone except the obese/morbidly obese. 1,200 net is simply not appropriate for cosmetic weight loss or even if you're just a bit over weight. Unless you're really obese, or really short and/or old, 1,200 even net of exercise is well below BMR for many women. I've known a couple guys who've done this as well...I deleted them from my FR because that's just stupid.

    Slow and low, that is the tempo for success.
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,427 MFP Moderator
    Because I am tall, they have me at 1940 calories to lose 2 pounds a week. I usually eat somewhere around 1100-1400.

    Unfortunately, that is not a recipe for success, especially for a man. Men shouldn't go less than 1500 and even then it's still too little most of the time. When you eat too little, you will just catabolize your muscle which makes reaching your goal harder as it will take longer to get a lean and tight body. Additionally, your RMR will adapt and burn a lot less calories, eventually, you will plateau for a while and you will have to follow it up by resetting your RMR by eating at maintenance for a few weeks. If you don't believe me, search on plateaus, you will see a very common theme.


    OP, there are a few reason why people get 1200 calories; first, they set an aggressive goal (2 lbs per week) or two, they don't include exercise into their lifestyle.
  • pspetralia
    pspetralia Posts: 963 Member
    Because I am tall, they have me at 1940 calories to lose 2 pounds a week. I usually eat somewhere around 1100-1400.

    Unfortunately, that is a recipe for success, especially for a man. Men shouldn't go less than 1500 and even then it's still too little most of the time. When you eat too little, you will just catabolize your muscle which makes reaching your goal harder as it will take longer to get a lean and tight body. Additionally, your RMR will adapt and burn a lot less calories, eventually, you will plateau for a while and you will have to follow it up by resetting your RMR by eating at maintenance for a few weeks. If you don't believe me, search on plateaus, you will see a very common theme.



    OP, there are a few reason why people get 1200 calories; first, they set an aggressive goal (2 lbs per week) or two, they don't include exercise into their lifestyle.

    I think you mean this is NOT a recipe for success...
  • geekyjock76
    geekyjock76 Posts: 2,720 Member
    First, I want to address the 1200 calorie absolute minimum net calorie recommendation when assuming a goal of 2 lb weekly loss.

    Not everyone oxidizes fat at the same rate. However, for the sake of simplicity, one would need a deficit of say 1000 calories to reduce weight by 1lb per week. Thus, a person would need to provide the body with 1000 calories less than what they need to maintain weight relative to activity level. If I require 2900 calories to maintain weight, then I would need to eat approximately 1900 calories to elicit a loss of 2 lbs per week. Unfortunately, we can not decide how much fat our bodies oxidize in a 24-hour period.

    One major failure with MFP is that the customization page does not provide any guidance regarding selecting the appropriate weekly weight loss goal. Basically, your weekly weight loss goal is dependent on the amount of fat mass you have vs how much you wish to lose. This means leaner individuals can not pursue huge deficits like someone starting with a higher level of body fat despite sharing a similar end goal weight. Thus, the 1200 estimate is usually provided because, based on the stats and goals entered, your actually recommended intake would be lower than 1200 - thus 1200 net is the minimum the site will recommend. These reasons contribute to why it comes up so frequently.

    Regarding your last topic, I always feel it's best to establish what your true total daily energy needs are by actually eating the maximum amount of calories for a few months to experience relative weight homeostasis. That way people will accurately know how much they need to eat to presently maintain weight relative to activity level rather than guessing which can lead to lots of frustration and wasted time. After knowing a true baseline value from chronically eating the maximum amount, then people can correctly choose the appropriate deficit to assume.
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
    Because I am tall, they have me at 1940 calories to lose 2 pounds a week. I usually eat somewhere around 1100-1400.
    Wow. I eat more than you do (and I KNOW my BMR is less than yours).
  • Crankstr
    Crankstr Posts: 3,958 Member
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  • MidwestAngel
    MidwestAngel Posts: 1,897 Member
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  • thecrasian
    thecrasian Posts: 2
    Ugh, I only have 3-5 lbs to lose and I'm set on 1200. I run almost daily and am usually right around 1200 per day and the scale is not budging!
  • geekyjock76
    geekyjock76 Posts: 2,720 Member
    Ugh, I only have 3-5 lbs to lose and I'm set on 1200. I run almost daily and am usually right around 1200 per day and the scale is not budging!
    If you are exercising almost daily, and only need to lose 3-5 lbs, you should make sure you chose no higher than a 0.5 lb week weight loss goal. This would require you to eat roughly 250 calories below what you need to maintain relative to present activity. Also, please note that 1200 calories is net, not gross amount you eat. Is it telling you that you have X number of calories left to eat when you close out your day?
  • emergencytennis
    emergencytennis Posts: 864 Member
    My TDEE is about 1800 and my BMR is about 1300. If I tell MFP I want to lose 1lb a week it tells me to net 1200, which is clearly too little. If I tell it I want to lose 0.5lb a week it tells me to net 1300. It is just a calulator and the numbers don't work if you are at or near goal, I reckon.
  • thecrasian
    thecrasian Posts: 2
    If you are exercising almost daily, and only need to lose 3-5 lbs, you should make sure you chose no higher than a 0.5 lb week weight loss goal. This would require you to eat roughly 250 calories below what you need to maintain relative to present activity. Also, please note that 1200 calories is net, not gross amount you eat. Is it telling you that you have X number of calories left to eat when you close out your day?

    Yes, I usually have some left over. I usually only go over on Saturdays (but not by much). I'd be fine with 0.5 a week!!! If I go down a bit one day, I'm just back up a couple days later even though I'm really active. I run 3-4 miles about 5 times a week and also go for a walk on much lunch (30 min to 1 hr).
  • caribear1984
    caribear1984 Posts: 203
    I think it only gives 1200 to people who are smaller in stature or who set their goals too aggressively. I started at almost 400 pounds, and so 2lb per week was appropriate for me. It gave me around 1900 (set to sedentary.) Now I am down to 310 and I am at 1700ish, still set to 2lb/week and sedentary.

    I agree that there should be guidelines on the page where you set your goals. It wasn't until I had been here for quite some time that I heard someone mention the pound/loss rate guidelines. Now I know that I will have to change my goals as I get closer to my goal weight.
  • dmw45
    dmw45 Posts: 73
    1200 for me is starving. It is unpleasant and I go off the plan and eat whatever and stop exercising entirely in no time. If I'm suffering I'm not losing weight, im eating cinnamon rolls.

    I got a Bodymedia Fit armband which monitors how many calories I burn in a day and I eat 1,000 less than that.

    Most days I burn around 2500 and I eat around 1500. I am not suffering and I'm being successful and feeling good about it. Plus I do more exercise if I want to eat more in a day and I'm getting stronger all the time.
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,427 MFP Moderator
    Because I am tall, they have me at 1940 calories to lose 2 pounds a week. I usually eat somewhere around 1100-1400.

    Unfortunately, that is a recipe for success, especially for a man. Men shouldn't go less than 1500 and even then it's still too little most of the time. When you eat too little, you will just catabolize your muscle which makes reaching your goal harder as it will take longer to get a lean and tight body. Additionally, your RMR will adapt and burn a lot less calories, eventually, you will plateau for a while and you will have to follow it up by resetting your RMR by eating at maintenance for a few weeks. If you don't believe me, search on plateaus, you will see a very common theme.



    OP, there are a few reason why people get 1200 calories; first, they set an aggressive goal (2 lbs per week) or two, they don't include exercise into their lifestyle.

    I think you mean this is NOT a recipe for success...

    Yep. I just change it

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