STOP with the 1200 calorie posts ~ rant

chatogal

I'd also like to point out that someone who eats healthy, clean foods will struggle to meet a higher calorie amount anyway. There are hardly any calories in fruits and vegetables, but a very high amount of essential nutrients.

Since when is the calorie content of the food more important than the nutrient density?

Isn't a 1,200 calorie diet of clean, nutritious foods more efficient than eating 1,800+ and including rubbish like pop tarts and ice cream?

A lot of you have the definition of "starving" all wrong.

I'd just like to point out that I am in recovery from anorexia where I was eating -500 calories a day for a year and 3 months, I think I know what the definition of starving is, thanks.

Why have you made this into an issue about anorexia? Actually, it's more likely that your definition of starving is the same as mine, as I agree, <500 is not healthy.

1200 calories, however, is not an eating disorder.

If anything, I am AGAINST people trivialising the word "starving" by saying that 1200 calories is a starvation diet.

another sensible post :-)

chatogal

So, I've read the first few pages and skipped to then end and have some questions.

*MFP has set me a 1200 cal goal. Is this the minimum I should eat? I ask as it comes up in red if I go over it which makes me feel like I've done wrong?!

*I'm fairly active in that I have horses, I'm a nurse working 12hr shifts, have a 6yr old daughter, 2 large dogs that require walking etc. Do I count this as seperate exercise or not since I'm doing it all everyday? Or should I only count my exercise if it's extra like if I went for a hike or something.

*The starvation myth - serious question, if eating way under your calorie goal can slow or stop weight loss, cause weight gain, then HOW are people anorexic?? My friend has been on a strict 500 cal a day diet for 6months and has lost 11stone!!! I'm not saying it's healthy but she hasn't had one week with a gain!

Hope I haven't annoyed anyone with my questions. I just want to lose weight the easiest way and healthiest way I can so advice is appreciated

I'll try to answer your questions.

MFP sets up your calories based on how you answer the initial profile information. It asks for your lifestyle, height and weight and calculates the estimated total daily energy expenditure (excluding exercise which you add in as you do it) and subtracts the appropriate number of calories for the weight loss goal you selected (250 calories for half pound a week, 500 for a pound a week, 1000 for 2 lbs a week).

MFP follows the general medical guideline that 1200 calories a day is a safe minimum from a nutritional standpoint. At 1200 calories, it is generally expected that you can be adequately nourished. So, if MFP calculates all that information and the calorie level will be below 1200, it will set it at 1200 calories for your safety.

It seems as though you have a very active lifestyle. I work on my feet for 10 hour shifts and go to school and have a 6 year old so I know the feeling. Ideally, when you set up your profile, you would have picked active as your activity level. If you didn't, you would probably be better off by changing it (you can go into your profile and change your activity level). Once your general activity level is set to a higher level, you would only add in any extra exercise (something you don't include in your day to day activity level).

The starvation myth is just that, a myth. The reality is that your basal metabolic rate will drop slightly anytime you are in a deficit but the most measured through experimentation was a 10% drop (when adjusted for the lower weight of the subjects). This will probably not offset a deficit (especially when it is set high). The problems that can occur at high deficits include a psychological aspect when people have trouble complying and end up "cheating" either with cheat days or because they start viewing food as less than it is because they are very hungry. At this point people feel like they are depriving themselves to no end because they aren't losing weight or aren't losing as much weight as they feel they should. A second problem is that with lower protein intake, more muscle will be consumed by your body to meet it's nutritional needs. Lower muscle mass equals a lower basal metabolic rate. At higher protein intakes, lean muscle is more likely to be preserved. This can be accomplished at lower total energy intake but protein levels must be a priority. The ACSM recomments 1.2-1.8 grams protein per kilogram of bodyweight. When you combine "cheating" with a lower basal metabolic rate due to inadequate protein intake, people find that they aren't losing as much weight as they feel that they should or even not losing at all.

Sometimes doctors decide that for a patients health rapid weight loss is more important than nutrition and will put patients on a very low calorie diet (VLCD, defined as less than 40% TDEE or more commonly 800 calories or below). It is extremely difficult to maintain adequate nutrition on such a low calorie diet and often requires massive amounts of supplements. Long term VLCDs not carried out under medical supervision can be extremely harmful to the body which will take nutrients from wherever it can get them including muscle and organ tissue.

The easiest/healthiest way to lose weight is to set your activity level appropriately, set a reasonable weight loss/week goal, exercise, log your exercise, eat back some portion of those calories, focus on adequate protein and other nutrients, and make sure to measure/weigh all foods. You absolutely can still lose weight if you go over your calorie goals by a little bit. You will lose less weight than "projected" but many people set very small deficits so that they can lose weight as comfortably as possible.

A lot of people prefer the TDEE-20% method which means that you account for all your exercise and activity and eat 20% less than your average TDEE each day. Other people prefer to use MFP as it is set up with appropriate activity levels. Some people prefer to use the calories as set by MFP and change their macronutrient ratios (this is what I do) to make sure that proteins and fats are at comfortable levels. It's all about individual preference and experimentation.

If you have more questions, feel free to message me or there are some excellent posts that give you step by step instructions on how to find TDEE and how to set macronutrient ratios as well as how to change your calorie goals. Look for the "how to set your calories and macros" post. It is a great read.

THIS is sooooooo sensible and knowledgeable and informative THANK YOU :-)

sexymuffintop

But MFP has given me 1200 based on my current weight and losing 1 lb a week.

Also, Weight Watchers, which is pretty healthy and supports a conservative rate of weight loss, is also about 1200 for my weight and height.

Wouldn't a net 1200 calories be adequate and healthy, especially if I also eat exercise calories?

yes it is....as long as you are making healthy choices with your food 1200 can work very well for lots of people and not everyone wants to become a gym bunny now or for the rest if their lives. Each to their own say I :-)

But if you maybe did decide to try using the gym you wouldn't have to try and live on 1200 cals? Just a thought. I was a little chubbster this time last year. Hated the gym, tried to lose on 1200, couldn't live on it at all. I changed from an unfit lazy lump to how I am now. I know I am younger than you before you say it...but I have a lady on my FL, similar age to you. She eats around 1500 a day and weight lifts. She is a fantastic example that age doesn't have to be a factor. Any factor in your life can be changed, its just a mental game.

lots of ways of becoming fit or maintaining fitness without the use of a gym and probably far more sustainable over a life than using a gym, such as walking, jogging, cycling, gardening, housework, playing tennis, hockey, netball, basketball, skipping...heck anything that gets you moving, plus you are outside getting fresh air, stoking up on sunlight and much needed vitamin d :-) Anyway, as I said, each to their own and mine is DEFINETLY not gym orientated, but is health orientated :-)

I love how patronising this post is, trying to tell me what other ways there are to exercise without the use of the gym. Just because you dislike going inside a gym doesn't mean I dislike exercising outside of the gym. I am fully aware of the benefits of exercise without using machines thank you (housework not included though, I did it as a fatty, I still do it now, it's nothing new!) Just because I chose to use a gym to achieve my goals it certainly doesn't mean I am not health orientated, anything but I'd say...but hey ho....like you said....each to their own :laugh:

lol...and I was thinking how patronizing YOU were...my point is that there are all sorts of ways of loosing weight, exercising and gaining health. As I said earlier in the debate EACH TO THEIR OWN...so you like lifting weights as does a woman "my age" on your friends list...well, bully for you. Others may not. Personally, I feel mucking out horses stables and digging the garden is not only weight training, but achieves a heck of a lot more than lifting weights in a gym!!

Indeed, it achieves a tidy garden and **** free horses.

silvercanoe

^this! Tolerance, compassion and respect, please!!

AmandaMarie916

I'm just saying I lost my first 15 on 1200 and raised it to 1400 cause 1200 was starting to starve me after 2 months and am still losing it at the same pace. MFP should let you know when you start out why the calories are set so low and that they are adjustable. I didn't know that. I was excited to get started and just trusted the site. Live and learn. Trail and Error. I finally found what's right for me. Not everything is right for everyone so find your own routine.

CatMcCheesey

I understand the frustration with dealing with these posts, I really do. I also figure that everyone has to pay their dues by responding to them, so I don't mind doing it for the time being.

This is what I have a REAL problem with:

I NEVER eat my calories back, this is only because I want to lose weight fast. If you want to lose weight your calorie intake should be a minus number. You need to subtract your BMR from your calorie intake per day. This is your Basal Metabolic Rate. This is the amount of calories you burn in a day doing nothing at all. You can calculate it here http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/. Once this has been subtracted and the calories used during exercise. I'd your net calorie intake isn't a - you won't have lost weight for that day. To average a loss of 1lb per week you should have a deficit of -500 calories per day. To lose 2lbs you need a deficit of -1000 and so on. One lb of fat is 3500 calories so this needs to be burnt n order to lose it. Hope this helps

This is much more dangerous than people telling MFP they want to lose 2 lbs a week and having MFP put them on a 1200 calorie goal. I really don't like the threads with people stomping all over the place because they gained .5 lb after eating a meal, but I'll deal with 10 of those a day if I don't ever have to see advice like this again. If people want to do this to themselves, then that's their prerogative, but advising other people about this is reckless and, well, awful advice. Give me more 1200 calorie diet threads in exchange for completely purging these comments.

That quote is from another thread...someone asking how eating back calories works...

I'm on 1200 calories a day on advice from my doctor. Why do you think this is "dangerous"?. I'm losing , on average, 2.8 pounds a week - I feel great, my strength and stamina in my weight lifting sessions has increased, and my health is just fine - AND I'm not "starving." So why do you think this is "reckless" advice? What do you base that opinion on?

persistantone

I understand the frustration with dealing with these posts, I really do. I also figure that everyone has to pay their dues by responding to them, so I don't mind doing it for the time being.

This is what I have a REAL problem with:

I NEVER eat my calories back, this is only because I want to lose weight fast. If you want to lose weight your calorie intake should be a minus number. You need to subtract your BMR from your calorie intake per day. This is your Basal Metabolic Rate. This is the amount of calories you burn in a day doing nothing at all. You can calculate it here http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/. Once this has been subtracted and the calories used during exercise. I'd your net calorie intake isn't a - you won't have lost weight for that day. To average a loss of 1lb per week you should have a deficit of -500 calories per day. To lose 2lbs you need a deficit of -1000 and so on. One lb of fat is 3500 calories so this needs to be burnt n order to lose it. Hope this helps

This is much more dangerous than people telling MFP they want to lose 2 lbs a week and having MFP put them on a 1200 calorie goal. I really don't like the threads with people stomping all over the place because they gained .5 lb after eating a meal, but I'll deal with 10 of those a day if I don't ever have to see advice like this again. If people want to do this to themselves, then that's their prerogative, but advising other people about this is reckless and, well, awful advice. Give me more 1200 calorie diet threads in exchange for completely purging these comments.

That quote is from another thread...someone asking how eating back calories works...

I'm on 1200 calories a day on advice from my doctor. Why do you think this is "dangerous"?. I'm losing , on average, 2.8 pounds a week - I feel great, my strength and stamina in my weight lifting sessions has increased, and my health is just fine - AND I'm not "starving." So why do you think this is "reckless" advice? What do you base that opinion on?

Obviously it depends on the person. According to your ticker, you have about 80lbs to lose. So, I'm guessing that your doctor feels it is more important for you to lose weight at a quicker pace. For someone who would like to lose 10lbs and is 5'8 and fairly muscular, 1200 calories a day would probably be way too low. My BMR is around 1650. Eating less than 1650 a day long-term would be incredibly unhealthy for me as I would be eating less than my body would need to keep me breathing, digesting, etc if I was in a coma, and thus my body would leech calcium from my bones and break down my muscles for energy in order to compensate.

It's nothing personal. It would be dangerous for me to say drive a bus, since I've never driven one before. But, for a bus driver, it wouldn't be dangerous at all. It's individual.

Robin_Bin

Every time I click on the message board it's full of things like ''I'M GAINING ON 1200 CALORIES????'' ''NOT LOSING ON 1200???'' etc. Stop and actually READ what people are replying to these posts before making one. You aren't a special snowflake. I understand some people lose better on 1200 calories, but if you find yourself reading 2 or more posts that are relevant to you and your problem with eating 1200 calories, maybe actually TAKE IN what people are replying.

Alas, have a good weekend everyone! haha :-)

I empathize with those folks. They put their data in the website, the website tells them to eat 1200, and they exercise herculean-bordering-on-anorexic self-control and yet see no results. It's tragic. :-(

Actually in most of the posts I've seen, where there was follow-up, MFP did not recommend 1,200. It said not to go below that, so they picked that number, even though the guided goals told them to eat hundreds more and to eat more when they exercised. Some people apparently make major life/health changes without any effort to read/educate themselves. They join a site about "fitness" and then focus "losing weight" using the same old stuff. Oh well...

CatMcCheesey

I understand the frustration with dealing with these posts, I really do. I also figure that everyone has to pay their dues by responding to them, so I don't mind doing it for the time being.

This is what I have a REAL problem with:

I NEVER eat my calories back, this is only because I want to lose weight fast. If you want to lose weight your calorie intake should be a minus number. You need to subtract your BMR from your calorie intake per day. This is your Basal Metabolic Rate. This is the amount of calories you burn in a day doing nothing at all. You can calculate it here http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/. Once this has been subtracted and the calories used during exercise. I'd your net calorie intake isn't a - you won't have lost weight for that day. To average a loss of 1lb per week you should have a deficit of -500 calories per day. To lose 2lbs you need a deficit of -1000 and so on. One lb of fat is 3500 calories so this needs to be burnt n order to lose it. Hope this helps

This is much more dangerous than people telling MFP they want to lose 2 lbs a week and having MFP put them on a 1200 calorie goal. I really don't like the threads with people stomping all over the place because they gained .5 lb after eating a meal, but I'll deal with 10 of those a day if I don't ever have to see advice like this again. If people want to do this to themselves, then that's their prerogative, but advising other people about this is reckless and, well, awful advice. Give me more 1200 calorie diet threads in exchange for completely purging these comments.

That quote is from another thread...someone asking how eating back calories works...

I'm on 1200 calories a day on advice from my doctor. Why do you think this is "dangerous"?. I'm losing , on average, 2.8 pounds a week - I feel great, my strength and stamina in my weight lifting sessions has increased, and my health is just fine - AND I'm not "starving." So why do you think this is "reckless" advice? What do you base that opinion on?

Obviously it depends on the person. According to your ticker, you have about 80lbs to lose. So, I'm guessing that your doctor feels it is more important for you to lose weight at a quicker pace. For someone who would like to lose 10lbs and is 5'8 and fairly muscular, 1200 calories a day would probably be way too low. My BMR is around 1650. Eating less than 1650 a day long-term would be incredibly unhealthy for me as I would be eating less than my body would need to keep me breathing, digesting, etc if I was in a coma, and thus my body would leech calcium from my bones and break down my muscles for energy in order to compensate.

It's nothing personal. It would be dangerous for me to say drive a bus, since I've never driven one before. But, for a bus driver, it wouldn't be dangerous at all. It's individual.

My doctor gave me that advice based on what * i * want to lose. I want to lose the weight as quickly as I safely can. I don't want to be like some of these people on MFP who STILL have 60 pounds to lose after being on here for 3 whole years. I'm in good overall health, and I'm serious about making my goal. I just don't understand all the people who repeat the "starvation" myth. If one particular person doesn't want to cut their calories that much because it's too difficult for them, fine. But they shouldn't run around spreading misinformation and myths. Not all of us want to take 4 or 5 years to lose the weight, and that's fine, too.

emcclore

Every time I click on the message board it's full of things like ''I'M GAINING ON 1200 CALORIES????'' ''NOT LOSING ON 1200???'' etc. Stop and actually READ what people are replying to these posts before making one. You aren't a special snowflake. I understand some people lose better on 1200 calories, but if you find yourself reading 2 or more posts that are relevant to you and your problem with eating 1200 calories, maybe actually TAKE IN what people are replying.

Alas, have a good weekend everyone! haha :-)

I really laughed hard at this! good one!

persistantone

I understand the frustration with dealing with these posts, I really do. I also figure that everyone has to pay their dues by responding to them, so I don't mind doing it for the time being.

This is what I have a REAL problem with:

I NEVER eat my calories back, this is only because I want to lose weight fast. If you want to lose weight your calorie intake should be a minus number. You need to subtract your BMR from your calorie intake per day. This is your Basal Metabolic Rate. This is the amount of calories you burn in a day doing nothing at all. You can calculate it here http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/. Once this has been subtracted and the calories used during exercise. I'd your net calorie intake isn't a - you won't have lost weight for that day. To average a loss of 1lb per week you should have a deficit of -500 calories per day. To lose 2lbs you need a deficit of -1000 and so on. One lb of fat is 3500 calories so this needs to be burnt n order to lose it. Hope this helps

This is much more dangerous than people telling MFP they want to lose 2 lbs a week and having MFP put them on a 1200 calorie goal. I really don't like the threads with people stomping all over the place because they gained .5 lb after eating a meal, but I'll deal with 10 of those a day if I don't ever have to see advice like this again. If people want to do this to themselves, then that's their prerogative, but advising other people about this is reckless and, well, awful advice. Give me more 1200 calorie diet threads in exchange for completely purging these comments.

That quote is from another thread...someone asking how eating back calories works...

I'm on 1200 calories a day on advice from my doctor. Why do you think this is "dangerous"?. I'm losing , on average, 2.8 pounds a week - I feel great, my strength and stamina in my weight lifting sessions has increased, and my health is just fine - AND I'm not "starving." So why do you think this is "reckless" advice? What do you base that opinion on?

Obviously it depends on the person. According to your ticker, you have about 80lbs to lose. So, I'm guessing that your doctor feels it is more important for you to lose weight at a quicker pace. For someone who would like to lose 10lbs and is 5'8 and fairly muscular, 1200 calories a day would probably be way too low. My BMR is around 1650. Eating less than 1650 a day long-term would be incredibly unhealthy for me as I would be eating less than my body would need to keep me breathing, digesting, etc if I was in a coma, and thus my body would leech calcium from my bones and break down my muscles for energy in order to compensate.

It's nothing personal. It would be dangerous for me to say drive a bus, since I've never driven one before. But, for a bus driver, it wouldn't be dangerous at all. It's individual.

My doctor gave me that advice based on what * i * want to lose. I want to lose the weight as quickly as I safely can. I don't want to be like some of these people on MFP who STILL have 60 pounds to lose after being on here for 3 whole years. I'm in good overall health, and I'm serious about making my goal. I just don't understand all the people who repeat the "starvation" myth. If one particular person doesn't want to cut their calories that much because it's too difficult for them, fine. But they shouldn't run around spreading misinformation and myths. Not all of us want to take 4 or 5 years to lose the weight, and that's fine, too.

Whoa. I was agreeing that it was fine for you to follow your doctor's orders. You don't have to judge anyone else. It's cool. Do what works for you. That's all I was trying to say. It's individual. Let's stop judging each other. And also, let's relax.

CatMcCheesey

Perfectly relaxed and not judging. To each his own. Hopefully people will research what's best for them and not blindly follow the "starvation" myth people.

BurtHuttz

Perfectly relaxed and not judging. To each his own. Hopefully people will research what's best for them and not blindly follow the "starvation" myth people.

lol